After spending four years on the road, we found three key things that greatly enhanced our travel experience and helped us stay sane while traveling for long periods of time. Here are our tips:

1. Exercise. Exercise is key to minimizing jet lag, recharging after touring for long hours, and recovering from an evening out. We bring clothing for working out(mainly running and yoga), a yoga mat and a few exercise videos, which we stored on our laptop (an iPhone is also pretty handy for watching pre-loaded videos if you are looking for an even lighter weight travel profile). The yoga mat, although heavy, often doubles as packing materials for treasures that we would pick up along the way! Continue reading

Recently we had the opportunity to chat with Dr. Jessie Voigts at Wandering Educators about our guides, their inspiration and creating meaningful travel experiences.

We were so flattered when Jessie wrote, “Perfect for the thinking traveler, Approach Guides are one of the best travel guides I’ve ever found.“

Visit WanderingEducators.com to read the interview and learn more about Approach Guides. Jessie will also be reviewing several of our travel guides on the site over the next month. While you are on the site, take some time to browse through their immense library of articles. Wandering Educators is a wonderful resource for travelers who want to explore new cultures and discover extraordinary destinations, fascinating people, and global artists, photographers and experts.

While traveling, we did our best to research local travel agents, operators, guides and drivers to put our money directly into the local economy.

Although they sometimes lack the polish (and convenience) of home-country tour operators, there are some tremendous benefits of using in-country travel providers to book your next travel experience.

• It is often a better experience for you, the independent traveler. In-country providers know your destination like only locals can and will make recommendations for more authentic experiences; further, they can often provide services at more attractive price levels.

• Your travel dollars have full impact on the local economy. If you book directly with a local provider, all of your travel dollars go into the local economy, rather than splitting the funds with tour operators in another country.

David, Jennifer and our driver, Ram - Holi Festival in India

Given our experience with using local tour operators, guides, and drivers, we have historically run into two problems (both of which we are trying to remedy with our newly-launched service):

• It is difficult and time-consuming to find and contact local travel providers, many of whom lack an internet presence.

AG Solution: Approach Guides now offers a list of in-country providers recommended by other travelers (many of who whom will serve as contactable references).

• It is difficult to be sure that the services you will receive will meet your high expectations.

AG Solution: Approach Guides screens all recommendations to assure that we only list authentic recommendations from real travelers.

Have you had a great tour operator, guide, or driver while traveling abroad?  Let other travelers share the same experience!

• Leave a recommendation. If you have had a guide, outfitter or driver that has performed well for you during your travels, submit his or her contact information and Approach Guides will post it on the “Local Operators” page of the Approach Guides website, along with your information.

Recommend a local tour operator, guide, or driver

Approach Guides has just launched this free and totally independent resource for the best local, in-country tour operator, guide, and driver recommendations.

• Find a reliable in-country tour operator, guide or driver.  If you are looking for an local, in-country outfitter or guide, simply peruse the listings and rest assured that you are being provided with an unbiased listing of providers, recommended by other travelers.

Review a listing of recommended local, in-country tour operators, guides and drivers

While traveling, we did our best to research local travel agents, operators, guides and drivers to put our money directly into the local economy.

Although they sometimes lack the polish (and convenience) of home-country tour operators, there are some tremendous benefits of using in-country travel providers to book your next travel experience.

• It is often a better experience for you, the independent traveler. In-country providers know your destination like only locals can and will make recommendations for more authentic experiences; further, they can often provide services at more attractive price levels.

• Your travel dollars have full impact on the local economy. If you book directly with a local provider, all of your travel dollars go into the local economy, rather than splitting the funds with tour operators in another country.

David, Jennifer and our driver, Ram - Holi Festival in India

Given our experience with using local tour operators, guides, and drivers, we have historically run into two problems (both of which we are trying to remedy with our newly-launched service):

• It is difficult and time-consuming to find and contact local travel providers, many of whom lack an internet presence.

AG Solution: Approach Guides now offers a list of in-country providers recommended by other travelers (many of who whom will serve as contactable references).

• It is difficult to be sure that the services you will receive will meet your high expectations.

AG Solution: Approach Guides screens all recommendations to assure that we only list authentic recommendations from real travelers.

Have you had a great tour operator, guide, or driver while traveling abroad?  Let other travelers share the same experience!

• Leave a recommendation. If you have had a guide, outfitter or driver that has performed well for you during your travels, submit his or her contact information and Approach Guides will post it on the “Local Operators” page of the Approach Guides website, along with your information.

Recommend a local tour operator, guide, or driver

Approach Guides has just launched this free and totally independent resource for the best local, in-country tour operator, guide, and driver recommendations.

• Find a reliable in-country tour operator, guide or driver.  If you are looking for an local, in-country outfitter or guide, simply peruse the listings and rest assured that you are being provided with an unbiased listing of providers, recommended by other travelers.

Review a listing of recommended local, in-country tour operators, guides and drivers

So you are finally taking that trip you have always dreamed of and have double-checked that your suitcases contain the absolute necessary items: passport, camera, credit cards and, of course, a bathing suit. But you may be missing some things that will make a big difference in your trip whether you are going to be dining in Italy, traveling throughout South India or walking through the dusty streets of Cairo.

Here is our list of game-changing travel accessories; we wouldn’t dream of leaving any one of these items at home.

1. Identification. It is always a good idea to have some sort of ID while traveling. We relied on the FIXX ID by RoadID (http://roadid.com) and included our names, our partner’s email and mobile, a contact back home and blood type.
2. Quick-Dry Clothes. Although there are tons of brands available, Jennifer fell in love with Be Present’s Agility Pant (http://bepresent.com). The pants are made of a super quick-dry fabric and are just long enough to pass the typical requirements of any temple/mosque/church that might be on your itinerary.
3. Laundry. For the times that you have to wash your clothes in the sink, we recommend the following: clothesline, dry sack (this was our favorite bag for carrying clothes that didn’t have enough time to dry), laundry detergent, and a flat rubber sink stopper.
4. MOSQUITO NET! We have the four point type (one over each corner of the bed) type rather than the single, middle of the bed suspension. We bought a super long, thin bungee cord that we cut into four pieces (attaching one piece to each corner) and use that to suspend the mosquito net from anything in the room. The mosquito net allowed us to keep our doors and windows open yet be free from bites!
5. Insect Repellent. Off Deep Woods Bug Spray works like nothing else you will find sold outside the US.  Although Deet isn’t great…it might be better than malaria.