Why You Should Always Bring 2 Phones on Vacations, and Other Travel Hacks

Why You Should Always Bring 2 Phones on Vacations, and Other Travel Hacks
Instead of discarding your old phones, keep them for extras while you travel. Then you're covered for accidental loss, theft, or breakage of your main phone. Dreamstime/TNS
Tribune News Service
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By Mark Ellwood From Bloomberg News

One time in Paris, I lost my phone and I had to spend $2,000 for a new iPhone. I’ve also had a phone stolen on the beach in Rio — a whole team of kids that came and stole my phone right out of my hand — and one that submerged into the Aegean. And one was flung off the back of a horse on the beach in Careyes. We had to turn the horse around and tried to go find it but, nope, couldn’t find it. So now I never discard my old iPhones.

You can also buy a reconditioned one online. They come in handy, because whenever I’m packing for a trip, I always throw one in my bag. I bring a spare one and an extra SIM wherever I go. The cards cost about $10. You can call your carrier and tell them to switch your number to that SIM and use it in the old iPhone.

How to Beat Jet Lag When Flying a Long-Haul Flight

I don’t sleep well on planes. Most flights to Europe end up being too short for a proper rest, and I’ve never loved the whole hit-the-ground-running approach. Instead, I book my hotel for the night before I land, and I take the earliest flight out. If you board the plane at 4 p.m. from New York, you land at the equivalent of 11 p.m. ET, and by the time you get to your hotel you’re tired, like a normal night.

And yes, you lose half the day to sleep when you get to your hotel. But it’s better than roaming around a zombie in Paris for half a day trying to pretend that you’re normal. It eliminates the dread of waiting for your room to be ready, and by the time it’s dark out your jet lag kicks in and you’re tired again anyway. The Hoxton Hotels let you check in whenever you want.