Here are some websites that we have found useful throughout our travels. Some of them are government pages that are important for dealing with the bureaucracy of travel. Others are companies that provide services that make travel easier. Some - but not all - of the items in this list are affiliate links. That means if you click on one and wind up spending money, we’ll earn a small commission at not extra cost to you. These commissions help support our travels and this website. If you’d like to learn more about our efforts to monetize this travel blog, you might enjoy our monthly report, Operation Digital Nomad.
Government Resources
U.S.Department of State: Do you need a visa? What vaccines should you get? Is your destination a war zone? This is a good place to get all kinds of useful information. They tend to err on the side of caution in their recommendations, but it’s a good jumping off point when you are starting your research for your your next trip.
United States Embassies and Consulates: If you need help overseas, you might need to find a U.S. consulate. This website will tell you where they can be found, how they can be contacted, and what kinds of services they provide. Bookmark this one in case of emergencies.
Transportation
Google Maps: The best and most interactive maps in the world. Why use anything else when planning your trip and getting around a foreign city.
Kayak.com: We used this website a lot while we were traveling in North America and Europe. It does a good job at finding flights and comparing prices. You can also choose how flexible you want to be with your travel dates and times, and set up price alerts for destinations you’d like to visit.
Ctrip: Ctrip is like Kayak but for China. Other websites work in China, but this one tends to have better prices. The downside is that some of the transportation and lodging it recommends are Chinese language only.
Lodging
Airbnb: Airbnb is our overall favorite site for finding a place to stay. Because we prefer slow travel to a rushed vacation, using this site to find a home to live in instead of a hotel room is the most comfortable and often least expensive way to travel. If you sign up for an account using the link provided, you will save $40 on your first booking!
Booking.com: When we are only staying for a short while, when we can’t find an Airbnb that we like, or when we are making last minute bookings, this is a good option. Since we’ve arrived in China, we’ve found this site to be especially useful since hotels are required to mention whether they are legally allowed to host foreigners.
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