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50 Years of Travel Tips

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Re: 50 Years of Travel Tips

#151

Post by jonasdegendt »

qkeast wrote: post #122
jonasdegendt wrote: post #115

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If that happens, aren’t you pretty much walking to the closest mobile phone store? A basic device that’ll give you access to the internet, mail and maps is basically a commodity the same way a toothbrush is.

The thing I haven't figured out (mostly because I haven't sat down and done so) is how I'd access mail and such—without my password manager on my own phone, I don't have access to anything.

I have a Yubikey (well, two actually) on my keychain for 2FA, gets rid of those pesky apps.

Re: 50 Years of Travel Tips

#152

Post by jonasdegendt »

harperlee wrote: post #119
jonasdegendt wrote: post #115

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If that happens, aren’t you pretty much walking to the closest mobile phone store? A basic device that’ll give you access to the internet, mail and maps is basically a commodity the same way a toothbrush is.

Problem: with 2FA, lost phone = lost access to your email and rest of digital life, when on a trip (I’ll assume no one travels with their recovery keys).

Yubikeys with a passkey for every major service. One on the keychain, a nano one permanently in the laptop. This lets you access anything with the key and a password.

Re: 50 Years of Travel Tips

#153

Post by ghaff »

jonasdegendt wrote: post #151
qkeast wrote: post #122

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The thing I haven't figured out (mostly because I haven't sat down and done so) is how I'd access mail and such—without my password manager on my own phone, I don't have access to anything.

I have a Yubikey (well, two actually) on my keychain for 2FA, gets rid of those pesky apps.

I don’t universally travel with a laptop.

Re: 50 Years of Travel Tips

#154

Post by ghaff »

jorvi wrote: post #142
ghaff wrote: post #131

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I actually do have my Gmail recovery keys with my passport though I haven't tested in a while. But from reading other comments, I guess I'm pretty paranoid and maybe more prepared for a situation where I don't have a working phone. But, if you use a password manager for Google, not sure if that does you any good. Honestly, regaining access to your various accounts if you need to get a new phone--perhaps especially in…

1Password handles this problem pretty elegantly because of their secret key system. You can just print out your secret key and stuff it in your suitcase / backpack. Its useless for a thief unless they know your password too. You could set an emergency / recovery contact too, but I don't know how the recovery flow would go. Also, an eSIM will vastly complicate your bootstrapping.

And an eSIM is all my current phone has.

Not sure how much confidence I would put in getting back up and running in an international trip with 2FA vs. having paper copies of important info.

Re: 50 Years of Travel Tips

#155

Post by swat535 »

susam wrote: post #18

One travel technique that has worked very well for me takes place the day before my trip: using a pre-travel prep-and-packing checklist. I created this checklist about 15 years ago and still refine it occasionally. This list has three sections: A) Preparation tasks: Like printing essential travel documents, saving a backup to my mobile phone, buying foreign currency, activating data roaming, etc. B) Packing list: Min…

I’ve stopped caring about packing.

Now I only pack the very basics, medication, laptop and chargers toiletries for shaving etc and a few clothes. Anything else I will most likely purchase or won’t need at all. I avoid checking bags, just a small carryon and my backpack.

To me the more important items are travel requirements, road conditions, directions, etc.

Re: 50 Years of Travel Tips

#156

Post by triyambakam »

susam wrote: post #18

One travel technique that has worked very well for me takes place the day before my trip: using a pre-travel prep-and-packing checklist. I created this checklist about 15 years ago and still refine it occasionally. This list has three sections: A) Preparation tasks: Like printing essential travel documents, saving a backup to my mobile phone, buying foreign currency, activating data roaming, etc. B) Packing list: Min…

The split in sections is really useful!

Re: 50 Years of Travel Tips

#158

Post by mvdtnz »

> If you hire a driver, or use a taxi, offer to pay the driver to take you to visit their mother. They will ordinarily jump at the chance. They fulfill their filial duty and you will get easy entry into a local’s home, and a very high chance to taste some home cooking. Mother, driver, and you leave happy. This trick rarely fails.

Wow. What a creep. No thank you.

> When visiting a foreign city for the first time, take a street food tour. Depending on the region, the tour will include food carts, food trucks, food courts, or smaller eateries. It will last a few hours, and the cost will include the food. You’ll get some of the best food available, and usually the host will also deliver a great introduction to the culture. Google “street food tour for city X.”

No, you will get the mid eateries that pay tour guides to bring tourists. They pay tour guides because the locals know not to go there.

Re: 50 Years of Travel Tips

#159

Post by mvdtnz »

kmoser wrote: post #150
astura wrote: post #103

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Just imagine this interaction from the mom's perspective. (Because the author sure hasn't!) You're minding your own business just doing laundry or whatever and your adult son just shows up to you house totally unannounced with a foreign stranger in tow looking for you to cook them a meal. Come on, that is really rude! Like, it's clear this guy thinks the mom is a total NPC in this situation. It takes some serious del…

Presumably the driver knows their mom well enough to determine how she would react, or call ahead to be sure. If it still blows up, blame the driver, not the passenger who initiated the request.

A taxi driver in a poor country is doing what he needs to do to get paid, probably with a bit of a tip. That doesn't make this interaction ok. It's exploitative and RUDE!

Re: 50 Years of Travel Tips

#160

Post by QuiEgo »

rawgabbit wrote: post #39

I like his list of recommendations for apps and websites. Are there any other recommendations? FlightAware Google Maps and Translate Booking.com Seat61.com

Apps: Airline, hotel, rental car company. TripAdvisor. FlightAware24, Loungebuddy, Terminal Buddy, At Your Gate. Microsoft Translate with offline language downloaded. Kindle, Netflix, Disney+, Prime Video, Hulu, plex, etc. with offline downloads. Google Maps with offline maps downloaded.
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