"Golden Rules" for Traveling

Hi Everyone! We are so excited to start a travel blog where hopefully we can inspire others to travel and see the world and not feel intimidated by getting out of their comfort zones. This first blog is to initially just give some tips and tricks that we have discovered in our first travel adventures; especially internationally. We will provide more recommendations on specific places on separate postings. For now, let’s get to know one another better by answering some of the basic questions we often get asked about on our travels.

How can you go anywhere in the world without spending a fortune and have a blast at the same time?! Do what we do! We do a lot of digging (aka use Google) to find the best deals, but if you prefer a Travel Agent, they're great too! We just tend to try to hit as many places as possible when we travel. It's all about the experience for us! If you decide to plan your own trip, we can't express the importance of reading the reviews about the airlines, hotels, sites, tours, etc. it's critical. The number one complaint we've found with hotels is always the breakfast?! No joke, it’s overwhelming how bad folks will jump on any site to bash a place due to the breakfast that was inclusive. We love to experience the local fare, so we oftentimes forgo the breakfast, not that it's lacking, but we prefer to try something local and unique! We literally read almost every Tripadvisor.com, Yelp.com, and any other review we can find before booking our excursions. If you have zero desire to plan out your own vacation, then please use a travel agent, they’re great. In our experience we've found a few things that seem consistent, whether they seem common sense or not, they're something to always keep in mind:

Our “Golden Rules” For a Great Time On Any Vacation: 1. Respect everyone 2. Respect the place you’re visiting 3. If it’s an International Destination, learn a few key words or phrases in the language of the locals 4. International Airlines are mostly small, so they fluctuate their schedule regularly, so be aware

5. If you want the best tour of any historic/iconic site, use viator.com (Italy require tours mostly)

6. Hotel recommendations, always check kayak.com and make sure ratings are 8+ and stars are 4+, you'll never go wrong

7. Most countries prefer something other than American Express (please think of the name?) Chase is a great card, but any Debit Card works fine on any ATM. Airports have the best exchange rates and plenty of local currency, but honestly, everywhere in this world prefers a card

8. COVID-19 should not be taken lightly, please check the local requirements (internationally) daily! At this time it is required that a negative COVID-19 be administered and proven in any country a U.S. Citizen visits. This means, 72 Hours from landing, you have to get proof that you do not have COVID-19, regardless of vaccination. We saw two families in Iceland miss their flights to the U.S. because they thought their vaccines were enough. (We'll keep this portion updated)

9. Leave room for spontaneous adventures, every minute of your trip does not have to be planned

10. Lastly, Please have fun and just be happy! Everyone else will be as well!

People

People and their culture are the most important thing to understand about traveling abroad

• Italians – wonderful people who will always do their best to speak English if they believe you’re not Italian. They are upbeat, have a great time, and are extremely accommodating

• French– The French are amazing at everything they do, but they typically will speak to anyone in French first until you speak back in English. They are not rude, they like to get things done, so they’re very efficient. There’s not a lot of pleasantries, they just want to help you as fast as possible.

• Parisian’s love their roots, and we felt very welcomed, but also could see a glimmer in their eye when we were enthusiastically asking about directions, a famous monument, or anything in general.

• Southern France is another ballgame because the people really do not speak anything other than French for the most part, so be prepared to use hand signals, or Google Translator, or just practice a few key terms, questions, responses, etc. and you’ll be fine (We had a tough language barrier in Marseille and Montpellier, but quite a bit of these folks could speak broken Spanish, which helped since we both speak Spanish (not good, but enough to get by).

• Spaniards (Spain) – amazing people in general. All very welcoming, very accommodating, and very helpful with anything you need. Almost everyone speaks English, but they seem to enjoy seeing Americans attempt speaking their language

• Cayman Islands – The nicest people on the planet, and that’s not a joke. The hospitality is taken to the next level on this island. Filipino’s comprise a decent amount of the workforce, and this is typical among many travel destinations in the Caribbean Islands and Pacific Islands. It’s hard to explain how nice everyone can be and their work ethic; it’s unreal!

• Brussels (Belgium) – these folks like to have a good time. They all speak English very well, and almost have this demeanor as if they’re giving you a hard time. They all seemed to be so nice, accommodating, and love their country. We’ve heard about some of the older generation being grateful for all of the American’s that sacrificed their lives during the Battle of the Bulge.

• Canadians – Yes, they’re just nice overall. Upbeat, very accommodating, and just wonderful folks in general

• Swiss – Amazing people to be around. It’s as if you met the nicest Americans, but they had a bit of an accent. They’re so clean, respectful of everything and everyone, and thoroughly enjoy life, and also want others to experience the same.

