Staying Safe Abroad – Our Top Tips To Making Your Holiday In Turkey Enjoyable
When it comes to going on holiday to Turkey or indeed any country, you are generally aiming for a week or two relaxing, with no work and plenty to eat, drink and see whilst you enjoy time with your family and loved ones. Sadly, this is not always the case, and from time to time we will all endure a nightmare trip away, some worse than others.
Some problems are of course going to be outside of your control, but there are sensible things that you can do to try and make sure that your holiday does not end in a complete disaster, and that if something goes wrong, you can recover from it quickly by making sure you have the right procedures or protection in place.
Here are out top tips to making your holiday in Turkey enjoyable and hopefully very safe.
Research Your Holiday Location
Understanding your potential options is one thing, knowing exactly about where you are going is another, so once you have booked your holiday location, spend some time understanding what is there, what there is to do and any issues you might have to deal with. It can be exciting to involve the family with going online and learning about the place you are off to, and it can also help to plan what to take in terms of clothes and money to make sure you are well placed to enjoy your holiday abroad.
Understand The Local Beliefs
These days, it is so important to understand where you are going, in terms of what is acceptable behaviour and what kind of things should be avoided. Walking around in swim wear, drinking and all of the usual things that you might think is ok in one location, may not be so tolerated in another, so you really should understand where you are going in Turkey and the resort for example, and then make sure that you do not do anything that would upset the local residents and police, as it really could put a massive damper on your whole holiday.
Check With Travel Sites
There are Government sites and foreign travel sites that advise you where you should not really be travelling to, and of course the emergence of social media also helps with getting to know the places that you should possibly be avoiding at any moment in time. Nowhere in the world is 100% safe, but some places are safer than others for various reasons, so always check that your potential travel locations are not suffering any current issues before making your mind up and booking your holiday.
Travel Insurance
You should never travel abroad without travel insurance, as like most insurances we have in our life, you will only really miss having it if and when you actually need it. Some areas of the world will refuse to treat you at a medical facility without it, and even if they do agree to fix you, it could end up costing you thousands of pounds when you get home. Travel insurance is often so cheap that you would be foolish to go abroad without it, and many banks now offer it as part of their premium services as well, so always make sure you get protected before you travel.
Protect Your Money
If you can, take a mixture of cash and a credit card or two and use the credit cards for major purchases and the cash for things like eating out and drinking. Credit cards are protected, so if yours did get stolen then it could be frozen and you would not lose out, whereas cash, once it’s gone, it is gone. Spread your risk a little bit by taking a bit of both and just think about the places you are using your debit card in if you do take it, as there is always a risk of identity theft which should be avoided by being careful and or sensible.
Protect Your Travel Documents
Always keep your passports, tickets and insurance documentation in a safe if possible, or in the hotels safe if they have one. Losing these documents is not the end of the world but it can become a challenge to get emergency replacements in time for your trip back home, especially if the country you are visiting is not really geared up for many tourists losing their possessions. Even if you just have your passport number and travel insurance policy number saved on your phone, it can just help to speed things up should you lose them.
Tell Your Family / Keep In Touch
Always make sure that a member of your family has information about where you are going, the phone number of the hotel or accommodation, a rough idea of any trips you may be taking and also copies of your documents. This way, if anything happens they will know who to contact and can help you quickly, else if they have to phone every hotel in a popular city, they could trying for some time! By making sure they have a copy of your tickets and passport will allow them to get emergency document numbers over to you in case yours get lost or stolen, which just means you can get temporary replacements quickly to allow you to travel home.
Think Of Your Health
Although we discussed having travel insurance in an earlier point, a lot of staying well and healthy on holiday is generally down to making sure you apply loads of sun cream, drink lots of bottled water and eat healthy food that you know has been cooked properly. If you go on holiday and get sun burnt, drinking nothing but the local beer and eating food that you never normally eat, you are lining up potential days in bed, so although you need to have fun and enjoy yourself, it is still important to be sensible and stay well.
Leave Valuables At Home
Although you want to look the part on holiday, you do need to ask just how important is it, as by taking your watch, jewellery and all of your fashion essentials you could just be making yourself an easy target. Take with you a few pieces or items that you can wear in the evening, but generally, leave your most expensive items behind, as it’s more important to enjoy your holiday and come home with your possessions, rather than wearing thousands of pounds worth of items and then getting them stolen.
