Traveling with Armor Today (Part 2)

(If you haven’t seen it yet, this series begins with Part 1 over here.)

Destination Travel

So now you’ve booked your flights and need to figure out where you’ll stay and how you’ll get there.

The simplest way is to meet up with a local who can take you and your gear where you need to go… but that just seems kind of imposing, so let’s talk about other options.

Next up is to travel in a group. This saves on car rental and AirBNB, but you’ll need ot factor how many people AND how much gear you need to move. Also group travel while easier to plan, is less flexible to changes. Besides that, I usually end up solo, so that’s where I’m going to focus.

Once you book your flights, you now have your window of travel. Double check when you arrive at the destination and book a car. If you KNOW your destination has amazeballs public transportation, you might skip getting your own car, BUT, remember you’ll also be carrying all your armor and weapons and other gear on that public transportation. I like to book a car rental.

In many countries a US drivers license is good enough as long as you also have insurance (sometimes) and are over the minimum age to rent a car in the destination. IMPORTANT: Most countries outside the US default to MANUAL transmission – Stick Shift. If you’re no good at driving stick, it is time to learn. Start NOW before you burn out a clutch on your rental. Most of the time you CAN get an automatic, but expect to pay a lot more for it.

Do you want to go green and rent an electric car? I don’t recommend it. I rented a Tesla in England last February and it was a total base model with nothing I was hoping to see in a Tesla: No navigation, no autopilot, nothing. Also, whatever the manufacturer says is the mileage out of a charge, divide it in half and pray. I got no instructions about charging and only learned later that the rental agency only had a contract with ONE charge provider. Needless to say, I was not pleased. Live and learn.

Where to rent? I am a firm believer of renting from a company with an IN-AIRPORT rental desk. Skip anything that says, “shuttle” in the location. You won’t want to wait around. I usually go for Budget as it has a decent reputation and low prices.

GET THE TOP END INSURANCE. You’re going to be driving in another country with different laws and customs. What’s the chance of making a mistake and ending up with a scratch or dent? Get the “No Fault” or “No Deductible” insurance. You’ll be glad you did when you scrape a curb or someone dings your fender.

Read all the instructions and agreements carefully. In many places, the dropoff is NOT always the pick-up. Make sure you know where to return your car.

Accommodations

OK, so you’ve booked your flights and car. Next up is where you’re going to stay. Are you mooching on someone’s couch? Awesome. Skip this part.

Are you camping at your destination? I did that in Scotland, where I rented a tent, sleeping bag, and ground mat. It was supposed to be awesome. The rental company bailed and the event had to buy new gear from the local sporting goods shop to rent out. Not good. If you’re traveling with camping gear, please let me know how you got it there with all your armor.

Next option is AirBNB (or something like it). Renting a place on AirBNB is easy and best of all cheap, but do read the fine print and make sure you stay in contact with your host. If anything sounds sketchy, stay somewhere else. Some hosts have been known to cancel last minute and leave their guests hanging. Look for comments about them doing this on the AirBNB website. In all, this is a very affordable option.

But you want amenities, you say? OK, then a hotel is what you need. Google Maps is where I start.

Just search for the area where you want to stay, click the “Hotels” button and look around. From there, you can see estimated rates from each hotel. Click on the entry and you can check availability and pricing for those dates from various options. Select the dates you’ll need a room, how many people, etc. You will get lower base rates from places like Booking.com and Kayak.com but if you are staying at a small, local place, I suggest booking your stay direct on their website. Sometimes confusion happens and details get lost from the big booking companies, but more importantly, this gives the hotel the bigger profit and thus, they are more likely to grant any requests without charging you an arm and a leg. I’ve often found you can get a free late checkout if you ask nicely at the front desk.

For my trip to Ireland this September, I booked a hotel diagonally across the street from the event site. It was only a little more expensive than the AirBNB I had been contemplating, which was also further away. Most importantly, I wanted access to the hot tub and the option to use their gym. I’m a hot tub kind of person. The price here was worth it.

Next up…. in part 3: Getting your paperwork in order.