Paul Goodyer is the consummate adventure traveller. He has been travelling since the age of 17 and founded and ran Nomad Travel and Health since 1990. Nomad are the UK leaders in travel health and have 10 clinics nationwide as well as an online pharmacy.
Here he provides a few popular tips for travellers. Good advice for you to pass on to your clients before they travel or on arrival.
"For group travel, or for simply getting into a foreign culture, learn some games - they’re great as ice-breakers. Carry cards and a pack-away chess/draft/backgammon game; these are all played worldwide. Learning local games can also help - these can be quite surprising, for instance Ludo in Jamaica.
These days, hotels often ask us to re-use the towels to reduce the use of detergents. This can mean having to dry yourself with a wet towel so buy a swimming shammy and wipe down with this first. The shammy can also make for a useful non slip shower mat.
When setting out to explore in a strange city always look back when you change direction so as not to get lost. It always looks different when going in the opposite direction. And carry a notebook (or photograph the route on your phone) to note any land marks to help you plot your return.
To get a different perspective of a country pay a registered taxi driver to take you on a two to three day trip out into the country. It will be just as much an experience for the driver as it is for you. Just make sure their language and communications skills are good.
To avoid stomach problems always eat in busy places frequented by locals. The food will nearly always be hot and freshly prepared.
Carry wet wipes to wipe down your hands, cutlery and cups in countries where hygiene is an issue."
And a final word from Mark Wright:
Thanks Paul. And I always carry an international bath plugger. It's the most useful piece of kit I've ever bought!