1st Time Travelers Mistakes Abroad

hey the fellow Travelers Mark here with Walter's world and today we're here in Rwanda this beautiful East African country and today we're going to talk about are some of the common mistakes that Travelers do make and these could be beginning your Travelers or this could be more seasoned Travelers because there's a lot of mistakes that people do make so we want to give you a list of them so you don't make those same mistakes and I think the first mistake I see a lot of tourists make is they try to do too much in too little of time you know I know a lot of people I'm going to Europe I'm going to see 10 countries in 12 days or I'm going to see all of East Africa in a week where I'm going to see the main sites of China in 10 days and they try to do too much and what happens is one you don't have time to enjoy the sights you don't get to see everything it's like you're hurrying through and hurrying through so like oh I saw the Mona Lisa okay that's the loop let's go and you don't get time to enjoy things okay so don't try to pack too much into your trip because you can get burned out and then you kind of forget what did I see because I spent most of my time on a train going between places or on a bus or on a plane and you're losing time that way so don't try to do too much when you do travel the second mistake I see Travelers make is they only visit big cities you know if they're going to the US I'm only doing Chicago and New York and L.A well you know what there's some smaller cities you can check out Savannah Georgia is gorgeous maybe Natchez Mississippi is really cool you know going out to the mountains and seeing some of the national parks there's so many great things to see that aren't just big cities I mean coming here to Rwanda yes the capital Kigali is cool to check out and and visiting the the genocide Memorial is really a moving experience but coming to you know seeing the Twin Lakes here and going to the Volcano National Park or going to Lake kivu and stuff like that there's so much to see and do that's not just a big city so make sure you're trying to plan some non-big cities tights and stops on your trip as well so you can see more of the culture because you know if you go to a big city pretty much big cities all around the world do look pretty similar like you do see the Starbucks the McDonald's and stuff like that so for more the culture make sure you get into some of those smaller towns the third mistake I see a lot of new Travelers make is they don't pre-book their tickets now I'm not just talking for flights and hotels I'm talking for tourist sites for example you want to go hike and see the the gorillas here in Rwanda you need to pre-book your tickets because there's only a certain amount of spaces you want to go in the Coliseum or the Vatican Museum man look at the lines there they're insane but if you pre-book your tickets you can skip the line so that can make your life a lot easier so if there's some sites you really want to see check online to see if you can get those pre-booked tickets fourth mistake I see new Travelers make is they over pack look you don't have to bring the kitchen sink you don't need to bring 10 pairs of shoes for a five-day trip you need to realize that look you can get by I mean if you're going to go for if we go for 10 days or we go for 10 weeks we actually spring the same five sets of clothes like five sets outfits and that's it because if you over pack one it makes it hard for you to get around I mean you gotta drag two suitcases and if it's too heavy how are you going to get that up into the over above above the head on the train or will it fit in your Jeep if you're going to be going you know the Salt Flats and in Bolivia and stuff like that you have to think about these things because it's going to be hard for you to get around all also it makes you more of a target for the bad guys because they see oh tourists that can't hold all their stuff let's get them because you're too busy dealing with all these things also could hurt your back there's just a lot of issues there and you don't really need all the stuff so when you pack pack your suitcase then take half of it out and then take that with you because one of the best things when you go travel you can buy some amazing clothes amazing gifts and stuff like that and you're going to need that space in your suitcase fifth mistake I see tourists make is they don't notify their bank or their telephone company or their favorite neighbor that they're leaving look your bank needs to know you're going to be going so your debit card will work abroad or your credit card or work abroad make sure you call and let them know also your phone bill can be insane crazy if you don't have an international data plan so make sure you get one of those before you go or maybe you buy a Sim chip when you're abroad and put that in your phone instead depends on the phone you have but that's an unexpected surprise you don't want to have and another thing I think is if you have a neighbor you trust let them know you're going to be gone and how long you're going to be gone because maybe you don't have them go into your house or into your apartment but at least they're watching out for things maybe checking if mail's actually getting picked up or being held or if Amazon left something at your house because that's one of the easy ways people can see you're not there is oh the male spec is stacking up or the newspaper is stacking up and stuff like that oh five Amazon boxes hey it's Christmas for me and people take them so be careful with that now the sixth mistake that I see a lot of tourists make and this is when Josh and I both agree on is they think the magic fanny pack will protect them look if you're a tourist it's not like bad things don't happen I know people get upset I got pickpocketed I got mugged or these things happen well they happen in normal cities to normal people too so don't just think because you're a tourist with your magic fanny pack then nothing bad is going to happen so make sure you're doing your research what are the good places to go what are the bad places not to go on what you need to look out for what are some of the typical scams you have and we've got tons of videos on scams and safety and stuff like that but don't just think because you're on vacation you don't need to pay attention Okay so do be careful because I've seen a lot of tourists like just wander out in the middle of the street and you know one of the most dangerous things for tourist is where most are killed it's actually traffic stuff okay so be careful with that seventh mistake I see tourists make is they only eat stuff they know and this could be they only