The Most Important Travel Documents For Your Trip

The plane tickets are bought, the hotel is booked, the suitcase is packed and waiting impatiently for its finest hour… You are full of emotions but calm down and re-check once again all the necessary documents. So that your long-awaited trip will bring you only pleasant emotions!

We have prepared a reminder that you should definitely not forget. It will be useful for everyone: those who fly abroad or decide to relax in local resorts, independent travelers and clients of travel agencies.

• Passport

This seems obvious, but unfortunately, we know cases of the failed trips because the passport was unluckily left at home, while the whole family had already left for the trip. It is better to take with you not the only identity document, but two: a passport and a driver’s license, for example.

Make photocopies of all documents – especially passports and keep them apart from originals. Save scans of your passport and other documents on your tablet, smartphone, laptop with which you are going on vacation. Send an email with scans to yourself.

Take a couple of color photographs with you – like for a passport or visa. What is this all for? If you lose your passport (hope not), this will make a procedure of getting a certificate of return to your homeland easier and faster.

Of course, I would not want even to think of such an outcome, but it’s worth being ready for anything. Photos can be taken in one of the photo studios or you can consider as an option Walgreens passport photo alternative. Just take a photo by your own, send it online and get it printed less than in one hour.

• Visa

When planning a trip, first of all, you need to find out about the visa policy of the destination country. Otherwise, the journey runs the risk of ending before it even begins.

• Travel insurance certificate

When traveling, especially to new countries, an insurance policy is a must. It is advisable to print a copy of the certificate and take it with you on your trip. You also need to have a digital copy of the same document on your phone, laptop, or cloud storage.

Due to the pandemic entry rules are constantly changing, so you need to monitor them carefully and have up-to-date information about covid restrictions and, if possible, take out an additional Covid insurance policy, and also take a vaccination certificate if available.

• Driver license

A must if you plan to rent a car. However, we advise you to read first the terms of the lease. Check if the destination country has acceded to the Vienna Convention. If so, then you can drive there with a national driver’s license.

But mind that very often, independent trips to unfamiliar places can be extremely dangerous, for example, trips along mountain serpentines, especially at night. In such cases, it is much wiser to take an experienced local guide.

• Tickets and hotel reservations

In our modern world of digitalization, everything is available online. And as a rule, a passport is enough for the check-in desk to see a confirmation of the purchase of tickets, and for the hotel reception to see your room booking. However, we strongly recommend that you still have these documents with you just in case.

If you are not traveling as an independent tourist, but on a tour from a travel agency, a voucher for accommodation must be provided as a must.

• If you are traveling with children

You should make sure that you take birth certificates for children, as you may be asked to show documents when entering and leaving the country. They need to be close by so they can be accessed quickly and well protected to prevent problems such as water damage. You can also print copies as they can be used in place of the original in most cases.

If the child is traveling with one of the parents, a notarized permission from the other parent is required. However, some consulates – for example, France – require permission from both parents in any case, even if the family travels in full.

• Marriage certificate

It may be strange o here but still in the 21 century marriage certificate can be required. Otherwise, you may be refused in booking one room while travelling in a couple, you have to provide this document. But it’s a kind of exception.

• Cash and bank card

Yes, of course, this is also more than understood, but if to really draw up a checklist, then it has to be complete. Be sure to take some of the money in cash. You can easily pay by card almost everywhere, but for example, the seller of vintage earrings at a flea market most likely will ask for paper money.

Have a nice trip!