With the travel season well underway, we are sending off clients every day. When they initially make their booking, we include a booklet of travel tips to help our clients prepare for their trip, but we have also found that it is nice to throw in a few friendly reminders as their departure date approaches. The following is a list of some important suggestions for traveling abroad.
- Prior to departure, make copies of your passport, itinerary, and hotel list to leave with a family member or friend. Keep a copy of your passport with you as well. If you lose your passport while abroad, it is very difficult to obtain a new one unless you have the proper documentation.
- Pack lightly. Especially with airlines now imposing luggage fees, it is important that you pack conservatively. Scandinavian Airlines has a 44 lbs. maximum weight requirement, much less than the U.S. standard. Additionally, when you travel independently, you may have to transfer your luggage from express boats, rail stations, airports, etc. and the lighter your luggage is, the less work for you. Don’t forget to leave space for souvenirs!
- Pack in layers. The climate in Scandinavia varies by location, especially in places with drastic landscapes such as in Norway and Iceland. You might be spending one day in the mountains and the next day in the valley or along the breezy southern coast. Some days could be sunny and others could be windy with a chill. Because of this, we always advise our clients to bring layers in order to accommodate the changing weather.
- Please do look over your documents at least two weeks before you are leaving. Although we take great pains to ensure every aspect of your trip is planned to perfection, we admit to being human, and that we have made mistakes. They are always minor and when caught in advance, easy to amend. Furthermore, we want to ensure that you understand all of your documents and are comfortable with your final itinerary. Travel is an ambitious endeavor, but we want you to know that you are in good hands. We love questions, from the seemingly silly to the somewhat complex. Each time a question is asked, it is an opportunity for us to fine-tune our expertise and presentation.
- Make all special requests in advance. As standard procedure, we book all of our clients in non-smoking rooms unless requested otherwise. Additionally, we tend to book upgraded rooms instead of standard. This is because room size in Scandinavia is significantly smaller than what we are used to in the U.S. If you have any dietary needs, room requirements, or health concerns, please let us know ahead of time so that we can accommodate you at the time of booking hotels.
We invite you to learn more at our pages dedicated to Finland travel; Iceland tours and Iceland travel; Norway tours, Norway travel and a Norwegian coastal voyage; St. Petersburg travel and Sweden travel.
