The fears of novice tourists are in vain. Memo to a novice tourist

For many of our parents, traveling comes down, at best, to trips to the country. It happens that for years the only window to the world is the television and countless travel programs. And I really want to go somewhere myself! But it’s so scary to decide...

What should you be afraid of, and what can be classified as vain fears?

Probably the most difficult thing is to decide on a long trip. Older people are often conservative. They are frightened by the very thought that they will have to fly on an airplane, sleep in a bed that is not their own, or eat unusual food. Unpleasant questions immediately come to mind: what to do in the distance if something happens?

In fact, once a person decides once and goes to tourist trip how he instantly becomes a true travel enthusiast. His eyes light up, his back straightens, new notes appear in his voice.

Here are some tips for those who are just discovering new boundaries of the world:

Defeat aerophobia

For many people fear long trips- this is, first of all, the fear of flying. How to overcome aerophobia? Of course I have, " folk remedy" However, many airlines have now banned its use for the reason that they are tired of dealing with rowdy passengers who were unable to find the correct dosage of this very drug. Therefore, it is better to use other methods.

Those who panic at the thought of flying are advised to go to the airport in advance. Look at the beautiful airplanes, at how many people, including children, use this comfortable and in a safe way transport. During the flight itself, have a positive attitude. Don't get too hung up on the flight. Think about your upcoming vacation. Read a book or magazine, watch a movie, chat with your neighbors. If you have a drug that you take to help calm you down, take it ahead of time.

Wardrobe in a suitcase

Many people are concerned that they do not have the necessary things for a trip abroad. A question asked by almost every tourist. We advise you not to worry about trifles and take the most comfortable clothes and shoes, putting them in a small suitcase on wheels.

You should not make the common mistake of novice tourists: packing mountains of unnecessary things with you. So, both in a beach hotel and on an excursion tour, you definitely won’t need elegant dresses and high-heeled shoes. The number of things should be kept to a minimum, especially if the trip program includes transfers from one hotel to another. Simple trousers, a wrinkle-resistant dress, comfortable low-heeled shoes.

For all trips in Europe, regardless of the time of year, you may need a light jacket and an umbrella. If you are not going on a cruise, and your trip does not involve banquets, then it is better to leave the jewelry at home.

There is one irreplaceable thing that will come in handy during an overnight plane flight, long train ride or bus ride. This is an inflatable pillow that is placed around the neck and allows you to relieve the neck muscles. You can buy it in stores that sell suitcases and other goods for travelers.

When you are going on a long independent trip for the first time, you want to take as many things with you as possible. Your brain builds more and more ingenious situations, starting with the words “What if suddenly...”, while gradually compacting itself into a state of absolute unbearability.

Stop! Remember that you will have to carry all this on your back and this can turn the journey into torture. Usually a person needs very few things for life, and those that are missing can almost always be obtained locally. The ability to properly pack for a trip comes with experience, but it is better to immediately prepare yourself to take only the bare minimum with you.

2. Rigid route planning

Sometimes novice travelers believe that if they thoroughly plan the entire route, calculate all transfers and stops, and book all tickets in advance, this will save them from surprises and stress.

But more often it turns out the other way around. At the most unexpected moment, an unforeseen circumstance may arise that will collapse your entire carefully developed plan like a house of cards. Therefore, of course, you need to plan, but without unnecessary fanaticism. It’s better to leave yourself some room to maneuver so you don’t have to worry about lateness and delays later.

3. The pace is too fast

When you get into new country, I want to be able to go everywhere and see everything. The desire is understandable, but it must be followed carefully. Otherwise, you can turn into a driven horse, which, without sleep or rest, gallops around the sights to take a few more obligatory photographs.

Relax and calm down. You won’t be able to see everything anyway, so focus not on the quantity, but on the quality of your impressions. Watch the sunrises, inhale the aromas of new dishes, get acquainted with new traditions.

