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- Get a big wallet that takes passport, tickets and receipts all together in one place. -- David Supple, head of IT and creative services, Ecotec
- Buy a light travel bag that holds a change of clothes, laptop, charger, phone, pen, paper and has a handle, shoulder and backpack straps. -- Rob Bamforth, analyst, Quocirca
- Take your own Ethernet cable with you - plenty of hotels now have ports for broadband but either run out of cables or other guests have broken them. -- Tony Hallett, editor, silicon.com
- Carry a couple of USB memory sticks because half the time you won't be able to connect your laptop to whatever projection system you're using and the only way to show off that vital presentation will be to stick the USB stick into the system's USB port. --
- Pack paper and pen - they have a longer battery life than your laptop and are more multi-functional. -- Rob Bamforth, analyst, Quocirca
- Always carry some cash - sterling or US dollars. -- Chris Broad, head of IS and technology, UK Atomic Energy Authority
- Don't carry more than you need (spares, extra clothes etc), buy replacement/extra items at an airport. -- Bob Tarzey, analyst, Quocirca
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- Avoid going to the loo before passport control when arriving by plane - there's almost always a worse queue when you get out and you might as well go whilst waiting for your luggage (if you've decided not to travel with hand luggage only, which is always a quicker option). -- Elaine Axby, analyst, Quocirca
- In strange cities, if you can find out how best to get from the airport to your destination before you leave and the rough cost and time, everything will run a lot more smoothly. -- Simon Briskman, lawyer, Field Fisher Waterhouse
- The best translation book I ever bought is called Point It - no words only pictures to point at, works great in places with non-Latin alphabet and is standard issue to UN peacekeepers. And there is only one phrase you need to learn in any language - 'receipt please'! -- David Supple, head of IT and creative services, Ecotec
- Two consecutive nights in the same hotel is a chance to get some laundry done - so less clothes you need to pack in the first place. -- Bob Tarzey, analyst, Quocirca
- Never be the last or first to leave an evening gathering in a hotel bar. -- Rob Bamforth, analyst, Quocirca
- If your company isn't on a good roaming deal or even an automatic partner network deal, before you visit a country do some homework on roaming fees relative to each mobile network in that country. Some can be a lot more expensive than others and at the other end you can choose the cheaper network manually. -- Tony Hallett, editor, silicon.com
- If you aren't yet a Skype subscriber then think about becoming one. In some countries, using VoIP in the hotel lobby or a wi-fi zone can save you a small fortune in mobile phone roaming charges. Don't forget to pack your headset. -- Simon Moores, columnist, silicon.com
- Pinch a few little pots of shampoo from a hotel and next time you are at home fill them with your own preferred shampoo etc. -- Bob Tarzey, analyst, Quocirca
- When returning from a transatlantic journey, have a short sleep on the flight but stay awake until your usual bedtime. I find this helps reduce jet lag. -- Phil Young, head of IT operations, Amtrak Express Parcels
- The most effective way to avoid travel problems is to stay at home. Is your trip really necessary? One sets out optimistically but only rarely does the journey fail to disappoint. Most travel is damaging to the environment. Go for a walk or a bike ride instead. -- Martin Brampton, columnist, silicon.com
- I usually carry a variety of metal things in my jacket pockets - pens, keys, coins, phone, memory stick, spectacles/cases, calculator (in wallet), business card case, etc - and I have found that, when going through airport security, it is easier and much quicker for me to take my jacket off and put in on the conveyor belt of the X-ray machine, than it is for me to try and remember to take everything out of all the jacket pockets into a silly little plastic tray, and then put them all back again. -- Ted Woodhouse, director of IT strategy, Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust
- Stay healthy. Would you really eat peanuts and crisps, drink wine, have chocolate and drink coffee all day at the office? OK - so maybe you would. But on a plane, you need to keep hydrated to avoid getting tired. Take water and perhaps some fruit - and avoid coffee and alcohol. -- Simon Briskman, lawyer, Field Fisher Waterhouse
- Take your own bottle of water on the plane. Even in business class they never come round with the drinks enough and it's too easy to get dehydrated. -- Steve Ranger, business editor, silicon.com
- Always eat before - and not during - a long-haul flight. -- Andy McCue, chief reporter, silicon.com
- If you travel a lot on the same route, you begin to realise the food rotates around a limited menu. Pretending to be a vegan or having other dietary requirements from time to time gives you a bit of variety. -- Elaine Axby, analyst, Quocirca
- Move to the destination time zone as soon as you take off. Once there, live to that time zone immediately - even if this means going to sleep three hours sooner or later than you want to. -- Steve Ritchie, CIO, Investcorp
- I find that a pair of Bose Quietcomfort headphones and two little bottles of red wine usually do the trick for long flights! -- Dr Ben Booth, global chief security officer & European chief technology officer, Ipsos
- Try to avoid working when you are travelling - the whole experience is bad enough without adding to the stress by having to complete your presentation before you land. Use the time to catch up on leisure reading and movies. -- Elaine Axby, analyst, Quocirca
- Transiting four or five time zones in quick succession can be really confusing. To avoid expensive mistakes I wear two wristwatches - one is set to UK time and one to local time. This not only helps me manage my body clock, it avoids common mode failures of a single battery watch! -- Peter Cochrane, blogger and tech nomad, silicon.com
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