Things you wish people explained to you before you went to (insert vacation destination)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES SHOULD YOU EVER EAT REEF FISH IN THE CARIBBEAN.

This could save you many, maaaaany years of pain and suffering.

What is a reef fish?

Fish like sea bass, some types of eels, grouper, barracuda, etc..

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:For countries like MX where you can't drink the water, is it safe to use it to wash your hands before eating? Can you use it to wash your hair?

I wear contacts and usually just wash my hands then pop my contacts in or out. How do people navigate that in MX? It's not like you can use hand sanitizer and do that without killing your eyeballs.

I had no problem with any of this in CDMX. (I was careful about tooth brushing/fruit washing, having had problems with each in other places, though.)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:-Amsterdam: you need to have your physical passport on you to rent a car, at least where we went.

-Don’t shave before going in the Dead Sea

-No clothing or shoes will fit you in Japan if you are bigger than a size small so make sure you pack what you need.

I honeymooned in thailand, arguably my tiniest most gorgeous self after working hard for the wedding, and trying to shop was horrifying. "Sorry, no plus size" and I was like a size 6

haha.. I just got back from Korea, and same. My teen DD, size 00, had a blast shopping though, unlike in the US where she has a hard time finding clothes that look good and fit her.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Don't use your left hand to greet people in Asia.

Learn how to use a squat toilet and carry toilet paper or wipes with you everywhere in case for Asia.

Really don't brush your teeth or rinse mouth with tap water in certain countries or have ice or raw vegetables even if they claim they use bottled water....my family learned this the hard way.

Have cash on hand to tip the porter, etc.

Humidity in parts of Asia is awful and wear very light clothing with breathable fabrics and a hat.

Don't get too close to monkeys that appear friendly at the animal sanctuary, they bite and cause you to need a rabies shot and avoid swimming for your whole trip.

Asia is a large continent. All the toilets I used in Korea flushed and had tp.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:That monkeys at Siam Reap are not cute and need to be avoided.

That the heat and humidity in Vietnam is so much worse than DC. Wear lightweight clothes.

That umbrellas don't work in Scotland. Bring a hooded rain jacket.

If you are traveling in a country where you can't drink the water, keep your mouth closed in the shower too.

+1 to the umbrellas in Scotland!

First time I experienced sideways rain was in the UK. Umbrella was useless.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I have only been to Canada and Mexico. When I went to Mexico the first morning I was there, went to the hotel restaurant, ate an excellent breakfast and then sat there for almost a half hour waiting for the check. I had no idea they won't just bring it - you have to ask for it.

In a lot of Asia, it's the opposite. You go up to the cashier after you are done to pay. They don't bring you the check.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:For countries like MX where you can't drink the water, is it safe to use it to wash your hands before eating? Can you use it to wash your hair?

I wear contacts and usually just wash my hands then pop my contacts in or out. How do people navigate that in MX? It's not like you can use hand sanitizer and do that without killing your eyeballs.

I went to MX a couple of years ago, and it was all fine. I can't recall if I ate any fresh produce, but I'll just remind people that most of our fruit comes from MX.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm not a big shopper and haven't needed to do this yet, but my friend told me you can get back the VAT (tax) you pay for purchases in some parts of Europe, definitely London I think.

Same for Korea, at least.

Most of the larger vendors will give you back some of the VAT, then and there, but you need your passport with you. If you don't have the passport, you need to keep the receipt with the bar code, and claim the VAT back, but check the airport and whether you need to reclaim VAT *before* you get through security or not. I made the mistake of not checking this and had gone through security so couldn't reclaim VAT on some purchases.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I wish I had insider tips on how to have fun in Madrid. I have been a lot of places, including multiple trips to many European capitals. Madrid was one of our biggest duds in a lifetime of travel.

I also would have chosen off-resort restaurants in Bali more carefully. I got "Bali Belly" which is probably the same thing as "Montezuma's Revenge".