4. Faith in digital technology

We live in an absolutely amazing digital time, and many objects today are losing their material embodiment. But in those countries through which your travel route passes, you may not have heard of electronic tickets, credit cards and online services. Therefore, be prepared for the fact that a completely simple operation that takes three seconds in your country will be completely unavailable somewhere else. Always carry paper copies of your tickets, boarding passes, maps and other important documents with you.

5. Roaming

Careless use of roaming abroad can cost you dearly. You can find enough stories on the Internet where inexperienced tourists, upon returning home, were forced to pay huge sums for mobile traffic. Therefore, try to find out about roaming prices before starting your trip and find the most suitable cost minimization scheme.

6. Gullibility

Many people hold diametrically opposed points of view in their attitude towards. Some believe that the world is full of evil and deception, so travelers will definitely be offended or robbed by someone. Others, on the contrary, paint reality only with rosy colors and believe in peace, friendship and mutual assistance.

In fact, the world is colorful, there are both pink rabbits and evil ones Gray wolves. You can really be deceived or robbed, so you should not carelessly trust every native who offers you their “selfless” friendship. Be alert and listen to your instincts. If the anxiety bell starts to ring quietly inside you, then you should refuse even the most tempting offer.

7. Extravagance

Some people, who in normal circumstances are not at all prone to spending money, are completely blown away when traveling. They start buying meaningless “authentic” trinkets, dining at the most expensive establishments and buying pretentious excursions. Then sobering comes, but it’s too late.

Remember that the quality of a trip does not always directly depend on the amount spent on it. Know the correct exchange rate in advance, compare prices in different places, and do not hesitate to bargain. And never, under any circumstances, agree to any services without a pre-agreed price, if you do not want to pay a triple tariff later with a scandal.

8. Lack of insurance

We all hope only for the best. In most cases, this is exactly what happens. But sometimes travel can go awry. Appendicitis, trauma, food poisoning or banal - how can this be foreseen? No way, so don’t be greedy and be sure to take out travel insurance, which will help in case of unforeseen troubles.

9. Ignorance of local traditions

In most cases, people are understanding of your status as a tourist and forgive minor violations of local customs. But it is important to know when to stop and never break really serious taboos, especially those related to religion. Therefore, take the time and study at least the basic recommendations on behavior in the countries you plan to visit. It's even better if you learn at least a few words in the local dialect. People take this as a sign of respect for their country and strive to reciprocate.

What advice would you give to novice travelers? Maybe there is interesting stories from personal experience?

“I’ll give up everything and go to the ends of the world!” - such thoughts probably occurred to every person at least once in their life. The reasons may be different - the desire to see other countries, meet people of other cultures, or simply escape from boring everyday life. Take a backpack, buy a map, tickets and off you go! It would seem - what could be simpler?

But in reality, only a few people do this. Obligations, fears, lack of self-confidence, lack of money - this and much more slows down not only people over 30, but also young people, for whom, it would seem, it’s time to do crazy things and look for a fair wind, so that in old age they can remember with kindness smiling at his past adventures.

Let's try to understand the main problems and doubts of novice travelers - real and far-fetched, and identify possible ways to solve them.

1. I have no one to go with.

The lack of travel companions often stops even those who have everything else in order full order. It seems like I’ve already found the money and sorted out the work, but none of my friends want to support the bold initiative. And alone - it’s scary, scary, and probably boring?

Answer: All experienced travelers unanimously say that fellow travelers are a secondary and profitable matter. By daring to go out alone, you will benefit much more than couples and groups. Firstly, if you will be using hitchhiking as a transportation option, it is much more efficient to do it alone - than more people, the more difficult it is to catch a car. Secondly, if you have a travel companion, you always have someone to talk to, and you will be much less drawn to new acquaintances, which means you’ll miss out on the lion’s share interesting discoveries and the revelations that make up any journey. So it remains to be seen whether it is worth looking for travel companions at the start.

If you absolutely cannot take the first step solo, you can always turn to searching for travel companions online. Today there are many special forums and services that allow you to find a company for yourself, even for a trip to a nearby store.

