Safety and security are always a concern when you travel. Everyday, travelers venture into large metropolitan cities both domestic and international. No matter where travelers go, they will end up in locations where street crime exists. It is even more prevalent in countries where unemployment, poverty, and overpopulation exist. In some countries, a traveler’s watch can equal a few months salary. Often criminals specifically target travelers if they are women, or because if they carry an expensive equipment, and will often not return to prosecute if the criminal is caught.

A person who travels alone, most likely turns to be a victim of the petty crime. Person travelling alone faces more risks when compared to a person travelling with someone or groups. All over the world, we could see travelers facing crimes. We cannot just say that, travelers are targeted only for their jewels or a lump sum of money. Petty crimes take place even for a penny. The most stolen items are cash, jewels, credit cards, mobile phones, cameras, passports and even sometimes your wardrobes. Criminals are wiser than us. At times, a petty crime may end up in losing lives too. So, it is advisable to travel in groups rather than traveling alone. Though losing our money or other belongings may be a great loss losing a passport is worse. While travelling to countries abroad, passport plays a major role to depict our identity.  So, passports have to be kept very safe from getting into the hands of the criminals.

One of the best ways to prevent crime is to visit your own government’s international travel safety information and warnings website. You’ll find up-to-date travel information, details on potential safety issues ranging from pickpocketing to terrorism, even weather warnings. Gather knowledge about latest travel warnings and be alert of your surroundings during your trip. If you are concerned about the safety situation, avoid border cities and unpopulated areas.

When traveling with children, teach them to tell your name, house address and contact numbers, which will be very useful if they get lost or get into the hands of the strangers. But advise them not to pass on this information to casual enquirers or over phone. Don’t leave them alone in crowded places. For toddlers who are yet to communicate clearly, tie an identity tag or card.

In many big cities, you may be approached by strangers asking you your place, your details and so on.  Unfortunately, when you travel alone you have to be wary of people and trusting someone you have just met is a risky business.  You have to remember that is a must.

Finally, the important thing is that, travelers should be bold enough to report to the cops, when they are affected by criminals. In many popular destinations, you could find tourist police who can help you. Don’t get panic in disastrous situations. Traveling not only involves handling risky situations, but also contains lot of delightful experiences.

There are many things to keep in mind when traveling, whether you are a budget traveler or not. You obviously want to keep what money you have for your trip rather than lose it or have it stolen. You also want to keep yourself and traveling companions safe from harm. Here are some tips to follow to ensure your trip is safe and enjoyable in a foreign country.

 

1. Have a valid passport and all visas required for your trip. Make two copies of your passport. Keep one in a separate part of your travel luggage and the other leave with someone at home.

2. Be aware of any travel warnings for the country you are visiting. Find out about security and safety conditions in your destination.

3. Secure travel insurance!

4. Ensure you have been vaccinated against any infectious diseases prominent in the area you will be traveling to.

5. To make sure you can be contacted in case of an emergency, make a copy of your itinerary and leave it with someone at home.

6. Travel light and don’t pack valuables that you wouldn’t want to lose. Leave your jewelry at home but take an extra pair of glasses if you can’t live without them.

7. Remember you are a foreigner when you travel. You are a guest in their country and therefore should abide by their laws, and to a certain extent, their customs. For example, if you are a female traveling in an Islamic state, be considerate of your dress. 

8. Try not to bring too much attention to yourself when traveling. Don’t go out looking like a tourist with a flashy camera and expensive clothes. Try to blend into the scenery.

9. Travel in a group where possible and in well known areas. There will be times you want to get off the tourist track, so make sure you always have a traveling companion with you.

10. Only carry small amounts of cash on you. Your credit card and travelers checks will pay for most things.

11. Watch out for pickpockets! Wear a money belt and keep your purse/wallet in the front of your body. Report any loss or theft immediately to the local authorities.

12. Don’t leave your luggage unattended. Apart from having it stolen or items from it taken, you could also become an unsuspecting drug courier.

13. If traveling with a partner, pack half your clothes in their luggage and vice versa. This way if one of you loses your luggage, you will still have some clothes. 

14. Lock your luggage and label everything.

15. Lock your hotel room. Keep money and valuables with you, not left unattended in your room.

16. When using public transport be aware of possible theft. If you are traveling overnight, secure your luggage and sleep on top of it if possible. It is not uncommon for tourists to be drugged while on trains and buses so don’t accept gifts of food or drink from strangers on public transport. 

 

If at any time you feel unsafe, whether it is on the streets or in your accommodation, get out. Follow your instincts. Stay safe when you travel by being aware of the dangers and obeying the laws of the country you are visiting.

 

This article is brought to you by: Stuart S. Travel – Your Online Travel Guru

www.stuartstravel.com

How can a person travel into the future of their original time line, what might be considered their “present”, given that once in the past, a divergent time line is necessary to preserve continuity? Seems that once a person travels back in time, it may be impossible to go back “home”.

Leading Indian Hospitals, Healthcare providers (both Modern Medicine and Traditional Indian Medicine), Travel and Medical Tourism Industry providers have come together to form an industry association – Indian Medical Travel Association (IMTA) that aims to work together to make India the leading global healthcare destination.

The phenomenon now popularly known as Medical Tourism is often cited as the next big opportunity for India after the IT outsourcing to earn billions of dollars in forex earnings and create jobs in the healthcare sector. So far only a select group of Indian hospitals have been making valiant attempts to market their services in international arena. More than a million overseas patients already treated at top Indian corporate hospitals like Apollo, Fortis, Wockhardt, Max, Manipal and many others have already proved to the world that the clinical quality, technology and cost proposition offered by India is unmatched. The capacity in super specialty segment Indian hospitals is expanding fast and there is no waiting period for local or overseas patients.

