Travel Tips for a Smooth Journey

Chalk out an itinerary well in advance.

A good travel agency can give you a calculated itinerary, which helps you make the most use of your time.

Leave room for unforseen changes or delays.

Your luggage should be restricted to essentials. Don't wiegh yourself down with unneccesary baggage.

Carry only a small amount of cash. The bulk of your money can be in the form of traveller's checks.

A first aid kit is invaluable, especially if travelling with small children.
(Band aid, painkillers, diarrhoea medicine, cottonwool, scissors, tincture, and other common household medicines.)

Always keep drinking water handy, especially if travelling with children.

Avoid valuables (like jewellery). Keep important documents and money in two or three different places.

Select clothes and footwear that are appropriate for your destination(s).

Keep essential phone numbers handy. (Railway bookings, police, medical services, etc.)

If holidaying off the beaten track, keep maps, compasses, emergency phone numbers and identification papers handy.

Air Journey :

The day before one embarks on an air journey, call up the travel agent or the Air Lines office and reconfirm the date of journey, timing, number of journey. One must report to the airport one hour before the scheduled time of departure. The passenger is requested to show his tickets, collect his boarding pass and tags for his passage. The passenger is requested not to keep cash and valuables in his baggage but carry on ones self.

Train/ Bus Journey:

The traveller must phone the Railway / Bus Station at least two hours before the scheduled departure of the train/ bus and check the timing. On reaching the station, check the platform number on which the train/ bus is scheduled to arrive. Also reconfirm your tickets from the reservation chart.  Please pay the Ticket Checker charges, if any, as per the receipt given by the TC. You should not to hand over your ticket to any unknown person. Tie your luggage with a chain lock in a proper manner.

Local Transport:

At the Railway Station/ Airport, there is a Traffic Aid Post at most of the major cities and tourist centres. The passenger is requested to contact the traffic aid post, to engage an auto-rickshaw/ taxi. The traffic police will guide you about the appropriate payment to be made from the station to the Hotel or your destination..

If the passenger is landing at the airport, remember that the Indian Air Lines runs airport to city coaches. The charges are approximately between Rs. 20/- and 25/- per head.

By Rahul  Surkund