Of the most popular - http://www.poputchik.ru/, http://www.mahnem.ru/, http://poputi.votpusk.ru/ or, for example - http://www.bpclub.ru - for hitchhiking.

2. What if? What if?

What if I get lost? What to do if you run out of money? What if there is nowhere to stay overnight?

Answer: many people spend their entire lives in their comfort zone, moving along once established routes and traveling only organized groups with a mandatory guide or conductor. It is not surprising that the thought of traveling independently and the fact that you can be left alone in an unfamiliar place or find yourself in other unusual situations causes, if not horror, then quite expected trepidation.

“If you can randomly make your way to your own bed in complete darkness without hurting yourself, then it’s time to travel.” B.Y. Krieger

And here to assure you that all your fears are in vain, that everything will go without a hitch, would be wrong and dishonest. We are not immune to the unexpected, and that's true. And they can lie in wait for us even on the well-known “home-work” route, let alone other cities and countries.

But it is also true that without leaving our comfort zone, we will never test ourselves for strength, we will never recognize the real ourselves, our hidden capabilities, all our lives staying in the cocoon of our own ideas about ourselves. New tasks give rise to new solutions, expanding the field of vision and raising it to a new level.

“Away from our native language and loved ones, deprived of all our usual disguises and supports (after all, you don’t even know the price of a tram ticket), we are completely on the surface. But at the same time, feeling out of place, we discover in every object and in every wondrous creature their true magical essence.” Albert Camus

"Forewarned is forearmed". Your main trump card is information. Study any information you can get (and there is no shortage of it today), consult in specialized communities, do not hesitate to ask questions experienced travelers. Let you have a pile of pieces of paper with the names of a dozen different hotels and telephone numbers of people living in these places and willing to help (you can also find them on forums or in communities like couchsurfing (https://www.couchsurfing.org/), the main thing is to find the ground under your feet before the first start. And the second time you will remember all this with laughter.

It's also great to have a phone with you mobile internet and GPS. With such information support it is difficult to get lost or not find accommodation for the night;)

And, of course, it is important to be open and friendly in any, even the most emergency, situation. Sometimes help can come from complete strangers when you are not expecting it at all. So - an open look and a smile + information preparation - and you are not afraid of any surprises.

3. I don’t have money for such trips.

Undoubtedly, free travel- This is the dream of any backpacker. In reality, this is not always possible - only, perhaps, when traveling by hitchhiking or on a bicycle with your own tent and/or sleeping bag and a supply of canned food. But this special case, not everyone will decide to do this. Let's think about what can be done.

Answer:

And in conclusion, I would like to say: independent travel is always an experiment on yourself, a challenge, a struggle - both with your vices (laziness, timidity, fears) and with circumstances.

But, at the same time, it is always drive, courage, it is something that you will never forget and will never regret, even if the experience is negative at first.

This is what you will remember when you are sitting in a rocking chair at 99 years old, and what you will be proud to tell your grandchildren about.

This is what will teach you to understand yourself - what you need and what is imposed by someone, where is your limit of strength, what are you capable of.

And what will teach you to understand others and accept other people’s truth, to go beyond your point of view and look at the world with a thousand eyes at once, looking at and remembering all the details of this many-sided and beautiful world.

“I feel that great feats await me, but the life of a Moomintroll is short.
And that’s why I’m leaving this house, goodbye, don’t be sad, I’ll return crowned with glory!
P.S. I'm taking the jar with me pumpkin puree.”
Tove Jansson. Memoirs of Moominpappa.

How to travel on your own? Tips from experienced travelers.

In a crisis, few people have the money to buy a tourist package. But you always want to spend a vacation in distant lands. How to be? Experienced travelers have long abandoned what the travel agency offers.

After all, when vacationing on a package tour, you can only visit special “reservations” for tourists. If you want to see real life another country, you need to travel independently.

