These international travel hacks and tips are a culmination of 20+ years of travelling. Being a regular traveller you try new things, learn tips from other travellers, pick things up from watching other people and sometimes learn the hard way what works and what doesn’t. Use my international travel hacks guide to start travelling smarter, cheaper, sooner and for longer, without the trial and error.

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BOOKING INTERNATIONAL FLIGHT HACKS

(& FINDING CHEAP DEALS)

• Search in an incognito browser – You surely would’ve seen flight prices increase as you search, right? Websites use cookies stored in your internet browser to keep track of the flights you’re searching for and raise prices to create a sense of urgency that the seats are selling. Therefore you think you’re about to miss out and purchase the higher priced tickets…..No! Don’t do it. International travel is expensive enough without paying more than you have to. One of the best international travel hacks around in my opinion! Use this travel hack on a desktop by selecting the three little dots on the top right corner. From there select “new incognito browser” or alternatively hit Ctrl+Shift+N. Follow the screenshot instructions below for mobile.

• Be flexible with your travel dates and times. The best way to grab a deal is to not be locked into a certain destination or set dates 

• Book at random times of the early morning or late evening. Less people are online and searching

• Don’t book your flights when there are school holidays, major holidays or events. Prices go through the roof and the number of people at the destination naturally increases

• Likewise avoid travelling in the high seasons in the Northern and Southern hemispheres. Generally speaking this is the summer months.

• For countries along the equator check specifically when the best time to travel is. Being on the equator they’ll always be hot, but may be more humid, or more rainy at certain times in the year

• Book your trip for the shoulder season or even better and cheaper the low season. Shoulder season are the months surrounding summer, so think Spring and Autumn

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• If you are going for those specific reasons (eg holidays like Christmas) book well in advance. 4-7 months seems to be the agreed upon time frame for advanced bookings

• Use budget airlines for short haul. Because there are no bells and whistles be prepared with snacks and don’t fuss over where you sit. Budget airlines are an absolute must in your international travel hacks arsenal. Ensure you read the fine print, so you’re not stung for costs at the airport or on board

• Sign up for email alerts with Airfarewatchdog, I know the pilot, Scott’s cheap flights. Therefore, the deals on flights are sent straight to your inbox and sometimes before being released to the “general public”

• Book your flights separately if they have a stop over. Instead of booking from Sydney to London, for example, with a stop over in Asia (eg Singapore or Malaysia) with the one airline. Play around with your searches and compare costs to book, for instance, the SYD-SIN and the SIN-LDN legs separate and maybe even with different airlines. You may bag yourself a good cost saving. Just make sure you leave yourself enough time between flights as you may need to collect your bags and re check with the other airlines. Always read the fine print for each booking.

• If you’re travelling in a group book each seat separately. Seats are priced differently depending where they are. An aisle or window seat will cost more than a middle seat. However, when it comes to purchasing groups of tickets, say a family/group of 5 with 2 windows, 2 middle and 1 aisle seats, for instance, the airline will charge you the cost of the most expensive seat x5, instead of pricing each seat for what it is actually “worth”. Therefore, you’re spending more than you need to. Simply purchase 5 individual tickets and don’t bother about selecting seats if it costs you more and you’re not concerned about sitting next to each other. Alternatively, let the check in crew at the counters select your seats once you arrive at the airport. They’ll do their best to get you next to each other or as close as possible.

I first heard about this hack from Nomadic Matt

• Always read the terms and conditions of your ticket. Understand what’s included and what is going to cost you more. For example, excess luggage, food in flight, be aware of extra hidden charges.

