Traveling is incredible, and it can give you some of the best experiences of your life. Like a train ride through the snow capped Swiss Alps. Or a week-long van life road trip through Ireland.
BUT, it is important to recognize the risk that can come along with travel as well.
This post is not sponsored, and all opinions are my own.
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Both your online and physical safety need to be considered when you travel for any length of time, so I’ve compiled my favorite travel safety essentials to keep you safe on the road.
We used all 4 of these things to keep us safe on our 6 month trip to 18 countries.
Travel isn’t always rainbows and butterflies, believe me! And it pays to be prepared for the unexpected, I promise.
Don’t fret! There are things you can do to be as prepared as possible so you can get on with having the time of your life with no worries!
Hakuna Matata, baby!
1. VPN
You may not have considered that staying safe online is just as important nowadays as staying safe in other ways.
With a VPN, you are securing your online presence and making it much harder for your personal information to end up in the wrong hands.
What Is A VPN?
The best way to ensure your online safety is by using a VPN that creates a secure connection between your device and the network you are connected to.
It will come in the form of an application on your phone or computer. When you connect to a WiFi network, either public or private, the VPN will provide you with a secure private connection so your location and your information cannot be stolen or tracked.
Why You Need A VPN For Travel Safety
When you are traveling long-term, you are constantly switching WiFi networks and often on unsecured networks, at that. And, you’re purchasing hotels, entering credit card details, passport numbers, and so much more sensitive information.
When we travel, we use NordVPN to keep our personal information from being stolen. Every time we open our computers, we make sure our VPN is connected and we are covered.
You can purchase individual months of VPN service with NordVPN, or they also offer yearly plans.
Even when you aren’t off traveling to amazing destinations like Thailand or Scotland, a VPN is a great way to keep your information secure at home, too! Your favorite coffee shop? They may not have the most secure WiFi… Your VPN will protect you there too.
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2. Insurance
I often say this, and I really mean it…
If you can’t afford to pay for travel insurance, you shouldn’t be traveling. And I’m not talking about trip insurance that covers a canceled flight or hotel booking mishap.
Why You Need It
Imagine this scenario: you are spending two weeks in Turkey. It’s beautiful, busy, and the food is like none other you’ve ever had the privilege of stuffing in your mouth hole.
However, your belly wasn’t quite ready for something you ate and you’ve now come down with some pretty serious food poisoning. Before you know it you are having intense stomach pains and you can tell you are getting dehydrated. Are you going to just ‘wait it out’ for the whole trip?
No, you’re going to seek out some medical care so you can get on your way and continue to enjoy your travels!
Well, those antibiotics and antidiarrheal aren’t going to be free, but you’re on a tight budget. Turns out they will cost you $130 USD. OOF. That’s almost a whole day of your travel budget.
AND YES, this is actually the true story of what happened to me while we traveled in Turkey.
This is not the scenario that you want to be in when you are traveling long-term.
And sadly that story isn’t even the worst that can happen when you travel… Broken bones, mysterious illnesses, and knocking out a tooth are just a few things that come to mind.
And it’s exactly why I say that travel insurance is absolutely necessary.
Best Insurance For Long-Term Travelers
We are massive fans of SafetyWing, and it’s the insurance we used while we traveled for 6 months to 18 countries.
Their Nomad Insurance covers people all over the world while outside their home country.
That story about my food poisoning bout in Turkey? We were able to submit a claim and have those expenses covered because of our SafetyWing insurance!
The best thing about SafetyWing, in my opinion, is that you are able to buy only as many days of coverage as you need. Will you be gone for 2 weeks but want peace of mind? You can do that! Planning a 6 month trip around the world? That’s covered too.
And, you not only get medical insurance with SafetyWing, you also get travel insurance, as well.
Use the SafetyWing calculator to get an idea of what it may cost to cover you on your next trip!
3. Birdie Alarm
When talking about travel safety essentials for international travel, physical safety is the biggest concern.
You only have one body, anyways!
One of the absolute best things I’ve ever found to really make me feel safe is a personal alarm.
This alarm by Birdie is perfect for solo travelers, women, or anyone who is traveling somewhere they don’t feel entirely safe.
Not only does it make a very loud alarm sound when activated, it also has a bright flashing strobe light to deter anyone who might try anything.
My sister gifted me a Birdie before we left on our 6 month trip and I loved having it with me and the peace of mind it gave me. When Colton and I would split up for short periods of time as we sometimes had to, I would be sure it was on me.
It’s a great gift for travelers, but also something you should make sure to bring with you on your own travels!
4. Location Sharing
If you are going to be traveling, either alone or even with other people, I recommend you always share your location with someone back home.
Telling people your travel plan is one of the most important travel safety essentials.
Why You Should Share Your Location For Travel Safety
The reason for this is because you truly never know what could happen while you’re traveling, and letting someone else know where you’ll be and where you are is an important part of staying safe.
Should something happen, your location can be tracked by a person you trust and even shared with other necessary people if needed.
How Do I Share My Location?
If you have an iPhone, you can turn on the Find My Friends feature and share your location with a contact. Open the ‘Find My’ app, click on the plus sign under ‘people’ and add the contact you’d like to share your location with. You can choose to share for limited periods of time or indefinitely.
The caveat here is this: If you are not connected to WiFi or cellular data, your location will not update accurately. *If you have an iPhone 14 or iPhone 14 Pro, you can share your location via satellite in the ‘Find My’ app.*
A great alternative is using Google Maps Location Sharing if you will be connected to service during your trip.
And when in doubt, simply share as much of your itinerary as you can with someone you trust. This way, they will know where you are on what days, what hotels you are staying in, and any tours or activities you have booked.
Best Tools For Itinerary Creation + Location Sharing
The way I like to this is by creating an itinerary for my trip on Wanderlog. You can share the itinerary with anyone, and it holds ALL of your travel info in one place. Plus, beyond location sharing, it’s a great resource for trip planning.
If you’ll be planning more on the go and you don’t have a full itinerary ready when you leave, I highly recommend TripIt because it will auto-update your itinerary as you go.
Plus, it’s totally free which we love!
TripIt connects to your email address, so every time you get a booking confirmation email for a hotel, train, flight, rental car, etc. it will be added to your itinerary automatically.
There is no need to manually enter the information if TripIt is going to do it for you! This is the best way to keep track of your itinerary if you plan on the go.
And of course, you can share your itinerary on TripIt with anyone you’d like. TripIt also has both free and paid versions!
READ ALSO:
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Final Thoughts on Travel Safety Essentials
Travel is incredibly fun, but safety should always be the first priority!
It doesn’t have to take much work to ensure you’ve done what you can to stay safe. These 4 simple products or resources I’ve listed can make a huge difference in an emergency.
Do you have any other travel safety essentials you like to take when you’re on the road?
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