Travel Lessons From Dan Philips

Britt Karlsson How has your job changed the way you travel? I started out just writing about wine, but now with the tours, it's a totally different activity. I spend all my time planning itineraries and making close contacts with the wine growers. How much do you plan your trips in advance? I book the hotels about seven or eight months in advance. That's the most critical thing. Sometimes you go to a town and there's only one hotel. What are some packing tips you've picked up? Don't pack too much. For a wine tour, you need to have comfortable shoes because you always walk in vineyards. You also stand a lot in cellars, which are cool, so you'll need a jacket. And you shouldn't wear white clothes. It's hopeless. Either wear nice-looking jeans and a blazer, or pants and a blazer. The French are very relaxed about their clothes, even in nicer restaurants. Ties are more rare than people think. How do you deal with jet lag? I usually sleep for a few hours on the plane. I am careful about when I schedule my flights. To go to South America, there's a flight from Paris at 11 p.m. If you can sleep for seven hours, you're fine when you get to your destination. How do you get your bearings when you arrive at a destination? Try to get hold of good maps. People love to look at maps, but they don't buy them. I always buy maps. Sometimes people are traveling by car and they don't even have maps. Never trust GPS. If the GPS breaks down, you're lost. I love a French brand called IGN, or Institut Geographique Nationale. Michelin maps are OK, too. And get a guidebook. You miss a lot of historical facts if you don't have one. How do you find non-touristy spots? If we meet local people—who are often involved in wine—we ask them. How do you approach local cuisine? I don't eat street food that often. I don't eat between meals, so when I eat, I sit. How much of your travel is for yourself? The only pleasure travel I have time for is to go to Sweden and see my family. If you have your own company, you're never really on vacation. How do you record and take notes on your trip? I have a favorite notebook in which I write everything about wine and food. It's a small, black Moleskine. I have it in front of me right now. How do you keep in touch with others while traveling? I use e-mail and telephone. My French cell phone works. It's a cell phone plan that allows you to go through Europe on a fixed rate. What sorts of tourist etiquette tips have you picked up? Be polite. Don't be too loud. Respect people. It's common sense. If you're on a wine tour, you should always learn how to spit. Spitting is polite. Read on to see Dan Philips's top tips >

Rick Steves How has your job changed the way you travel? I do what ever is necessary at whatever cost to maximize the value of my time, like hiring taxis and local guides. What's the one thing you won't leave home without? My laptop and Ambien. What do you wear on the plane? I wear a sweater and I bring my noise-reduction headphones. I'd rather fly coach with noise-reduction headphones than business class without them. How do you deal with jet lag? I leave home well rested and then use a quarter tab of Ambien when I wake too early, to finish the first night's sleep. What's the first thing you do to get your bearings when you first arrive somewhere? Read my guidebook chapter on the place. How do you find non-touristy spots? I love talking with locals about their favorites. How do you approach local cuisine? Places near markets, places without English menus, and places with fast turnover are good signs. Doner kebabs are my new fast, cheap, lunch option with a nice refreshing glass of ayran [a Turkish yogurt drink]. What sorts of things have you learned to do when traveling solo? I use my evenings to check restaurants, and eat a late dinner in my favorite restaurant find of the night. Then I go home and input into my laptop what I learned that day. How do you record and take notes on your trip while traveling? I love my Moleskine notebooks. Like a lint brush, I collect scraps of news, tips, and new ideas and then design them into existing or new chapters as I work on my laptop. How do you keep in touch with others while traveling? I deal with my e-mail nearly every night, but only once a day. I haven't sent a postcard for ages. What sorts of tourist etiquette tips have you picked up? I don't worry about what kind of flowers to bring and how to cross my legs. I am just genuinely respectful, curious, and positive with the people I encounter on the road. Read on to see Britt Karlsson's top tips >