• Use the right websites and apps. For my top apps read this post and if you’re using a search engine for flights like Skycanner or Momondo, always go directly to the airlines own site to confirm which has the best deal and book accordingly. As a result, you might find something cheaper on an airlines own site

• Fly with carry on only. A lot of people can and do travel with just carry on due to the fact that a lot of airlines charge for check baggage

• Try finding error fares eg secretflying.com. Because the airline industry is so complex, errors are bound to happen mostly as a result of human error. Therefore, some fares are listed with the wrong prices. Bad for them, Great for us! Maybe a zero is missing or a complete wrong number added or dropped altogether from the price. Boom! Sweet discounts for us. Use a site that does all the groundwork for you like Secretflying.com and be flexible with your times and dates. Above all, being as open as possible about the places you travel to when using these sites, could result in you really nabbing yourself a bargain

• Pick the right location within your budget. There’s no point booking a trip to a high end destination if you really can’t afford it or afford to do all the things you want to. Or even worse putting yourself in debt over a trip you really couldn’t afford. For that reason, always travel within your budget, you’ll enjoy yourself so much more

• Book your seats using the sandwich method. If you do decide to reserve your seats on the flight and you’re a couple, book the window and aisle seat. When other people are booking their seats they are less likely to select a random solo middle seat. Therefore, if all goes to plan you could score yourselves an extra seat to stretch across. If someone does book the seat simply ask them to switch to the window or aisle so you can sit together

• Pay for your flights in a different currency. Select the currency of the country you’re in, or maybe even another alternative foreign currency. The flights are often cheaper than in your home currency. Just be aware of the currency conversion costs when using this method. Crunch all the numbers before going ahead

• Cross reference a number of apps and websites. You want to get THE best deal. Don’t just use one search engine

PACKING HACKS

• Roll your clothes. It’s space saving and you’ll get less creasing in your clothing

• Transfer perfume to a small atomiser. Who wants to carry around a full perfume bottle that’s heavy or could break and leak. Transfer your favourites into smaller, hand sized atomisers. You could take a number of different scents by downsizing to an atomiser

• Take a small bottle of laundry detergent. Similarly, some laundry pods. Great for hand washing in the sink, or at your Airbnb. Plus it saves you having to go searching when you arrive at your destination

• Stuff your shoes. Fill them up with your socks or underwear. There’s valuable space in those shoes

• Take a hair straightener. Not only can you style your hair ,ladies but they actually double as an iron for your clothes if they become creased

• Don’t pack bulky items. If you need them wear them to the airport

• Buy solid toiletries. Instead of liquids like shampoo, conditioner, deodorant buy bars instead. There are many companies these days that make solid toiletry bars. Therefore, if you travel with carry on only, you’ll have no worries with the 100ml liquid limit

• Pack some of your favourite local coffee sachets. That way you’ll never miss out on a decent coffee, if you can’t find one in your next destination. Plus they’re super light weight and easy to carry in handbags/day-packs

• Pack a “miscellaneous” comfort pack. Include things such as padlocks, a small microfiber towel, earplugs and spare eye mask in case you lose something. Also, if your accommodation  (mostly hostels) doesn’t provide you with them or wants to charge you for them, you’ve already got them ready to go

PRE-TRAVEL HACKS

• Email a scanned copy of your passport and credit cards to yourself. In case you lose them, or need copies for any reason

• Set up ‘shortcuts’ on your smartphone. Shortcuts, or text replacements, are fab for your email address and personal info. They’re super easy to set up and use, so when you’re making bookings on the fly you only need to key in your shortcut instead of your full email each time. You can also do this for phone numbers and credit cards! On iPhone’s head to Settings, General, Keyboard, Text Replacement

• Set up a Google sheet itinerary. Then share the document with friends or family. They’ll, therefore, have access to your flight details, accommodation, transportation and so on. Finally, put it into a shared drive like Dropbox or Google drive. Update it as you need and it’ll give your family at home a feeling of comfort knowing your plans

• Carry spare passport sized photos. Go to your local post office, or wherever you get your PP sized photos taken and carry some spare with. You’ll need them for Visas on arrival and possibly to get a local SIM card, like in India for example

• Keep in touch. Download WhatsApp, Skype, Facetime or Zoom for ease of staying in touch

• Always have something to watch. Download the Netflix app and any shows you want, whilst you have WiFi. You can watch your favourite eps, or movies while offline, which is great for those long bus/train journeys

• Get the equivalent of $100 in the local currency before you leave. Carry a small amount on you so you have taxi, food, tip money on hand and don’t have to exchange at the airport or use an airport ATM. The exchange rates are awful and you may get slugged a fee

