If you’ve ever left home on a journey to a far away land, you know there are plenty of unexpected things that can go wrong – flight delays and dead phone batteries being the most popular pitfall many experience.

To avoid travel headaches, here are a few tips from Jovago.com, Africa’s largest hotel booking portal!



Tip #1: Going by air? Track your flight

While putting your bags together, remember to pack your patience along with the clothes. In a world where delayed flights are a normal occurrence, it helps to prepare for this eventuality ahead of time. Find other sources of entertainment while waiting at the airport lounge and install a flight tracking app on your phone to help you figure out where the plane is and how long the delay will be.



Tip #2: Safeguard your identity

As more people become internet savvy, it’s becoming increasingly easier for identity thieves to clone personal information of people who aren’t careful. A credit card number typed on the wrong computer, passports lying idle or even a driver’s license left unmonitored can put a person at risk. Stay smart and keep all essential documents in a personal carry-on. If there are soft copies of any document on a device, download a file protection app to secure them.



Tip #3: Scan all travel documents

Why make only paper copies of vital data when you can have them equally stored in a cloud service like One Drive or Google Drive. Misplacing vital travel documents can be devastating so backing them up, is a really good move.



Tip #4: Protect all devices

If you will be participating in outdoor activities, then getting protective gear for your devices is important. Some cameras, tablets and phones come with soft-leather packaging but if they don’t, then buy one which is water and tamper-proof. Also remember to take out a warranty in case the screen goes bad or a heavy damage occurs.

Tip #5: Get direct access to TV shows

Many hotels offer cable facilities but only a few give you the luxury of choosing from an entire bouquet of channels without restrictions. To keep this from happening to you, subscribe for services like Netflix and other internet-enabled movie services to stay entertained. As long as the hotel offers WiFi service, you should be just fine.