You’ve got your flight tickets reserved, your hotel bookings are an absolute steal and the holiday mood is already upon you despite there being two more weeks of work before that trip to Phuket. There’s a little skip in your step as you picture azure skies and rows of palm trees on beaches that stretch on for miles.
Spring Break is coming up and with it, your annual get-away – it’s time away from your insufferable boss, a break from the daily long trek to the train station, and even a respite from your nagging parents.
As the next two weeks crawl by, as they always do before an anticipated vacation, make sure that you get yourself sorted not only for a fun trip, but a safe one. If you’re traveling with children or an elderly parent, pre-trip preparation becomes even more important. After all, you really don’t want to cut your meticulously planned trip short because of poor health or worse, have to struggle with illness in a foreign country.
Feeling anxious about potential mishaps or incidents during your trip? Fret not, because we’ve put together a short pre-vacation to-do list for you so that you can enjoy your holiday without being plagued incessantly by health issues and come back feeling rejuvenated instead of sickly! Here are a couple of things to do in Leeds before your upcoming holiday:
Make a trip to the nearby pharmacy
Unless you’ve recently been on a similar trip to the one you’re making this Spring, it’s likely that you’ll need to head to the pharmacy to get some essential items. If you’ve already stockpiled them from holidays from years before, make sure to check that they haven’t expired and that there’s enough in the bottles to last you for the week or two that you’re going abroad.
Sunscreen is a must if you’re heading a tropical country but it’s also essential if you’re going to a country that’s not exceptionally hot. Many of us are prone to sunburn and though you might think everything is going fine after traipsing through the streets of Hong Kong all day, you might find out only in the next couple of days that you’ve got a bad case of peeling and sunburn.
Avoid the discomfort and soreness of sunburn and pack one or two tubes of sunscreen in your hand-carry. And make sure that the sunscreen has a suitable Sun Protection Factor (SPF) – when you’re properly covered by SPF 30 sunblock, it’ll take you thirty times longer to experience sunburn than if you left your skin unprotected. So invest in a sunscreen with an SPF of at least 15.
You might also want to grab a couple of mosquito patches or sprays: ideally ones that contain DEET so that you’ll be better protected from these critters and won’t have to spend your holiday sore and red from mosquito bites. Mosquito sprays also minimize the chance of you being bitten and consequently contracting Malaria or Dengue, especially if you’re heading to parts of South East Asia or other tropical areas where these mosquito-borne illnesses are endemic.
Consider investing in anti-histamines and charcoal tablets that your GP might have recommended. It would do you good to be prepared in case your child gets a bad case of hay fever or has the runs after eating something funky. And as you’re grabbing these packs of tablets, it wouldn’t hurt to grab some plasters in case you incur any superficial cuts or wounds and need a quick fix.
Fix an appointment with a travel health clinic
It’s hard to avoid news about malaria outbreaks in South Africa or Yellow Fever scares in Brazil. Moreover, most of you have probably been on at least one trip that was cut short by a particularly nasty bout of food poisoning or ended on a sour note because of an unexpected flu bug.
Maybe these experiences weren’t completely terrible, because you know now that discretion is the better part of valour! You are unlikely to take any more chances and are probably more likely to avoid a situation like that through any necessary means.
The good news is, there’s a surefire way to avoid a potentially life-threatening situation in a foreign country. Isn’t that a relief! Get yourself vaccinated against any endemic diseases in your destination country or against conditions that can be prevented by vaccination.
If you’re heading to regions in Sub-Saharan Africa or Central America, it’s best to opt for a Yellow Fever vaccine and if your holiday destination is Yemen or the Dominican Republic, you might want to consider getting a cholera vaccination and some malaria tablets.
Even if the place that you’ve planned to go to this Spring isn’t necessarily a breeding ground for Hepatitis A or the flu, you could still enjoy some added protection. After all, there’s nothing quite like sipping on a piña colada without the niggling worry that a bout of cholera is creeping up on you from the funky tasting shellfish that you had last night.
If you know that you’re prone to getting the sniffles, opt for a flu shot as well for some extra reassurance. Keep in mind that most of these vaccines take at least a week to take effect and some of them require two doses that have to be administered a week or two (or even a month) apart. So take the safer route and book yourself an appointment with a travel clinic at least a month or two before your trip to get yourself the necessary shots and tablets!
Set Aside a Day for Clothes Shopping
This task on the list isn’t going to warrant too many frowns, we know. Be that as it may, it’s best to make yourself a list of things to get and plan a day of strictly organised shopping rather than go off the path and work yourself a frenzy as it almost always is with shopping sprees. Clothes make or break a trip – a suitably padded jacket or a wide-brimmed hat could make all the difference between a terrible first day and a positively wonderful one.
So before you fly off for your trip this year, do your research per usual about the weather conditions in the city or town that you’re heading to and about the kind of clothes you’ll need to keep yourself sufficiently protected from the cold or heat. Then, make a handy list of the clothing items that you’ll need for this trip.
Make sure you cross-check with your already ample inventory (that is, wade through your overflowing closet) and cross off the items that you already have – you don’t want to bring your count of woolen scarves up to ten. Make a new list of the items that you actually need to buy before your trip – it should be considerably shorter.
If you’re anticipating chilly weather, make sure you find yourself a coat, a warm pair of gloves, thick socks and even a scarf and muffler if necessary. A trip to your local H&M or Primark should do the trick, but if you want to invest in clothing or accessories in the long term or you want something that’s aesthetically pleasing as well as functional, you can chip in a little more and go to your favourite higher-end store in High Street.
Chances are though, that if you’re traveling in Spring and if you’re heading to regions in Asia or Africa, you’re going to be preparing for a scorching Summer instead. It’s not uncommon for older travellers to experience heat strokes, so look for airy and light clothing during your shopping trip. Avoid knitted fabric and velvet and go for thin clothing that’s made of pure cotton or breathable fabric such as polyester. Get yourself a cool pack and wet wipes if you’re particularly bad with hot weather! And don’t forget the hat and sunglasses before you exit the store.
If your current travel pack or daypack can’t fit at least a one-litre water bottle along with wet wipes, back-up clothes (in case you sweat through your first set) and essential medication, grab a new one from your nearest sports store.
Phone your local Travel Insurance Provider
Wide spread scepticism about travel insurance and a general doubt if the pros of getting it actually outweigh the cons will always exist – after all, most people refuse to believe that they’ll be unlucky enough fall ill in South Africa or be involved in a freak accident while paragliding in Bali.
It’s best to be safe rather than sorry though and if you want to ensure that you and your loved ones get the best possible treatment and care in case of an injury, health problem or accident, you should get at least a basic coverage plan.
Treatment and medical transportation is often offered to foreigners at extravagant prices in many countries and if you happen to fall terribly ill in such a country, a travel insurance plan will save you the worry of wondering how many tens of thousands of dollars in medical bills you’re racking up.
It’s not just that – many such insurance providers also offer 24-hour assistance in case you find yourself in a pickle. This includes guiding you during medical emergencies and directing you to the nearest hospital or health service provider so that you don’t drive to a hospital that’s miles away or head into a dangerous part of town in a frenzied state.
There are some real benefits to being covered during your trip, especially health-wise, so even if you’re one of the sceptics, you may want to give a call to a travel insurance provider and find out more about the plans they offer and the benefits of coverage before you dismiss the notion completely.
These tasks will only add a day or two to your usual pre-trip routine – that is, if you haven’t already been doing them religiously before every trip. The clock is ticking and holiday time is approaching, so what are you waiting for? Get started by getting yourself protected!
