Category Archives: Travel Tips

Handling Airport Delays

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Nobody wants their flight to be delayed but it does happen.  Here are some hints on how to handle possible delays.

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DON’T BOOK TIGHT CONNECTIONS

This is a proactive approach.  If the airline you are flying on has a record of delays and cancellations (info can be obtained from Flight Stats).  If you are going somewhere remote such as an outer island, don’t book your international connection home the same day.

MONITOR YOUR INCOMING FLIGHT ONLINE

Again, Flight Stats is your friend.  If you are traveling from Istanbul to Bangkok, check that the plane left its home airport on time.  FlightAware is also good for this. If the flight hasn’t left Bangkok on time it probably won’t leave Istanbul for the return on time.

WATCH WEATHER REPORTS AND THE NEWS IN YOUR DESTINATION

A few months ago several airlines cancelled flights to Tel Aviv due to the war, then resumed flights a few days later when they decided it was safe.  A volcano in Iceland has been erupting.  Check on anything that could delay or cancel your flight and make contingency plans.

HAVE YOUR AIRLINE’S TOLL FREE NUMBER STORED IN SKYPE

Many people who are traveling overseas won’t have global roaming as it is expensive.  You can use Skype to call any airline’s customer service number for free using wifi.

USE SKYPE OR TWITTER TO LET YOUR HOTELS KNOW

If you will be arriving late, let your hotel know so they don’t give your room away.

KNOW WHAT THE ALTERNATIVES ARE

This may be as simple as the same airline having a flight a few hours later or having to rebook you onto another airline’s flight.  Also know if you are due compensation, this usually only happens if it’s the airline’s fault-mechanical, labour, overbooking, etc.

BE AHEAD OF OTHERS

If there are two of you, have one person wait in line while one of you calls or Skypes the airline.  Have a list of alternatives available such as a list of flights going to the destination.  If you use Flight Stats and Flightaware to monitor your flight, you will be aware of potential delays before the majority of other passnegers.

 

Traveling During Hurricane Season

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Although most people will try to avoid visiting the Caribbean during hurricane season, especially if they are birding, sometimes you just can’t avoid it.  Maybe you can only find award seats then or you are combining a trip to the Caribbean with a family event or conference.  Last year, our trip to Belize in August was a calculated risk so we could stop in California over Labor Day weekend to visit family on the way back to Australia.  This also allowed us to get cheaper hotel rooms as we were traveling in the “Green season” but also managed to hit that lull in the rainy season that usually happens in August.  Conde Nast has some good links to check for weather advisories and other useful tips.

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Belize has in the past been hit by hurricanes but this is a rare occurence.  Most of our trip was inland for birding so my main worry was our flight to BZE being cancelled.  People who have diving or beach holidays planned might have other concerns.  We lucked out and had beautiful weather for our whole trip…………………but on the flip side, we were also covered by travel insurance just in case!

 

 

Do You Know What Countries You Need A Visa For?

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It’s so much easier to visit countries when you either don’t need a visa or you can get one on arrival.  Since I have a lot of trips coming up, I was checking around for Australian citizens and found that Wikipedia has some excellent maps.  The less grey you see, the better!

Find out where YOU can go without a visa!

Australians

Americans

New Zealanders

Canadians

Other countries

Where Australians can go without a visa

New Dengue Vaccine Offers Some Protection

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I wish they would have had this vaccine available before we went to West Papua!  My husband managed to get both dengue and malaria, took him about a week to get it out of his system.  Since many birders travel to exotic places where mosquitoes are rampant, this vaccine would be fantastic!  But always best to avoid being bitten in the first place.

Australian Passport Renewal Timeline

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Australian passports are valid for 10 years and since most countries require you have at least 6 months validity you actually have 9.5 years so sooner or later you have to renew them.

Apply for a passport

Renewals are easily done online, just start at the link above and fill in the form then print it out.  You will need 2 passport photos and you can save money by doing them yourself but make sure they are the right size.

HOW LONG DOES IT TAKE

This is what most people really want to know.  Of course this is addressed on the website.

In Australia the Australian Passport Office is committed to mailing out an eligible applicant’s passport within ten working days of receiving all information and documentation we require.

And you can pay extra for a 2 working day turnaround if you are really desperate.

Our Priority Processing Service guarantees that your passport will be ready for collection or despatch from a Passport Office within two working days of the office receiving everything it needs from you. However, you should allow extra time for Australia Post outlets to forward your application to us and for your passport to reach you by registered mail. There is a fee for this service in addition to the normal passport application fee. This service is not available for applications for full validity passports made overseas, except in London and Washington.

THE TIMELINE IN REAL LIFE

Here’s how it worked out for me.

Monday – Lodged application at my local post office.  Website tracking showed that it had been received.

