Official Government Resources

• U.S. State Department travel advisories
• National Passport Information Center
• U.S.Customs and Border Patrol
• CIA World Factbook
• Directory of U.S. Embassies worldwide

Health

• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
• Travel Health Online

Weather

• Weather.com
• World Climate.com

Money Matters

• O and A.com (currency converter)

Language and Tourism

• Travelang (translations of basic traveler expressions in 80 languages)
• Tourism Offices Worldwide Directory (links to all tourism offices in the United States and overseas)

But I’ve discovered that if I pack ahead of time and get most of the items into boxes and ready to go, it gives me a window of time where I can make a mental checklist and figure out what I forgot to pack.

I’ve also discovered that shipping the boxes is a lot easier and faster and more reliable than having them jammed into the back of a friend’s car.  So my first tip is to contact Luggage Ahead and have your boxes shipped back to school.

Luggage Ahead has been a terrific find – really makes things much easier.  It’s an emotional time, why make it that much more stressful than it has to be?

In addition to the tip about shipping your college stuff back to school, here’s a short list of the top 10 things that may be helpful in the dorm, and which are frequently forgotten:

• Flashlight (great for reading at night or finding things in the dark)
• Toolkit (Screwdriver, hammer, things like that.  You never know when you may need them)
• Duct Tape (There is a whole culture about things you can do with duct tape. Suffice it to say, it always comes in handy!)
• Febreeze (Hey, we are talking college kids, right.  ‘Nuff said!)
• First Aid Kit (Bandages, neosporin, bactine, essentials)
• Iron (May be used for toasting bread in addition to ironing.  What kid irons?)
• Instant Hem Ribbon (Yep, this is why they needed the iron – easier than sewing for a quick repair)
• Needle and thread (Why? Buttons!)
• Underbed bin (Great place for additional storage)
• Laptop Lock (Yes, they do get stolen – better to be prepared than not)

What other items do you recommend?

It is one of the most wonderful and terrifying times of the year, but it’s a ritual of growing up that we lived through!

In the travel brochure, some cruise lines will indicate wheelchair accessible rooms.  It’s a great advertising feature however the information may not be reliable.  Check with your travel agent or directly with the cruise line about their accessibility and what restrictions the brochure may not have indicated.

Shipping your wheelchair ahead is a good idea.  Not all cruise ships have rental wheelchair equipment, and even when they do, the equipment may not be in very good condition.   Shipping your wheelchair ahead has the advantage of taking the wheelchair to the dock of the cruise ship – and most airports have porters who can escort you via wheelchair within the airport.

Not having to worry about whether your wheelchair has made it to the destination should be a great relief.

Ask the cruise line directly about the width of doorways and also about any impediment to your ability to move your wheelchair freely through the cruise ship.  Most cruise ships have a lip or raised sill by many of the doors that separate the outside elements from the interior spaces.  This is typically done on ships to prevent water from sloshing inside, but it could be a barrier for a wheelchair.  The best source of good information about how this may affect your ability to maneuver is the cruise line itself.

Also important is to ask for seating that is accessible for meals.  Some cruise ships have elaborate dining areas on multiple levels.  Best to ask in advance for seating that is on the main level and near the entry to assure that your requirements are met.

Ports of call vary in the depth of their harbor and whether the cruise ship can dock or not.  Day excursions and tenders are another potential situation that you should inquire about.  Tender are used when the ship can not dock in the port.  This could be due to the depth of the port, the size of the ship, the number of ships already in the port or other factors.  What this means is that  passengers are ferried or tendered back and forth between the ship and the mainland.  Sometimes the ramps to the small tenders are steep and may not be able to handle a wheel chair.  Ask in advance whether there will be any problems with accessing the ports of call – this may determine your itinerary.

Knowing what to ask and planning ahead can make cruising a real pleasure.  Notifying the cruise line in advance of your needs is a smart travelers best advice.

Helpful tips to avoid jet lag:

1. Drink water: The air in the cabin is very dry, and it’s not uncommon to become dehydrated.  Drink plenty of fluids – preferably water.

2. Going along with the idea of drinking water -   Sometimes the plane does not have enough bottled water in the cabin for all of the passengers.  You want to be sure that the bottle you are given is unopened when you get it. If you can imagine,  ‘tap’ water on the plane has been stored in tanks, and is less than ideal as drinking water.   If you are able to purchase a bottle of water after you get through security and before you board the plane, it would be a good idea to do so  and bring your own water on the plane.
3. Alcohol on the plane is also very dehydrating and rumor has it the effects are amplified when flying – due to the air pressure and altitude.  Skip the drink and stick to water. If the flight attendants are out of water, fruit juice is preferable to soda, again because most soda has a lot of sodium.
4. Food on the plane is usually salty – adding to the dehydrating effect. The best thing to eat on the plane is fruit. Even the salty pretzels (they used to serve peanuts but now most planes don’t because of peanut allergies) are dehydrating.  Try to stick to less processed and higher protein items – remember that the meals on the plane are cooked twice, with also tends to dry them out.   Regardless, you want to eat light, if at all.  Nothing worse than having a heavy meal and then not having a way to walk it off.
5. Speaking of walking off a meal, another tip is to take a walk around the plane when you are allowed.  It’s good to stretch your legs and keep your blood flowing. There have been cases of thrombosis (blood clots) that have developed in passengers on long cross continental flights.  It’s not common, but it has happened.

