Things to do Before you Travel

Airfare, airport transfer and travel insurance may be the holy trinity of travel preparation, but nailing down these aspects of your vacation is only the beginning of the trip planning process. If you want to achieve a smooth, headache-free trip, taking care of essential tasks like researching activities at your destination, managing your finances and getting your home in order is vital. Below are essential things to do before your travel.

Contact the House Sitter
Once you have a travel date, your first move should be to contact your pet kennel or house sitter (or any other trustworthy service) to guarantee availability. You may even want to take care of this before booking; as reader E.B. Hughes writes, "I have had to pay change fees twice since we got our dog just because the local kennel was full for one night of my trip."

Take Care of "Stop" Orders and Advance Payments
Once your travel is booked, you should look into placing "stop" orders on any regularly occurring deliveries or services. These may include postal mail, newspapers, house cleaners and the like. If you want particular services to continue (such as landscaping), consider paying in advance if this is not your usual arrangement.
Many service providers allow you to place stop orders online; this is particularly the case for mail delivery and most newspapers. As most stop orders require one or two business days' advance notice, make sure you take care of this at least three days before you travel.

Manage Your Cash Flow
If you're traveling domestically, be sure to hit your own bank before leaving for your trip; that way you won't arrive short on cash and have to immediately search for an ATM. Further, you will save on ATM fees at machines run by someone other than your own bank. These fees cost Americans billions of dollars annually, and can be exorbitant if you are forced to use airport or convenience store machines. Go to your bank's website and map out any available ATM locations near your destination so you are not forced to use other banks' machines.
If you're traveling overseas, the most economical option is to visit an ATM as soon as you arrive in your destination and make a withdrawal in the local currency. 
Check the website of the airport where you'll be arriving to make sure it has an ATM you can use. Most international airports have several, but if you're flying to a smaller airport in a developing country, there's no guarantee that there will be one (or that it will be working properly). In these cases, you may want to purchase some local currency ahead of time.
Call your bank or Credit Card Company and let them know about your travel plans. Most banks and credit card companies keep track of spending patterns and may interpret an unexpected overseas purchase as credit card fraud. Your bank or credit card company could lock your account if you use your card in another country without notifying them.

Plan Your First Day
The first day of your trip is often lost to logistics and unfamiliar surroundings. First you have to haul yourself and your stuff to a resting place. Then you have to figure out exactly where you are, what attractions are nearby and how best to use your limited time. Planning ahead will help you make the most of that first confusing day. You may want to sketch out a walk near your digs, which can help you get oriented as well as shake off travel fatigue and jet lag. Also, check out any nearby amenities like a rooftop lounge nearby, a balcony with a choice view or a heated pool for maximum chill-out at the end of a harried travel day.

Pack Your Hands-free Device
While we're talking about driving, there is one modern item that has become an essential packing item: the cell phone earpiece or any other Bluetooth device that allows you to keep both hands on the wheel (and without a phone wedged between your neck and your shoulder). Local laws governing cell phone use while driving vary considerably, sometimes from one municipality to the next. Pack your hands-free device in your carry-on bag and you will not find yourself on the side of the road with a red siren whirling in your rear view mirror.

Check the Weather
The weather is the single factor most likely to affect your trip 
positively or negatively, and one of the things many people most take for granted. Of course it is going to be warm in Spain during the spring -- but there are always exceptions to prevailing weather patterns, especially during transitional seasons. A weather forecast can guide your packing strategy, and failure to check the weather can result in unprepared, unhappy and very soggy travelers.