There is no shortage of people on the web claiming to have “expert” advice about travel: How to manage it, how to avoid problems, on and on. Like anything else you read on the Internet, it’s important to take travel advice with a grain of salt.
As examples, we found some of the most egregious and outdated tips:
- Book hotel reservations as far ahead as possible. — This tip is an unfortunate leftover from another time. These days, hotel rates and other travel costs change constantly. Making your reservations many months in advance could mean paying some obscene prices. However, wait until the last minute (especially for a destination that is hosting a particular event) and you could pay even more obscene prices. To find a happy medium, do some research on prices ahead of time, so you have a gauge. Then book when you see the prices are good.
- Exchange money in the U.S. before you leave. — This is another leftover that should have gone the same way as “carry traveler’s checks.” Exchange rates vary often, and the best rates are usually at the ATMs in the country where you are traveling. Plus, credit cards that waive foreign transaction fees are readily available.
- Carry lots of U.S. dollars. — While the word’s political troubles ebb and flow, and you will need some U.S. cash on hand, don’t bring more than you need to get yourself out of a jam. Unless all the ATMs and every single one of your credit cards fails or is stolen (hardly likely), the risk of losing all your cash in a mugging or robbery is a far greater concern.
- Travel when you’re young, rest when you’re older. — For some reason, this particular myth reappears every decade or so. On top of not being founded in any sort of fact, this idea can leave a bad taste in the mouths of older travelers. Anyone can travel at any age in their life, and that’s all that needs to be said about that.
- This is the real way to travel. — This tip assumes that every person should travel in a particular way, when it’s really more important to travel the way that you feel is right for you. Like the excitement and energy you find in hostels? Nothing wrong with that. Prefer the experience of a hotel? That’s your prerogative.
Every trip is important to each traveler for different reasons. Even the most mundane trip is an opportunity for an experience, a bit of adventure, and a lesson in something we’ve never experienced.