Being Prepared For Backpacking Around The States

This is a guest post by Felicity Hannah.

Thousands of people go backpacking across America every year to learn about the rich history and heritage and immerse themselves in the culture as they travel from one city or state to the next.

Here are a few helpful hints and tips for anyone keen on going on a US road trip on everything from the importance of getting worldwide travel insurance to general travel advice:

Accommodation

There are options aplenty in terms of where you lay your head at night and which accommodation you opt for is likely to depend on your budget and how long you intend on living out of a suitcase or backpack. If money is no option then there’s bound to be a hotel that fits your needs. However, if you’re traveling on a shoe-string budget then head for the nearest hostel. They are cheap and cheerful, just so long as do a bit of research in either a hostel handbook or online. Motels are another possibility, but just be wary of getting ripped off.

Currency

Carrying around a large amount of money on your persons is risky as you can easily mislay your wallet or purse or alternatively have it stolen. One way around having a wad of dollar bills in your back pocket is to use a prepaid currency card, such as the Caxton FX card. Load up the card with however much you can afford and then use it in the same way you do a credit card to pay for things or withdraw money with it at an ATM.

Food and drink

You’ll rarely go hungry in America, such are the portion sizes. What’s more, food is pretty cheap, which is good news if you want to keep a tight grip on the purse strings. Don’t forget to tip if you get service while out and about enjoying a bite to eat or a few drinks because tipping is very much part of American culture. Give a few dollars if you think your waiter or barman deserves it.

Insurance

Healthcare in America can be costly to say the least, even for the most routine of treatment. That makes it even more important to protect yourself, as well as protect your belongings by investing in things such as travel insurance and backpackers insurance. They are both pretty cheap to buy and could end up saving you an absolute fortune in the event of having to make a claim. Never underestimate the peace of mind that comes with getting insured as you know that if things do go wrong, help will be at hand.

Route

Planning a route – or at least a rough outline of where you want to start and stop and determining where you’ll stay along the way – will give your trip some structure. It’ll also make it less stressful as you’ll have booked things like accommodation in advance and maybe even saved yourself a bit of money by doing it this way.

Transport

The dependability of public transport differs from one state to the next in America and it can be very hit and miss, so be patient if you want to travel around by rail or road. There are pros and cons to the various modes of transport available. For example, the Greyhound bus company often offer good deals on cheap travel, but obviously that’s offset by the fact that going by bus is time consuming compared to flying, which offers a great degree of convenience.

Images 1 and 2 from Flickr’s Creative Commons. This was a sponsored post.