How to plan a multi-country trip

There are ways to plan your multi-country vacation, while also keeping everyone safe, happy and stress free both before and during your getaway. Here are a few tips that’ll keep everything running smoothly:

Become a makeshift travel agent.

Luckily, there are a lot of great online tools that can help make planning your time away easier than ever before. Aside from the multitude of online travel sites like Expedia and Priceline, you can also find plenty of intelligent vacation-planning tools rolled right into your search engine. For example, you can use Bing Maps to enter your city of choice. From there it will populate the following information:

• Facts about the city
• What’s nearby
• Things to do
• Where to eat and drink
• Upcoming events
• Suggested trip itineraries (or ones you create yourself) that you can save, print and share

You can also download one of the many free travel itinerary templates available online—including multi-country templates with sections for documenting destinations, transportation, lodging, finances, currency, packing, contacts and more.

Be a bit of a wet blanket.

With all the fun things on the agenda, no one wants to think about what could go wrong during your multi-country vacation. But if something does—you’ll be so happy you’re prepared. Create two emergency lists: one to take along and one to share with family, friends, etc. who are staying behind. Make sure these lists exist as hard copies, too, in case internet is spotty:

• ER list to bring with you: This should have your family, friend and/or work contact info on it in case of emergency. By having a hard copy at your fingertips, the info is front-and-center even if you lose your phone or Wi-Fi. (Let’s face it: Most of us don’t remember phone numbers/email addresses if our devices go dark or missing.) It should also list American embassy phone numbers for each of the countries you’re visiting.
• ER list to leave behind: This should contain your cell phone numbers, hotel names, addresses, phone numbers and airline flight information. If you’re leaving your child, pet or other loved one in the care of someone during your trip, make sure the caregiver has the above information in addition to the following:
• Child’s/dependent’s full name (not nickname, but full legal name)
• Child’s/dependent’s insurance card and doctor contact info
• Child’s/dependent’s drug/food allergies
• Child’s/dependent’s cell phone number (if any)
• Pet’s veterinarian info, plus feeding and medication instructions, if any
• Contact info for nearby family and friends that they can call if you can’t be reached.

Create a packing list.

Long before your travel date arrives, start creating a list of what to pack before your big getaway. Aside from obvious items like toothbrushes, socks and underwear—do a little online research about your destinations (think climate, terrain, activities, bugs, social norms, etc.) This can go far in keeping you prepared for what kind of clothes, shoes or skin protection you may need. If you’re not sure where to begin, there are tons of travel packing list templates to get you started. Find one that’s right for your upcoming getaway.

Keep track with Microsoft To Do

Keep all your lists handy and organized. Plus, easily share with others to get things done together.

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Know what NOT to put in checked baggage.

Now that you have your packing list ready to go, it’s time to think about what NOT to put in checked baggage. That way, if you’re luggage gets lost, you won’t be without these important items, which should go in your carry-on bag:

• Travel docs (driver’s license/ID, visa, passport, boarding passes, tickets)
• Must-have meds (EpiPen, heart/blood pressure meds, family-planning items and any other things you can’t be without. Be sure to research each country’s laws regarding approved meds—some that are legal here may not be legal elsewhere .)
• Mobile devices (Check with your provider about international calling plans before you go.)
• Insurance cards
• Chargers
• International travel adapters
• Glasses/contact lenses & solution
• Wallet or purse with extra cash and credit cards (FYI, many credit cards offer emergency travel perks for members. Check yours before you go.)
• Keys (for your car or house when you get back)
• Umbrella
• Nutrient-rich snacks (e.g. energy bars in case of long layovers or other delays)

Before you fly the friendly skies, look to the clouds.

Sure, check the weather—but we’re talking about another type of cloud coverage. Before you even begin travel planning, use a free cloud provider that lets you create a family group (or a group of any kind) so you can create and share all the above travel info in one secure place. Aside from those all-important documents and files, it’s also easier than ever to share photos and videos from your trip. For example, after you choose a provider and create your family group (e.g. Trip to Europe), you can:

• Put everything in a shared folder on the cloud, instead of emailing and/or texting photos and videos.
• Let everyone in the group access the footage and/or upload their own.
• Add or delete captions, tags and comments.
• Easily access the images to enjoy and share anytime—or create photo albums, web stories, slideshows and more!

As you can see, planning a multi-family trip doesn’t have to be stressful—if you follow some easy tips. By getting a good head start, creating your to-do lists and taking advantage of all the tools that make vacations a snap—you’ll be better prepared and more relaxed, which makes for the perfect getaway.