With the rise in air ticket fares, there has been a marked increase in the popularity of coach tours. Travelling by coach is cost effective, comfortable, and you will get to experience the landscapes of the country that you are travelling to, which you would have missed out on had you travelled by air. Here are a few tips that will help you out:
Before Leaving
Check the Passport
If you are travelling outside the country, you should see when your passport is expiring. If the expiry date is near, you should get it renewed before leaving.
Have Duplicate Documents
It is important to carry duplicates of all your documents when going on a coach tour because you will be travelling from one place to the other. When you book the ticket with the coach company, you will be given travel itinerary and receipts that you must carry with you. One great advice is to make two copies of everything. Keep one copy in the hand carry and one in the luggage. Also keep a copy of the passport in your hand carry and suitcase. Since it’s better to be safe than sorry, you can take pictures of all the important documents and save them in an application that functions with a cloud system.
Get Travel Insurance
It is recommended that you get travel insurance to cover you. The travel insurance policies cover things like cancellations, delays, medical coverage and other important things.
Things to Pack
What you should pack depends on how long your trip is. If you are going for a long trip and will be staying at different hotels, you should pack as light a possible because it will be a huge hassle to lug around a heavy suitcase.
During the Journey
Where to Sit
- Don’t sit at the extreme end of the coach as you will feel all the bumps on the road.
- Sit near the window if you want to have a look at the landscape.
- Don’t sit in the centre if you experience motion sickness.
What to Take Along
Here are the things that you should be carrying with you:
- Books in order to kill time.
- Camera to take pictures of the places you are visiting.
- Carry bottled waterso that you can stay hydrated.
- Charger for your electronic gadgets
- e-Reader or Tabletso that you can read and kill time.
- Mobile phones
- MP3 playerto listen to music.
- Neck pillowfor added support and comfort
- Snacks so that you can eat when you get hungry during odd times
- Toiletries and Wet wipes so that you can stay fresh and clean during the trip.
- Wear loose clothing so that you can be comfortable and can sleep easily. Wear loose shoes too so that you can flex your muscles whenever you want to.
- Important documents and passport because these are the most important things and are necessary for your identification and security. Always keep the originals in a safe place and the duplicates in a hand carry so that you can show them at check points.
- Medicines just in case you get sick during the journey.
What to Take for Overnight Travelling
If you are travelling overnight, here are the things that you should be carrying with you:
- Blanket– The temperature can change outside, so keep a lightweight blanket.
- Neck pillow– This can help you in preventing a sore neck.
- Eye masks and earplugs– These are important if you want to sleep soundly inside the coach.
Dealing with People
Remember that you will be travelling with a lot of other people, so you need to be considerate about the people travelling with you because all of you are confined in a small space. Here are a few things that you need to take care of:
- If you want to listen to music to music, you should use your headphones and keep the sound low so that the other passengers can’t hear to what you are listening to. You can also use noise cancelling headphones so that you are not distracted by other people.
- If there are a lot of people in the coach, occupying more than one seat is not very considerate. If there are few people in the coach, you can place your comfort first and sleep on two seats.
- If someone is travelling with a small baby, you should b considerate and give them your aisle seat.
- A lot of coaches have reclining seats but while reclining you need to be considerate of the people sitting behind you because it can affect their space and make them uncomfortable.
- Be careful who you are sitting next to if you are travelling alone. It is polite to talk to the person sitting next to you but do not give them sensitive information about yourself.
- Always give information about your whereabouts to your family or friends.
Don’t Go During the Peak Season
It is usually suggested that you avoid going during the peak season because travelling is expensive during these months and all the tourist destinations are extremely crowded. Some of the peak holiday seasons include Easter, Christmas, New Year, Thanksgiving, and other school going holidays.
Dealing with Motion Sickness
If you have motion sickness, make sure that you carry appropriate medicines o prevent nausea.
Preventative Measures
Here are a few preventive measures that you need to take during coach tour:
- Wear comfortable clothes.
- Wear comfortable shoes.
- Keep moving so that there is blood circulation in your body
- Keep flexing your muscles and rotating your ankles.
- Stay hydrated by drinking lots of water.
- Wear anti-embolism stockings if you will be travelling for several days.
Hopefully, these tips will make the experience of taking a coach tour all the more enjoyable for you. Happy travelling!