Traveling internationally is often on the bucket list of millions of individuals. It offers so many enriching and fulfilling experiences every step of the way. After all, you get an opportunity to try new cuisines, unravel incredible cultures, and meet different nationalities from all walks of life. But international traveling or vacations can be pretty stressful at the same time.
And since coronavirus and other virus alerts, it’s natural that you will find it scarier. Sadly, you can’t predict any pandemics, accidents, or devastating attacks. This is why this is the time to be more thoughtful when you start preparing for your next vacation.
Here we have compiled a list of things you can do to prepare for safe travel in 2022. Let’s get started!
Take steps to prepare for your travels abroad
Whatever the reason for your travel abroad, you must always be prepared to avoid any hassles during your trip. While everyone will be talking about clothes, flights, hotels, and other essentials, we want to emphasize that “health is wealth” in this section.
So, before you go, here are the steps you must take to avoid any issues that might or might not arise during your trip.
- Check for health status: Before you make travel plans. It’s time you can check the spread of diseases at the place you are going. And make an appointment with your doctor at least before you leave. That way, you will find your health status and plan your travel accordingly.
- Pack smartly: Besides your clothes, you must prepare a travel health kit. This will include items like sunscreen, insect repellent, OTC medicines, and prescription drugs. You must pack enough for your whole trip and some extra, just in case. You must check with the US embassy or consulate of the country you will be traveling to ensure that prescription medications are legal there.
- Buy travel medical insurance: Accidents are inevitable, whether you agree or not. Having travel medical insurance will help you avoid the inevitable. It means if you come across any emergency, it will allow you to cover the cost of any emergency treatment when traveling abroad. With this plan, you can reimburse the cost you had to put in for health purposes.
You must be thinking, why do you need it when you have medical insurance? Well, it will act like a supplementing policy that will work when your home medical insurance doesn’t work while traveling. It is usually valid while traveling abroad and allows you to stay protected when you are far away from home.
Wondering when you can avail of its benefits? If you travel internationally, it will help you with emergency medical situations, trip cancellations, interruptions, and delays. Besides that, it will help you in the following situations.
- Illness or death
- Natural disaster
- Acute onset of disease
- The onset of the pre-existing condition
So, if you have visitor health insurance, it will help you avoid any financial pitfalls related to getting access to a hospital room and board, medical bills, diagnosis, and ambulance services.
Let’s reconfirm the fact that precaution is better than cure. And having travel medical insurance allows you to travel safely when you are away from home.
Take steps during your trip
Once you are through with the preparation part, then comes when you are actually on the foreign land, enjoying the sceneries and adventures. But if you don’t keep a check on your trip, it will help you keep yourself safe while traveling. Here’s what you must focus on:
- Avoid road accidents: Accidents are usually one of the most important happenings abroad. Make sure that you wear a seatbelt and hire a local driver so that they know about everything around safety measures in that area.
- Eat and drink safely: You must only eat fully cooked food that’s served hot. And never try fresh vegetables or fruits unless you wash them yourself. Try to drink only bottled beverages.
- Be aware of safety measures: Limit your alcohol intake and wear protective gear if you are a part of any adventure activities. And try to follow local laws and customs.
But if by any chance, you get involved in a or natural disaster:
- You must seek advice from the US embassy or consulate.
- Learn about the risk metrics.
And if you feel sick or get into an accident, this is what you must do:
- Contact the medical authorities and seek medical attention. Once settled, contact your travel insurance provider to take care of the insurance. They will guide the best hospital, arrange care or transportation, and even help with evacuation in emergencies.
- Never assume about your coverage and claims. Make sure you take all the steps your travel insurance company directed. In addition to that, travel insurance providers also offer 24/7 assistance when you need it. You must take advantage of this service.
- You must always keep documentation for everything you can. This will help you to provide proof of evidence, amounts you paid, and refunds you are eligible for.
Besides that, here are some more tips that you can use to travel safely.
- You must carry all the documentation when traveling abroad. But make sure to have some copies and digital backup. This will help you stay away from trouble and long wait times.
- Never carry everything together. You must separate the monetary and identifying items in different locations so that you have something to pursue the next steps in case of any inevitable.
- Never carry essential things in your back pocket. Let’s be honest, pickpocketing is a thing in many parts of the world. So, make sure you aren’t an easy target.
Conclusion
Traveling internationally is exciting and unnerving at the same time. But you need to leave the excitement and focus on a few necessary things if you want to stay abroad without any issues.
If you want to experience beautiful cultures, you must put in an effort before and during your travel. And having information about your destination and travel medical insurance surely helps you stay safe away from home.