Keeping Travel Information Organised & Safe

When we go on holiday, there can be a lot to remember, from making sure we've packed everything we'll need whilst we are away, to the all-important travel & flight documents!

I have another post about specific documents and information you need to be taking on holiday with you here. However, for this post, I wanted to focus on some ways to keep all of this information organised and safe so you don't have to constantly be checking different areas of your luggage or trying to find a certain email in your phone. This can help make the travelling experience more relaxed and hassle-free.

As another note too, it can be beneficial to use a couple of these hints rather than just one so that you always have a back up. I like to print my travel documents, as well as save them in a location on my phone that I know I can easily get to. This way, I know I will always have a way of accessing them should there be any problems!

Travel Document Folder:

These can be found on a range of websites, and are really good at keeping everything up together. I have one which has 3 passport slots, 4 card slots (for bank cards / GHIC cards / cards to be used abroad etc), and two large pockets for slotting in travel documentation. I take this on every holiday I go on and it is super handy for keeping everything in one place. I know exactly where I need to be looking every time I need a specific document, and I don't have to waste time wondering where I put something.

It also makes checking you have everything a lot easier. You can simply unzip the folder and see right in front of you if everything is there or not. You can even purchase some cool personalised travel document folders so it doesn't get confused with anyone else's!

The folder I have also has a little wrist strap attached to it, so it's easy to carry it around instead of constantly placing it in and out of a bag or hand luggage because most of the time, you put a document away to keep it safe, and two minutes later you need it again, so being able to have all documents to hand makes the process much easier.

Digital Files Folder:

When you book a variety of different holiday elements such as flights, accomodation, airport extras, etc, you can end up with so many different emails and confirmations that it can become a bit overwhelming. Also, you can end up with promotional emails from different companies which can 'drown out' the actual email you are looking for.

Most of the time, your confirmation emails will come with PDF attachments containing all of the necessary information for that booking. In this case, you can print it off and store it in your folder, but you can also create a digital folder.

How you do this will depend on the device you are using and the brand of device, and you might need to do a quick search on how to do this for your device. However, the general idea is that you create a folder in the 'files' app of your phone and save all of your PDF holiday documents into this folder. Then you can simply open up your files app and open your holiday folder to find everything you need.

Digital Photo Album:

An alternative to a 'file' app folder if you don't use your files app enough to feel confident with this form of organisation is to create a photo album. You can screenshot all of your holiday confirmation information and add it to this photo album. Then, like the files app, you can simply open up your photo/gallery app and select your holiday document folder.

Just make sure all of your screenshots contain all of the information for each form of documentation that will be required. Also, bear in mind with this option and the 'files' folder that this might not be relevant for all documentation. For example, you will need a physical copy of documentation such as passports, GHIC cards, etc.

These two options (photo and files album) can work well for information such as boarding passes, transfer information, airport lounge/parking confirmation, and accommodation information.

Splitting the responsibilities:

Whilst having all the information in one place keeps everything up together and organised, it can feel like a big responsibility for one person.

If you are travelling with other people, you could try splitting up the responsibilities of carrying all the documentation. For example, someone could carry passports & boarding passes, someone else could carry the transfer information and accommodation confirmation and so on.

This can help reduce the burden of carrying lots of documentation, and can also make things more organised in some cases. If one person is carrying lots of documentation, it can take time to flick through the different pieces of paper and find what you are looking for. Spreading this out can make things quicker and easier in this sense. Just remember who has what!

Also, another way to do this is to have one person carry physical paper copies of the documenation and another carry them on their phone, either filed away or on a photo album app, or any other platform that suits. This way, everything is up together, but both in a digital format and physical copies. It's one way of splitting responsibilities whilst also keeping everything in one place.

When using accommodation:

So, that's some ways to keep documents organised and safe when travelling/flying, but how can you keep these documents safe whilst abroad, ready to take back with you or have to hand to use whilst you are away?

Some of us may simply be comfortable enough leaving the documents in a drawer in our hotel room, especially if we know a certain hotel or area well and feel it will remain safe and secure without any extra measures. However, some of us may prefer to keep things locked up a little safer. Some ideas to do so include:

• Using the safe in the room (if available): some hotels offer these free of charge or others may have a fee to use a safe

• Using a lockable folder / suitcase / hand luggage which can hold your documentation whilst keeping it secure

• Using a password protected digital file folder so any documents are protected in the case of you losing your phone whilst abroad (which hopefully is not a scenario any of you run into!)

• Daily checks of your most important information, such as passports, so that if anything does go missing, you can be aware of it as soon as possible. This doesn't need to be something that ruins or overtakes your holiday, just a quick check each day or every other day if this sounds like something that would benefit you. This can be especially helpful if there are no secure places to store documents within your hotel / accommodation.

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Thank you so much for reading. I hope this post has provided some helpful information about keeping holiday and travel documentation both organised and safe during your trip.

Keeping things together doesn't need to be complicated, but having a system in place can help reduce any anxiety surrounding keeping documents safe and just travelling in general. It is also helpful in reducing the risk of losing these important documents if you know exactly where they are and how to get hold of them quickly.

Like I mentioned earlier, having both physical and digital copies of documentation such as boarding passes, transfer information, accommodation confirmation, etc can be a good idea. Remember that some documents such as passports and GHIC cards (amongst others) do need to be carried in their physical format when flying and travelling abroad.

For help and support booking your holidays, check out the rest of my website to learn more or contact me directly at ellie.burnett@outlook.com. As an independent travel agent, I want to make the holiday booking process easy, seamless, and most importantly, enjoyable for you!