Planning everything to the last hour on a trip will make it a lot less fun, but without a small amount of planning you could land in a whole lot of trouble. If you’re going on a gap year or planning to travel to several destinations, you need to check FCO travel advice first. Check the country is considered safe for British nationals, and which vaccinations (if any) are recommended. Whilst these are often expensive, if you contract a disease whilst on your trip it will be far more expensive to treat it, and in some cases may cost you your life. If travelling alone for the first time, run your plans by experienced travellers – Lonely Planet’s Thorntree is a good place to start. Most will offer helpful advice specific to the countries you are visiting, can advise you on what to take, and most importantly, good places to eat! Leave a rough itenary back home with friends or family, and if you are a UK resident, consider registering with the FCO’s LOCATE program. In the event of a major catastrophe (such as the 2004 Indian Ocean Earthquake), the FCO will contact you to check you are alive and well, and can then concentrate rescue efforts elsewhere.

Smaller memory cards save pictures

If you’re planning on taking a digital camera, rather than taking one big memory card, take several smaller ones. Regularly rotate between the cards, keeping the ones you aren’t currently using somewhere safe and separate to the camera. So, if the worst should happen and you lose your camera or it is stolen, you don’t lose all your pictures!

The two wallet trick

In some places tourists stick out more than usual. Unfortunately some locals take advantage, demanding payment for unwanted services, pestering for sales, and even selecting tourists as easy pickpocketing targets. Luckily you can avoid the worst of it using a simple trick. Take a second wallet with you, with a few worthless receipts, some expired or pointless cards if you have them, and a small amount of cash in it. Put the fake wallet in an easy to access pocket, and your real wallet in a securely fastened (zip and buttons) pocket. Thieves will target the easy wallet, and you have less cash to lose on locals that won’t back down – if you really must give them money, take it from the dummy wallet.

Trek mix

On long walks some people advise taking chocolate bars, energy bars, or cereal bars. I find that a mixture of broken up chocolate bars and nuts are far more effective. Buy some cheap own-brand chocolate from the supermarket, and a mix of nuts and sultanas. Break up the chocolate into small pieces, and mix the food into freezer bags for your trek. Energy is released from the chocolate quickly, whilst the nuts provide longer term sustenance. Best of all you can grab a quick handful whilst you walk, and you don’t have to worry about a wrapper.

Mosquito bands

A particularly useful tip from an old friend, mosquito bands can reduce the number of bites you get without rubbing deet into your skin. Buy four cheap sweatbands before you leave for your trip, and douse them with deet, or an equivalent strength anti-mosquito spray. When in mosquito-infested areas, wear one on each wrist, and one on each ankle. For the most part you can now get away with wearing a t-shirt and shorts when it’s hot, without getting eaten alive. Remember to spray the edges of your clothing too (but beware, stronger sprays may stain).

Take a leap

And finally, be spontaneous. If you plan every last little bit of your trip, you won’t meet as many people, or have anywhere near as much fun. One of my best experiences when travelling was a trip into the Sahara. Five minutes after arriving at my hostel in Cairo, I was offered the chance to go on a trip with a few complete strangers out into the desert. We had a great time, and I made some lifelong friends.