Thoughts on Long-Term Travel
By Erin Hemmings and Brad Kahn
Background
We departed in September 2006 and our nine-month itinerary included Africa (2 months – South Africa, Namibia, Botswana and Tanzania), Southeast Asia (3 months – Thailand, Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam), and South America (4 months – Argentina, Peru and Bolivia).
We are in our mid-30s and budgeted about $120 per day, which seemed to be a good average. Africa was more expensive while on safari, but it was easy to spend much less in Asia. We generally stayed in hotels with our own bathroom, which added to the overall cost.
The thoughts that follow are based on our experience. Obviously, much of this is subjective and should be considered a rough guideline rather than a hard and fast rule.
Good websites
http://thorntree.lonelyplanet.com/ (travel forum for every region of the world. Great fellow traveler advice on routes, places to stay, visa issues, etc).
http://www.travellerspoint.com/ (comparable to Thorn Tree).
https://www.travelfish.org (travel forum for Southeast Asia).
Health
Before departure we went to our local public health clinic to see the travel specialist. In Seattle, King County Public Health has a good travel clinic.
We got all the shots we needed given our itinerary (see: http://www.cdc.gov/travel/) and received prescriptions for anti-malarials, anti-diarrheal (Cipro), and sleeping pills (for long flights). We filled these in advance (recommended, we've used them all).
We met a few people who got malaria and would recommend taking anti-malarials in the countries where there is risk. We used doxycycline for over two months in Africa and Asia without any major problems.
Vitamins: bring some! You can find them along the way but it's very common to get anemia or other malnutrition symptoms while traveling because your diet may be less nutritious or varied than it is at home.
We highly recommend packing a thermometer in your first-aid kit. We've both gotten sick a few times and it's helpful to know when you've got something really serious. Being able to take your temperature can help you determine whether you need to see a doctor or tough it out.
We took acidophilus daily to promote intestinal health. This did not totally prevent illness, but we think it helped. You can purchase acidophilus in “room temperature” capsules at most health food stores.
Travel insurance
We used World Nomads (www.worldnomads.com). This was the only insurance we could find that allowed us to renew after 6 months without returning to the US. It's pretty cheap and covered us for emergency evacuation, lost baggage, medical care while traveling, etc.
Some tour companies will require you to show proof of emergency evacuation insurance so it's worth looking into.
We both also carried a "catastrophic" (high deductible) health insurance policy in the US. This policy covered us in case we got really sick abroad but then needed to receive longer term care upon returning to the US.
Lodging
If we were traveling a far distance or had an international flight, we would book a room ahead so we didn’t have to deal with it upon arrival.
Often, we just book a room the day before by calling ahead or waiting until we get to a town (assuming it's early enough in the day to deal with it).
You can likely get better deals upon arrival but with the internet these days, it's very easy to scope things out in advance or make plans in advance.
Guidebooks will usually warn you about places where advanced reservations are required.
Passport
Bring extra photocopies – both B&W and color.
Scan your passport photo page and email the image file to an online account.
Keep a copy of your passport in a money belt with you at all times.
Exchange a copy of your passport with your travel partner so each of you has copies of both passports.
If you need to add extra pages into your passport, this can be done at US embassies and consulates in a few hours. Some countries (E.g. South Africa) require a minimum of two blank pages to allow entry.
You may have to leave your passport at the front desk to register for hotels (especially in Vietnam) but most will let you use a photocopy for this purpose, especially if it’s a color copy. We'd always prefer not to leave our original and photocopies were always sufficient for this purpose.
Visas
See: http://travel.state.gov/travel/tips/brochures/brochures_1229.html to determine countries where visas are needed in advance.
Getting visas for some countries (Tanzania, Vietnam) can take a while, so you should look into it early so you can mail away for the visas ahead if you know your itinerary.
Be warned, it can take several weeks to get your passport back.
In our case, we needed visas for Vietnam and Tanzania and those countries would not issue them upon arrival.
For Laos, we used a travel agent in Chiang Mai, Thailand who was able to get us an advance visa in a few days. This did require leaving our passports with the travel agent.
For most countries, however, you can just get a visa when you cross the border or fly in.
Clothes and personal items
Packing list: headlamp, pack towel, sleep sheet, Gortex jacket, pullover fleece, t-shirts (5), shorts (2), swimsuit, Pj's, dress, long pants (2), capri pants, skirt, long-sleeve shirt, socks (3), undies (6), flip flops, walking sandals, tennis shoes, hat, sunglasses, international electricity converter plug (for your digital camera or iPod), first-aid kit, cord for clothesline and drain cover, wet wipes, ear plugs, cards, dice, iPod with headphone splitter (so we could both listen), alarm clock or watch with alarm.
And the most important item – EAR PLUGS!!!
Eagle Creek makes a small belt with a zipper pocket to carry emergency money (US$) and copies of passports. This is a very useful backup.
Pants with zipper pockets (REI makes a pair) are helpful for carrying credit cards and other items you don’t want to lose.
For the most part, all of our clothes were synthetic which makes it easy to wash and quick to dry. You will do soooooo much handwashing that I highly recommend limiting cotton or other heavy fabric.
It's easy to find places to launder clothes for cheap but you need to be in the same town for at least 2 nights to do this.
When having synthetic clothes washed, remember to tell the Laundromat: NO IRON. We learned this the hard way.
It's very easy to buy basic toiletries (razors, shampoo, toothpaste, etc.) in the places we visited. This may vary in a few more exotic places but your guidebook will warn you if you can't buy tampons, etc.
That said, if you have a favorite lotion or shampoo, bring it. These little "niceties" are really great when you've been roughing it for a while.
We traveled with Eagle Creek wheelie bags and loved them. There were very few times where we wanted a backpack. Wheeling a bag is much easier than carrying it, even over gravel roads.
