1. Charge all your electronics before you start travelling
No matter how well you prepare for your business travel, once you leave your place and begin your journey to the airport, you lose a good deal of control. You’re at the mercy of traffic, bad weather, unforeseen international events and flight cancellations. If something unfortunate happens that causes a delay to your journey, you have no way of knowing when you’ll next have access to a power point and a bit of charge-time. One thing you CAN control is remembering to fully charge your laptop, smartphones and tablets the night before you leave so that the tools of your trade have the maximum battery power stored from the get-go.
2. Don’t forget the adaptors!
Keeping on the subject of power, packing all the charge-cables in the world is useless if you arrive at your destination and notice that all the power points are different. It saves a good deal of frustration to do a quick google search of your destination to see which power sockets are used at your destination(s). Overseas power adaptors can be purchased from most electronics stores and at the airport.
3. Factor in your ground transport time
Always allocate time to get to the airport, check in your luggage and pass through security checkpoints. This tip is especially important if you’re travelling to the airport during peak hour or your flight is taking off during a busy period of the day. If you’re travelling to a destination for the first time or using a new hotel, think about how long it may take you to find ground transport and get to your accommodation once you land. Then add another 20-30 minutes onto your estimated travel time (just to be safe). To minimise the time it takes to arrange ground transport and travel to/from the airports, consider organising your ground transport requirements before you begin your journey.
4. Keep emergency underwear and essential toiletries in your carry-on
No one ever plans to lose their luggage, and unfortunately, you only find out once you reach your destination. You won’t get caught with your pants down…but you may end up with no spare pants at all. To ensure that you can still function if your bag gets lost during transit, always pack your valuables, chargers, important business documents, spare socks and underwear, and basic toiletries in your carry-on. If you have room, be ultra-prepared and throw a spare set of business clothes in as well.
5. There’s ALWAYS a reason to pack plastic bags
It may not be the first thing on every corporate traveller’s packing list, but there’s always a reason to remember plastic bags. Whether it be muddy shoes, damp swimmers, a leaky perfume bottle or soiled linen, one wet or smelly item placed in your suitcase is almost guaranteed to ruin everything else that’s in there. Having a small stockpile of plastic bags with you means you can separate messy items from your clean clothes and contain the damage while you’re on the road.
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