International Travel Advice needed

[Benzgirl]

I happen to be in Europe now and here are a few more tips:

-In addition to the sleeping mask, get those squishy earplugs. It's just enough to muffle out chatter to allow you to sleep.
-I concur on buying the premium seats, particularly an aisle. If you can afford it, get the exit row too.
-Whatever you do, the day you land DO NOT SLEEP. Go to your room, shower and get outside for fresh air. Wait until evening to go to bed so that you are on Euro time.
-Order your money from your bank. I know this sounds funny but money exchanges are expensive and Euro ATMs charge Ridiculous fees. ($5 fee + 3% adjustment to the amount withdraw)
-If you have one, use a travel credit card that doesn't charge a conversion fee. I think the one I used last year was also a 3% fee.

I have already been here for 2 weeks and turned off my phone when I left the US. I have been using Skype for all of my calls (even my 80-year old mother is now on Skype), and I do everything by WiFi. I'm in Madrid and there is free WiFi everywhere. Paris was not so generous.

I haven't been to England in about 20 years but jump at the chance to get to Europe when I can. I'm flying home on Thursday and will probably be back in May.

p.s. Economy Plus is a United term. Econo Plus are all seats from the exit row and forward and give you about 5-6" more leg room and 3" in seat width. Not that I'm that tall, but the extra space is a big deal on an overnight flight.

I once booked AC and trying to choose a seat was a PITA. United allows you to select your seat anytime once the ticket is booked. You can see what seats are open on their webpage and using SeatGuru.com is a big help to determine which seats are good are not. Be careful of the row in front of the exit row -- seats don't recline. Also, if there are two exit rows, the first one doesn't recline either.

[Maman]

My bank does not charge any ATM fees or foreign exchange fees, so cash out was our best option. Obviously, YMMV.
Carry anti bacterial wipes on your flight. Everyone keeps telling you to hydrate, hydrate, hydrate. Airplane bathrooms are very, very nasty after eight hours. I try to avoid the toilets after 3 hours in flight.
Please have have wipes or liquid hand sanitizer available to keep you healthy for you trip.

[tcsparky]

I usually take a pashmina with me when I fly. Doubles as blanket, pillow, wrap....whatever I need.

I was wondering what to do about money, whether to take cash and exchange it or withdraw from an ATM. If I do one big withdrawal, I guess it it would be less expensive due to only paying one transaction fee?? I'm not sure how to order money from my bank. It's actually a credit union, so it may not do that.

[Benzgirl]

Originally Posted by tcsparky

I was wondering what to do about money, whether to take cash and exchange it or withdraw from an ATM. If I do one big withdrawal, I guess it it would be less expensive due to only paying one transaction fee?? I'm not sure how to order money from my bank. It's actually a credit union, so it may not do that.

I doubt a Credit Union will be able to do get you the foreign currency but call and ask. I am with Chase and it is a better deal than getting it at the airport or a currency exchange. However, ask your CU what the ATM foreign transaction fees are and compare with what your friend tells you the fees are at exchanges. It might be cheaper for you to carry the cash and change it vs. getting a large sum out of the ATM.

I always hold onto my cash and use my Visa whenever possible so that I don't get blow through it so quickly. With Taxis, I always ask if they accept a credit card before getting in. I'm really surprised how much cash I have left after 2 weeks.

One additional BIG tip: call each of your credit card and ATM companies and tell them to put an alert on your account that you will be out of the country between what days. It would really stink for your card to be refused if they think someone from Nigeria got ahold or your card and was going on a London spending spree.