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The Smarter Way to Travel™

Category Archive: Baggage

  1. Is Travel Insurance Worth It?

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    After booking flights and the first couple of nights of accommodation for your journey, you might be asking yourself: Is travel insurance worth it? When you’ve just spent so much money on other things, it can be hard to then part with another chunk of cash on something you might not even need.

    Travel insurance is an annoying expense but it is worth it. It can save your butt and your wallet when you least expect it. Not convinced? Let’s break it down and look at why travel insurance is worth it and why you really do need it because who knows what might happen.

    What Does Travel Insurance Cover?

    Let’s take a look at exactly what you will be paying for if you decide to buy travel insurance. Most insurance policies cover at least the following:

    • Trip Cancellation or Interruption
    • Lost and Stolen Baggage and Belongings
    • Medical Emergencies and Death

    No matter how invincible you might feel, any of these things could happen to you. Of course, it is extremely unlikely that you will die or be seriously injured on your trip. However, if you aren’t covered by a decent insurance policy you could face medical or repatriation costs that run up into the hundreds of thousands or even millions of dollars. For example, an air ambulance from the US East Coast to the UK will cost you around $50,000 if you don’t have insurance.

    How Much Does Travel Insurance Cost?

    Travel insurance doesn’t cost as much as you probably think it does. Obviously, it depends on who you buy with and what it covers but overall it shouldn’t deplete your budget too much. Generally people spend around 5% of the total cost of their holiday on travel insurance.

    A decent policy should have the following included:

    • Up to £10m in medical expenses
    • £200 towards replacing necessities in delayed baggage
    • £5,000 of cancellation reimbursements
    • £1,500 for trip interruptions – so that you can continue your trip if an emergency happens and you have to go home
    • £25,000 pay out for personal accidents
    • £500 for loss or theft of money
    • £600 to replace lost or stolen travel documents and to cover expenses of travel or accommodation you need in the process

    How Do You Choose Travel Insurance?

    There are hundreds of different insurance companies that will offer you all kinds of policies. This can make choosing travel insurance quite tough. You want to make sure it is comprehensive but you also don’t want to pay through the roof for it. World Nomads is a popular provider because they cover virtually everything and have a good reputation for pay-outs.

    If you want to do some research yourself before you choose who to go with then there are plenty of comparison websites like Money Supermarket that will help you out.

    What you should be looking for primarily with your travel insurance is good medical cover. It is a good rule of thumb to opt for a policy that will pay for medical expenses up to £5,000,000, including repatriation costs. The more you can get on this front the better. Bear in mind that if you are buying travel insurance for high risk destinations or activities, your premium is likely to be much higher.

    Basically, the more dangerous your holiday, the more your travel insurance will cost. Unfortunately, your need for travel insurance will also be higher. It’s a pain but that’s just how it is. Insurance companies are businesses after all and profit is everything.

    To conclude: buy travel insurance. Once you know you’re covered, you can relax and enjoy your trip. It really makes traveling so much easier. If you can’t afford to buy travel insurance then you cannot afford to travel.

  2. Lost Bags

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    Secrets of a First Class Traveller

     

    Waiting endlessly at baggage reclaim only to see the same bags circle, none of them yours is an occurence no traeller wishes to have to experience; but it does happen. In the United States, the Department of Transportation publishes statistics monthly on airlines’ performance and one of the indicators is howmay bags are mishandled. This month, the DOT reported that 2.93 bags per 1000 passengers were reported as mishandled. Among the best carriers in the US is Virgin America, which saw fewer than 1 report per 1000 passengers of their bags not joining their owners at the destination.
    Regional Carriers Expressjet and Envoy Air have the unenviable bottom positions in the list (Page 30)Travel insurance is a great way to make sure that should this happen, you can at least not worry about having to make expenses at the fault of the airline. However, of course you would like to be reunited with your bag. VIP Upgrades offers a luggage tracking service which enables people and airlines that find your bag, to contact you quickly and effectively so that you can be reunited with your posessions. Have a look at our lost luggage page accessed through the menu at the top, or by clicking here for more info. This facility is offered to all of our members free of charge and registration is simple.

