Vacation Do Over!

I’ve been getting a lot of feedback reminding people to be proud of our Trinbagonian treasures. And people have been asking where else worldwide are great places to visit.

Many people are unaware of the many locations you can visit with your updated, valid T&T passport. There are over 104 countries you don’t need a Visa to visit.

It’s time for a Vacation Do Over. We’re so accustom to travelling to the United States, but the world is far bigger than the “States”. Here’s an updated list of locations that’s just a plane ride away:

Anguilla Antigua and Barbuda Argentina Aruba Austria Bahamas Barbados Belize Bermuda Botswana Brazil British Virgin Islands Cayman Islands Chile Colombia Costa Rica Croatia Czech Republic Denmark Dominica Dominican Republic Ecuador El Salvador Estonia

Fiji Finland France French Guiana Gambia Ghana Gibraltar Germany Greece Grenada Guadeloupe Guatemala Guyana Haiti Honduras Hong Kong Hungary Iceland Ireland Israel Jamaica Kenya Kiribati Kosovo Lesotho Liechtenstein (see Switzerland)

Italy Latvia Lithuania Luxembourg Malawi Malaysia Malta Martinique Mauritius Mexico Micronesia Montserrat Netherlands Netherlands Antilles Nicaragua Niue (South Pacific island) Norway Pakistan Palau (Micronesian islands) Panama Peru Phillipines Pitcairn Island Poland Portugal

Reunion (Indian Ocean) Slovakia Slovenia Spain St Helena St Kitts & Nevis St Lucia St Martin St Vincent & the Grenadines Samoa Seychelles Singapore Solomon Islands South Africa South Korea Suriname Swaziland Sweden Switzerland Tanzania Turkey Tuvalu United Kingdom Uruguay Vanuatu Venezuela Zambia Zimbabwe

But you’re asking yourself: How am I going to afford this? Here are some tips from travelling gurus from around the world:

Look out for free flights

There are so many ways to earn free flights, sign up for a few travel credit cards, collect miles, and then fly for free. Most cards offer sign-up bonuses of 50,000 points, collect miles and hotel points through credit card rewards, online bonuses, category bonuses, surveys, and special offers. Here are some ways you can use:

Austria, no Visa necessary with a T&T valid passport.

Source those great deals

Sign up for all the airline mailing lists. The special bonus offers airlines have on cars, restaurants, and hotels.

Croatia, no Visa necessary with a T&T valid passport.

Shop online at their member stores

All airlines have special offers with all the big stores: Amazon, Apple, Best Buy, Target, etc. Shopping at those preferred stores will earn you 2–4 miles per dollar spent, sometimes even more. If you spend $1,000 a month, you can earn up to 3,000 miles just by going through their websites.

Hong Kong, no Visa necessary with a T&T valid passport.

Credit card is king

Put everything on your card, from bills to groceries. That’s more miles for in your mileage account.

Mexico, no Visa necessary with a T&T valid passport.

Live local

Bypass the traditional travel industry with sharing economy websites and gain access to locals using their own assets and skills to become small tourism companies with cheaper prices. Locals know where to find deals. They know which supermarket is cheapest, which stores offer the best sales, and where to find the best restaurants and bars with the tastiest food at the lowest prices. The top websites include:

• Airbnb (accommodation)
• Vayable (tours)
• BlaBlaCar (ridesharing)
• EatWith (meals)

So, make that decision to see the world with this vacation do over! Share your travelling experiences and let me know where is the next location you will be visiting.