6. Exercise by stretching in place if you cannot get up and walk around.  There are some exercises you can do at  your airplane seat that keep your muscles flexible and your blood circulating.  For example, just rotating your ankles while you are seated helps to flex your feet and stimulate blood flow.

7. I do like to kick off my shoes while I am on the plane.  Take along a pair of socks or thin slippers that you can pop out of your bag to slip on your feet.  Having your feet encased in restrictive shoes can be uncomfortable, especially if you are on a long flight and your feet tend to swell a bit.
8. Sleep on the plane if you can, but whether you do sleep or don’t sleep, you want to be sure that you do not take a nap when you arrive at your destination.  Stay up to ten or eleven at night, this will help you become acclimated to the new time schedule.

9. If you thought about it in advance and shipped your luggage ahead, you could really relax on the flight with the assurance of knowing that your luggage would be waiting for your arrival, at your hotel room or other destination.   What a relief it would be to not have to worry about getting to the baggage claim and fighting the throng to carry those heavy bags.

10. Make plans now for your next trip to ship your luggage! With luggage ahead, you don’t have to stress about your bags being lost.

Hope these tips are helpful to make your flight more relaxing and to avoid jet lag on your next flight.

Business travel - be confident about your luggage arrival

Whether it is packing for business travel, or packing your suitcase for a celebration or a special travel destination, these tips on how to pack a suit in your suitcase will come in handy!

Direction on how to pack a suit so that it’s not a wrinkled mess when you arrive, follow these simple steps:

Instructions

Step 1
 -  Fill your suitcase with the other clothing and items you need before you attempt to add your suit.  The suit should be last because you want it to be tightly packed.   The suitcase will need to be nearly full in order to pack the suit tight.

Step 2 – To add the suit, you’ll need to lay it down across the top of the almost full suitcase.  Situate the garment so that the collar is below the hinges of the top of the suitcase – have the rest of the jacket laying flat and extending over the handle side of the suitcase – we’ll deal with the part that hangs over in a later step.  Make sure the jacket is smooth and that there are no creases or wrinkles.   Next,  fold the arms over the front of the suit, taking care to assure that they are flat and not wrinkled.

Step 3
 – Place the pants of the suit on top of the suit jacket, but place them across the jacket sideways.  The top of the pants, or the waist should be lined up with the shoulder and  the legs will hang over the outside of the case.  We’ll allow the legs to dangle there for now and move to the next step.

Step 4
 -  Now we will continue to fold the jacket. Fold the bottom of the jacket over the legs of the pants toward the hinge of the suitcase.  The jacket should be completely within the suitcase now.

Step 5
 -  Next, we’ll take care of the pants that were dangling over the edge. Fold the pants legs toward the waist line of the pants and over the suit jacket.

There you have it – The packing is complete.  Now when  you arrive at your destination, you can be sure that your suit will come out of the suitcase looking great.

Summer time is vacation time, and many people love to travel this time of year. There is an abundant offering of great get-a-way vacation deals which make affordable travel an option.

Traveling Information To The Rescue

Whether your trip is for personal travel or business travel, it’s great to be prepared.  Before you head to the airport get the information you may need to plan your travel.  For example, is your flight delayed?  What will the weather be like at the destination?  How will you get from the airport to your hotel?

We’ve gathered together a list of travel information websites with valuable information to prepare for your trip.  Here are some of the transportation related sites that we find incredibly helpful.  If you have other vacation websites or travel websites you would like to share, please send us a comment or note.

Travel Information Website Links

• How To Get Your Passport
• Information About Airport Delays
• Flight Status
• Mileage Calculator
• Maps
• Rail Info and Updates
• Information About Carry -Ons (TSA)
• International Visa and Passport Requirements
• Current International Travel Warnings
• National (US) Road Travel Info And Closures

It’s always a good idea to check whether your flight is leaving on time, as well as planning to get to the airport at least 90 minutes to an hour before departure for domestic flights, or two hours for international travel.  Check-in times vary with the season – holiday check-in times are typically longer, as are busy flight times.  In addition, add at least 1/2 hour to check your bags, more time to check them if you are carrying unusual shaped items such as wheel chairs, or surfboards.

Carry-on bags are now assessed a charge from some airlines, and there are size and content restrictions that limit what you can bring. If you intend to bring your bags with you, allow even more time for lines when checking in, as well as the the check-in process.  Most airlines allow you to print your boarding pass the night before.  If you’ve shipped your luggage ahead, this will be the fastest and most convenient way to check in for your  flight.

Luggage Ahead offers the convenience of shipping your luggage from your door to your destination.  Especially if you are shipping unusual size items, such as golf clubs, bicycles or other sports equipment, consider having your luggage shipped with Luggage Ahead’s convenient, easy-to-use and reliable service.