International Travelers/Backpackers Thread

Hey, all. We have a very diverse crowd here on TW. Seems you can start a thread about anything and find people with mutual interest. The camping/backpacking thread has been pretty busy and I though there has to be more people who travel a lot.

I've personally been to around 15 or so countries and counting and do the travel hacking, flight points credit cards, ultralight/minimalist carry-on packing, cheap flight finding, etc. and would be glad to help anyone to hear from others who do the same.


Trip reports, trip planning, flight points discussion, travel gear, whatever is travel related, more specifically but not limited to international travel, discuss away!

 

Let me begin by saying I am a point whore. The key to maximizing your frequent traveler experience is to find a hotel and an airline that you like the best and then get their credit cards . Then use their credit cards to buy their services. And use your chosen brands exclusively for travel. This can you really get you a lot of points.

For example I am a lifetime gold member with Marriott hotels. I have their credit card my wife has a copy of this credit card and will use it for every purchase we make. This is a specially important when you are staying at a hotel. For instance if you visit the hotel bar and have a meal, charge it to your room. This not only gets you points from your frequent traveler account with that establishment but you get points on the backend by paying for it with your credit card from that establishment.

There are countless tricks like this that can help you gain maximum points .

 

Certain cards also have great multiplier bonuses, like the Chase Freedom Cards 5x points on rotating categories and their Sapphire card has a 50,000 point sign up right now with 2x points on certain things like gas and restaurants.


Sad day today though. Blue bird just announced it'll be shutting down manufactured spending to meet those point criteria for new cards.

 

Anyone else travel with just a small 10-15 lb. carry-on? literally the best thing I've ever done when it comes to travel.

 

Most of my trips are for one week at a time. So I rarely carry on. I really don't mind checking a bag .

 

I bring enough for one week and do my own laundry once in a while. So technically if you can make it 1 week you can make it 100 weeks ha.


I just like to skip the lines and hassle. And the one time I did check luggage (Tel Aviv) they lost it for a week. I was in Jerusalem 6 weeks and didn't have anything I needed for the whole first week. Sucked ha.

 

Hello! Subscribing for sure to this thread. I love traveling, however I rarely can afford it and have the time for it. My goal is to leave the country at least once each year. I don't have any credit cards with travel points and I should probably start looking into one, but afraid of drowning in more debt.

Anyways, looking at doing a trip to Asia this coming summer. Plan is Bali, Thailand, Angkor Wat for 3 days, then finish the rest of the time off in Vietnam. unfortunately the most time I think I will be able to get is 3 weeks for the trip. I usually only carry my 50 liter backpacking pack for trips and a small marmot day pack. Both carry on.

Any pointers you guys can give for Asia? I'm Vietnamese so language barrier is not a concern when I get to Vietnam, but for the other countries it may be. Trying to travel as cost efficient as possible.

 

Awesome! One thing I would look into for Summer travel to SE Asia is the weather. That can be rainy season for most of the region, so definitely bring a rain coat ha.

Id love to take a look at your packing list and let you know what I think. I was in the Philippines a few years ago and hardly used anything in my pack ha.

As far as tracking cheap, it's as simple as budgeting here. Certainly get local food, not American places, don't eat within several blocks of big tourist sites as prices will be higher. Same goes for hostels or hotels, further away from touristy stuff can help with price, but overall SE Asia is quite inexpensive with some basic precautions. Definitely be willing to go to the market/grocery store and buy food like the locals do.

As far as languages, there are too many to try and learn them all beforehand ha but when you get to each place learning a few phrases from friends goes a long way. Fortunately English is actually somewhat prevalent in some of SE Asia so you can sometimes find an English speaker or translator.

Also be willing to barter and haggle on prices. This is something people either love or hate ha. I love it, but it's not rude to ask for a lower price and haggle. It's the norm and you don't want to pay tourist prices.

Thailand will be cheaper if you stay up North. You have to weigh the pros and cons of what tourist sites you want to see or if you're more into seeing the local culture and whatnot, but up north won't be as expensive.

As far as credit cards go, I certainly wouldn't recommend them at first. Getting a handle on finances and debt and having a plan is the only way they're beneficial. I'm not prying into your finances, but if you don't feel you could meet the spending limits and pay the balance off in full every single month, without fail, then it'll be more problem than good.

But there's a lot you can do to budget for the trip leading up to it! And if you decide to get a card I can certainly help.

Any other questions, let me know! I would just say to par down your packing list as SE Asia doesn't require much, and start saving asap!

 

Since it is still far away I haven't figured out exactly what I will be packing yet, but I do know that I usually pack plenty of socks and boxers and will either have my marmot minimalist jacket or northface venture, depending on how hard I think it will be raining in the locations I go. Is laundry cheap and easy to do in SE Asia? When I went to Peru we stayed in hostels and there were laundry places that I could just drop stuff off and come back a few hours later and it be clean and folded. Usually like $1-2 for 2 kilograms.

