Trips & packing
Your first international trip: what to check and pack
Prepare for your first trip abroad. Check documents and entry requirements, organise insurance and bookings, and pack for arrival.
The checklist
- Destination-compatible plug adapter
- Power bank if needed
- Toiletry containers and a clear bag
+ 35 more explained items
Your first trip abroad starts with a route, travel dates and the documents you already hold. Write down every country you will enter or transit through, including the return journey. Check eligibility before committing to bookings that cannot be changed. A convenient connection is only useful if you can take it with your nationality, travel document and any required permission. This guide helps you organise those checks; it does not establish your right to enter a country.
Build the plan around getting from home to your accommodation and back. Record the actual arrival airport or station, local arrival date, check-in instructions and the final connection to your lodging. Leave room for waiting, finding the correct platform and collecting bags. The checklist works throughout the year; clothing and equipment depend on the forecast and itinerary.
Start by checking what you own and what your booking includes. Buy covers missing supplies, take covers belongings and documents, and do covers decisions and preparation. Cross out anything that does not apply. Keep boarding and arrival essentials together, and divide shared tasks when travelling with someone. Print the list or recreate it in Cartdock, then check each item when the preparation is actually complete.
Who this list is for
An adult travelling alone or with a partner on a first international leisure trip, staying in booked accommodation and using flights or other public transport.
Tips
Check documents for your exact route
Check the destination authority or embassy’s requirements for your nationality, document type, validity, issue date, visa or electronic authorisation, and supporting evidence. Repeat this for transit countries, even if staying inside an airport. Your Europe distinguishes citizenship and family status: residence does not establish nationality. Match names to bookings and check the carrier’s document requirements.
Make the arrival plan readable
Keep transport and accommodation confirmations with booking references and provider contacts. Read cancellation terms before paying and record change deadlines. Confirm the lodging address and late-arrival instructions. Find official airport or station transport information for your arrival time, then record an alternative if the service has finished or you miss a connection.
Choose insurance for the trip you will take
Check destinations, duration and activities against the policy. Read medical cover, emergency assistance, transport home, cancellation terms and exclusions; disclose requested information about existing conditions. Eligible travellers should take their EHIC for covered temporary stays, but it does not replace insurance or cover private care and repatriation. Save the policy and assistance number offline for yourself and your companion.
Check medicines before packing them
Ask a pharmacist or prescribing clinician about identifying your medicine and required documents. Check destination and transit rules for its active ingredient, quantity and controlled substances. UK guidance illustrates why a home prescription does not establish permission everywhere. Keep labels and paperwork accessible, follow product storage instructions and resolve permissions before travel. Do not change treatment based on this guide.
Prepare a payment backup that works separately
Ask your bank about overseas use, withdrawal limits, charges and reporting a lost card. Test app access and check authentication abroad. Keep a suitable backup payment method separately and plan access to funds during disruption. Another card stored only in the same lost phone is a weak backup. Keep bank contacts accessible without that device.
Make important information available without a signal
Confirm your provider’s destination coverage, roaming allowance and fair-use conditions. EU guidance distinguishes land networks from satellite services aboard ships or aircraft. For a travel SIM or eSIM, check device compatibility and activation before departure. Download maps, bookings and useful language information, then open them with mobile data disabled. Carry arrival and emergency contacts on paper.
Pack to the carrier’s rules
Check your fare’s baggage allowance for every leg: bag count, dimensions and weight can differ. Read departure and transit airports’ security rules for liquids and restricted items. IATA puts power banks and spare lithium batteries in cabin baggage, with spare batteries protected against short circuits; check carrier limits and use restrictions. Keep documents and valuables accessible if your bag goes into the hold.
The checklist
38 items, grouped like in the Cartdock app.
Print this page to tick items off on paper: the printout keeps only the checklist, with a box before every item.
Buy
Power and connectivity
- Destination-compatible plug adapter — Check socket type and your charger’s voltage compatibility; an adapter does not convert voltage.
- Power bank if needed — Choose a model permitted by your carrier and keep its rating readable.
Packing supplies
- Toiletry containers and a clear bag — Choose only after checking the security rules for your airports.
- Luggage identification tag — Use a contact method; place a second contact label inside the bag.
Personal care supplies
- Small first-aid supplies — Replace missing basic supplies you know how to use.
- Sun protection if needed — Choose for your planned outdoor time and follow product instructions.
Take along
Documents and access
- Required original travel document — Keep accessible and check its condition before leaving.
- Visa or electronic authorisation evidence — Take the evidence required for your nationality and route.
