Holiday checklist
Holidays are supposed to be relaxing, but finding, booking and preparing for one can leave you drained and frazzled. Here’s a useful checklist which should stop you waking in the middle of the night in a cold sweat as you try to remember what you’ve forgotten.
Well before you go…
Check whether you need vaccinations and get them done.
Check your passport is up-to-date.
Get any necessary visas.
Arrange travel insurance.
Get your E111 health card, if travelling in the EU. (Forms available from the Post Office.)
Soon before you go…
Confirm your flight reservation at the notified time.
Photocopy important documents and pack them separately from the originals.
Remember credit cards and currency.
Check with the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) for last-minute travel advice.
Home security…
Tell a trusted neighbour where you are going. Give them contact details and a set of keys.
Set lights and radios on time switches, so that the house looks inhabited (but warn your neighbour!)
Leave contact details also with a family member.
Empty the fridge, breadbin and fruitbowl.
If you are leaving your car behind and it is alarmed, leave the keys with a neighbour.
Unplug electrical appliances, except fridge and freezer.
Check you have locked all doors and windows.
Cancel the milk and the papers.