go to restaurants they've heard of before right you're like oh I know McDonald's I'm gonna go there when I'm here or it's I mean I'm in Italy and I know spaghetti so I just have spaghetti without trying biggerly or something else make sure you're trying some of the local food now I'm not saying you have to eat it every single time I mean I try to but you know after a few weeks you wanted to have something from home try the local stuff try stuff you don't know I always talk to my waiters and say hey what's what's a Rwandan dish I should try here what's what's the beer local beer I should have let them tell you and then order from there so then you get more of the culture in the food and it's not just stuff you already know another mistake when it comes to food is tourists that eat near main tourist sites look I know when people talk about Venice or Rome like I didn't know if the Italian food was that good I'm like well where did you eat oh I was right on Piazza San Marco or I was right on you know right by Trevi Fountain and stuff like that look anytime you're by a major tourist site know that the prices are going to be double and the tasting tastiness will probably be half if you just walk two or three blocks off of the main like tourist strip believe me you'll get better food at better prices that are a lot more original and a lot more authentic and it really will make a much better experience next mistake I see people make has to deal with money and that is people think that they can pay with a credit card anywhere in the world I know in the US you can pay credit cards almost anywhere in Portugal I could pay my you know two Euro you know fee to drive over the bridge with my credit card no problem but that's not always the case some places cash is king and you need to make sure you're ready for that in some places you might need coins for the bathroom and all kinds of stuff so know how the money Works where you're gonna go so you don't show up thinking I'm going to use my American Express and then you realize in Rwanda nobody takes American Express or or in Austria very few places took American Express so you want to have a heads up for that or maybe if you're in Japan realizing that the ATMs because cause that's another mistake I see people make is ATM Mistakes One some countries the ATMs might not take your card so you need to check to make sure you have that and pin numbers to go with them also some places only certain banks will take your card I know when we were in Japan a few years ago the only place it would take foreign debit cards that we could get cash out with was at the 7-Eleven okay not the banks so you need to make sure you're doing your research on that and another kind of mistake I see people make when it comes to the money is they take the conversion if you're not sure what the conversion is when you go to an ATM you put the card in you take money out and they say oh we can already convert this to US dollars for you no problem do not ever take the conversion always take it in the local currency because you should trust your bank more than the bank that's trying to like help you out because sometimes you can lose up to 20 of your money on that I know I've seen a lot of them where I'll take a picture and see that oh the conversion will give me 440 but then if I do it and when I check with my bank actually took me out was 4 hundred I'm like yeah okay never do the conversion on those things also sometimes they'll offer you conversions at restaurants don't do that either just take the straight you know if you're paying a Rwanda Rwanda Franks Pandora One and franks if you're paying Euros pay in Euros don't switch it to Dollars another one that I've had a lot I've taken students around the world is ink Wi-Fi is everywhere look Wi-Fi is not everywhere it is not given right now a lot of places do have Wi-Fi cafes and stuff like that in hotels but it's not always going to be super fast okay so don't expect you're gonna be able to stream everything you want or upload those videos of the beautiful stuff you see here in Rwanda all the time don't think that's going to happen Okay be ready to realize you're not gonna always have Wi-Fi and where I've seen this problem is when people are expected to just use Wi-Fi to use Uber or other things well you know what if you need an Uber at 12 o'clock at night probably those cafes are closed so you can actually get a Wi-Fi signal to actually call an Uber or getting other things like that so always have a data plan or an international phone plan in case you need to make a call and there's no Wi-fi around now my next mistake I see tourists make is they don't learn a few words before they go like motocase which is thank you here in Rwanda and the thing is anywhere you go if you just try to speak a little the local language as a tourist it really gets people to open up and if you just think well they should speak my language because I'm spending money here that's the wrong attitude to have just learn it a couple words it opens people up so much and you can enjoy so much more of the country because the people are so happy like awesome you tried I can't tell you how many free drinks I got when I lived in Lithuania because I spoke a little Lithuanian it really opened a lot of doors for us now another mistake I see tourists make is they bring the wrong shoes look depending on the kind of tour you're going to be doing or trip you're going to be doing your Footwear is really important yes if you're hitting the beach bring the flip-flops that's great but if you're going to be walking on cobblestones throughout Europe or you're going to be hiking here trying to see the the gorillas make sure you got the right shoes for it right you need hiking boots for those mountains and stuff like that because you don't want to have bad feet because once your feet start hurting when you're traveling they don't get better because you're always walking and seeing more sights so have comfortable shoes I mean it's so important Jocelyn even has a video on it down below if you look at the cut in the more information there's a link for her rules on shoes when you travel now another mistake I see tourists make and I've seen a number of tourists get very upset about this is kind of thinking that things are free when they're not actually free so for example in Portugal the bread and butter and all olives you actually pay for that some places in McDonald's they might make you pay for the ketchup and I've seen a lot of tourists get really upset like why is my meal so expensive well you got all the extras to go along with it well at home the bread is free well in Portugal it's not and in some places I've seen I mean I remember in Prague and this