Finally here! That 14 hour flight in those oh so comfortable seats didn’t seem all that long after all. Right! One of the necessary evils of travel is flying. Unless you tend to travel by freighter, flying is about the only other option you have to get outside the mother country. And what a pleasure it is. It starts right away with the boarding process that only confirms that you are not elite, you are with the rest of the herd. Haven’t traveled a million miles in the last year, who do you think you are? Get to the back with the others and wait, we’ll call you when you can board.
OK, little harsh but that’s the way we have come to accept air travel. God bless those who are elite, road warriors who travel for business and actually rack up those miles. I did it when I worked and believe me, I never looked back at those “others” waiting to board while I strolled into my comfy spot. The real story here is that most of us, including me now, don’t travel enough to make it to that elite rating. That’s both good and bad, the good is that we aren’t gone all the time, the bad – we have to wait to board the plane. So what, get on with it!
The situation is this, you’ve traveled for some period of time, probably more than just a couple of hours. You’ve now arrived at a foreign country and need to pleasantly and intelligently make your way through Customs and Immigration. You were given a form on the plane to complete BEFORE you get in line at Immigration. Hopefully you did that. You also need to be in the correct line, you are not a returning local or resident even though you have rented a home in this country. You are a foreigner, get in the appropriate line with the other 3-400 people. If you are a family, it is acceptable in most countries to approach the Immigration officer, when called, at the same time. Have all documents completed and your passports ready, they can get a bit irritated if you make them wait. Remember, they do this all day! It’s also a good thing to have a copy of your rental agreement (didn’t I tell you to make a copy, yes I did!) so you have the address of where you will be staying. Most times you will be asked to provide your residence while in their country. Don’t hand over a pile of documents to the agent, only the forms for entry and your passports. If asked, you will need to read the address to the agent, not expect him to look it up.
Wow, that was easy. Made it through with no issues and now we’re off. Nope, not yet. You now need to collect your bags and go through Customs. That form you completed and showed the Immigration agent now needs to be presented to the Customs agent. If you still have that watermelon in your suitcase, you may want to think about ditching it in the trash. These guys are not going to let you bring certain items into their country. Better check before packing to make sure you don’t mistakenly try to bring unprocessed beef into England. By the way, the same holds true for when you return so make yourself aware of what the United States will and will not allow. I know they don’t allow reindeer jerky and will search all your belongings if you have some. Here is a link that has restricted items for when you return to the US: http://www.cbp.gov/travel/international-visitors/kbyg/prohibited-and-restricted-items.
Cleared Customs and Immigration now what? If you’re staying in town, close to where you arrived, you could take a taxi. Or you could do what we do and arrange for a tour operator to pick you up and take you to your hotel or wherever you are staying. We use tour operators for a couple of reasons. First, they cost the same or sometimes less than a taxi; second, they tend to take you where you need to go without any issue, like a running meter or excessive charges and third, they want more of your business so they are usually on time, pleasant and informative about your new surroundings. We recently returned from a trip to Panama where we hired “Tony”, the owner of TRT Tours, to pick us up at the airport and take us to our hotel. We arrived in the evening after an all day journey and didn’t want to drive. Tony was there waiting for us as we cleared Customs, drove us to our hotel while giving a brief description of the city, and charged us the same as a taxi. To be fair, we hired TRT for several trips. We needed a ride to go to Panama City’s other airport the next morning, someone to pick us up when we returned to Panama City and then take us on a tour that included Colon, the Panama Canal and Panama City, so Tony had a lot at stake. Even so, a tour company can at times be a better choice than a taxi, check into it before you go.
Arrival Tips:
1. Pack smartly. If you insist on bringing valuables, carry them with you. Also in your carry-on, electronics, charger cables, cameras, tables, etc. Do not put these in checked baggage unless you really don’t need or want them.
2. Waiting to board your flight, take a deep breath and remember you have a seat, relax. If you’re in economy think of the money you saved that will go toward an adventure. If you’re stressed chances are everyone around you is going to get stressed, not what you want.
3. Check what you are not allowed to bring into the country and don’t bring it. Nuff said.
4. Check tour operators for transportation, the cost can be less than a taxi and usually more room.
5. I know you only have a certain number of days to see all of Europe but if possible make day 1 of your trip a day to relax. Everyone is just as anxious as you to get started but they are also just as edgy as you. Relax for a day, take the morning to talk through your plans for the rest of the trip. In the afternoon, stroll down to the local coffee shop or pub and enjoy a beverage. Those ruins have been there for 2000 years, they’ll be there tomorrow!
6. When returning to the US, make sure you’re not bringing items on the restricted list, such as reindeer jerky. Visit the website provided above for the listing.
7. Relax, you’re here and just about to start an amazing adventure. Smile and be pleasant.