CII Mc’Kinsey study first reported on medical tourism as the billion dollar opportunity for India way back in 2002 and the steady growth in overseas patient arrivals has validated the potential. With a large number of new private super specialty hospitals and even integrated health cities coming up in India’s top ten cities, India has the potential to become the global leader in the Medical Travel/ Outsourcing industry. Indian doctors and professionals are world renowned for their skills and the country has abundance of all the inputs like talented young manpower, local high quality manufacturing base for pharmaceuticals, technology hardware and software that makes the Indian costs for high end surgical procedures so attractive. The challenge really is on the non medical side, primarily on the marketing front and also to create infrastructure and services to support the growth of medical tourism.

Indian Medical Travel Association (IMTA) - a non profit body and a unified voice of the Indian healthcare (modern medicine as well as traditional Indian medicine) and travel industry is aimed at preparing India for facing the challenges of global competition and actualise the tremendous opportunity for India to become a leading global healthcare destination. Modern medicine as well as India’s 5000 year old traditional therapies like Ayurveda, Siddha and Yoga can offer to the world an unbeatable healing package.

“IMTA would strive to help its members reach out in a cost effective manner to millions of our potential global consumers who reside on the other side of the globe in a different time and cultural zone and make them aware of the tremendous value that Indian healthcare offers. The fact is that prior to choosing a hospital, the international patients first decide on the country or the destination. Therefore we all must join hands to aggressively promote INDIA as a preferred global healthcare destination,” Says Pradeep Thukral, Executive Director, Indian Medical Travel Association (IMTA)

The Government of India and its various arms are actively supporting the growth of medical tourism to India. In a message to IMTA, the Union Tourism Minister, Kumar Shailaja conveyed “This is indeed a commendable initiative and we all know the tremendous opportunity  that Medical Tourism presents for India. On behalf of the Ministry of Tourism, I would like to provide all possible support this industry initiative  and would like to wish IMTA and its members great success in their efforts.

Two years ago the Government of India introduced a special category of Visa called M Visa for foreigners desirous of coming to India for medical treatment. India’s Ministry of Tourism has achieved phenomenal success in last five years with its much acclaimed “Incredible India “campaign that has multiplied the arrival of foreign tourists to India. The current year 2009 is being promoted by Indian Ministry of Tourism as “Visit India’” year and the ministry is keen to promote Medical Tourism. It has recently notified the Market Development Assistance (MDA) Scheme to eligible Medical Tourism players which enables them to get financial support for participation in overseas promotional events.

I am finishing up my bachelors degree and have been considering going on to be an RN. I have heard that being a travel nurse pays a great deal more in addition to covering housing costs. I am not even sure how much a nurse typically makes, but I would appreciate to hear about salaries and how the two compare. Thanks so much!

HELP!!!
I have a Colombian passport and need to travel to the EU. My passport has my before family last name but I got married and took my husband’s last name. Now all my documents including the green card has my new last name.
The tickets were issued with my new last name (though the company I work for) but they do not match the passport names. Colombia doesn’t change the passport names.
Will I have a problem to apply for the Schengen visa or travel to the EU?

Any answers much apreciated!!!
Thanks!

My Optics lecturer said something about how since light travels in a vacuum, you could, potentially, have something travel faster in a different medium, one other than a vacuum.

True or false?

Hello. I should to travel from Chicago to Wisconsin dells with bus. And I have need from schedule on the bus company who travel from Chicago to Wisconsin dells.

 

Being a poor student doesn’t mean you have to put your travel plans on hold. In fact traveling as a student, whether it be at home or abroad, can be done on a small budget as there are many deals there for you to take advantage of.

 

Use the fact that you are a student to get discounts. Before you go traveling get yourself a student discount card and use it. The ISIC (International Student Identity Card) will get you concessions on tourist attractions, food and shopping among other things. This card is for any student regardless of age or for youth aged between twelve and twenty six and can be used in over one hundred countries. This student discount card comes complete with an international phone card and a voice mail account. This ensures you can be contacted while traveling.

 

There is also the International Student Exchange Card (ISEC) which gives travel discounts across the globe. Discounts can be as much as fifty percent on such things as museums, movies, transport options and accommodation. Not only will this card save you a lot of money while traveling, it also provides other benefits including assistance with medical expenses and evacuation fees if caught in a disaster. You also have access to toll free emergency phone service world wide should you need help in urgent situations. The ISE card will also provide you with airline bankruptcy protection. If you book your flights through an ISE agency, you will be covered if your carrier goes bust.

 

And finally there is the International Youth Travel Card (IYTC) which you can get if you are under twenty six years of age. There is a small charge associated with this card, but the benefits outweigh this cost when traveling. This card will get you discounts in about fifty countries including airfare discounts, accommodation reductions and entry in to tourist attractions at a reduced rate.

 

Other student cards that offer discounts are transport cards such as the STA Travel card or Young Persons railcards issued in the United Kingdom. But the offers don’t stop there for students. In western countries it is wise to ask if there are student discounts in any place where you are about to part with your money. Discounts can be given by restaurants, retailers (on just about anything) and hostels. Not all places advertise that they give discounts so if you don’t ask, you’ll never find out what savings you can make.

 

Students aren’t the only lucky ones to get fabulous travel discounts. Seniors also have deals available to them while traveling as do group travelers and families. Investigate what discounts apply to you and ensure you take advantage of them.

 

This article is brought to you by: Stuart S. Travel – Your Online Travel Guru

www.stuartstravel.com

I’m planning to travel to Switzerland, Austria and Czech Rep this summer via train from UK. One of the cheapest options is to buy the Global Pass, which is only for European residents. However I’m not a European resident, which means that I need to find another cheap options to travel. Can anyone give any suggestions?