Little House of Ady

Hello everyone ! How are doing today ?

Recently, I shared with you pictures about my stay in St Petersburg in last July. Today’s post will be linked to it, because I’m gonna share with you hacks and advices for traveling. I hope it will be helpful and let’s get started !

Before your travel

We all know that preparing our travel is something very important and it begins quite a while before the departure. Here are some advices to make it easier, less stressful etc

The first thing is about plane tickets. They can be so much expensive ! So I advise you to book your plane tickets as soon as your are sure you are going to your destination, the soonest you take them, the cheapest they will be. Personally, when I left for St Petersburg, I took my tickets on January (for July), this way it only cost me 250 dollars whereas last time tickets were at least 550 dollars !

Secondly, the accomodation. There is no secret, accomodation has also to be taken quite soon. I recommend you to book it just after your plane tickets.

Which accomodation is better ?

I would say it depends on your budget, what you prefer, how long you stay. In my case, I prefer Youth Hostels. They are very cheap,if you book quite early, and it’s not uncomfortable at all. Furthermore, when you learn a language like me, this is the best option to practicize with locals. Of course no everyone likes to be in the middle of other people. If you book early, you can find inexpensive hotels as well.

Thirdly, lets’ talk about the visa. This is very important too. Maybe the most important.The only recommendation I can do is to ask for it as soon as possible. This way you won’t have to pay a enormous amount of money(because it’s late) and it won’t be stressful.

Lastly, let’s talk about the stay itself. How to plan your activities ? Before leaving, make a list of the places, museums you want to visit, look for entry ticket prices. But also, look for places that you can visit for free, like parks.

What about the language ?

Language is always a problem when traveling. Especially when language isn’t your cup of tea ! Usually, we tend to speak English, but not everyone everywhere speaks English!So, what can we do about that ? I f you are learning the local language(like me when I went to Russia), the problem is less important, but if it’s not the case, I advise you to prepare a notebook with basic vocabulary, like « Good Morning », « Please », « Excuse me », « Can you help me », and some others. This way, locals will know that you don’t speak their language and wil find a way to communicate and help you. Moreover, if you try to use these sentences, even with a bad accent, they will be more comprehensive, because you just try. Generally, people, when seeing you try to speak their language, are very happy you try and even more helpful.

How to organize your luggage ?

Now, let’s move to the worst part(in my case), the luggage ! I don’t know for you, but for me, it’s always a nightmare.Which clothes, how many, how much shampoo, soap etc ? So many questions !

First of all, make a list.Everytime you think of something to bring, write it down. This way, when preparing your luggage, it will be much easier.

Which essentials ?

First of all, make sure you don’t forget your plane pillow. Because if you do, the journey will be more exhausting and very uncomfortable, I tried(on a 11 hours flight) and now I always have this pillow.

Concerning all bathing products, cosmetics etc. Take small quantities, no need to bring the big shampoo bottle with you, just take a smaller quantity in a smaller container. For the soap, I advise you to take a solid one. It’s best to avoid as much as possible liquids, to prevent for incidents in the luggage. Privilege smaller items, for example, bring a small hair brush instead of a big one, you’ll save space. For makeup, if you bring some, take only basics, not your entire makeup collection 😉

Concerning clothes, I advise you to look how generally is the weather in your destination. Except if it’s a very hot weather, make sure you have one pullover in your luggage in case it turns bad without warning. Make sure to have at least one short, one skirt and one jeans.Also, you don’t have to bring hundreds of underwears. During your stay, you can wash them with classical soap when showering, it does the job very well. You can do this also with small shirts.

Concerning shoes. I call it the « trio », because I only bring three pairs of shoes when traveling, sandals, sneakers and heels(in case there is a special occasion)Of course, if you’re traveling in winter, give up about sandals, replace them with something more suitable with the weather. 😉

Concerning the pharmaceutical set. When traveling, I always bring a set of medicines and others little things I’m not sure to find in the country I’m going to : paracetamol, bandages, a cream for burned skin and sometimes, a cream for mosquitoes bites.

Concerning electronical devices. Usually, I always bring my essentials, such as MP3, phone(of course), mobile battery, computer and their respective chargers. If you can, just bring a small computer or a tablet, instead of a big one. Of course, the best is not to bring computer at all. That’s less weight in the luggage. Once, I went to China for one month without computer. During my stay, I just used my phone for the internet etc, and it perfectly did the job. But now, as I have to work for the blog, I have to bring my small computer. Moreover, I use it to store all my pictures ; when staying in St Petersburg, I took a lot of pictures, so having my computer to store all of them was very useful. Also, make sure not to forget a plug-adaptator. As far as I can say, if you’re from Europe, you would need one for Britain and China(both the same), but for Russia you wouldn’t. When preparing your travel, make sure to check about this.

How to plan your stay ?

I recommend you to buy a travel guide. Personally, I use it only to make a list of places to visit. But, most of the time, it’s not enough, so I go on the internet check other places to go during my stay. The idea is to make a list of places to go to, things to do, dishes to eat etc

Don’t forget to check hours and opening days for museums etc, it’ll help you not missing anything. It was my case in July in St Petersburg. I wanted to go to the Menchikov Palace on my last day(a Monday) but on Sunday evening, I realized that Monday was closing day for this museum(:( ) So I was very upset, and had to find something else to do. Moreover, you can add elements to your list during your stay. We often hear about things to do etc, only after arriving, making us change our plans.

The Departure Day

My only advice for this special day is not to get to much stressed. Just be vigilant, make sure you have your tickets, your passport, your wallet, your phone, your plane pillow, your luggage, your medicines(if needed). Furthermore, wear comfy clothes, this way, you’ll be at ease during the flight and less exhausted at the arrival.

I think we did the tour of my advices. I f you have any question I didn’t answer to in this post, ask it in the comments, I would be very happy to answer.:)

I hope these advices were helpful, and that it tempted you to travel more.;)

I wish you a good day, and thank you for passing by and reading. Take care !

See you in a next post ❤

Ady<3