10 tips for an independent traveler from an experienced traveler for beginners

Planning independent travel it just seems complicated. The Internet has all the information that will help you plan a route, find out about the condition of the roads, and take note of popular and rare attractions. So, what can more experienced travelers advise us?

Plan your route. “A trip to Baikal” or “a trip to the Czech Republic” is just a direction. How many interesting places there are along the way and around!
Study the guidebooks. The foreign series “Lonely Planet” is considered the standard of quality.
Read eyewitness reviews on the Internet. The best source is the legendary Vinsky forum. By the way, having drawn up a rough version of the route, you can post it on this forum for criticism. Travelers who have been to these places will make comments and give you advice.
When planning your route, allow for an allowance of a few free days. On the spot it always turns out that there are more attractions in the country. Having a couple of days free will allow you to see the most.

Book in advance. Having decided on the places and dates, start looking for tickets and hotel rooms. There are websites that allow you to compare airfare prices and choose the cheapest ones.
If you plan ahead, you can almost always save a significant amount. A rare exception is the incredible prices for air tickets on the eve of departure. But this option is only suitable for the most desperate
If the price of a hotel room confuses you, pay attention to the hostel. This is something like a hostel where you can rent a separate room or bed. The latter, of course, will be cheaper. If money is really tight, you can find a free accommodation option. But more on this below.
Distribute the money. It is better to keep the main amount on a bank card. Even better is to distribute them into two different ones and keep them in different places. Before your trip, don’t forget to ask your bank whether their card will work in a foreign country and what the commission will be.
But get into the habit of always keeping on hand " living wage» in cash for a couple of days. If you are abroad, let it be dollars, euros or local currency. The bills should not be too large, because cash is most often used to buy something inexpensive.

Prepare your language base. This does not mean that you need to learn the language of a foreign country, or at least English. It’s good if you manage to remember the basic words: “hello”, “thank you”, “I need help”, “taxi”, “hotel”, “food”. The phrasebook or online translator in your smartphone will do the rest for you.
By the way, in Lately There was a fashion for illustrated multilingual translators. They are a book without a single word, but with many pictures.
You can open it to the desired page and show a foreigner an image of a set table, the Eiffel Tower, a toilet or a train station, and he will understand what you need. You can even buy a T-shirt with such pictures.

Discard everything unnecessary. Don't carry unnecessary luggage with you.
Firstly, the cheapest air tickets will not allow you to carry multi-kilogram suitcases.
Secondly, without extra cargo you will be more mobile.
Thirdly, you are not going to show off a dozen different dresses on a tourist trip.
Fourthly, it is often easier to buy the necessary things upon arrival, because they are cheaper there.
Use hospitality websites. On these international sites, people register to host travelers. For free. Some want to learn about a distant country, others want to practice English, others were once guests and now want to give back.
You can register on these sites and ask for the necessary help: for an overnight stay, for an excursion, for information. People are happy to respond. You are not obligated to host someone afterwards. Only if you want.
Hitchhiking or blah blah car. If you don't have enough money for tickets, you can try hitchhiking. This is a very specific option, but people travel tens of thousands of kilometers this way. If you're afraid to travel alone, find a companion. Wear a brightly colored tank top and clothing with reflective stripes so you can be seen from afar. Get the driver interested in a conversation, because often travel companions are selected in order to avoid falling asleep while driving.

If hitchhiking seems too extreme for you, use the blah blah car site. The driver, getting ready to go, registers his route on this website, indicating the time and place of departure. You can ask him to come into his car and chip in for gas. The price is much cheaper than public transport.

Look for “non-touristy” places. When you get there, you will find that everything is sold to tourists several times more expensive than to locals. Try to find hotels where the local population lives.
Eat in the cafe where the locals eat. As a rule, such establishments are located on the periphery of the city, and not near the main attraction. Sometimes it is enough to turn the corner of the main pedestrian street.
Don't be afraid of local color. Once in Shanghai, it is ridiculous to go to McDonald's. Must try local food. Once in Uzbekistan, do not ask for tea to be poured from your bowl into your usual glass. Feel how they drink it here.