Philippe de Vienne How has your job changed the way you travel? We've made friends with people [from?] all over the place, so now very often we stay with them. If we're going to a place where we don't know anyone, we usually reserve a hotel for the first two nights and then play it by ear. Through spices, people have a way of introducing themselves to you—you're at the market, and the next thing you know you're visiting the farm. How much do you plan your trips in advance? If we're heading to multiple countries in one trip, we plan the rough outline, such as we'll be reaching southern India at such a date and leaving at such a date, and book the airfare. That part gets very expensive if you go at the spur of the moment. But local plans are never set. You get a better price when you're on the ground. What are some packing tips you've picked up? I always take a first-aid kit and duct tape. It's amazing what you can do with duct tape—it's the stuff that holds the universe together. I've made a clothesline, fixed bathing suits, and even patched a ripped suitcase. But don't put it in your carry-on luggage, or else they'll likely take it away from you. And I pack a pocketknife—in my checked baggage. I bring a bottle of good Scotch for when I find myself in a lousy hotel. What do you wear on the plane? I wear clothing that's as loose as possible, especially when I'm on a 36-hour flight to Indonesia. I bring a toothbrush, and I bring an extra shirt and pair of socks to change into midway. After 24 hours, to change your underwear feels like a real luxury. How do you deal with jet lag? Sleep on the plane. The key is to get on the local schedule right away. Tough it up and drink a lot of coffee or tea and hang in there. Then, when it's nighttime there, pull out the Scotch, have a triple, and go to bed. What's the first thing you do when you arrive at a destination? Get to your hotel, adjust to the time zone, and then hit the market. The real news in the country is really the market. In North America, it's the mall. How do you approach local cuisine? If people can make a living on a street corner selling food for 20 cents for a day, it's got to be good. They've got to have hundreds of customers a day. How do you take notes on your trip? I carry a notepad in my pocket and a digital camera. My wife often carries a diary. What are some of the travel tips you've learned? Buy something that you may or may not need. When you buy from people, they're always more talkative. That three dollars you spend is your ticket to a 15-minute conversation about what there is to do. People just want to tell you about themselves and their country. Listen to them, and never ask a leading question. Take a taxi driver's name and number in case you need him the next day. What sorts of tourist etiquette tips have you picked up? Learn 30 basic words of any language. Hello, goodbye, thank you, please. You should know those words. All travel books have a do's and don'ts page. Read it! And learn how to say sorry. You're a foreigner. They'll forgive you. Read on to see Rick Steves's top tips >

Darrell Wade How has your job changed the way you travel? Sometimes I travel in the same way as I used to 25 or 30 years ago. And then again, on Sunday I went to Cambodia and Vietnam and stayed in five-star hotels. How much do you plan your trips in advance? I plan less in advance now. I'll quite often not know I have a trip, and there'll only be a week to plan. Flights and the first night's accommodation come first. After that, I can generally work it out. What are some packing tips you've picked up? I rarely pack more than three hours before. I always pack very light. Nine times out of 10 I have no luggage underneath the plane. I often take running gear—a pair of runners [running shoes] and shorts. I never take formal gear, even on a business trip. People overpack, particularly when heading to developing nations. People bring four pairs of shoes. Why? What do you wear on the plane? I wear the same thing whether I'm in economy, business, or first class: jeans, a pair of runners, and a T-shirt. Twenty years ago, you perhaps got treated differently if you didn't dress up, but these days, definitely not. How do you deal with jet lag? I try to exercise before and after a flight. Even if it's an early flight I'll try to get a run in before and after. If it's sunny when you get off at the other end you're lucky, because sunshine is good for jet lag. Generally speaking, going from west to east is a lot worse than the reverse because the sun is going against you, and the time shift is more dramatic. That's when I take sleeping pills. How do you get your bearings when you arrive at a destination? I go out walking for an hour or so. I usually have a map, but often don't use it. I always take a business card from the hotel with its address in the local language and writing, so I can hail a taxi and get back to where I started. How do you approach local cuisine? You don't necessarily know with street food. Invariably it's cheap. If you try it and you don't like it, you subtly throw it away. It won't cost you anything. I'll try it if it's popular with the locals. How do you keep in touch with others while traveling? Mobile phones. They work virtually everywhere now. What sorts of tourist etiquette tips have you picked up? As a guy in India, you might want to wear shorts when it's hot, but I won't wear them. I'll wear pants to be polite. In Thailand you need to be very, very careful with how you use your feet—particularly in relation to the king. Someone dropped some coins on a tour once, and they were rolling away, so someone stomped one to stop it. The face of the king was on the coin, so he was, in a sense, stomping on that. And that was not good. Fortunately, I don't think there were any locals around, but the Thai tour leader explained the offense. Read on to see Philippe de Vienne's top tips >