• Turn off data roaming. Before you step onto the plane turn off roaming. You don’t want to be slugged with any ugly international roaming fees and make sure you phone is unlocked if you are intending to use local SIM’s

• Let your bank know you’re travelling. Advising your bank before you travel internationally will prevent them from randomly stopping the use of your cards when you start using it in another country. It is a great security measure on behalf of the banks, as they may assume your card has been stolen, so they stop it immediately. It becomes a real headache if you forget or didn’t know you needed to let them know

• Take more than one card. Always have more than one way to access your money. Whether it’s a foreign currency card and a debit/credit card or two debit cards for the same account. Always leave the second card at your accommodation, so if something happens to the card you have with you, you’ve still got access to money

• Register your international travel plans with a Government Website. Sites such as smartraveller.gov.au are great for registering your whereabouts and movements. If something happens (think natural disaster, terrorist attack, pandemic etc) whilst you’re overseas your Consulate knows where you are and will get you help/home as quickly as possible

• Get all the correct entry Visas. Make sure you have all the required entry visas well before your flight and you know and understand the entry requirements. For example, do you need a return ticket before you board your flight? (looking at you Brazil and The Philippines) Check the local government websites for requirements and how to apply before you try to enter the country

• Learn a few basic phrases in the local language. This will not only help you but it’s common courtesy. It goes a long way with the locals if you can greet them and say a few basic sentences

GADGET & TECH TRAVEL HACKS

• Use Google Maps to “star” locations. Star locations such as accommodation, transportation, tour operators, cafes and so on. Use it to plan your routes, walking tours, road trips etc

• Take a small power bank. There’s nothing worse than running out of battery on your phone or another gadget. Keep it in your day pack for when you’ve drained your battery by taking one too many photos

• Take a personal WiFi hot-spot. If you opt not to purchase a local SIM, then a personal hot-spot is the next best option. Have it on, in your bag while you’re out and about and be connected no matter where you are. My recommendation for hot spots is SkyRoam. You can buy day passes or opt for a month long subscription for longer term travel

• Take your smartphone. Duh! Make sure you have downloaded all the apps you need so you can make bookings good travel decisions on the fly. Check my must have travel apps to ensure you’ve got all the ones you need

• Blue tooth noise cancelling headphones are a must. Think of all those planes, buses and trains that you are going to be travelling on, or those hotels with thin walls or noisy hostel rooms. You can thank me later

• Create your own travelling entertainment unit. Take a zip-loc bag and use bulldog clips for your phone or iPad to create your own screen on the back of the chair in front of you on planes, buses and trains

• Take a power strip. We all have so many gadgets these days that need charging. Take a power strip and only one international converter for the wall and charge all your devices at once

• Take a small external hard drive. If you’re a photographer or even just a hobbyist, having an external hard drive (with a minimum of 1TB of space) to back up all your photos is going to save you worrying about memory cards. You can back up your photos each night and leave the external drive securely in your room. If your camera is then lost or stolen, your photos are all safe

• Utilise the Google suite of products. Whether on your laptop and phone, all the information is synced across devices and can be accessed on your phone anytime by selecting the “use offline” button (you must click this button whilst you’re still online)

• Take screenshots. If you don’t have a local SIM or a personal WiFi hot-spot take screenshots of important information eg flight details, address etc and create a photo album in your phone. That way you can access your info when asking for directions or showing your Uber driver

• Use this iPhone travel hack for quick conversions. On iPhones swipe right and just type in your request and it comes up without having to open any specific apps. It’s great for quick currency, weight and temperature conversions. 

• Are you going to be taking photos? Silly question! Make sure you clear up as much storage as you can before you leave home. Use the cloud, Google Drive, Dropbox or an external hard drive to clear existing photos. Or clean up your smart phone by deleting old music playlists, apps you no longer use and all those text messages 

• Get super quick access to apps. Simply press and hold on certain apps for easy access without having to open them up. Check out these screenshots

• Utilise all the functions on Google lens. For easy translations, image searches, shopping, dining options and quick text definitions. Click this symbol in the search bar

• Save important websites to your iPhone home screen. If there is a website that you want quick access to, save it to your home screen by following the images below. You do need to search from safari, not the google app to achieve this

AIRPORT HACKS

• Don’t wear lace up shoes. Wear something that is easily slid on and off so you can breeze through security 

• Have everything ready for security. Your electronics and your clear plastic toiletry bag need to be out before you join the security line. Don’t be that person!

