International Travel Secrets: Take Shorter Trips, More Often, for Less

Great read and so helpful with travel ideas & tips. Thanks to Michael for writing it!

I have been to over 100 countries, and I didn't learn anything new in this book. Still it was wonderful to remind myself of all my options after COVID lets me travel again. For most people this is a well organized collection of knowledge that can save a lot of money and hassles. I would add that a lot of the services he advocates have senior discounts. Doesn't hurt to ask.His descriptions of the old Soviet countries make me want to take a trip to that region. I don't party into the night at his level but sounds like he had a great time.I take exception to his distaste for airline credit cards. I charge everything and pay it off every month. I start with a credit card that has a sign on bonus, like 50,000 miles, and change to a new card every few years. The miles earned have allowed me to fly to Buenos Aires, Africa (twice), Europe (twice), and Hawaii (three times), plus other shorter trips.I also would not be so quick to refuse cancellation insurance. You don't need it on your own since a credit card with travel benefits will reimburse some things, but If I'm going on a pricey tour as part of my itinerary, I get cancellation insurance. I have used it four times: when they bombed the US embassy two days before I was supposed to leave, when a volcano erupted next to the town I was flying to, and when I broke my leg, and when I came down with horrible abdominal pain the night before I was supposed to go to the airport, which turned out to be shingles. The tours were not cancelled, but I didn't have to worry about going into an uncomfortable situation and was reimbursed the full cost of the trips. I also paid $700 for cancellation and evacuation insurance for a 2 1/2 month cruise around South America and Antartica. COVID emerged during that time, and I got back four days before lockdown. I didn't need to use the insurance, but a lot of things could have happened.I worked for an insurance company and we often had to pay $50,000 or more to repatriate people who had medical problems overseas. For $200 you can get an annual policy that will evacuate you from anywhere in the world. I haven't bought one, but now that I'm older I will consider it if I go back to traveling several months a year. It's important to read the fine print and know what your carrier, travel and insurance companies will and won't do for you and decide if you need a little more peace of mind. World Nomads is inexpensive insurance that will cover even extreme sports activities.

As a fellow traveler who is writing a travel-themed book myself, I appreciate and applaud this book for its thoroughness and specific action items. I am always learning, always striving to know more travel secrets and hacks to see and do as much traveling on my limited budget as possible. I have embraced a style of last minute/meandering/backpacker travel that works for me; however, I cannot confine myself to my limited knowledge. The book has valuable, usable information for both travel newbies and seasoned wanderlusters. Many of the topics presented are ones I've encountered or already know about, and I caught myself nodding my head at times, whispering, "Yep. Agree. Definitely." For instance, I felt quite a kindred spirit vibe with Michael, especially when reading the chapter discussing AirBnB, as we share similar views/experiences with it. On the flip side, I also garnered new, valuable bits of advice that I will be glad to put into practice!I was impressed to read that Michael, in all his worldly travels, has never been robbed while traveling. I cannot say the same, so I clearly needed this book and its guidance eons ago! His section about how he's avoided this unpleasantness is greatly appreciated. I was surprised to read Michael hasn't quite mastered the art of carryon/backpack-only travel, though he mentioned wanting to try it out. I spent five consecutive months of 2020 in several countries with just my backpack. It can be done, and I look forward to hearing his thoughts after trying this out. No doubt his next book will have a whole chapter on how he conquered it.A fun bonus of International Travel Secrets is the quiz you can take to help ascertain what type of trip you might want to try, based on how you answer certain questions. The outcome of mine was fascinating! You will not regret grabbing this book and reading before and during your next trip! Have fun and travel often!

My wife and I try to travel to Europe every year. Sometimes we cruise and sometimes we rent a car and travel on our own. I wish I had read International Travel Secrets many years ago. It is like having a travel assistant in your pocket to supplement your travel agent. It is filled with tips and tricks that not only save money, but help you have a safer and more enjoyable trip. We are going to rethink our credit cards, use of cash, how to book flights and hotels, and the use of layovers. Some of our most stressful flying experiences could have been avoided had we turned airline changeovers into layovers--one of the great ideas in the book discussed extensively. One thing we have been doing that is recommended in the book is to do a quick city tour the first day of a stay in a major city. As recommended in the book, we find the Hop On, Hop Off tours to be reasonable and well done. We even used it once in Seattle to get around much cheaper than any other option (I left my Tahoe parked at the Ferry and avoided terrible traffic and parking in Seattle). I found the book to be easy reading and direct--very little fluff, but detail where needed. Some topics are covered that I have not seen anywhere else such as socializing with locals and specifics about travel in various countries. This book told us a lot of stuff our travel agent never could.

The author Michael Wedaa, did a very good job taking their past travel experiences and compiling a helpful list of tips and tricks for traveling abroad. The author makes several valid points and some of the tips had me saying "huh, that makes sense"... I am not personally super experienced as an international traveler but I have been around international travel for almost 10 years working for a global tour agency and still learned some good tricks from this book. Definitely recommend picking this one b up for some quick pointers for anyone wanting to travel more.

I’ve been to 46 countries and agree with the points made. Reassures me that I am on the right path!!

Everything you need to know to book your next trip! Great step by step explanation on how to travel smartly, in order not to waste time and money and gain the most out of travel experiences. Enjoy your next destination with this useful companion!

Detailed and with humor and testimonies from diffferent journeys, he is giving inside; in what you never will find in this manner in all the travel guides. Easy to read, helpful and very interesting. A look behind the scenes! While reading it, you get the desire to travel. Very inspiring.

This handy book is part travel diary and part instruction manual. It has an easy style and plenty of interesting travel stories of people and places. It was comprehensive - full of useful, practical tips. Whenever we get to travel the world again I'm taking this with me!

Very helpful book or travel assistant -All details are described in there.Don't be afraid you can manage every journey with the advice in this book.Thank you so much by sharing your experience with us.