Seek help from local residents. Don’t be afraid to ask people how to get to the square, where the best food is, or how to get to the train station. People love tourists. They will be happy to help you, and you will become more familiar with local customs and customs.

So, these are the most general tips. But each region has its own specifics. Keep this in mind when choosing a country for independent travel.

It would be unusual for a European traveler to find himself in our province for the first time. There are no information desks for tourists, a map of attractions is difficult to obtain, and there are no English-language signs leading to historical Center across the whole city.

We are used to this. However, be prepared for the fact that we have an abundance of attractions, but the tourist infrastructure is completely undeveloped.
Therefore, it is better to prepare thoroughly in advance: develop a route around the city, inquire about public transport, find a suitable cafe nearby.
Please note that the role of information booths, typical of any European capital, can be performed by all-knowing taxi drivers. They know exactly how to get where, where to eat inexpensively, where it’s profitable to spend the night.

Don't forget to download a city map and directory to your phone. And make a list of attractions you would like to see.

Europe is a great destination for cultural tourism. There is almost no nature left there in our understanding of the word, but there are plenty of museums and attractions.

When planning your trip, check the opening hours of the museums you want to visit. It often happens that once a month they offer free days for everyone. They may have discounts and promotions for students or seniors. Try to find an audio guide for this museum on the Internet. It is often physically impossible to see all the exhibits, so highlight those artifacts or rooms that are most interesting to you.

A good option for exploring the sights is a sightseeing tour on the first day. You will quickly inspect all the most worthwhile places, and choose what you want to return to and get to know in more detail.

Asian tourism raises many concerns among those who fear infections and food poisoning. Before heading to the resort, consult your doctor: he may recommend some vaccinations or make an emergency kit list.
Local residents successfully avoid food poisoning in hot climates. They generously flavor the food with spices, which, as it were, disinfect the dish. Therefore, all food in India is very spicy by default.
If you are not used to eating too much pepper, tell the waiter “no spices” when ordering. Most likely, you will not get food brought to you without any seasoning. But at least it won't be terribly spicy.

Before you go on a road trip, look up some information on the Internet.

Is there any gasoline in the country at all? Some prefer gas, and the entire local population has long equipped their cars with gas equipment. For example, in Uzbekistan, gasoline stations are rare.
How much does fuel cost? Gasoline prices may differ significantly from ours. This expense will eat up half of your vacation budget. For example, in Turkey gasoline costs 3 times more than ours per liter.
Are there any special rules in the country regarding foreign motorists? Some generally prohibit crossing their border by personal car, as, for example, in China. By the way, you can only travel in this country in a rented car if accompanied by a specially appointed Chinese guide.
Attitude to the rules traffic. In Asian countries, drivers act on the roads more by intuition than by rules. Oddly enough, this does not increase the accident rate. But it will be very difficult for a foreign driver in such traffic.
Additional documents. In some places it is prohibited to drive a car by proxy, in others they do not recognize it international law, somewhere they require you to take out additional insurance.

If you want to be known as a would-be traveler, follow these tips. If you want your vacation to go well, foreigners to recognize and love you, and the world to seem open, do the opposite.

Be wary of everyone you meet. Suspect every passerby as a bandit. Stock up on self-defense equipment. You know, if you have a gun in stock, it will definitely fire.
Listen to the news: it’s restless there, they’re shooting there, they don’t like Russians there. You guessed it, TV always exaggerates a little. There is one little secret: tourists are loved everywhere.
Express your political and ideological views whenever possible. Focus on foreign policy your countries, especially if relations between them are tense. Show foreigners where their ruler went wrong and what political mistakes they are constantly repeating. Remind that Russians are always the strongest.
Inform new acquaintances about your well-being. Show off your big salary. Take only the most expensive things on your trip: the latest iPhone, a heavy professional camera, a new laptop. Keep your everyday money together with your big ones. Add your bank card and documents there.
Take more photos. Try to take at least twenty selfies in front of each attraction. It is not necessary to inspect it yourself; you can do this at home using a photograph.
It will be especially successful if you manage to take your portrait against the background of a painting in a museum where photography is prohibited. Don't forget to turn on the flash.

