Travel Resources

photo: angkor wat, cambodia

Below is a collection of all my favourite websites and resources that I use while on the road. I’d recommend bookmarking this page and checking back before you travel for an up-to-date list of resources that could be helpful. Click on the links below to jump to the section of your choice.

Flights | Accommodation | Travel insurance | Travel Banking | Travel Planning | Blogging | Miscellaneous

Note: Some of the links on this page are affiliate links. This means if you use them and make a booking or purchase, I will earn a small commission. It does not cost you anything extra to use these links. The resources below are listed because I truly believe they are the best available and I personally use and vouch for every one of them. If you do end up using them, thank you! Your support goes a very long way towards keeping this site up and running and letting me do what I do. There are also a few discounts and freebies listed below, so do check them out!

FLIGHTS

Skyscanner

Always my first port of call. Has many useful search options and a great tool for helping you get the cheapest possible flight. Check out my blog post on finding cheap flights for a breakdown of how to use Skyscanner for best results.


Kiwi.com

Kiwi.com is slightly different to Skyscanner and will pick up a few transit options that other engines miss. They also have a transfer guarantee, meaning they cover your replacement flight if you ever miss a transfer because of delay or disruption. Really good and between this and Skyscanner I rarely use any other booking agent.


Accommodation

Booking.com

Booking.com has improved a lot in recent years with a larger worldwide selection and better prices. Often has free cancellation which is a big bonus, and you pay no deposit on your bookings, and now includes most budget accommodations and hostels too. Usually the first place I look.


Airbnb

Airbnb allows you to find short-term private rooms and apartments for rent. This adds a more local flavour and a higher level of privacy to your travels. You can usually negotiate discounts for week-long or month-long stays. I use it often! If you’re new to Airbnb you can get $20 off your first stay by using my referral link.


Travel Insurance

World Nomads

I always recommend buying travel insurance any time you travel. World Nomads is the current provider I use.

For more information on travel insurance and why you need it, check out my guide Travel Insurance 101: Everything You Need To Know.

World Nomads provides travel insurance for travelers in over 100 countries. As an affiliate, we receive a fee when you get a quote from World Nomads using this link. We do not represent World Nomads. This is information only and not a recommendation to buy travel insurance.


Travel Banking

Wise Card

The Wise Card is the best card for travelling, hands down. It is easily superior to a Travelex, OneCard or any other travel card available in New Zealand. Load your card with NZD and it will auto-convert to foreign currency whenever you use it overseas (at great rates!). Also has tons of other features that make it better than an actual bank account! Essential for every traveler. Get yours here.


Travel Planning


Rome2Rio

If you’re looking for the fastest way to get from point A to B, simply put the locations into Rome2Rio’s system and it’ll spit out all your options. Covers air, bus, train and boat. It is not 100% comprehensive but will likely uncover options you weren’t aware of. Very useful planning tool to have. I use it often.


Omio

If you’re travelling around Europe this is a must-have app on your phone. It will give you all the plane, train and bus options between two points, allow you to sort them all from lowest to highest price, and even allow you to book within the app. Saves hours of planning time, and it’s free!


Airfare Watchdog

Airfare Watchdog is a flight deals website that alerts you whenever cheap fares come up. The fares can go quick so it’s important to grab them whenever available. The most effective way to stay up to date is to subscribe to their newsletter (free).


Nomad List

Nomadlist is a resource that breaks down the cost of living in major cities around the world. Estimates are given on food, housing, internet, transport etc. Great budgeting tool for longer-term travellers and location independents. Also has a premium membership to network with other nomads.


Blogging

Dreamhost

Dreamhost is where I currently host my sites. Choosing a web host can be a crapshoot, but after using over 10 different hosts, Dreamhost really has been the perfect balance between great service at an unbeatable price.

There starter plan is only $2.50 per month and comes with a free domain, one-click WordPress install and very competent support to help you get up and running quickly. I highly recommend Dreamhost for first time site owners.

If you’re interested in getting started and need more information, I have a free step-by-step tutorial on starting your own blog. Click here to check it out.


Mailerlite

Mailerlite is my email service of choice. It’s free up to 1,000 subscribers which makes it ideal for newbie bloggers, and when the time comes, their pricing plans are the lowest in the business. They also have a very simple and easy to use interface, which makes it the perfect plan for getting started on. If you’re looking for an affordable email service, this one comes highly recommended.


Thrive Theme Builder

This site was designed by me using Thrive Theme Builder. It’s a web design tool that lets you design your own website, without any coding or programming. Just drag and drop, click and slide. Highly recommended!


Picmonkey

I use Picmonkey to create all the cover graphics for my blog posts and various other graphics around my site and social media channels. It’s all web based so you don’t need to download any software and can use it anywhere. Perfect for people like me who are hopeless with fancy design software.


Smugmug

Smugmug is the photo hosting service I use. It’s great for storage and creating albums to share, and also has a platform for selling and licensing your photos if you’re an aspiring photographer. I use it primarily for storing photos for the blog, which keeps my bandwidth down and improves load times. If you’re interested in an account you can get 20% off your subscription with this link


Sendowl

I use Sendowl for managing sales and affiliates of my premium guide Triple Your Travel. It makes the entire sales process super easy for the buyer, has a nice slick design and integrates with both Paypal and Stripe. There are more popular services out there but in my opinion Sendowl is the most complete option and is competitively priced. Highly recommended for anyone selling products online.


Dropbox

I use Dropbox to backup my documents and blog online. It works like an extra hard drive for your computer, only it’s stored online so you can access it anywhere. It’s fast, super easy to integrate, and free! I’d recommend signing up for your account now, as the free account has gotten smaller in the past and will probably get downsized again in future.


Private Internet Access

This is the VPN I currently use – a service that keeps my internet connection secure when using different wifi connections around the world. It is the best value service I’ve found and a standard subscription allows you to use it on up to 5 devices at once. Connectivity options and speed are both great and the price is very reasonable (around $40 per year). You can check out my post on internet security while travelling for more information about VPNs and why they’re important for keeping your data safe. I highly recommend using one while travelling.

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