This is a banal and stupid post, but I'd rather make it than simply assume everyone has already thought through these issues:
First, passports. My passport is in really bad shape. I'm not terribly careful with it in the first place, I tried carrying it in one of those stupid inside-the-waistband money pouches one year, it fell out of my jacket pocket another year and got rained on and run over by a car before someone found it and got it back to me, and so on. Customs agents in every country I visit look at it and remark that it's seen better days. That said, I do have a valid US passport. If you don't already have yours, or if you haven't looked in a while and noticed it's out of date, now is the time to follow the expedited process for getting it renewed. While Poland doesn't require a visa, it does require a passport.
Second, credit cards. I recommend having at least two credit cards and an ATM card with you.You want to have one in your wallet and one with your passport. ATM / debit cards are also mandatory for getting cash at a good exchange rate out of ATMs at airports and elsewhere. Don't bring traveler's checks - the transaction fees for exchanging traveler's checks into złoty are enormous. (In the Warsaw train station two years ago, the kiosk gave me only 200 złoty (pronounced "zwoty" and abbreviated PLN) for a $100 traveler's check when the actual exchange rate at an ATM would have given me 330PLN)
While you are thinking about it, call both of your credit card issuers and give them the dates you will be traveling in Poland. Unless you have American Express, an attempt to use your card outside of the US will be denied without this preauthorization. And you cannot authorize using your card outside the US once you are outside the US -- you need to do it from your home phone / cell here.
Also have your credit card issuers send you your pin number for the credit card (if you don't remember it) so that in an emergency you can use it to get cash.
Third, plane tickets. I have no idea what oil is doing or going to do to airfare. Mrs. Prof. B got a ticket for $1096 base price a few weeks ago, although it is cheap partly because she can leave Poland on a Thursday. Current prices seem to run between $1250 and $1450 base price.
Also plan for checked bag fees. On my return trip last year, I got charged $100 by Lot Airlines for an extra bag for the Warsaw to Chicago leg and then another $50 by Delta for Chicago to Lansing.
I know no one really needed this post, but I'd feel terrible if I'm wrong about that.
If anyone out there has traveled internationally I'd love some advice...
ReplyDeleteI've never been to Europe before, and I'd love to take a few days/weeks/whatever to wander around either before or after my time in Poland. Is there a way (other than just buying two one-way tickets) to fly into one city, and out of another? I know I have friends who have purchased tickets this way, but I'm not sure how to go about doing it.
Thanks, everyone!
Your best bet is probably to either get two one-ways or to just round-trip Warsaw. With the former, you'll have more flexibility about which flights to choose. With the latter, you can leave some of your stuff in Bialystok or Warsaw while you backpack. Keep in mind you'll have some school materials, some nice clothing not suitable for backpacking, etc. with you; you'll be much happier leaving that someplace than lugging it around. If you have never backpacked and hostelled before, please trust me - after 6 hours of carrying your backpack in the summer sun looking for a room, you will regret every single item you overpacked. As a sidenote- make sure you have a good backpack. Let me know if you need advice on that.
ReplyDeleteIf it's a matter of days, I recommend going in a loop. For example, you could go from Bialystok to Berlin, from Berlin to Prague, and from Prague back to Bialystok. Or a smaller loop from Bialystok to Vilnius to Minsk to Bialystok (keeping in mind you need extra paperwork for Belarus). If you're going to take weeks, I recommend going as far as you want and then flying back to Warsaw to get your stuff and go home. Flights within Europe are pretty cheap. I'm taking two weeks to travel after Poland, and I'll be going up through the Baltics to Finland and then flying back from Helsinki to Warsaw. Helsinki to Warsaw is about $100.
If you really want to do a multi-city ticket, many booking sites have them. http://www.lonelyplanet.com/bookings/flights.do is my favorite booking site, although their multi-city option can get a little wacky. There's really no advantage to multi-city over multiple one-ways though.
Oh, one more suggestion you may not know about - Iceland Air lets you split your flight. So if you want to fly to or from Poland on Iceland Air, you could fly to Iceland on say the 8th, and then fly to Poland on the 11th, giving you three days in Iceland for no extra airfare. http://www.icelandair.us/offers-and-bookings/advanced-booking-engine/#stopover
Let me know if you need any more info. :)
-Rachel
I thought of a couple things to add:
ReplyDelete1) You can, of course, also do a loop that takes a couple weeks. From Poland you could do a nice loop through Germany, Czech Republic, Austria, Hungary, Slovakia, and back up through Poland. You could even try a long oval over to Western Europe. It depends on what you want to see and do, and your budget. Remember that a popular western city like Venice will be twice as expensive and crowded as a small town or an eastern city like Sarajevo.
Tip- If you want gorgeous hiking for very cheap, go for Durmitor in Montenegro. You can get a nice private room at Madame Vinka's for 10 euro and some good cheap food next door, and unless you want a map or a gondola ride that's all you need to pay, the park itself is free. There's some nice hiking in Czech too.
2) When planning keep in mind your latitude and any necessary accessories, in order to minimize what you need to buy and carry. On my first trip I went from Wales down to Greece, which was a bad plan packingwise. I ended up having to buy a jacket in Wales and sandals in Greece. Try to stick to one temperature/weather region so you only need one set of clothes. If you do want to visit multiple latitudes, get versatile clothing. Pants that zip off into shorts, hiking mary janes that can be warm with socks but cool without, a wrap skirt that can also be a shawl/blanket, a sports bra and tech undies that can double as a bikini, and so on.
Also, there are some activities that need certain items. If you want to go to the beach in Croatia, you'll need water shoes, but aside from pebble beaches those're pretty useless; if you want to go hiking you'll need bug spray, but if you're sticking to the cities you won't, etc. So if you want to do a wide variety of things, plan on either buying and abandoning a lot of items, or lugging a lot around.
Thank you, Rachel!!!
ReplyDelete