Believe me, planning any trip on your own is a very exciting experience. Much more interesting than choosing a ready-made tour, and very often much more profitable. In addition, by preparing for your trip yourself, you are not limited in offers for hotels, travel around the country and attractions. Yes, you are not led by the hand, but you decide where to go and what to see.

Have you ever traveled to an unfamiliar country yourself, have you always bought a tour and are you afraid, don’t know where to start? We'll tell you in detail.

In order to start traveling on your own, you only need three things - a bank card, a passport and the Internet. But since you are reading this article, it means you have the Internet.

Usually deters many the language barrier. Unnecessary worry! Did you know that 90% of the billion traveling Chinese don't speak a word of English? If your English (German, Spanish, etc.) is at least at a primary school level, or you know how to say hello, this is already good. And if your imagination allows you to use facial expressions, body language, drawings and improvised objects to supplement this knowledge, feel free to go to any country. Do you order meat at a restaurant and don’t know whether it’s chicken, pork or beef? Can you depict it?

You will definitely be understood everywhere. And after my first independent trip you will significantly expand lexicon. You will have an incentive to devote at least a small amount of time per day to memorize new words. Remember - not all travelers are fluent in a second language. If you watched “Heads and Tails,” you saw that Badoeva cannot connect two words in English.

Download and install auto translators on your smartphone. For example, Google-translate will help you very quickly translate phrases from Russian into any language. When you check into a hotel and have any questions, you type a text on your smartphone and show it to the manager. He did the same to you in response. In some countries, let's not even go far - not tourist cities in Spain, not everyone speaks English. Translating menus in cafes and signs on the street is as easy as shelling pears - launch the application, point the smartphone camera, and immediately receive an online translation.

How to get there.

The first thing to start planning a trip is, of course, to decide where you want to go. Then start searching for the cheapest way to get there. You can find and buy the cheapest air tickets online using aviasales or skyscanner. These are the two largest metasearch engines for air tickets.

How to find housing.

Most first-time tourists are afraid of booking hotels online. What if I made a reservation and they won’t let me into the hotel? What if someone moves in with me? Suddenly things like this don’t happen. All hotels sell their rooms through booking systems. This is their main sales channel. Nobody searches “country-city-hotel” in Yandex or Google. All travelers use reservation systems. In systems online booking you choose a hotel and immediately see reviews. If you don’t like it, see the next one. This is not a tour package, you choose what you want!

The most popular hotel booking system among Russian travelers is booking.com. Many limit themselves only to it. And completely in vain. Booking.com is an excellent, long-established hotel booking system. But she is just one of many. And using only booking.com is the same as looking for tickets only through Aeroflot or one booking agency. You need to use metasearch engines, similar to searching for cheap air tickets. Of these systems we can recommend and.

Pay attention to reviews from previous travelers. All reviews and ratings in booking systems can only be left by those who have stayed at the hotel.

All you need to do to make a reservation is bank card. There are hotels that can be booked on a prepaid basis, in which case the cost of the reservation will be immediately charged to your bank card. There are hotels where prepayment is not required. Also pay attention to the conditions for canceling your reservation - in most cases, reservations made before a certain date (for example, a day or two before check-in) are canceled without a penalty, in some cases with a penalty.

In addition to hotels, check how much it costs to rent an apartment from local residents using. In some major cities renting an apartment is much cheaper than renting a hotel room. In addition, you will have a kitchen and you will be able to save on food. , if you have never used this popular system.

Obtaining a visa.

Why pay intermediaries? Obtaining a visa on your own is just a matter of time and a little effort on your part to collect the documents. But thanks to this you will save a significant amount. All “assistant companies” do not issue you a visa, do not make certificates for you, but simply give you a list of documents that you must provide and create a set of documents. Well, do you really have to pay for this and pay quite a lot of money? Moreover, they do not give you any guarantees of obtaining a visa.