- Accommodation and transport confirmations — Save booking references and arrival instructions offline.
- Insurance policy and assistance contact — Carry an offline copy and a paper emergency contact.
- EHIC if eligible and applicable — Check validity and whether your destination is covered.
- Required medicine paperwork — Pack the prescription, letter or permission identified in your checks.
- Main and backup payment methods — Keep them separately and confirm overseas use with your provider.
Daily belongings
- Phone and compatible charging cable — Check the cable works with the charger and power bank.
- Usual medicines in labelled packaging — Follow verified transport permissions and product storage instructions.
- Weather-appropriate clothing — Plan outfits for the forecast and available laundry.
- Comfortable walking shoes — Use a pair already comfortable for your planned activities.
- Light outer layer — Choose for weather and indoor or transport conditions.
- Basic toiletries — Pack within the rules of each security checkpoint.
- Small day bag — Use it to keep documents and arrival essentials accessible.
- Spare underwear and a change of top — Keep accessible in case your main bag is delayed.
To do
Before committing to bookingsVerify the route
- Check destination and transit entry requirements — Use official authorities for your nationality, document and travel purpose.
- Check return-entry requirements — Confirm documents needed to return to where you live.
- Resolve document applications — Allow for the actual processing route before fixing non-changeable plans.
- Check health preparation and medicine permissions — Use official destination advice and a qualified professional for individual health questions.
- Check current travel advice and local laws — Read your government’s advice and relevant destination rules.
Once the route is feasibleConfirm bookings and cover
- Book transport and accommodation — Match traveller names to documents and read change conditions.
- Choose suitable travel insurance — Check cover, exclusions and the start of cancellation protection.
- Plan arrival and return transfers — Use official operators and check services for your travel dates.
- Confirm check-in and late-arrival arrangements — Save instructions, address and a direct provider contact.
Before leavingPrepare departure
- Check baggage and security rules — Measure and weigh bags against each carrier’s actual allowance.
- Set up roaming or a travel SIM — Confirm compatibility, coverage, activation and authentication access.
- Download and test offline information — Open maps, bookings and emergency details without mobile data.
- Complete check-in when available — Confirm departure terminal, booking status and document checks.
- Recheck travel and weather updates — Allow time for getting to the departure point and handling delays.
Before departure and when neededPrepare for disruption
- Save emergency and consular contacts — Use contacts for your nationality and the actual destination.
- Share a basic itinerary with a trusted contact — Agree how to communicate if your phone is unavailable.
- Identify alternatives for delays or lost belongings — Keep provider contacts, claim instructions and a backup transfer plan accessible.
Questions and answers
Does every international trip require a passport?
The required document depends on nationality, destination and route. Some travellers can use a national identity card for particular journeys; others need a passport and further permissions. Check the destination’s official entry guidance for your circumstances. A residence card or driving licence should not be assumed to replace the required travel document, and a saved copy does not replace an original.
Is a health insurance card enough?
For eligible travellers in covered countries, an EHIC provides access to necessary care within the public system under applicable conditions. It does not cover every expense, private healthcare or transport home. Check eligibility and validity, carry the card where relevant, and read a separate travel policy for the actual trip. Ask the insurer to clarify anything you cannot confidently match to your itinerary.
What if my checked bag does not arrive?
Report the missing bag at the baggage service desk before leaving the airport, as IATA advises. Keep the bag tag and obtain a report reference plus instructions for follow-up. Retain relevant receipts and check carrier and insurer claim conditions. Packing documents, valuables and essential arrival belongings in your cabin bag reduces the disruption, but does not guarantee that every item will be accepted in it.
What should I prepare if I lose my phone?
Keep the lodging address, transport references, insurer and bank contacts, and your nationality’s consular contact accessible elsewhere. Protect stored document copies and avoid sharing them publicly. Agree how a companion or trusted contact can help you reach important information. Test the backup before leaving; a document saved in an account that requires the missing phone for login may not be usable when needed.
Make your own list in Cartdock
Save your own copy with the exact items, measures and instructions. Changes stay in your copy.
Open this guide in CartdockInstall Cartdock, then return to this page and tap Open. The store does not automatically restore this guide.
Say or type one phrase, and Rinka suggests items by section. Rinka is an AI, not a person: a language model writes the answers. Rinka needs a connection and your consent to AI processing. Without an account you get fewer questions; the number of questions depends on your plan. You can also add and edit items yourself.
Share your list with a link and tick items off together. People without the app can open the list in a browser.