• Mexicans – They are relentless at everything they do. Everyone knows somebody who can get you whatever you could want. They can be aggressive in the tourist areas like Cancun, so be prepared to have multiple come ask you about getting a cab, or where you should park etc., so have fun with it, because there’s no hard feelings, they just like to haggle. They’re all so kind though, and willing to help. We procured a cab from the airport to a resort 20 miles away, and also our return trip after landing. They did not fail. Our return flight was around 6am, and the driver was already waiting to take us to the airport 30 minutes before we came down to leave. The Mexican culture is amazing. They’re all so happy, love making money, and love to help. It can be overwhelming though.

• Icelandic – Icelandic people are some of the nicest people on earth. They all speak wonderful English and multiple other languages. Oftentimes we were greeted in Icelandic, and we weren’t sure if it’s because we appeared Icelandic or if they just wanted to check. The moment we said “Hello”, they always said, “ah!, so English!” They then always followed immediately with the biggest smile and asked “how can we help you?!”….. The reason we find the “Hello” comment amusing is because “Hello” in Icelandic is literally “ Hallo’ “, and sounds like the English word “Halo”, with the “o” being drawn out.

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Flights

Use Kayak.com and nothing else unless you’re a member of a rewards program like Delta Sky Miles. We've found that the best time to book a European flight tends to be 90-120 days before your trip. If you're flying domestic (U.S.A.) then aim for around 40-50 days before your trip. There is actually a lot of research on the day count prior to booking a flight that you can google, and same with when the best month you should book those flights, so please use that resource!

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Hotels

Use Kayak.com, but the best agency will always be Agoda.com, Hotels.com, or Priceline.com.

The most crucial TRAVEL TIP we could ever give is to locate a Hard Rock Café. I know this sounds odd, but every place we go, there’s a Hard Rock Café, and they’re always located at the main tourist areas, which means they’re safe. There are plenty of great restaurants, hotels, areas in general of a foreign country located away a Hard Rock, but we assure you that you’ll find yourself noticing one when you get to the main hub.

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European Train Tickets

Trains are the best option to travel throughout Europe, and there are so many options it will make your head spin.

• If you’re planning to spend a month or more in Europe, without a plan, traveling wherever your heart desires, then get a Eurorail pass.

• If you know exactly where you want to go in Europe, buy the tickets as early as possible or at least a few months in advance. Please do this, it will save you tons of money and ensure a saved seat for the best times to travel between destinations.

• Some countries need you to buy your train tickets directly from their servicer, Germany is one those.

• Yes, the trains travel close to 200 mph, so you can get where you’re going fast including going under the English Channel from London to Paris.

• Each country has different protocols when boarding, so be aware.

• London was stricter than any other country, and it was essentially like getting on an airline in the USA (i.e. security, putting bags through conveyers to be scanned etc.

• Most countries didn’t have any form of security, and it felt like getting on a subway in New York. In Belgium, we walked right up to the platform and got on our train, and this was the same in France, Italy, Switzerland, and Spain.

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Site Seeing & Tour Guides

Some tour guides are great, and if you really want to know everything about a place, just use google or Groupon to find the best deal. We learned a lot about some of the sites by just literally overhearing the various tour guides, and I really don’t need someone to tell me that the Coliseum in Rome was meant for death matches etc., Wikipedia can tell me these things.

HOWEVER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!, you will have to book a guide for certain locations around the world, and please make sure to read everything about the guide you’re going to use.

The Last Supper - You can’t see this iconic fresco without a guide, it’s not allowed, so book a cheap one because you honestly only get 15 minutes and you’re not supposed to talk or take pictures with a flash

The Vatican - You must have a guide, and we suggest the early bird special because you literally are taken straight to the Vatican, get to be in there for about 15 minutes and are shuffled out

• YOU CAN’T take photos inside the Vatican, it’s not allowed. Please obey this because these works of art are priceless

• Once you leave the Vatican, you’re allowed to walk through the various halls at your leisure, without a guide, and see some magnificent things such as: various Pope’s clothing, gifts from ancient dignitaries, gems, art, etc., and then you’ll find yourself back at St. Peter’s Basilica, which is so overwhelmingly huge, it’ll take your breath away
  

The Statue of David

• Just like the Vatican, you must have a ticket booked ahead of time, you can’t just walk up or else you’ll likely be told nothing is available

• The statue is amazing, but it sits in a library in Florence, Italy, and it’s not exactly the easiest place to find, so ask anyone who looks like they’re a local

Happy Travels!

Love, The Traveling Tillerys