While you can get your trip off to a good start by carefully considering your cheap travel options and then purchasing cheap airplane tickets and discount hotel rooms or cheap vacation packages, once you arrive there are steps you can take that will help ensure your vacations success.
The following are Independent Travelers tips for things that should be done during the first 24 hours of a trip:
Upon arrival take note of the fastest and easiest way to return home, including reviewing your airports layout and amenities, the distance from the car rental area to the terminal, a good place to buy gas before returning your rental, and asking at the hotel about check out times and whether you can depart without stopping at the front desk.
Instead of grabbing food wherever and whatever is available use Yelp, Urbanspoon, TripAdvisor or one of many other listing sites and apps to decide in advance where you will enjoy a good meal.
If you travel between time zones, reset your watch as well as your internal clock. Assume the daily rhythms of your new time zone including the types of food you usually eat at different times of the day.
Upon arriving at your hotel put your stuff down and get outside. Walk, familiarize yourself with your surroundings and take in fresh air/exercise. Make a point of doing this the morning after you arrive as well. Sunlight alerts the brain and body to the time of day.
If you are one of a large percentage of Americans who have a caffeine addition of some type, whether to coffee or cola, your body may be demanding a caffeine fix that may play havoc with your sleep that night and your energy the next day. Consuming a sugarless cola often helps avoid headaches and cravings but does not interfere with sleep.
Take a camera your first day out since this is when your eye will be the freshest and you never know what you will come across something really special.
If traveling internationally, bring the appropriate adapters, and proceed to fully charge your electronics.
If you are traveling with valuable items, secure those valuables upon arrival, either in a safe in your room, or a safe behind the front desk, or hide them in your clothes.
Once at your destination let someone close to you know that you have arrived safely and how you can be reached, whether by phone or email.
Check the long term forecast when you arrive and then decide whether you should schedule outdoor or indoor activities and what clothes should be worn. www.cheapfares.com