If you are traveling my airplane, a healthy diet may have to include airplane food, which can often be poor for your healthy, depending on the selection. When you book your flight, ask about your food options ask if a vegetarian dish is available. Vegatarian dishes are sometimes more nutritional in this case, but it really depends on what they will be serving. If you can, eat a larger meal before your flight so that you don’t have to eat the entire meal that is served to feel full.

When driving or taking a bus, you may be tempted to stop at fast food restaurants and eat the foods found there. Avoid this whenever possible! If you’re on vacation, you may wish to splurge a tiny bit, but having fast food more than one during a week can really be bad for your health. If you must, choose the healthiest options available, like chicken breasts and diet soda.

Also, remember that you can take your own food when traveling. Carrying a loaf of whole-wheat bread or pita wraps, some lean lunchmeat, and low-fat cheese in a cooler is a great way to avoid high-fat and high-cholesterol junk food meals. These are much better choices and you’ll save a lot of money as well. Call ahead to ask if there will be a refrigerator in your hotel room.

Lastly, make smart choices when you eat out. If you choose salads or pasta get the dressing on the side and ask about low-carb options. In fact, many places print these dieting options directly in the menu for the health-conscious people. Control your portions by ordering lunch menu sizes or splitting the meal in have and getting a doggie bag, and you’ll be well on your way to healthy eating, even away from home.

Yes, eating healthy foods when you travel can be a challenge. However, your health is worth it. When you eat good foods, you will also fight illnesses that you are likely to encounter when traveling and be more alert so that you can enjoy your trip.

Foto: Stock.xchng: klarisssa

Whatever you do, please explore the market and educate yourself with all the terms and terminologies of the travel insurance cover that will help you to avail the best travel insurance.

Certainly check what is included in your travel insurance policy but most importantly, check what is EXCLUDED from your travel insurance policy.

Research the area you are going to. What is the weather likely to be like? Is there any danger of hurricanes or tropical storms? Floods? How about Mosquito borne disease? What is the crime rate like? Whatever the perceived dangers your research uncovers then make sure that your travel insurance covers you for that eventuality. It is no good after the event to find out that you are not covered for rabid dog attacks (because there are so many in that particular area).

Discuss Your Existing Medical Conditions and Requirements – You need to carefully assess your likely medical requirements and make sure that these are declared to the travel insurance company.

If you intend to drive make sure that you are adequately covered. Many hire companies charge astronomic excesses in case of an accident. Make sure that you insured for that excess (and it will be a lot cheaper than paying the hire company’s rates for that same cover).

Make sure you have the necessary documentation for travel in that country. Take Spain for example which is part of the European community and will offer free health care say to a UK citizen on holiday or living there. There are certain conditions, one of which is that you must have a UK E111 form, if you don’t have that, you will not be treated. You must also go to a national health hospital, which are not in abundance in certain areas of Spain.

If travelling in Europe, it may pay to get a EHIC (European Health Insurance Card) as this will remove a lot of worry should you need any emergency treatment.

Okay, so there you have it. 7 things to do before buying travel insurance for the next trip you make. The other alternative of course is to not take out travel insurance, or to stay at home. Now, there’s an idea. But seriously, as always when taking out insurance, especially travel insurance, read the fine print first. Importantly, find out before you go what is excluded, not just included. So, always read the fine print. For example, accidental coverage is not provided in case of drunken driving, driving under the influence of narcotic substances etc. Exclusions are also provided for accidents during risky sports like bungee jumping, car racing, (insert for your favourite potentially dangerous sport here), scuba diving, white water rafting, flying (except as passenger in regular airliners), gliding, skiing, bike racing, diving, mountaineering, windsurfing etc. The list goes on. That means in case of accidents in these situations the insurance company is not liable to pay any amount to the insured.

1. Get to the Airport Early
Arriving at the airport early is a no-brainer, especially when the airlines tell passengers to arrive at least two hours prior to a flight’s departure time. However, there are many people who refuse to heed this request, and arrive at the airport just several minutes before a flight is scheduled to leave. If there is a line at the check-in counter or at security, this can create a very stressful situation. Not only may the flight be missed, but a new flight must be booked, and the passengers will probably have to travel stand-by on a later flight with no guarantee of a seat until the very last minute.

2. Take a Morning Flight.
Leaving on an early flight does not necessarily mean a 4 a.m. flight must be chosen. However, flights that leave first thing in the morning are less likely to be running late, and they are less likely to be affected by weather problems across the country and/or other planes that may be delayed at other airports. Also, if for some reason the first flight of the day is canceled or delayed, there will probably be several other flights throughout the day that, if necessary, can be taken instead.

3. Try Not to Fly During “Rush Hour”
Airports, like highways, have rush hours. Typically, rush hour in the morning is from 8:30 a.m. to 10 a.m., and in the afternoon from 4:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. These are the hours when airports are the most crowded with people waiting for flights. Crowds mean longer lines at the security check points, more people in the restrooms, more people waiting in restaurant lines, and more people taking up seats in the waiting areas. Flying at a NON-rush hour time of day can alleviate the need to stand in lines and sit with crowds.

4. Try to Take Non-Stop Flights
Obviously, when a non-stop flight is taken, there is less risk of being delayed. Taking off and landing both take quite a bit of time, so avoiding having to do this twice is recommended. There will always be destinations when a non-stop flight is not available, but there are plenty of cities where non-stop flights are just as common as those that stop. It may even be worth a few extra dollars to book a non-stop flight to avoid an unneeded hassle and the possibility of being delayed.

