5 tips for a safe March Break

March Break is here, and it’s one of the busiest times to travel.

With that being said, it’s important to note that more people means more crowds, busier airports, and a higher likelihood of forgetting something, especialy for travellers making last-minute plans.

To make your well-deserved break the most enjoyable, follow these tips and tricks for a March Break to remember.

Check the News

Prior to booking your vacation, it’s always a good idea to do some research on the safety and security of the area you’ll be staying in. Even if you’ll be in your hotel, or popular tourist spaces for the majority of the trip, it doesn’t hurt to be informed. The Government of Canada continuously updates travel advice, and lists any travel advisories as soon as they form, so that the safety of Canadians is first and foremost. Even if the issue is a weather alert, this website is a great resource to reference prior to booking.

In the result that an incident takes place while you’re already travelling, the Government of Canada has tools and resources in place to ensure the safety of its citizens, including the names and contact information for Canadian embassies and consulates abroad.

If you plan on venturing outside of regular ‘tourist hotspots’, it’s always best to check local news sites online to be sure that they are safe for visitors. For example, back in October 2017, tourists visiting Barcelona found themselves in the midst of protests in the popular Gothic Quarter. While the protests were peaceful, not all political rallies stay that way, and it’s always good to know if there are any political, economical, or social problems going on in the destination you plan to visit.

While Spring Break should be an enjoyable time, world events and weather-related incidents can happen, and it’s always better to be safe, than sorry.

Plan for Vaccines

While not all vaccinations are mandatory, and some individuals cannot be vaccinated for health reasons, some countries have mandatory vaccine requirements prior to entry. In other words, if you know that you cannot obtain the vaccine for medical reasons, it’s best to avoid travel to destinations that have a requirement listed.

Adequate time is also required for vaccinations. Never book a last-minute vacation unless all of your required vaccines are up-to-date. Some vaccinations, like the TWINREX Hepatitis A and Hepatitis B vaccination or the influenza vaccine are a personal choice, while others, like the vaccination against Yellow Fever, are mandatory, and if you have recently travelled through countries where Yellow Fever rates are high, like South America and Africa, you will be asked for proof of vaccination certification.

Hepatitis A and B vaccines require two separate doses, 30 days apart, and that dose will protect you for one year. Yellow fever must be taken 10 days prior to travelling.

It’s important to check with your family doctor, or visit the nearest travel clinic as soon as you have an idea of when you’ll be travelling to be sure that, should you wish to receive vaccinations, that you allocate the appropriate time for the vaccines to run their course.

Travel Insurance > Tacos

According to Allianz, 43.4 per cent of millennials travel the world uninsured, and this is a major problem. The nature of Spring Break often entails a great party or two, and it’s highly likely that alcohol will be present. Many travel-related injuries happen under the influence of alcohol or drugs, and if such an accident does occur, it’s better to be protected.

Besides having the impression that travel insurance really isn’t necessary, the two other most influential reasons for denying a protection plan included thinking that the travel insurance was too expensive, or that the trip was too short to warrant any sort of extra protection.

The latter of the two tends to tie right into many young Canadian travellers having the mentality that ‘it won’t happen to me’ when they go abroad. But, as Dan Keon, vice president, market management, Allianz Global Assistance, points out, if you’re a millennial, the cost of travel insurance for a week’s vacation is usually less than $30, but young travellers skip it because they’d rather put the money elsewhere.

“They [travellers] sometimes don’t even bother getting a quote, because they assume the cost of insurance will be too high, and they’re already budgeting for everything else in their trip, and every dollar that they’re putting somewhere else is a dollar that could be spent on that trip,” Keon explained. “Sometimes, when Canadians are going on a shorter trip, or they’re healthy, they just assume that they don’t need the travel insurance, but from what we’ve seen historically, regardless of age, destination or length of trip, emergencies do happen.”

When a week’s worth of travel insurance works out to approximately the cost of dinner and a drink for one night, the benefits of being insured truly outweigh the risks. Before you board the plane, get in touch with an insurance provider, and speak with someone who can help you select an insurance plan that reflects your travel style and personal needs. Remember: Canadian health insurance doesn’t protect you outside of the country.

Get Your Documents in Order

When you go away on vacation, there’s more to it than simply remembering to grab your passport on the way out the door. Make sure you have completed the following:

• Make a photocopy of your passport/credit card(s)
• Print your boarding passes
• Make a photocopy of your hotel itinerary
• Copy down the telephone numbers of places you’ll stay
• Create an emergency contact list

Bringing your passport on a trip isn’t enough. In the event that your passport is lost, or gets stolen, the photocopied version won’t only help expedite the process of obtaining a new one, but you’ll be able to prove your identity to foreign officials.

Leave any credit cards or pieces of identification that you won’t be using, safe at home. For example, if you won’t be driving while on vacation, you don’t need to bring your driver’s license — just make a copy. Only carry your travel insurance and the credit card you intend to bring, and remember to place them, and any money you’ll be bringing, in your carry-on bag, so that it’s easily accessible for all entry and exit points.

If your credit card is lost or stolen, the photo suffices because it contains the important details on the front and back of your cards, but it also has the telephone number of your credit card provider, which saves you crucial time in the event of an emergency scenario.

Keep in Touch

It’s also a good idea to print out your hotel itinerary and write down the local phone numbers of places you’ll be staying, and share them with friends or family, should they need to get in touch with you. If you told family or friends that you'll keep in touch along the way, do it, even if it's just to send a quick email saying that you've landed safely.

The same goes with creating an emergency contact list: keep a copy on your person, not on your cellphone, in the event that your phone breaks, or is lost or stolen. Never rely on technology or electronics to store important information. You can store the paper copies in your hotel safe, or carry them in your pocket.

If you’re worried about losing a hard copy, scan the copies and store them in an online storage cloud, like iCloud, Google Drive, or Dropbox, and make sure you can access them at all times.

Most Canadian mobile carriers now offer international data plans that make the cost of dialling back home to Canada easy and affordable. Even if you don't purchase an add-on data plan, there are a number or messaging apps like Facebook Messenger, Skype, Whatsapp, and iMessage that make keeping in touch possible through a WiFi connection.

Take Advantage of Travel Apps

From packing tips to monitoring flight changes, when it comes to travel, there’s an app for that! Almost all smartphones are compatible with GPS technology, which means maps or location services will work abroad, so long as there’s Wi-Fi.

When travelling to a new place for the first time, travel apps can come in handy, especially if it’s for everyday things like locating an Uber, looking up local transit schedules, or simply reading up on the best places to grab a bite.

You can check out our list of the top 10 travel apps here.

Vacations are most enjoyed when travellers are safe and prepared.

For travel advice and advisories, visit www.travel.gc.ca