The Wayfinder
Navigate Travel Like an Expert
Hooray, your trip is booked! Now it's time to make sure everything else is ready too.
Whether you’re traveling for vacation, work, study abroad, a mission trip, a family visit, or a long-awaited adventure, a little pre-trip planning can help you avoid a whole lot of last-minute stress. Use this checklist to prep your documents, home, health, money, packing list, and travel insurance before you leave.
Before you travel, make sure you’ve covered the essentials:
Check out the sections below for a more detailed look at what to do before your trip.
If you’re traveling internationally, check your passport expiration date as soon as possible. Many destinations require your passport to be valid for at least six months beyond your travel dates, even if you plan to return home before it expires.
If you need to apply for or renew your passport, start early. Processing can take time, and delays are much easier to manage months before your trip than days before departure.
Some destinations require a visa, electronic travel authorization, proof of onward travel, vaccination documentation, or other entry forms. Requirements can vary based on your citizenship, destination, trip length, and reason for travel.
If you’re a U.S. citizen traveling internationally, the U.S. Department of State’s Learn About Your Destination tool is a good place to start. You can search by country to find entry and exit requirements, local laws, safety information, and other important travel details.
You can also search Seven Corners' international provider directory, WellAbroad. Simple type your destination into the search to find entry requirements, recommended vaccines, and more.
Take photos or make copies of your:
Store copies in more than one place. For example, keep digital copies on your phone, save backups in a secure cloud-based folder, and carry a paper copy separately from the originals.
Before you leave, send your itinerary to a trusted friend or family member. Include your travel dates, lodging information, transportation details, and how to reach you in an emergency.
For international trips, U.S. travelers can also enroll in the Smart Traveler Enrollment Program, or STEP, to receive destination alerts and help the U.S. embassy contact them in an emergency.
Depending on where you’re going, you may need recommended or required vaccinations, medications, or health precautions. This is especially important if you’re traveling internationally, visiting remote areas, going to a high-altitude destination, or managing a pre-existing health condition.
Try to schedule this conversation several weeks or months before your trip in case you need multiple vaccine doses or time for immunity to build.
Make sure you have enough prescription medication for your entire trip, plus a little extra in case you’re delayed. Keep medications in their original containers when possible, and pack them in your carry-on or personal item instead of checked luggage.
It’s also smart to bring a copy of your prescription, especially if you’re traveling internationally.
If you’re traveling somewhere 8,000 feet or higher, you may be at risk for altitude sickness. Symptoms can include headache, nausea, fatigue, dizziness, and shortness of breath. In severe cases, altitude sickness can become serious and may require emergency medical care.
Before traveling to a high-elevation destination, ask your doctor whether you should take any precautions. Once you arrive, give your body time to adjust, stay hydrated, avoid overexertion early in the trip, and pay attention to symptoms.
Before departure, save important numbers in your phone and write them down somewhere accessible. Include:
Let your bank and credit card companies know when and where you’ll be traveling, especially if you’re leaving the country. This can help prevent your card from being flagged for suspicious activity when you need it most.
Even for domestic trips, unexpected charges in a new location can sometimes trigger a fraud alert.
Don’t rely on a single debit card, credit card, or payment app. Bring at least two ways to pay in case one card is declined, lost, stolen, or not accepted.
For international travel, check whether your cards charge foreign transaction fees. You may also want to carry a small amount of local currency for taxis, tips, markets, or places that don’t accept cards.
Before you leave, pay any bills that will be due while you’re gone or set up auto-pay. This helps you avoid late fees, missed payments, and unnecessary stress when you return.
If you’re traveling internationally, contact your phone provider before you leave. Ask about international data, calling, and texting options so you don’t come home to surprise roaming charges.
You can also use Wi-Fi-based apps like WhatsApp, FaceTime, Facebook Messenger, or other messaging services to communicate when Wi-Fi is available.
Travel often means relying on public Wi-Fi, mobile apps, and digital payments more than usual. Before you leave, take a few minutes to secure the accounts and devices you’ll use on your trip.
Turn on multi-factor authentication where possible, make sure your phone is backed up, and enable location tracking tools like Find My iPhone or Find My Device. Avoid logging into sensitive accounts, like banking or email, on public computers or unsecured Wi-Fi networks.
Before you depart, download essentials in case your service is spotty or Wi-Fi is unreliable. Helpful downloads include:
Your packing list will depend on your destination, trip length, and activities, but most travelers should pack:
Keep your most important items in your carry-on or personal item, not in checked luggage.
