First time abroad. Have I got everything?

[WillTheRealDeanGaffneyPleaseStandUp]

As above. First time abroad.
Me and my 15yr old. Travelling by Eurostar and local trains to s few countries.

I have -
Passports!
Proper insurance
ECHI card
I've worked out what bank card to use
I've got some euros
Travel is sorted
Accommodation is sorted
I've prebooked some of the popular/must do activities
I'm as sure as I can be that my phone will work.

I'm quite nervous. Have I forgotten anything obvious?

You’ve probably done this but make sure your bank knows you are going abroad or they might block your card.

NatWest let you do this on the app - dates and countries- so it doesn’t flag up as fraud

Halifax said they don't log it anymore. Her answer was to make sure I had the bank telephone number. I explained we'll be going to a few countries and it will flag as unusual activity but she said it was just a case of waiting until it happens. Very useful.

I have a NatWest account which is my back up and they also said they dont need to know. I've just been on the app and it says they'll contact me straight away.

Hopefully it wont happen to both at the same time. 🤣

I always take some paracetamol /ibuprofen, anthasan, immodium, a couple of sachets of dioralyte, zovirax and a small tube of canesten, some plasters. I just take a strip of tablets for each medication in a make up bag and take a photo of the leaflet for dosages. For dd I always take some double base for her eczema.

Sun cream. Comfortable trainers / sandals for sightseeing. Potentially a small lightweight waterproof if I am doing g lots of sightseeing.

Ive never had my card blocked and go abroad a few times a year. Even when Ive been in 3 different countries outside the UK within 24 hours.

Sounds wonderful have a great time!
Just regarding your phone- it's useful to be able to use it outside of wifi in hotels. You may want to use it to navigate for example. You can pay a fee per day to lock data roaming - say £7 per day unlimted. This may be useful. However, if you want to keep costs down im sure you can use a mixture of tourist maps and checking the route in advance in the hotel using wifi - so I wouldn't worry x

I am impressed by you going to four countries on a first trip. Not that it would be scary, just the logistics.

I worry about luggage on trains. I know people who tie both bags together when they are in luggage racks. You could make sure you stay near to your bags though.

Clothes 😂

That's reassuring.

It's just going to be such unusual activity for my card and Halifax blocked me from buying a film on TV a few weeks ago then I had an automated call the next day saying if I didnt confirm it was me, they'd block my card.

It was a kids film so nothing dodgy. And the call didn't ask for any security, confidential details etc.

Damn it. I knew I'd forgotten sonething! 🤣

I use chase card abroad as they give bank rate of exchange and no charges.

you can apply for an account online, takes about 10 minutes - put the card in your phone wallet and use it on your trip.

you can’t go over drawn with the account

Navigation doesn’t use WiFi on route, only to start the processes then
it uses satellite

so you can put up your route whilst you have WiFi and then put your phone in airplane mode to save battery - but the satnav/directions will still work

@Ilovemyfam It can take a bit of getting used to - we travel by train a lot in Europe on holiday and have never had an issue with luggage missing form the end of carriage racks - a lot of log distance trains in places like France only have one or two stops so there is not the constant movement of people that you get on smaller local trains.

I do always make sure i have my day pack with things like electronics, passport, travel documents etc.. with me under the seat though.

Adapters
power bank for each of you

Get an EU data booster from your mobile phone provider the day you leave the UK. You can normally buy a one day or 7 day booster otherwise you will be hit with data roaming charges.

A portable powerpack, so if you lose power on your mobile you can recharge anywhere. Get one with double the capacity of your phones battery.

Another option for data is just to get an esim for that country- I use holafly but there are various options. Can buy for just a day or a month. You basically toggle yourself.

large cotton or viscose scarf is a great idea, I had to use mine as a makeshift net curtain in a hotel once as the choice was everyone seeing in my window or having a blackout blind and artificial lights on in the middle of the day. Have also pegged it up to make a makeshift sunshade on a balcony. A bit cheeky but I always take a coupe of plastic takeaway containers away with me so at breakfast I can make a roll and a take bit of fruit or croissant for lunch. Take a spare small carrier bag or thin tote bag as well as a your main bag, just comes in useful for loads of things.

I always get bitten but I no longer use insect repellent, it just stinks and isn’t even effective. I just let myself get bitten and zap them with a zapper which uses a tiny ceramic plate and provides the right amount of heat for the right time to break down the enzyme in the bite that causes itching. The sooner you zap the bite the better but it stops them itching and they heal quickly. I don’t go anywhere without my zapper it really really works. Think it was about £20 on Amazon and worth every penny.

Plug adaptors
Powerbanks
USB fans
Meds - Immodium, diaoralyte, painkillers, blister plasters

I don’t know how to add a link but on Amazon it’s Beurer BiteX Travel Insect Bite Healer BR 10

Anti-diarrhoea tablets. If you get cold sores, plasters or, a sun screen for lips to prevent it. Throat lozenges as a sudden change in temperature can give cold/flu symptoms.
A power bank.

Have a fantastic time ☺️

I have a Monzo account which does the same thing. The app is very straightforward and user friendly. I put my holiday funds into the account before leaving and just use it as I would my home debit card. Might be an idea to have one and give the card to your DD so that if you’re separated for any reason she has her own source of funds. Obviously she can only spend what you preload!

OTC pain relief as can be very expensive in Europe.

Make photos/scans of all of your documents and upload them to your cloud storage. Also ensure that you know how to log into your cloud storage if you are using a borrowed computer and you don't have your phone with you.

Make sure that someone at home knows how to get money to you if you have had literally everything stolen. I used to live in a touristy area in the EU and occasionally helped out stuck tourists, some of whom had spent the weekend at the airport begging for food because they were robbed on a Saturday and the consulate didn't open until Monday. So memorise that person's phone number and ensure that they know how to, for example, send money to a local bank or exchange office. In one case where I helped, the people had no ID to collect money, but a kind person from the airport coffee shop agreed to have money transferred to themselves and walked over to Travelex to pick it up for them. In another case I met up with the people in person and their daughter sent money to me by BACS instant transfer, which I then paid out to her parents in Euros.

Find out a little bit about what to do in a medical emergency. In France you will be OK with your GHIC almost everywhere but for example in Spain if you let the hotel call an ambulance you will end up in a private hospital, and then it will be up to the mercies of your insurance company what they will cover.

Yes I paid 5 euros for paracetamol in Spain and that was at the “cheap” pharmacy. The first pharmacy I went to it was 9 euros a packet.