How to Be a Healthier Traveler in 5 Easy Steps

Being an avid traveler is amazing – you get to see new places, have unforgettable experiences and meet different people from all over the planet. However, being on the road all the time comes with one drawback – taking care of your health isn’t easy if you’re all over the place. That’s why you need to make a plan before every trip you take and figure out what to do in case something bad happens. Anything from a common cold to an injury can ruin your trip, and you should learn how to become the healthiest traveler possible. In order for that to happen, follow these five easy steps.

Get checked before you go

Most people think that visiting a doctor several days before their trip is a waste of time, but the truth is quite different. Being absolutely sure there’s nothing wrong with you will calm your nerves and make your trip much more enjoyable, but it will also minimize the chance of having a health issue take you by surprise.

Sometimes even a cough or a case of the sniffles could ruin your trip, and knowing that you could’ve done something to prevent it will annoy you even more. So, visit your doctor, make sure you’re fit to travel, and try to avoid catching a cold while you’re away from home.

Get travel insurance

Most people diligently handle when it comes to life insurance policies. They research and find a reputed provider like ethos insurance to secure their family during their demise. However, that isn’t the case when it comes to travel insurance and a lot of people don’t acknowledge that it’s in their best interest. Travel insurance allows you to walk into any hospital in the world and ask for help, and no matter where you are, your insurance company should be able to cover the costs of your treatment (or at least a part of it).

In other words, this means you won’t have to pay as much as you normally would, which is quite important when visiting places with high medical expenses. Once you’re stable and recovered, you can return home and continue treatment in your local hospital. Luckily, travel insurance usually doesn’t cost too much. It’s surely much cheaper than paying for a medical treatment in a foreign country, so be sure to get it before your next trip.

Visit your dentist

The problem with teeth is that you can experience absolutely no pain before you leave on your trip and start suffering the minute you enter the plane, so by the time you’ve reached your destination, the pain is already excruciating and unbearable. That’s why checking your teeth beforehand is so vital. In countries like Australia, you can easily visit a dentist in Sydney and get help dealing with any kind of teeth problem. To be honest, it’s probably the most important check-up you need to do before you leave.

If you do end up with a painful problem during your vacation, then don’t suffer through it – go to a certified clinic that your travel insurance covers.

Drink plenty of water

Staying hydrated is probably the best way to make sure your health is always on the highest level, and this is especially important when you’re traveling.

Dehydration is often associated with plane travel because you have to pay $5 for a plain bottle of water in a duty-free shop or on the plane. So, if you don’t want to get dehydrated after not drinking anything for hours, bring a reusable bottle to the airport and simply fill it for free at a water fountain. This will save you both cash and your health at the same time.

Try to work out

Regular physical activity can help preserve your health, but not everyone is interested in working out when they’re on vacation. That’s why you need to think outside the box and find ways to keep in shape when you’re traveling.

Walking around the town instead of taking taxis, hiking on nearby mountains, hitting the hotel swimming pool, going to the gym, or simply running around the block won’t take too much of your time, yet could mean quite a lot for your physical health. Ultimately, these are just some of the ways to stay fit and healthy wherever you are, so just find a method that suits you and dedicate time to preserving your health.

Becoming a healthy traveler takes some time and preparation, but if you don’t do any of these things, you could easily end up spending your trip sick or, even worse, badly injured. That’s something none of us want. Therefore, be prepared, be cautious, be safe and enjoy your travels!

Guest Post by Peter who is a travel editor at Men-Ual magazine. Beside blogging he worked as a travel journalist for many publications around UK & AU. Follow Peter on Twitter for more tips.

16 thoughts on “How to Be a Healthier Traveler in 5 Easy Steps”

  1. This post has some very useful tips I hadn’t thought of before, thank you!

    I don’t travel too often, but when I do I try to boost my immune system with echinacea. I find that it’s the recycled air in the airplanes that usually give me a cold. I’ve done this the last few times, and it seemed to have helped.

    Cheers,
    Suzanne

  2. Hi there,
    Great post and thanks for sharing this informative and important information. I have qualified for a 1wk. all expenses paid trip to somewhere in the Caribbean, so this article ticks all the boxes for me. It caught my eye and attention straight-away, when I saw the images and the headlines on top of this website.
    There are some valuable tips and ‘aces’ here-in and make for great reading.
    keep up the good work. I have bookmarked this site, so I expect to be checking back in here some time soon.
    Cheers again,
    PB

  3. Well its so helpful lalo na sa mga traveller.. Buti nalng wala pa naman akong nararanasan na ganyan

  4. This couldn’t have come at a better time as I’m about to go off travelling! I think it’s so important to stay hydrated and keep physical as much as you can while on the road. Travel insurance is a biggie for me, I never travel without it!

  5. Yes for visiting your dentist before your travel because we never know if what would happen during our trip and enjoy lots of foods! Many says that here in the Philippines, dental services are cheap compared to others. And a huge plus for getting insurance – better be prepared than never.

  6. These are some tips that every traveler should read. Personally, I practice all of them during my travels, especially the part about staying hydrated. I always have space for an extra bottle of water in my backpack 🙂

  7. A good article, which remind me to pay attention of my health during traveling. Especially the problems with the teeth. Toothache can really ruin our trip, when you have it, you just can’t enjoy anything around you. And travel insurance is also very important. Thank you for sharing!

  8. This reminds me that when I went for the Europe trip people said I’d gain weight but instead I returned with a loss of weight. It was all because I walked so much, easily 10km every day on average, so even cheap fast food eating didn’t make me put on. Your healthy living tips ae very useful

  9. Travel insurance is so important! It’s annoying to pay for something you probably – and hopefully – won’t need, but it could save you tens of thousands of dollars in the end. I’m lucky to have one included in my regular insurance plan.
    On longer flights, they usually refill your water bottle without charging you. Planes are so dry I’m always parched! And I also always travel with a few health foods to make up for all the eating out. It’s all about making better choices 🙂

  10. I completely agree with drinking plenty of water, getting travel insurance and trying to work out on the go as measures to a healthy trip. I wouldn’t have thought of getting a checkup done before travelling unless I’m already feeling very sick (I don’t take flu seriously enough) or even the dentist for that matter. I hate going to the dentists!

  11. These are some very valuable tips before embarking on a trip. I always end up with dental issues, even if I have had no major problem weeks back before my boarding day.After reading this post and comments, feeling a bit relieved as I always thought that it was just me who had medical issues just before travel !!

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