To apply for any visa yourself, your request in Yandex should not be “apply for a US visa”, but “US consulate visas”. The website of the consulate of any country contains a list and procedure for submitting documents. Don’t bother yourself with the reviews and horror stories of other tourists who were denied a visa for some reason. Even if you have a clean passport, but your intentions to visit the country are exclusively for tourism, you will be given a visa - regardless of whether you applied yourself or through “assistants”. Exceptions can only be for countries where one of the documents required for issuing a visa is, for example, an invitation from the destination country - Japan, China and a number of others.

Even if an interview is required to obtain a visa, such as the initial US visa, you do not need to take any special preparatory courses. The task of the consular inspector is to determine whether your purpose of travel is immigration. If you confidently talk about your purpose of visiting the country, your route, and so on, you are guaranteed success. The percentage of refusals to issue visas at the consulates of any country is very small.

Still afraid and ready to overpay? Take advantage.

Insurance for traveling abroad.

Remember, you can’t skimp on your health. If you catch a cold while traveling, a pharmacy abroad will only sell you cough drops and iodine without a doctor’s prescription! And for a visit to the doctor, get ready to pay a very large sum. Therefore, first of all, assemble a first aid kit with high quality. And secondly, formalize it. And since you are now a novice independent traveler, .

The policy that you issue will be accepted by all consulates, if necessary.

How to get from the airport to the hotel.

In all countries, you can get from the airport to the city center by bus or train. Signs with pictures at the airport will help you. Prepare in advance - there are obviously already some tourists in the city where you have arrived. Therefore, information about public transport is available on the Internet.

If you prefer to travel by taxi, book a transfer in advance. We can recommend two trusted agencies - and.

But keep in mind that, for example, a transfer from the airport in Prague to the city center will cost 25 euros, and a bus + metro only 1.5 euros.

What to see in the city and country.

You need to prepare for each trip in advance. And planning the route of any trip is no less interesting than organizing the trip itself.

Let's say you want to go to Italy for two weeks. Plan your itinerary based on reviews from other travelers. Read guidebooks. Write down the sights and cities that interest you.

Did you like someone's photos of Florence? Quickly go to the search engine and write out - Uffizi, Duomo, Ponte Vecchio, Palazzo Piti and so on. You may not even need to go out of your way to buy paper guidebooks. 300-400 pages of text, which you then have to drag around with you. Enter a brief description of all objects in Word. Descriptions of all the sights, museums, museum exhibits - everything is there, everything is described more than once. Save it to your smartphone or print it if you prefer.

Many museums have audio guides. However, not all audio guides have Russian. But you have already prepared for this and wrote down in advance what is interesting.

Plan your route for the day. Open maps.google.com and plot the attractions you want to see. This way you can understand how many days to stay in a particular city.

Install the maps.me navigator application on your smartphone. The application and maps for it are free. You won’t get lost in the city and will easily find your way to any object on your own.

Research in advance how to use public transport, the cost of travel and the availability of passes for a day or two.

All major cities have tourist buses. You will immediately see them - large, brightly painted touristic buses, citysightseen. Typically, these are double-decker buses that travel along specific routes that include major attractions.

This is very good way get to know the city. The bus travels in a circle, stopping at certain places. Having bought a tour (ticket) for such a bus, you can get off and on again an unlimited number of times. Hop on, hop off system. Headphones are provided on the bus and an audio guide is built into the seat. Most countries have Russian language! Find out in advance - there are tickets for 1 or 2 days, you may also want to use a tourist bus on the second day and this can help save on public transport.

If you are sure that you cannot do without a guide who speaks Russian, use the following services -,.

How to move between cities. How to rent a car.

Buses and trains are very convenient ways to travel between cities. Especially in Europe, where the distance not only between cities, but between countries is not so great.

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