The Bali issue is not about choosing restaurants carefully. In any place that does not have safe tap water, you can only eat cooked found (no salads), and fresh fruit IF you peeled it yourself (like a banana or orange). No water or ice cubes (and remember that iced tea and lemonade are made from water!).

If you had visited a travel clinic before your trip, they would have helped you navigate this issue.

PP...I don't know what got me. More likely to be poorly-cooked fish. Luckily I became sick only after returning to my work locale in Singapore. They gave me charcoal tablets as a remedy.

[Anonymous]

Skiing out west is much much tougher than skiing in the east. Until a few years ago, I’d only skied in New England and New York. I’m an intermediate skier. All I ever heard was, oh you would love skiing out west, the powder is fantastic and so much easier and more fun to ski than the ice in the east, etc etc. So I planned a trip to Utah.

Turns out, the trails are so much harder out there, much steeper and bumpier, not nearly as much grooming - a blue out there is definitely equivalent to a black on the east coast, and frankly, probably harder than a lot of black trails in the east. The resorts are huge and the trails go on forever (a good thing, yes!) but you have to pay close attention to trail signs (trails wind here there and everywhere, cross cross with other trails, it can get very confusing) because you can easily end up at the top of a trail that’s above your ability level with no alternative way down (and you know why I know that). Also it’s hard to ski powder if you don’t have experience! Several years into ski trips out west and I’m now much more comfortable out there but it was not at all the slam dunk at the beginning I’d been led to believe it would be.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Don't use your left hand to greet people in Asia.

Learn how to use a squat toilet and carry toilet paper or wipes with you everywhere in case for Asia.

Really don't brush your teeth or rinse mouth with tap water in certain countries or have ice or raw vegetables even if they claim they use bottled water....my family learned this the hard way.

Have cash on hand to tip the porter, etc.

Humidity in parts of Asia is awful and wear very light clothing with breathable fabrics and a hat.

Don't get too close to monkeys that appear friendly at the animal sanctuary, they bite and cause you to need a rabies shot and avoid swimming for your whole trip.

Asia is a large continent. All the toilets I used in Korea flushed and had tp.

Korea is an exception, try almost everywhere else in Asia....

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What do you wish you had known before visiting (insert vacation destination here)?


I wanted to visit the Amalfi Coast but was unaware of the power outages and the way you must fly to Naples then take a train to Sorrento and then take a ferry and hand carry luggage up to some of the hotels. With little children this seems a bit more challenging. The same for Lake Como and the last train out of town. To ensure to time that visit right.

I’m not sure who told you all of this nonsense? Been there many times and have never experienced a power outage. I’ve also never taken a train in Italy. If you want to avoid the ferry, you can rent a car and drive or get a driver. There are also porters and bell boys. This is a strange post.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Don't use your left hand to greet people in Asia.

Learn how to use a squat toilet and carry toilet paper or wipes with you everywhere in case for Asia.

Really don't brush your teeth or rinse mouth with tap water in certain countries or have ice or raw vegetables even if they claim they use bottled water....my family learned this the hard way.

Have cash on hand to tip the porter, etc.

Humidity in parts of Asia is awful and wear very light clothing with breathable fabrics and a hat.

Don't get too close to monkeys that appear friendly at the animal sanctuary, they bite and cause you to need a rabies shot and avoid swimming for your whole trip.

Asia is a large continent. All the toilets I used in Korea flushed and had tp.

Korea is an exception, try almost everywhere else in Asia....

Japan? So, now there are two exceptions.

https://www.businessinsider.com/japan-toilets-benefits-bidet-clean-heated-seats-2023-11

https://www.japan.travel/en/blog/beyond-the-bidet-japanese-toilets-at-the-forefront-of-hygiene-and-style/

Also, most of the hotels in Korea had bidets, and we did not stay in high end hotels, and not just Seoul. We have them at home, but DS refused to use it. He was sold on it during our Korea trip.

[Anonymous]

For VAT in the EU, all stores now accept just a photo of your passport so bring that instead of the actual passport with you.

[Anonymous]

Carry a small towel with you so you can dry your hands at restrooms in Japan. There usually aren't paper towels or a hand dryer.