Google Docs of trips locations are HERE [Asheville, St. Augustine, Savannah, Phoenix/Sedona, Italy, NE (Acadia), Australia/NZ], including this one on UK 2019

TOUR COMPANIES TO CONSIDER FOR INTERNATIONAL TRAVEL

• Trafalgar – Wests
• Insights – Wests
• Gate One (similar to smarTours)
• OAT / Grand Circle – Jim A., Mom & Dad
• Collette
• smarTours (maybe, though may wait for validation from others?)
• Intrepid

CINCINNATI – thanks to Wests and Rosses for reco!

• The Bicentennial Guide to Greater Cincinnati
• Walking Cincinnati – Danny Korman and Katie Meyer

OHIO materials for travel, additionally encouraged by southcentral-Ohio trip in 2022-07

• Ohio Marker database (search for markers by county if you wish)
• Ohio History Connection
• Fayette County driving tour (includes Washington Court House courthouse with murals and 1894 riot!)
• Fort Ancient visit soon (7/4 email for more details!) –
  • Truda tips: “Drive through the property, park in the last parking lot and take a short walk to the North Overlook. If you have even more time, consider hiking the ½ mile Eagle Trail. You can pick it up at the North Overlook. Be sure to wear hiking boots and long pants—it can get a little muddy and the elevation changes make it a bit strenuous. The Eagle Trail connects to the Earthworks Trail, which provides a wonderful view of some of the mounds on the south side of the site and brings you back to the parking lot at the North Overlook. If you want have the full experience, I would plan to be at Fort Ancient for 3-4 hours”
  • 2 PM ranger talk
  • Village Ice Cream Parlor afterwards?

TRAVEL TIPS (from various sources)

• Smartphone apps
  • Maps.me (for specific areas – uses GPS, not wireless data)
  • Language app when English is not the standard for the countries visited
• Purchases to consider for lengthy airline travel include:
  • Thermarest Lumbar Pillow
  • Thermarest Travel Cushion
  • Compression socks (Kroger or online)
    • Putting on compression socks video HERE
  • Noise canceling headphones – Bose or ???
• Safely carrying documents, cash, etc.  Consider acquiring something like this neck pouch
• International trips
  • Do extra digging to assure you need malaria medication (CDC and other sites sometimes suggest this without consideration for season you’re traveling – malaria medication recommended for Myanmar and South Africa trips and not a mosquito was to be seen at the time of year we were traveling)
  • Get the travel insurance – it may seem expensive but certainly is worth it for times when sickness or other unforeseen issues come along
  • Consider asking your doctor for antibiotic prescription (Z-Pak) just in case you get something bacterial…
• For Domestic flights – check prices on Tuesday afternoons; cheapest days to fly are Tuesday, Wednesday and Saturday (12/2016 article);
• River Cruises in Europe
  • Which River to Cruise? See more HERE
  • Which Cruise Line to Take? See more HERE (though dated info from 2016, 2019 references) and HERE
    • Avalon (Janice & Kevin in 2024)
      • Budapest to Amsterdam is HERE
    • Viking (Chris & Lori in 2024, numerous others; some issues too per JC)
      • Grand European Tour is HERE
    • AMA Waterways (Linda/Alan from Asheville Food Tour)
    • Scenic (Australians use this one a lot – maybe get some good cultural input?)
      • Scenic’s “Jewels of Europe” itinerary is HERE
      • They claim ultra-luxury, so perhaps a little too exclusive?