What You Can Do to Stay Safe When Traveling

What You Can Do to Stay Safe When Traveling By Paula Schuck

What’s that saying? Prepare for the worst; expect the best. Savvy travelers understand that and apply it consistently every time they travel.

Safety should always be high priority when traveling, no matter where you go. So where should you begin? I am a list maker when I prepare to travel, so I start with the basics and tick boxes off methodically. Being prepared before I go and knowing I did everything I could to plan ahead are crucial to my level of comfort when I am away.

Insurance is high priority. It’s not enough to buy insurance when you travel; you also need to know what the insurance plan says. Read it and familiarize yourself with what the policy covers. When I went to Zambia with Shot at Life for a fellowship in 2016, I made sure I knew all of the clauses. I asked if I’d be covered if I had to fly home in an emergency. Also, I wanted to know if I had an accident or died suddenly if the insurance fly my body home to family. Research a repatriation clause. Sounds morbid, but I would never want to leave my family struggling with that. Tragedy happens. You can’t predict it, but you can prepare.

Always have some money easily available. Get local currency as soon as you get to your destination or take it with you. Ideally, have room on a credit card, in case you have an emergency that requires booking a flight or a quick visit to a doctor abroad.

Further to that theme, pack medicine and medical supplies that you know will need remain with you. Pack for a few days more than what you know you will need. My one daughter has anxiety. My other has special needs, and I have Crohn’s Disease. Our medicine is high priority. We travel together as a family, and I am in charge of making sure we all have enough medicine with us

always. I never leave home without fever reducer, pain reliever, and allergy medicine.

Keep a photocopy of your passport and itinerary with you and leave one at home with someone you trust. Too often people lose their passports, and they can be stuck. Having a couple of photocopies, and leaving one with a friend, travel agent, or relative helps.

Taking a road trip? Get your car serviced first. Tires, oil, brakes. Be careful.

Check reliable news sources before you leave. This week, we were scheduled to take a family trip to Vermont from our home in Ontario, Canada. We monitored hourly news updates regarding coronavirus travel protocols and unfortunately had to postpone the trip when the federal government advised ceasing all non-essential travel outside of the country. That was a hard call to make, but it was also safest and the recommended course of action. You don’t want to be stranded somewhere and unable to get home. Another important source to check is the CDC (Centre for Disease Control.)

Register your travels with a government organization in your home country. In Canada, the federal government operates a travel registry. It’s always prudent to add your name to this free registry so officials can send you alerts if there are natural disasters, civil unrest, or emergencies when you travel. In the US, embassies and consulates annually assist nearly 200,000 Americans who are victims of crime, accident, or illness, or whose family and friends need to contact them in an emergency.

Visit this site to register in Canada: https:// travel.gc.ca/travelling/registration Register your trip with STEP (Smart Traveler Enrollment Program). In the US, you can register here.