You’ve looked out your passport, your bags are (almost) packed, and you are buzzing with excitement about your next big trip. Brilliant! But here is the thing that seasoned travellers know and first timers sometimes learn the hard way: feeling fantastic while you are away does not just happen by accident.
A little bit of prep and some smart habits can be the difference between the holiday of a lifetime and a week spent feeling sorry for yourself in a hotel room…
1. Travel Insurance, Packing and Shipping
Right, boring but absolutely essential, so we are getting it out of the way first. The NHS is wonderful, but it does not follow you to Thailand or Mexico. Make sure you have got comprehensive travel insurance that covers medical emergencies, and check whether your destination requires any vaccinations.
The NHS website and your GP surgery are your best friends here, and it is worth booking a travel health appointment at least six to eight weeks before you depart. Also grab a UK Global Health Insurance Card (GHIC) if you are heading to Europe. It is free and could save you an absolute fortune.
2. Stay Hydrated Like It Is Your Part Time Job
This one sounds so simple that people constantly underestimate it, and then wonder why they feel groggy, headachy, and completely flat by day three. Flying is incredibly dehydrating, and if you are heading somewhere hot, your fluid needs shoot up significantly. Carry a reusable water bottle everywhere.
Drink water consistently throughout the day rather than glugging loads in one go. Be mindful in countries where tap water is not safe to drink, and stick to sealed bottled water or use a water purification tablet or filter bottle. Alcohol and sugary drinks do not count as hydration, by the way, much as we all wish they did.
3. Do Not Completely Abandon Your Sleep Routine
Jet lag is real, and it can genuinely floor you if you let it. When you arrive at your destination, try to align yourself with local time as quickly as possible. Get outside in natural daylight, which helps reset your body clock, and resist the urge to nap for hours in the afternoon if it is daytime where you are.
A good night’s sleep is not a luxury when you are travelling, it is what allows you to actually enjoy all the incredible things you have come to see and do. Bring an eye mask and earplugs because hotels and hostels can be surprisingly noisy, and you will thank yourself for it.
4. Keep Moving, Even When You Are Tired
Travel can involve a lot of sitting around, whether that is on planes, buses, or long train journeys, and it is easy to arrive somewhere and feel too wiped out to do much. But even gentle movement makes a huge difference to how you feel both physically and mentally.
Walk wherever you reasonably can. Choose the stairs. Do a quick stretch in your room in the morning. If you normally exercise at home, try to keep some version of that going, even if it is just a 20 minute jog around a new neighbourhood.
5. Eat Wisely and Embrace the Local Food (Safely)
Trying local food is one of the great joys of travelling, and we are absolutely not here to tell you to play it safe and eat plain rice for two weeks.
However, a bit of common sense goes a long way… in countries where food hygiene standards differ from what you are used to, opt for freshly cooked hot food over dishes that have been sitting out, peel your fruit, avoid raw salads washed in tap water and pack some rehydration sachets just in case your stomach takes a few days to adjust to the local cuisine.
6. Take Care of Your Mental Health, Not Just Your Physical Health
Travelling can be really overwhelming, especially when solo and it is perfectly natural for you to feel stressed, homesick, or a little low, even when you are in a place you have always wanted to visit. Don’t overplan your days, leave wiggle room for rest and relaxation and if you wake up in the morning feeling you could do with a slow start and an extra coffee in bed just do it!! It’s your holiday, therefore your rules.
7. Protect Your Skin and Respect the Climate
When you are travelling you tend to spend much more time outside than you do at home, which means more sun exposure than your body is used to. Because of this you need to apply a broad spectrum sunscreen with at least SPF 30 as a basic minimum.
Don’t just slap it on first thing in the morning and forget about it, re-apply it several times a day paying particular attention to your ears (everyone always forgets their ears!), the nape of your neck, the top of your feet – basically all the areas people tend to overlook as these are the parts that hurt the most if they get burnt!!
8. Pack a Comprehensive Travel and First Aid Kit
A well-stocked kit doesn’t have to be big; pain relief, antihistamines, plasters, antiseptic wipes, rehydration sachets, any prescription meds you take regularly, and something for an upset stomach – because travel has a funny way of disagreeing with your digestive system at the worst possible moment.
If you’re heading somewhere with a malaria risk, get in touch with your GP or a travel clinic well ahead of time to sort out antimalarials. Having the basics within arm’s reach keeps small problems from turning into big ones, and saves you the headache of trying to mime “I need ibuprofen” to a pharmacist who understandably has no idea what you’re saying.
9. Ship Your Luggage to Your Destination
Here’s a travel hack that almost nobody talks about, and it’s genuinely one of the better ones out there; just ship your luggage ahead. Think about how much of the worst parts of travelling involve your bags. Dragging them through terminals. Hauling them up flights of stairs. Wrestling them onto transfer buses while someone behind you sighs loudly.
It takes a real physical toll and the back pain and shoulder strain that quietly plagues so many travellers is largely avoidable. But honestly, the mental side of it might be the bigger win. No queuing at check-in. No shuffling through security with an overstuffed trolley threatening to tip over.
No standing at the baggage carousel quietly catastrophising about whether your suitcase actually made the connection. Your bags are tracked, insured, and sitting at your hotel waiting for you and that small shift in how a journey begins changes the whole feel of a trip from the moment you step out your front door.
Travel is one of the most enriching and joyful things you can do, and with a little bit of preparation and some mindful habits along the way, there is absolutely no reason why you cannot come home feeling better than when you left. Now go and have the most brilliant adventure.