 

I've heard from others that it is cheap but I don't know from experience. I just do my laundry in the shower or in a dry bag since I only have a few shirts and everything.


I have no official plans, but SE Asia is my next destination and if that gets put off this Spring I may see you there! Ha

 

Might be wrapping up my international travel for the foreseeable future now but just got back from a 2 week trip to Panama. I've been spending a fair amount of time in Ecuador over the last year and a half, too. 2 weeks in Argentina in 2014 and 6 weeks in Australia in 2013. Fun stuff!

For getting around cheaply, biggest thing I've found is to figure out the public transportation as best as you can. And don't be afraid to just talk to people at bus stops. Usually they're helpful! Of course sometimes they tell you to get off 6 miles before your originally intended destination with the next bus 2 hours away in the tropical heat and sun, but hey, that just put it's own twist on that experience

 

Panama is high on my list of places I need to travel too. Mainly for the fishing.

 

Haha, we mostly decided on Panama because a friend recommended it over Costa Rica (though that's high on the list, too) but also because of the birds for me!
I'm assuming you wouldn't fish near the canal, right? Seemed like pretty gross water.

 

Prob wont be fishing by the canal when I go, but would like to see the canal. Costa Rica is great! Really enjoyed my time there.

 

That is a lot to fit in 3 weeks ! I've done SE Asia the last two winters while also visiting China to see friends. Being able to speak Vietnamese would be a huge advantage to you. I would probably cut Bali out. The Southern surf areas are cool and Ubud is ok but I would avoid it and spend more time in Vietnam, Cambodia, laos, and thailand. Flights around those areas are really cheap especially if you book in country or use a vpn to mask your ip address. 3 days is actually a decent number for Angor Wat. Lots to see but If you see 10 amazing temples you've kind of seen them all. I have lots of tips but the best is just be patient and things will work out. Buses will be late, plans will fail, you'll get sick, but that's part of the trip. Oh Yea and buy good travel insurance. It will cost around $120 but it's always a smart move. I like World Nomads. After getting dengue fever in Thailand last year it more than paid for itself. Good luck!

 

Thanks for the info! Yea, I know its a lot to squeeze in for 3 weeks. Still trying to figure everything out. I was able to locate information on how to travel from Bangkok to Angkor Wat by train for a pretty cheap price.

Bali is on top of the list since the gf wants to go there and I chose the last 2 trip locations.

 

I was hoping there'd be more travelers here glad to see it!

 

Love traveling, but resources and time don't allow for it.

Out of all the SE Asia countries listed so far that I want to see, only Vietnam requires a visa correct?

 

I don't think I've ever checked a bag & have done some month+ adventures. I pack tight (I roll my shit up and wrap it with rubber bands), buy my consumables locally beyond what I need for actual travel days & wash my cloths.

I also split pack my shit with whoever (if) I'm traveling with and alway carry my travel documents on my person.

Once while connecting through Frankfort Germany a bomb threat went into effect at the airport. My travel partners had their tix & passports & some valuables in their carry on luggage which we were NOT allowed to move when we had to evacuate the area. The people I was traveling with were left in international quarantine for hours until their bags were re-checked (security) & matched...it took hours.

I don't now but, to be fair, I've worked for a major airline for much of my career. I recommend it if you dig travel like I do & it fits your career path benefits include heavily discounted airfare,cheap rental cars, trains, cruises, hotels & restaurants. I took full advantage of these perks for family, friends & myself. Though I've heard travel rules/discounts have been tightened up recently.

 

I know what frequent flyer miles are worth anymore has gotten worse over the years.

I can honestly say that traveling light is the number one thing that makes it more enjoyable. Having just a small backpack allots for a whole lot more enjoyability and freedom. I had my flight leaving Tel Aviv to come back home canceled last Summer and ended up in a similar situation to yours haha. I had all of my stuff on me, but the geniuses I was traveling with decided to leave their luggage next to me while I got some shut eye... I woke up to a bomb threat and them rushing everyone to shelter and when I went back I realized I had all their baggage and they were being detained because they didn't have any of their papers. So, like a nice guy, I didn't just leave their stuff there, I took it upstairs to where they were being held. And what do ya know, the lady who was basically screaming at them decided to detain, flag and very very thoroughly search me as well. Great friends, I know haha. Security ended up taking me two hours instead of twenty minutes because they went through every inch of my belongings, my person, socks and underwear swiping included, and even charged my phone up and snooped as well. Worst airport experience of my life, and all because other people didn't want to haul their own gigantic luggage around themselves ha.