Photography
We bought a Sony CyberShot (6 megapixels) one-step digital camera and have loved it. It takes great pictures and is very small, which means we carry it with us all the time.
The key to taking pictures is to carry the camera with you, always. That means, a big SLR may not be the best option. Bigger cameras also draw more attention, which is not always desirable.
We bought two batteries and two memory cards (512mb and 1gb) so we could always have a fully charged battery and empty card ready to go.
It was very easy to burn CDs with photos once a card was full. Internet cafes are ubiquitous and most can burn CDs (if not DVDs too).
We would burn two copies and each carry one to minimize the risk of losing photos.
Picasso, free downloadable software from Google, is very useful for basic editing functions (such as reducing file sizes so you can upload photos to a blog). It can be downloaded onto a computer on an internet café fairly easily.
Communications
Skype is your friend. Skype Out can be used from internet cafes around the world to call anywhere at a very low cost. Skype In allows you to set up a US phone number with voicemail so people can call you as if you were in the US. If you are not online, voicemail will pick up the call. Calls from computer to computer are free.
Most US cell phones don’t work outside the country. Tri-band GSM phones will work but roaming charges are exorbitant.
Having a cell phone is very useful and convenient. The most affordable approach is to buy a low cost phone upon arrival in a given region and use pre-paid SIM cards. Some cards will work in more than one country (E.g. throughout SE Asia), or you may need to buy a new card with each new country. They are generally very inexpensive ($2-$5). When you buy a phone, make sure it is unlocked (You can replace the SIM card yourself). Most phones in the US are locked, which means you are forced to use only one provider (Verizon, etc.). While tri-band phones are more expensive, they should work throughout the world and save you from buying a new phone if you jump to a new continent.
Buying credit for SIM cards is easily available as scratch-off cards at many mini-markets. Calls to the US generally cost $.25 - $.50 per minute (vs. $.02 on Skype Out).
Some cell phone companies charge to receive calls, some do not. It is worth trying to find a company that does not charge for incoming calls, so people can call you from home using Skype or a calling card.
There are internet cafes everywhere and they are mostly cheap. Africa was most expensive (we paid $5 for 15 minutes in the middle of the Serengeti) and slowest. Asia is cheap and plentiful. South America is cheap and varying speeds.
Financial
We brought an ATM card, two credit cards, and about $500 US cash each.
We have used our ATM cards in each country to withdraw local currency. Credit cards have been handy for tours, some hotels, and domestic air travel.
We've seen a lot of other tourists doing cash advances from their credit cards but this is hugely expensive so would recommend ATM cards instead.
The US cash has been for emergency uses and a few odd airport departure fees where they only accept US dollars.
Capital One credit cards do not charge the 3% international transaction fees. Most other major banks that issue Visa or Mastercard charge the fee.
ATMs are everywhere and mostly easy to use. There is really no need for travelers’ checks anymore. They cost more, are accepted less and are generally more of a hassle.
Banks generally charge a fee to use international ATMs. This can include a standard “non-bank ATM” fee plus an international fee (1%). If you can find a partner bank for your home bank, the fees are reduced. We found our bank (Bank of America) to be mostly unhelpful on this account. So we tried to withdraw the maximum amount every time we went to the ATM to minimize fees.
Carrying US$ in a money belt is very helpful in an emergency (E.g. credit card is declined).
Visa and Mastercard are not identical in the eyes of many vendors, so it is good to have one of each.
As far as banking goes, we've been able to do all of it online. We set up two accounts from home. One account we use as our travel account, mainly for withdrawing cash while traveling (using the ATM card). The second account is our home account from which monthly payments for insurance, mortgage, and other fixed bills are automatically withdrawn. We did not bring our ATM card for the home account, only for the travel account so that if our card got lost/stolen, we'd only have to deal with resolving that issue for one account rather than both. This way, our regular bills are not affected by our travel and we can still transfer money between accounts on line.
In Asia, it was common to be charged between 2 and 4% for credit card transactions, so you may not be able to avoid all fees with using a credit card but it was still often easier than carrying large amounts of cash.
Safety
We have small locks for our suitcases and one thin cable lock to lock our bags to something if needed.
We also wore money belts on our waists underneath our clothes. We wore them all the time, unless our room had a reliable safe in it.
It’s a good idea to keep a few small bills and coins in your pockets at all times to avoid pulling out the money belt.
Miscellaneous
We carried a small pocket atlas with us, which was nice to show people where we are from, where we’ve been, etc.
We made photocopies of all important papers (credit cards, insurance, etc.) and each carried a copy.
Overall, we liked Lonely Planet guides better than Rough Guides, Moon Guides or Footprint Guides, although we used them all. LP had better information on lodging, food and tours than the other guides.
Ziplock bags are very handy. Bring some extras.
Wet wipes are good. Bring lots.
We brought sleep sheets but didn’t use them very much. If you have room, they are probably good to bring.
We carried some small gifts to give to children, like balloons or colored pencils (not crayons, which melt in hot weather).
We got an international drivers license from AAA, but it wasn’t really necessary. A state license was fine when we rented a car in South Africa and Argentina.
Final thoughts
We try to stay in a town for at least two nights. You usually lose a chunk of time just getting from a to b and you get really tired of moving around all the time so it's nice to stay put for a bit when you can. We will often stay 3-5 days in a bigger town if there's enough to do. Our philosophy has been fewer stops for more time.
If you have any friends or contacts in any of the places you'll be visiting, you should consider sending yourself a care package. We have friends in Bangkok so we mailed ourselves a box that included resupply of some basic things (contact lenses, medicine, etc.) plus guide books for SE Asia. That way, we didn't have to carry as much stuff for our first few months.