• Take an empty reusable water bottle with you. Simply fill up at a water station once you pass security

• Check in online. Save time at the airport and just do bag drop once you arrive and head straight for the security line

• Make use of free massage/foot massage chairs. If the airport has them, use them. They are great to ease sore muscles and get the blood flowing before or after a long international flight

• Find the free WiFi spot. Most airports these days have free WiFi, however some give you limited time or you have to pay for it. Alternatively head toward the First/business class lounges and sync up just outside the door.

• Take your own snacks. No-one wants to spend crazy amounts of money on airport food

• Make use of the face creams. Head to the nearest duty free beauty department and lather your face for free. The flight you’re about to get on is going to zap your skin of all its moisture. Please be super vigilant and use 100% safe hygiene practices. My rec is to only use the creams that are in tubes so you know it’s clean and fresh cream. The last thing you want is other peoples germs lathered over your face…..gross!

• Get to the airport early. Again, not a travel hack of sorts, just common sense. You want to be able to relax before the flight and not be rushing through security or to your gate. Worse yet miss your flight altogether. Seems simple and logical but the amount of people I see racing through the airport is crazy

• Mark your bag as fragile. This is one of the best international travel hacks and one I’ve used many times. Grab as many fragile tags or better yet ask for fragile tape from the check in crew, and make your bag really stand out with fragile labels. It will be treated with greater care and more often than not it will be the last on the plane therefore the first off and onto the belt for collection. No more wasting time waiting and more time getting out the airport

• Don’t select your seat online if you’re a solo traveller. When you get to the check in counter offer to sit in the exit row. If it’s available it should be AT NO COST. Most people don’t purchase the exit rows as they are the most expensive but the airlines need them full in case of an emergency. I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve sat in the exit row for free! Hello leg room

• Sit on the left hand side of the plane. Have you noticed the aircraft door is always on the left, hence that side is generally the first to begin disembarkation

• Have a copy of the airport saved into your phone. Screenshot a map so you’ll  know exactly where you need to go when you arrive/land

• Wear your bulkiest items to the airport. Avoid heavy bags and  excessive baggage costs

IN FLIGHT HACKS

• Wipe down all surfaces with disinfectant wipes. Nuf said!

• Don’t sit by the bulkhead. This is the area between cabins or sections of the plane. Babies are generally sat here or at least near the bulkhead due to their bassinets. You’ll also get smaller entertainment screens and all your belongings need to be kept in the overhead compartment. 

• Do sit in the bulkhead! If you don’t mind any of those previously mentioned things. Oh and also if you have long legs and don’t want to pay for the exit row

• Take comfort items on board. Noise cancelling headphones, eye mask, long socks, neck pillow, lavender oil (helps you sleep) sleeping pills. Whatever it is that you need to feel comfortable and get some sleep, take it, especially for international travel and fighting jet lag. Skip down to my jet lag fighting hacks for international travel.

• Get up! Walk around, move your body, do in-seat stretches, what ever you choose. Make sure you keep the blood pumping and you don’t remain seated for too long, especially on long haul international flights

• Take a pen on board and fill in your paperwork. As soon as you board your international flight, fill in your arrival and immigration card and declaration. Therefore, you’re not rushing to do it at the end of the flight or even worse once you have landed and are walking to customs. Seen it so many times.

