Do your homework

As an educator, I became convinced, towards the end of my career, that  assigning homework and projects over holiday breaks and weekends were futile.  I finally had my students do the leg work and research for projects in class, making it a learning experience: how to use resources, what internet sites were credible, how not to plagiarize, etc.  But when I decide to go on a trip, I ALWAYS do my homework.  My ultimate objective is to not necessarily look like a tourist. 

As you may know, I live in a city, NYC that is, a major travel destinations for both Americans and others. Added to that, one of my major modes of local transit is the Staten Island Ferry, probably the number one tourist attraction in the city.  It is free to anyone who wants or needs to ride it.  I am in the later category, I need to ride it to get to most other areas of the city...the major exception is Bay Ridge, where I occasionally work; I can hop on a local bus and get there in a reasonable amount of time.

My various travels on the ferry have shown me how I do NOT want to behave in the places I visit.  Loud talking, the sporting of foam Statue of Liberty crowns, mis-naming important sites ( such as pointing at the Verrazano Bridge while declaring it to definitively being the Brooklyn Bridge), cracking open the beer can (yes, they still sell beer on the SI Ferry, as well as hot dogs), and wearing those ridiculous fanny packs with shorts, all of these are dead giveaways as to who you are...not to mention poor fashion statements. So I try not to be so obvious when I travel.  And the way to do that is to do your homework. 

The first thing I do is check the weather for my planned destination.  I like the "Weather Underground" site, but you can use whatever works for you.  I look at the weather history for the past few years for the dates I am going and check the day-to-day weather from about three weeks before I get there to figure out what to wear. I always carry a travel/rain jacket with a hood that is lightweight and can be literally stuffed into itself.  I found one at a second hand store in Brooklyn; it is Lands End and the whole thing fits into its own pocket...and even better?  All the pockets zip shut and there are three inside pockets.  Inside pockets are a must for traveling.

Next, I check on TripAdvisor to look at reviews for hotels, restaurants, museums, and other attractions.  I then narrow my search and begin to check out the individual websites of the places I want to go to, and the hotels I am considering using.  I found a great discount for the Louvre online and was able to save both time and money on a trip to Paris.  Booking tickets and tours beforehand can save both time and money.  This time in Rome, booking through the travel agency eliminated the lines at St Peter's Basilica, the Vatican Museum, the Coliseum and the Forum...well worth the cost.

Sometimes tourist offices offer "City Cards" that offer transit and museum entry at no or low costs.  The value of these depends on the place itself.  I successfully used these in Amsterdam and Stockholm, but passed on Rome and London because it just did not make financial sense.  Again, do your research.

Review the local transit system and see if you can get tickets before hand, or if they have special transit tickets for visitors such as day passes or week passes.  I used a Brit Rail pass this spring in England and it was the best investment I made.  In Rome recently, my sister and I used a full day transit pass and saved several  Euro over using cabs.  In Germany they often have special prices for groups traveling by rail, and in London the fare on the tube drops during off-peak hours.

Buy yourself a tour book...I am partial to Rick Steves' books, but there are others that may work for you. Study the maps of the places before you go.  Think about what you need to see, what you would like to see and what may be nice to see...then plan accordingly. Learn some local language phrases.  This often breaks the ice with service providers.

Secure your personal items.  I have it down to a science now.  I have a discrete money holder that fits under my shirt, I have jackets that have zippered outside and inside pockets.  My purse or tote bag is zippered shut, and I wear them cross body if  I take them with me at all.  Just be alert...show the same diligence you would if you were traveling on a crowded subway or the streets of Manhattan or downtown Brooklyn at lunch hour.  Don't be foolish.

Most importantly...have fun!