5. Book Connections with Enough Time
If a non-stop flight is not available to a desired destination, make sure to schedule enough time in between flights. When airlines book flights, they often have a layover requirement of 30 or 45 minutes between connections. However, this is often not enough time if the original flight arrives late. In order to avoid this stress, try to schedule connecting flights with at least an hour to spare between the arrival time of the first flight and the departure time of the connecting flight.

An important concept to get used to if you want your money to last while you are traveling in a foreign country is that of bargaining. In most foreign countries, and especially those of the second world, barging plays a big part in everyday life, and you will find yourself continually overspending if you don’t participate in it.

Most North Americans are terrible at bargaining, which is not at all their fault: bargaining simply does not play much of a role in our everyday transactions, and except for large purchases like buying a car, and maybe to a lesser extent a house, most of us aren’t used to it – we certainly aren’t used to haggling over small items.

The first thing to understand – and a great discount travel technique – is that in the second world, everything is negotiable, and usually very heavily negotiable. If you start to bargaining, you’ll soon see that the type of bargaining that goes on in other parts of the world is very different from the North American style: people often start with figures that are double or more their desired amount.

The first step in bargaining is to not be in any kind of rush to get in a taxi, or in a hotel room, or to purchase your item. Take the time to ask around, and if you can, find some locals who will (hopefully) give you an idea of a good price. The second thing to keep in mind is you have to be willing to walk away, or at least good at pretending that you’re willing to walk away. Oftentimes you’ll find that by simply showing a lack of interest and willingness to avoid the transaction the price will be lowered, without any need for specific bargaining on your part.

Once you get the hang of bargaining you’ll find it rather easy, and in some cases fun. The main thing to keep in mind when you’re in a foreign land is that your status as a North American will usually label you as rich to locals, even if it doesn’t seem that way to you. If you don’t want to get charged double – or more – for every single thing you do while traveling you’ll have to get used to the idea of bargaining – a key component in an overall strategy towards discount travel.

Copyright 2006 John Navata

About The Author

John Navata owns a travel agency in Chicago, IL. Now he is helping travelers on how to find cheap travel rates on hotels, airfares, car rental, cruises, and travel packages. If you want to speak to one of our agents for rates call 1-800-226-6066. Use promo code: 75792 Mon-Fri 9am-6pm EST or visit http://www.jptraveldiscounts.com.

Bed and Breakfasts – in general there are two reasons you might want to look for this kind of acomodation. The first: usually they are good value – cheaper than a hotel room or an apartment. And second: it´s a great way to get into contact with locals. In some places a complete and homemade breakfast is inluded in the deal – the tips about local points of interests come free with it.

But what if you are traveling a non-english speaking country? The term Bed and Breakfast is known pretty much internationally nowadays, espcially if you are loking on the Internet. But what if you are already on the move?

You can go into a tourist office almost anywhere and ask for a B+B, and they will know what you’re talking about…. but what if you’re in a car searching for a room?

If you’re driving down the autobahn in Germany you should be looking for a sign that says “Zimmer” or “Zimmer Frei”. OK… maybe you’ll be going too fast on the autobahn to see anything, but this is the term you should be looking for in Germany, …and Austria and Switzerland as well. And don’t be fooled by geography. In some parts of northern Italy, where there is a heavy Tyrolean influence, you may also be looking for zimmers.

One last thought about those “Zimmer Frei” signs… I think every traveler has a story about someone who thought that “Zimmer Frei” meant a free room. No… What it does mean is that there is a room available. And if you see a sign that says “besetzt”, it means no vacancies.

In France if you want a Bed and Breakfast, you will most often be looking for a “Chambre d’hote”. Though you could also be looking for a “pension” or a “gite”. A gite is generally a rural place; it could even be a whole farmhouse. The owners like to rent gites by the week, but you can always stop and ask if you can rent a room for a night or two.

In Italy look for “affittacamere”, especially in the Cinque Terre.

In Portugal Bed and Breakfasts are “pensao”. You can also look for “dormidas”… It is more common to see them called that near the seaside. Or you might just see “quarto” which means room.

Looking for the word “room” in the local language is a good idea. As we said, it’s “quarto” in Portugal. In Spain it’s “cuarto” or “habitacion”. In Italy it’s “camere”. In Croatia and Slovenia it’s “soba”.

In Spain, B+Bs are known as “casa rural”. They are generally situated in the countryside and smaller towns more than in cities. They may also be called “casa particular”, though that term seems to be more used in Cuba.

Scandinavia has wonderful Bed and Breakfasts. They’re incredibly cheap considering prices in Scandinavia, but they can’t advertise. At tourist information offices in Sweden and Norway, ask for a “rom” or “hus rum”. In Denmark the term is “vaerelse”.

Out in the countryside of England, you might find “farmhouse B+Bs”. In Italy the same type of places are called “agriturismos.”

You should check the language dictionary or lodging section of a good guidebook and see what they tell you about what Bed and Breakfasts are called in the country you’re visiting.

Other names you can be looking for are (are you ready?):

In French speaking countries: “gites du passant” or “gites d’hotel or “hebergement chez l’habitant”

In German speaking countries: “Gästezimmer“ or „Zimmer zu vermieten“

In Dutch speaking countries: “gastenkamer” or “kamers met ontbijt” or “logies met ontbijt”

In Italian speaking countries: “camera presso l’abitante” or “camere in case private”

In Spanish speaking countries: “habitaciones“ or „se alquila habitacion“

The list really does go on and on… but if you have an idea what words might be on that sign in the window, you will have no problems finding a bed and breakfast. If all else fails… just say you’re looking for a B+B… the term has gone global. You can wander into a tourist office and ask for a Bed and Breakfast, and you will probably find just what you’re looking for.

Foto: stockx.chng: Ayla87