Think through what you’ll need during the journey itself. For flights, trains, buses, cruises, and road trips, consider packing:
For road trips, add a small emergency kit, jumper cables, flashlight, extra water, and anything else you may need if you’re delayed or stranded.
Before you pack, review your airline, cruise line, or transportation provider’s baggage rules. Pay attention to size limits, weight limits, liquids rules, and prohibited items.
If you normally carry items like a pocketknife, pepper spray, lighter, or multitool, make sure they’re allowed before tossing them into your bag. Even if they’re legal where you live, they may not be allowed in airports, museums, stadiums, or other venues.
Before traveling, take out anything you won’t need, such as library cards, extra credit cards, loyalty cards, work badges, or unnecessary keys. This makes your wallet lighter and reduces what you’d have to replace if it were lost or stolen.
You don’t need to deep-clean your entire home, but a few simple tasks can make your return much better:
At minimum, remove anything that could cause odors, pests, or a mess while you’re gone.
If no one will be home, adjust your thermostat to save energy while still protecting your home, pets, and belongings. In warmer months, you may be able to set the temperature higher than usual. In colder months, keep the heat warm enough to help prevent pipes from freezing.
A pile of mail or packages can signal that no one is home. If you’ll be away for more than a few days, consider pausing your mail through USPS or asking a trusted neighbor to collect it.
Avoid scheduling online orders that will arrive while you’re gone. If something must be delivered, have it sent to your workplace, a locker, or someone you trust.
If your pets aren’t traveling with you, make arrangements early. You may need to book a kennel, hire a pet sitter, ask a trusted friend, or schedule drop-in visits.
Leave clear instructions for feeding, medications, vet information, emergency contacts, and anything your pet sitter needs to know.
Before you leave, walk through your home and check the basics:
If you have a neighbor, friend, or family member nearby, tell them you’ll be away and ask them to keep an eye out for anything unusual.
A good time to buy travel insurance is soon after you make your first trip payment. Buying early can help you maximize your coverage options, depending on the plan.
Travel insurance can help protect prepaid, nonrefundable trip expenses if you need to cancel your trip for a covered reason. It can also provide benefits if your trip is delayed, interrupted, or affected by certain unexpected events.
Travel medical insurance is especially important for international trips. Many domestic health insurance plans provide limited or no coverage outside the United States, and medical care abroad can be expensive.
Depending on the plan you choose, travel medical insurance can help cover eligible medical expenses if you get sick or hurt during your trip. Some plans may also include emergency medical evacuation benefits, which can be critical if you need to be transported to an appropriate medical facility.
Different trips come with different risks. When comparing travel insurance, think about:
If you travel often, an annual travel medical plan may be a better fit than buying separate coverage for every trip.
Before you leave, save your travel insurance ID card, plan documents, and emergency assistance number. Keep both digital and paper copies with you, and make sure your travel companion knows where to find them.
It’s also helpful to save receipts and confirmations for prepaid, nonrefundable trip expenses, such as flights, hotels, tours, cruises, rental cars, or event tickets. If you need to file a claim, having these documents organized can make the process easier.
If something goes wrong during your trip, keep receipts, written notices, medical records, police reports, or other proof related to the situation. These details may be helpful if you need to file a claim after your trip.
In the last day or two before you leave, run through one final checklist:
The best trips usually start before you ever leave home. With the right documents, packed essentials, home preparations, health precautions, and travel insurance, you can spend less time worrying about what you forgot and more time focusing on the reason you’re traveling in the first place.
Before your next trip, make sure travel insurance is part of your pre-trip checklist. Seven Corners offers customizable travel insurance and travel medical plans for many types of travelers, whether you’re planning one big trip or traveling often throughout the year. Get a quote online or talk with one of our licensed agents before you buy.
This website and various social media updates provided by Seven Corners contain content, information, articles, videos, and links to websites created by third parties. Seven Corners, its owners, and its employees neither endorse nor are responsible for the accuracy, timeliness, or reliability of any third-party information, statements, opinions, or advice and are not liable for any loss, harm, or damage caused by your reliance upon them. Use of such information or the linked websites is entirely at your risk. Concerns regarding this third-party content should be directed to the third party. Seek professional advice, as appropriate, regarding your use of such information and websites.
Because the information on this website and in Seven Corners’ blogs and other social media is written and compiled using knowledge and information available at a certain point in time, it may become outdated. For that reason, information, events, legal requirements, and product changes (including benefits, limitations, exclusions, and services) may not be up-to-date, complete, or accurate at the point in time it is being read. Again, use of such information is at your risk.