Tuesday – Tracking showed 40% and the message that the application is being processed.  You can create a PIN by answering a few questions which makes it easier to check in the future.

Wednesday – Tracking still at 40% and it stayed that way all week.

Monday – Still at 40%, getting nervous.

Tuesday – Still 40% and I am getting worried no one has even touched it.  What if my passport photo was the wrong size or something?

Wednesday – Finally moved to 60% and gave message “Your Application has been checked and printing of your passport will commence shortly”.  Greatly relived the application was in order as I am keen to book some tickets asap.  Now I estimate the passports will arrive at home the middle of next week.

Thursday – Checked 09:00, no change.  Checked 11:00, moved to 80% with a new message.   “Your Passport has been printed and a final check on the quality of the document is being carried out.”

Friday – Checked periodically throughout the day, still at 80% by close of business.  Wondering what kind of quality checks are happening.  Dragging it around the mud?  Dropping it in water?  Shaking vigorously?

Monday – Checked a couple times in the morning, still at 80%.  Around 3pm got an email.  “Thank you for your recent application for a passport. Your passport is now being prepared, and will soon be with you. When you receive your passport, please check the personal details page to make sure your biographical information (name, date and place of birth, sex and signature) is correct.”  Logged onto the system and ticker is at 100%!  Message reads “Your Application is ready.”

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Wednesday – Husband’s passport arrives by post.  Wondering where mine is?

Thursday – My passport shows up, big sigh of relief!

So there’s the timeline for two Aussie passport renewals from start to finish about 2 1/2 weeks.  The passports were posted from the processing centre in Canberra and sent to us in the metro Brisbane area.

 

 

Australians Must Use PIN, Not Signature From 1 August

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Most Aussies probably already know that they must use PINs instead of signing from 1 August.  Our credit cards have been PIN enabled for several years so this shouldn’t be a problem.

But if you are coming here as a visitor, don’t worry.  The system will recognize a foreign card that doesn’t have PIN technology and you will be asked to sign.  More information.

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Why You Need Travel Insurance – TV Show “What Really Happens In Bali”

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This new tv show debuted on Australia’s Channel 7 a couple of days ago.  There were some interesting stories, none that had anything to do with eco-tourism but one story did stand out as a warning.

A young girl from Melbourne was partying on a beach with friends and they decided to go cliff diving.  The girl landed badly in the water and broke her back.  Luckily she did have travel insurance but if she didn’t, an air-lift home to Australia could have cost $60,000.  And then there’s the charity worker who gets into a motorbike accident right in front of the cameras!  You can see the whole episode if you are in Australia, otherwise you will probably be IP blocked unless you can get around it.

You can see a snippet of it here.

While I wouldn’t expect eco-tourists to be behaving like these folks, we do travel into remote exotic locations and could have other things go wrong such as being bitten by an animal or slipping on a muddy path.

Although some credit cards come with insurance, I don’t want to rely on them, especially when my trips are paid for in bits and pieces, miles here, cash there with a few hotel points thrown in.  I always buy at least health coverage which doesn’t have to be expensive.  I have never had to claim so can’t advise on how different companies are but you can get some more information using the resources in my other post.

Here’s a sample quote for two weeks in the South Pacific and Bali.  I like this company as you can choose just medical or add more coverage for prepaid travel plans and baggage.

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Travel Planning Technology Of The Future – Does It Go Too Far?

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How many times have you wished the travel planning experience could be easier?  Well be careful what you wish for!  If Skyscanner’s glimpse into the future is any indication, there will be virtual reality devices that know WAY too much about you from your social media networks and plan your trip for you!  And people think Facebook is  a privacy risk!

You could be sitting around home hooked up to a device that uses your past preferences to plan your next trip and book it for you.  Before you decide that’s an awesome thing, consider how much fun it is to do the planning on your own.  Do you really want to have a trip to Brazil booked in the blink of an eye?  Isn’t planning half the fun?

It’s a challenge to put it all together.  Find the flights, figure out what kind of miles you need, how to get the miles and book the flights.  Then you have to choose accommodation and spend hours on Trip Advisor reading reviews to make sure you get the best place for your requirements.  Eco-tourists and birders spend even more time reading trip reports to figure out where the birds are best seen and what time of year to go there.  It’s a LOT of work……………but so rewarding!  I always have a tremendous feeling of satisfaction when I put it all together and get it right.  Occasionally I get it wrong, but I put so much research into my trips I’d say 99% of the time I do get it right.

What do you think?  Do you enjoy the planning as much as the actual trip?  Or do you want a machine to do the planning for you?  Would virtual reality spoil the adventure for you?  For birders, where do you draw the line?  For me, a David Attenborough documentary whets my appetite to be there in person.  Would Google Glass be going too far and negate the reason to travel?  Read through Skyscanner’s website and tell me what you think!