girl went over the counter at the McDonald's because she was so upset that she had to pay for ketchup yeah sometimes like McDonald's when I travel okay I'm sorry you know I live abroad for 12 years you know Italians eat McDonald's too all right but it was just so funny to see those things so make sure you know if it is free before you start chowing down because you know in some places that ham and cheese is more expensive than your actual meal and that's why I think another mistake people make is they get upset over the little things look when you travel there's all these differences out there don't think of it as bad or weird just think it's different it's a different culture and I should learn from that because if you have that kind of mentality those little hiccups those little mistakes and stuff like that they don't ruin your trip because I've seen a lot of people and I've talked to a lot of people if they travel and there'll be one thing that happens on a trip and it ruins the whole trip I mean I mean if it's a serious thing that's one thing but it's a little thing I'm like yeah so you had to pay for the bread in Portugal or you know so you had the the cloperito in in Italy it's okay it happens like oh I just didn't think that was right I'm like yeah but you had a great three-week trip there and that's what you're focusing on don't let the little things ruin your trip another mistake I see some tourists make is they don't go like the extra 50 meters or 100 meters they just go to get the Instagram picture snap okay I've seen the stuff look go the extra mile go the extra 50 meters sometimes to walk around the site sometimes you know the Leaning Tower Pisa is cool but actually the baptistry is even better so make sure you do the little bit extra walking a little extra research to make a make a big difference in your trip to find those little hidden things and I think that's another mistake I see people make they don't do their research and read the reviews before they travel and it could be on sites but especially when it comes to hotels and airbnbs and stuff like that you really need to make sure you're doing your research to make sure it's the right town for you or the right Airbnb for you or the right hotel for you because some are great like if you're a young party goer there's hotels or hostels for you if you're a family wants to have some time together there's better hotels for you there and so make sure you're doing that research because you don't want to show up and realize that oh I'm in the party hostel and I'm old so you know be careful with that another mistake I see people make is they try to be over cheap now I know travel is not free no matter how many people say how to travel the world for free that is all a bowl of you know what all right the thing is travel isn't free all right so you're gonna have to spend some money and I see people that really try to do it really cheap which is cool but don't be over cheap like oh I want to stay in this town you know 50 miles out of town to save five bucks on my hotel or my hostel well then you got to spend the hour coming in every day and yes it might be public transportation so it might be a little cheaper but how much is your time actually worth sometimes it's worth it to spend the extra money to stay in the town or stay near a train station or stay near a metro stop so it's a lot easier for you to get around because you can get more done in your day you're not spending your time in public transportation and talking about the public transportation that's another mistake people aren't using public transportation enough now I know when you're traveling most of you watching this do use public transportation when you're going around you're taking the trains and buses and trams and stuff like that you know here in Rwanda you can take the buses between the cities it's okay there's many buses as well sometimes you have some more like Moto taxi fun when you're here but there's all kinds of different ways you can get around and make sure you're finding ones that are going to work for you because some places taking the public transportation is faster than a taxi it's definitely cheaper than a taxi so look into those things okay don't be scared of it do your research and find out if that public transportation that town will work for you and the last mistake I see people make is they forget to check the weather and the Forex the weather obviously if you're going to go someplace you're always wondering what should I pack what should I bring well make sure a few days before you leave and when you're packing look at the 10-day forecast for the places you're gonna go to get an idea what what the weather is going to be because yes it may be a hot place but you know what if all of a sudden the forecast has rain and cold uh oh I mean I went to Austria a few weeks ago and it was supposed to be summertime like this and it was like you know close to freezing luckily I looked at my stuff and brought the clothes appropriate for that so you want to do that and the 4X is the foreign exchange have an idea what the exchange rate is for the country you're going to go to now you don't have to be exact one but maybe have a roundabout idea like here it's 900 uh Rwandan francs to the US dollar so a 9001 a thousand one gives me an idea of what the prices are so you have a rough idea what it is because that's how sometimes people really mess up is they don't know the exchange rate maybe they get overcharged or they don't realize they're actually paying like way too much for something or oh huh I guess I didn't need that 10 Coke you know think about these things so these are just some of the common mistakes I see new Travelers and some more seasoned Travelers make what are some of the mistakes that you see people make when they travel put in the comments section below so we can hear about some more mistakes and more mess-ups kind of stuff and we have other videos on mistakes for different cities different countries also for we have budget mistakes people make when they travel Transportation mistakes when people travel we've got all of those things also on our website at waltersworld.com also if you like travel videos like this honest fun travel videos hit that subscribe button hit that notification Bell and we put out new videos every Wednesday and Saturday anyway I hope you didn't make a mistake watching this video I hope it helped you out and I'll see you later and bye from here in Rwanda

Channel: Wolters World

Views: 61,272

Keywords: travel, europe, wolters world, travel advice, tourist attractions, travel vlogger, honest travel, Walters World

Id: ukKl7tlMHIc

Length: 15min 49sec (949 seconds)

Published: Sat May 20 2023