45 Travel Tips From La Jolla Sports Club!

Summer is winding down, and La Jolla Sports Club has 45 (!) travel tips to help make the best of your remaining trips!

As this post is being written, it’s a perfect La Jolla day with blue skies, moderate temps and a never-ending supply of things to do here in town. If you haven’t checked out SanDiego.com or the San Diego Reader, yet, you’ll find plenty of options for local fun.

We personally love an outdoor movie and with choices from La Jolla to Mission Hills to Point Loma to Coronado, you’ll be quoting your favorite Dumb and Dumber scene in no time. More of an opera fan? The Conrad’s list of events can be found here.

But with an international community such as ours, maybe you want to head out for an adventure and leave La Jolla Sports Club behind for a few weeks? Traveling is probably one of the best things you can do for yourself, but it doesn’t come without its own headaches. Which is why we’re here to help with a few tips and tricks we’ve learned along the way. These are some of your La Jolla Sports Club staff favorites, but if you have some good ones, let us know!

Take-off!

1. Buy a small travel bag
   1. La Jolla Sports Club Personal Trainer, Kevin Root, recommends the Patagonia Black-hole bag as his favorite travel-related purchase of all time (comes in multiple sizes)
2. Pack light
   1. Create your list and cut it in half
3. Take extra socks
4. Bring an extra debit and credit card with you
   1. And let your bank know you’re traveling
5. Find a travel card with no foreign transaction fees
   1. Nerdwallet.com has some great articles on this
6. Travel by yourself, at least once
   1. Even if you’re an outgoing person, when you’re traveling with someone or a group, you inevitably block off potential fun and adventure
7. Use a map and don’t be afraid to look like a tourist
   1. Better than walking down that wrong street 😬
8. Take only what you need when venturing out from your hotel / hostel / Airbnb
   1. If you’re in a developing country (what we used to refer to as ‘third-world’), most hotels and hostels will have a safe you can access
   2. Related: avoid using the term ‘third world country’
9. Re: #9, bring a lock with you
10. For the love of all things lost, PHOTOCOPY your passport and also email it to yourself, along with other important documents
    1. Set up a travel subfolder in your email for easy access in stressful situations, of which there will be at least one
    2. Understand that there will be at least one stressful situation
11. Bartenders have some of the best local tips
12. Learning the basics of please, thank you, hello and goodbye in the local language goes a very, very long way
13. When waiting on line, get behind business travelers, as they move quickly
    1. On a related note: Avoid standing behind families
14. Visit local markets and supermarkets to see what the locals eat and try them at your AirBnb / VRBO
15. 2-3 months out is about the best time to get a flight
16. Be aware and on your toes, but don’t be too on-guard to meet a few new people along the way
17. Have a stash of emergency cash, you never know when an ATM will be out of order or non-existent
18. Check vaccination needs for countries that you’re visiting
19. Learning to haggle is a necessity in most countries
    1. Smile when doing so
20. Eat street food

    

    1. But at the stalls where you see plenty of people
21. PATIENCE, not everything happens as quickly out in the world as it does here
    1. We recently heard the phrase ‘Wait your patience,’ which is actually pretty right on when you think about it
22. Plan some things, but not all things—some of the best experiences happen by accident
23. Relax
    1. See: 21; 10b
24. Travel insurance, travel insurance, travel insurance
25. Keep important items in a day-pack—bum bags / fanny packs have come a long way in terms of coolness and function
    1. ‘Fanny pack’ is an offensive term pretty much everywhere in the world except here
26. Write down your accommodation’s address and keep it with you in that bum bag
27. Off the beaten path is cool, but so are the touristy things—they’re popular for a reason
28. Travel towels pack down, dry quickly and can be used for a range of things
29. Exchange rates at airports are no bueno
30. Early flight? Pack your bag the night before, especially if you’re staying at a hostel or as a guest
31. Speaking of early, beat the crowds to the hot spots—when’s the last time you saw the sunrise, let alone over a wat in a hot air balloon?
32. The Google Translate app‘s camera is apparently a life-saver (note: this has not been verified by La Jolla Sports Club, but it looks pretty amazing)
33. Something to be said about traveling with your own toilet paper when only squat toilets are available…
    1. On a related note, Imodium is a good idea for those long bus trips and flights when things aren’t quite right…
34. Having an offline map app like Maps.me can be the best thing on your phone when cell reception / wifi goes down
35. Smiling is universal
36. Say ‘Yes’

    

37. Some airports offer free day trips around the city when you’re stuck in a long layover (thank you, Incheon Airport)
38. Collapsible water bottles are a great space saver and TSA-friendly
    1. Drink more water, especially in hot, humid climes
39. Dry bags are more useful than you think
40. With paid reviews (and deleted reviews), TripAdvisor is not as savvy as it used to be—your due diligence on research will pay off
41. What’s the expiry date on your passport again?
42. Charge your devices when possible and protect your tech with quality covers
43. Factor in jetlag when planning your events (see: #22)
44. The only thing you really need while traveling is your passport and credit card
45. Take a moment, at least once during your trip, to really think about how lucky we are that we can travel freely, that we have our health and that we can afford to go. Be grateful, be humble, be fun 🙂

That’s it for this post, check back for the next installment on traveling with kids!

Until then, have a great couple of weeks!

// Your friends at La Jolla Sports Club