Prepping for the journey
I’ll admit it — I’m that weirdo who loves the actual travel part of a vacation. Packing is like an IRL version of Tetris. Flying? It’s a miracle! You’re six miles above the ground in a 175,000-pound tube and someone is giving you a TV dinner and cheap wine while you’re marathoning movies.
You’re probably not like me. So here’s a little help.
The New York Times built a stellar guide on how to pack a suitcase. In general, buy slightly smaller luggage than you think you’ll need, lay out all of your items before you pack and edit them like you’re editing your writing and use techniques like rolling or tools like travel cubes to keep everything compact.
The Times recommends a 5-4-3-2-1 formula for packing (for a five-day trip, pack five undergarments, four shirts, three pants, two pairs of shoes and a hat. Your mileage may vary on that (ba dum tss) depending on your destination and usual style of dress. You’ll also obviously need to pack things that aren’t clothes. Here’s a remarkably thorough list for that.
If you’re a gadgety type, Wirecutter has a fantastic list of gizmos and thingamabobs to make your vacation a little bit easier, from suitcases all the way down to undies. I’m testing the travel clothesline during this trip and I know you’re all on pins and needles about my review.
Then there’s the work angle. As I write this, the week before I leave, my to-do list has grown so massive that it risks blocking out the sun. If you’re a freelancer, Creative Boom has some great advice for prepping for a vacation (and a logo with moving eyeballs that I played with for 10 straight minutes). It’s tremendous advice for anyone, really. If you’re a manager or business owner, Look and Feel Branding also has some solid advice to follow (which, again, can be useful for almost anyone).
Not coincidentally, both emphasize unplugging while you’re there. My first task after making it through airport security is to turn off all of the notifications and badges for my work apps. You could also drag them all to an out-of-the-way folder or delete them outright. Just get them off your homescreen and out of your notifications. You’re traveling to re-energize and avoid burnout — you can’t do that if you’re carrying the source in your pocket.
Hitting the skies
My body tweaks out when I fly from Florida to New Orleans, let alone somewhere with more than a one-hour time zone difference. I’ve always assumed the solution to jetlag is either pharmacological or to just smile through the exhaustion and be happy that I’m privileged enough to fly so far from home.
But there’s an app for that.
I’m currently testing Timeshifter, an app that creates a personalized itinerary for beating jetlag. Its recommendations begin three days before the flight — with tips on when to start and stop drinking coffee, when to expose yourself to and limit bright light, when to head to bed and even when to pop a melatonin. My compatriots for this trip have been skeptical, but it has to be better than nothing. I’ll update you with results.
Sleeping in the airport is another great way to mitigate jetlag. There’s no better place to catch a quick snooze than in a comfortable and relatively quiet airport lounge, but who has the dough for that? You might. Kara and Nate, two of the travel vloggers I mentioned, put together a guide to accessing airport lounges, even if you’re not a high-flying business class type (signup required; they’ve never emailed me). And of course there’s an app for that, too. LoungeBuddy tells you what it takes to get into airport lounges around the world and whether they’re worth the cost.
Airports seem to be improving the quality of their restaurants and amenities all the time. The trick is finding the good stuff when you’re on a time crunch and an accessible set of golden arches is right there in front of you. Trippie is the invisible hand to guide you from fast food to good food.
If you’re traveling into or out of the U.S., the Global Entry program allows you to skip through the customs lines. But it also costs $100 every five years and has a massive wait time in many parts of the country. Use the Mobile Passport app to get the same customs benefits (sadly, it doesn’t help with that whole TSA process like Global Entry does) for the low price of free.
When you're there
At this point, I’m mostly going to leave you to take your own vacation.
But it wouldn’t be a Try This! newsletter if I didn’t grouse about digital security. On Medium, The New York Times is back with advice about how to protect your phone when you travel. Turn on Find My Phone/Device and consider sharing it with a loved one back home. Check with your carrier about data charges and insurance. And put emergency information on your lock screen.
They don’t list it here, but consider using a VPN if you’re traveling to a country that monitors traffic or blocks websites. TunnelBear is easy to use and will only cost you $10 for a month.
If you’ve mapped out your trip or plan to use your phone’s GPS to get around, use Google Maps’ download feature to limit your data usage and reliance. You can either navigate to the “Offline maps” section of the app by tapping ≡ on the top left of the app, or download a map you’re viewing by typing “ok maps” into the search bar (h/t @starsandrobots for that cool tip).
There is one other app that blows Google off the map. It comes with three big “ifs.” If you’re traveling to one of 40 major cities, if you have a reliable data connection and if you can handle an app that loves to drink down your phone’s battery, CityMapper can’t be beat. It can tell you how to get anywhere in a city, through just about any means of locomotion, and how much time each will take.
And let’s dispense with the farce. Even if you don’t post it to Instagram, you know you’re going to snap pics of your food. Here’s The New Yorker’s Helen Rosner on how to take pretty pictures of food.
No matter where you go and what you do there, whether it’s a staycation under the covers or a multinational trip across the globe, make sure you’re taking the time you deserve to care for yourself. Travel is optional, but a little R&R every now and then is paramount.
Adios, auf Wiedersehen and sayonara,
Ren LaForme
P.S. I’ll likely be offline next Tuesday as I restock my digital library and hit up Washington, D.C., and New York for Poynter's Innovation Tour. I’ll be back with your usual newsletter the first week of November!
|