• Take a scarf and wear it on your flight. Planes can be on the cooler side so having a scarf is great for keeping yourself warm, an extra layer on your knees or to cover your head/eyes whilst sleeping. They’re also a great accessory to have for fashion as well as modesty reasons in some countries

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• Wear layers. As mentioned above, planes are on the cooler side so wear a few layers so you can regulate your own temperature. Nothing worse than being freezing on a flight and not being able to do anything about it

• Keep your shoes on! Not a hack as such but just polite for everyone on the flight. While we’re at it also keep your feet off other peoples chairs and off the bulkhead

JET LAG HACKS

• Drink plenty of water on your flight. The recirculated and pressurised air on planes is going to dehydrate you inside and out. Drink up! But avoid alcohol, it creates restless sleep and may impact you adjusting to your new time zone

• Adjust quickly to your new timezone. Change the time on all devices and watches to the new local time at your destination. If you board the flight and it is night time in your new destination try and get some sleep immediately and vice versa for daytime. Stay awake on that flight for as long as you can to help your sleep/awake cycle.

• Go straight to sleep or stay awake as long as possible. Once in your destination, sleep straight away if it’s night time or stay awake as long as you can if it’s daylight. At least till 8pm/9pm

• Do some light exercise. Be easy on yourself while you adjust. Do some yoga or light stretching. Going for a walk around the neighbourhood is also great to get the blood flowing, muscles working and aids in creating a new sleep/awake schedule

ACCOMMODATION HACKS

• Charge your devices through the back of the TV. Most smart TV’s these days have a USB port in the back

• Have all the right apps on your phone. I’m all about the apps. you may have noticed!! Make booking your accommodation super easy while you’re on the road if you haven’t pre-booked your accommodation. I feel like this may be one of my top international travel hacks the way I go on about it!

• Book directly through the hotel’s website. Once you’ve found the accommodation you like, go to the providers website and book directly, it may be cheaper. Or wait until arrival (if you can) and walk in for a face to face deal

• Avoid staying in the tourist hot-spots. You might be close to the action but the accommodation will always be more expensive. Stay further away but within walking distance or a quick bus or tuk tuk ride. Plus it’ll be quieter away from the hot spots

• Use Airbnb but stay with a host. It’s a fabulous way to meet people, you’ll get local advice and all the comforts of home

• Use Couch Surfing if you’re up for it. It’s another fabulous way to meet people and it’s free accommodation

• Take bulldog clips with you. Use them to secure mosquito nets or curtains that don’t close fully, for restful nights sleep

HOSTEL HACKS

• Avoid turning on lights at night. Use your phone torch to get around the room

• Pack politely. If you have an early start in the morning, pack the night before and have your clothes and toiletries out ready to go in the morning. This avoids rattling around in your bag waking people up. Also,  if you’re checking into a dorm room late, be prepared and pack all your necessary items (toothbrush, pj’s) on the top of your pack/luggage for ease of access (and limited noise) once you’re in the room. This post goes into all the ways to be the best hostel guest!

• Use your own padlock and key. Some hostels don’t supply them or charge you to use them

• Turn your smartphone screen brightness right down. If you’re using it at night, it won’t disturb the others in the room and make sure you are using your headphones

• Take advantage of all the free activities. Hostels are renowned for putting on activities, tours and pub crawls for its guests for free (or really cheap). Sign up and participate as much as you want

• Take advantage of breakfast. If breakfast is included, eat as much as possible so you don’t have to spend too much money while you’re out sightseeing. Where possible take a little snack pack. Europe is great for providing pastries and fruit. Take what you can.

• Take your own food. On the flip side some hostel breakfasts are not worth participating in. The beauty of most hostels though, is they have a kitchen that guests can use. Carry some small essentials with you, like a bag of oats/muesli, coffee sachets or even stock cubes, salt/pepper sachets to give your “home” cooked dinner some extra flavour

TRANSPORTATION HACKS

• Use Rome2Rio app for all modes of transport.They list all ways to travel from point A to B. Always check the home website to confirm which has the best deal for your ticket

• Download the local transport apps. Any local apps that’ll help you catch the Tube, Subway, bus or equivalent. Find out what they are and download them. 

• Hire a bicycle. It’s a great, economical  way to get around and it keeps you fit too. Plus you will be able to get to all the places off the main roads, like hidden waterfalls. Fun!