  3. Why should you visit Canada in 2020

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    We are writing a new series of places to visit in 2020. Where do you want to go next? Have you ever visited Canada in the summer? It is a big country and there is much diversity from East to West and therefore the choice is not simple. We are focusing on the cottage country of Ontario, more specifically the area close to the city of Toronto. It has many beautiful lakes and much spectacular scenery. So why should you visit Canada in 2020?

    Cottage country is dotted with beautiful lakes, small charming cottages and large luxurious ones. If you like the great outdoors it is a must. When referring to the  cottage country around Toronto we are talking about  Muskoka, the Kawarthas, Georgetown or  Haliburton. The space and landscape is quite amazing.If you come from European cities like London, Paris, Rome, it is quite hard to grasp how vast it is. One provincial park like Algonquin Park in Ontario is larger than Wales in the UK.

    The other benefits are that it is peaceful, tranquil and remote. You are surrounded by beautiful scenery, wildlife – moose, bears, it is the great outdoors. If you are keen on water sports it is truly heaven – sailing , kayaking, canoeing, waterskiing, waterboarding, fishing. Your long days are spent with few distractions other than enjoying your dip in the lake, boating around the lake, participating in water sports and enjoying a wonderful BBQ at the end of the day.

    There are many options and choices of where to stay. You can of course rent a cottage but there are many great resort options. The resorts allow you to experience all the benefits of being in cottage country with all the comforts of a resort, such as swimming pools, a spa, a great choice of restaurants, golf,  water sports, organised activities for the kids and varied and wonderful accommodation.

    Take a look at these resorts:

    Deerhurst Resort in Muskoka http://www.deerhurstresort.com/

    Taboo Muskoka Reseort : http://www.taboomuskoka.com/

    Take a look at these summer camps for kids:

    The Taylor Statten Camps https://www.taylorstattencamps.com/

    Camp Wapomeo for Girls http://campwapomeo.com/

    Camp Ahmek for Boys http://campahmek.com/

    Let us know if you have been to Canada. Where did you go, what did you experience? Is it on your bucket list?

  4. How to Be the Best Kind of Tourist

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    There is nothing worse than a large group of loud, annoying tourists. You might have seen some in your hometown if you live somewhere noteworthy, or you might have encountered them on the road. Either way, you probably know who I am talking about. They are the kind of people you want to avoid at all costs and the kind of people you definitely don’t want to be mistaken for.

    We all know how to be good tourists, but in case you know someone who needs a reminder, here are some helpful tips. Take careful note and you will navigate your way through foreign lands without a single tut or dirty look and, most importantly, without offending anyone.

    Don’t Photograph Everything

    Honestly, you do not need 50 photos of everything you see. It can be infuriating when you spend hours getting to a famous site only to find you can’t actually see anything because there are so many phones, cameras and iPads in the way. If something is spectacular then by all means take a photo of it. But, once you’re done, put your device away and appreciate it with your own two eyes.

    Try and Learn a Few Local Phrases

    It is so embarrassing watching some red-faced westerner shout English phrases slowly at a confused local. If they don’t speak English then slowing down your sentence and raising your voice is not going to help. No-one expects you to be able to speak fluent Vietnamese before you go on vacation there, but learning a few phrases before you set off will stand you in good stead. Not only will you get your point across better, but you will put a smile on some people’s faces.

    Be Sensitive to Other People’s Cultures

    If you are going to a country in which people dress conservatively then don’t walk down the street wearing hotpants and a crop top. You might not care about dressing modestly but it might be offensive to the local people. If you are in their country you should respect their rules. The same goes for entering religious sites, always cover your shoulders and legs, and even your hair if necessary.

    Try to Blend In

    If you are going to a country that has widespread poverty then don’t wear flashy clothes and jewellery. Not only will it make you stand out and a target for robbery, but it is also just a bit gross. No-one wants to see you flaunt your wealth when people right next to you have so little. You should also try eating where the locals eat and doing what the locals do. This will give you a much more authentic taste of your vacation destination.

    Don’t Turn Your Nose Up at Anything

    People around the world do things differently. In some cultures spitting or farting in public are perfectly acceptable behaviours. Just because some people do things differently to you doesn’t mean that that is wrong. Embrace the little differences you discover between yourself and the people who live in your vacation destination. The more you know about different cultures the more interesting and tolerant you become.