• Use the local transport. Every single time, without a doubt it’s going to be the cheapest option

• Know what ride sharing services the locals use. Download the app applicable to that country and use them when necessary. Think Uber, Ola, Grab, Lyft and Blabla Car

ACTIVITIES HACKS

• Use Airbnb experiences. It’s a great way to meet real locals and new friends, while doing something fun or maybe even educational

• Use all the apps. Viator, Get Your Guide, Trip Advisor, Freetour.com and Eventbrite are all great apps to find local tours, activities and events

Search GetYourGuide

Search

• Go on all the Free walking tours. It’s the first thing I do on Day 1 in a new destination. Find the nearest free walking tour. It’s a great way to get your bearings first thing. You’re also stretching your legs, finding out about your new destination and you can ask your guide where all the best restaurants/cafes, sites and so on, are. It’s also a great way to meet other travellers

• Download walking tour apps. If doing things on your own is more your thing or maybe the place you’re in doesn’t offer a free walking tour, or maybe it’s even out of season. Whatever the reason, you can still go on a walking tour with all the information, if you download the app Atlantis Audio Tours. I’ve used Atlantis to do self guided tours of 3 different areas of NYC, Ohrid, Macedonia, New Orleans, USA and Washington DC, USA

https://www.instagram.com/p/BxHI7z4Fbsd/

WHILST TRAVELLING HACKS

• Only take enough cash with you for the day. Where possible leave your cards at your accommodation

• Carry a dummy/fake wallet . If you are pick pocketed you can hand over your dummy wallet instead of your actual wallet that should be hidden deep inside your bag. Keep the dummy wallet somewhere easy to grab for you to handover. Keep an old cancelled/expired card and $5 cash and a few coins in there, so it looks legit

• Get a local sim where you can. Data is so much cheaper outside of Australia, especially in Asian countries. Your phone needs to be unlocked to take advantage of this.

• Use offline maps. Such google maps, or maps.me, to find your way around. A great option if you opt out of getting a local sim or carrying your own personal WiFi hot-spot

• Take the selfie! Great for identification purposes if you lose or have your camera/phone stolen

• Carry your own snacks and water. I’ve mentioned this before but it just makes sense. It’s a super cheap and easy way to save money and time. It’s so much quicker to find a park bench and have a sit and snack than traipse everywhere looking for the perfect cafe/restaurant to eat your lunch at. For road trippers, stock up on lots of non-perishable snacks, a loaf of bread, spreads, fruit and muesli bars to keep in the car for snacks on the road. It’s my snack hack!…haha

• Avoid tourist traps and locations. They’re over crowded and over priced.

• Eat like the locals. Pick local run establishments for your dinner, including the local street food vendor or market. Avoid the big chain restaurants targeted toward tourists, they’re overpriced and won’t give you the true local experience. Walk a few hundred metres from the tourist dedicated areas and even down back streets and alleys to find something truly traditional and delicious

• Don’t bring the local coins home with you. You won’t be able to exchange them back in your home country. Either spend them or donate them somewhere before you head to the airport

• Download XE currency. You can load up to ten currencies in the app for easy on the spot conversions. The app works offline but you need to have the currency pre-loaded for it to work. Rates are updated every minute and it has a calculator function too

• Take some reusable shopping bags. Avoid accepting plastic bags whilst you’re shopping overseas. We all need to use a lot less plastic and do our bit

• Trip coin is the budget app you need. You can store your daily spending habits into the app. It’ll calculate where you’re spending your money and areas you can cut back in to help you stick to your budget

• Find the local supermarket/market. First of all, it’s always a fun experience to wander through a local supermarket to see what other people and countries eat. Second, stock up on some fresh fruit, snacks and yoghurt for breakfast and your backpack

• For my solo travelling ladies. Wear a cheap fake wedding ring to give yourself an extra layer of security from unwanted attention. Sad, that I have to even have to mention this but unfortunately there are a number of countries where women are the subject to leering, staring and unwanted attention. It acts as a deterrent and an easy out, from those conversations. I used this and the age old “my husband is back at the hotel” when some people got a little too in my face.

WOWEEEE!!! If you made it this far, thank you and well done! That was a hardcore 121 hacks you just read through.

Let me know you’re favourite hack in the comments below, share the love and don’t forget to pin!

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