Travel is one of my passions and travelling as a human pup can certainly present a few interesting situations. For this reason I wanted to share a few tips and tricks that Pup Boss and I picked up on our most recent travels to Europe and Asia.
Packing!
Travelling with gear can be tricky. It's a balance between packing your favourite kink clothing and the dreaded weight limits of local and international airlines.
One tip I recommend is if you're attending an event, think about what you want to wear for each day of the event, then half it!
Mix and match is the key to winning the kinky luggage challenge!
Remember your leather shirt can go with jeans as well as leather pants. With the right jeans you can go from day wear to restaurant smart casual! Think, "what will go with what?"
Airline Weight Limits
Most airlines are very strict with luggage limits. The first key is to know exactly how much you are allowed to bring!
First check your ticket to see how many bags and how many lbs or Kg you are allowed to pack. This is normally in the fare details of your fights.
Secondly know your airline status! The higher you are the more extra pounds you may be allowed. Top tier status of Qantas adds a very generous extra 30kg to your weight limit! It's worth checking!
On the topic of weight limits make sure you have a travel luggage scale! This baby can save you hundreds of dollars in excess luggage fees! They can easily be picked up at Amazon very cheap. Here are some I highly recommend.
I like to pack hoods, tails and other delicate items in a plastic container to help ensure they don't get damaged in transit. Below is a quick video that explains what I mean.
Airport Security
Since 9/11 security has been consistently tight. Throughout the world airport screening can be a tense experience and it's really not a time to pick arguments or draw attention to yourself. It just pisses people off and slows the whole process down.
Tips that have worked well for me include:
- Wear boots or shoes that come off easy. You will be taking them on and off so the easier the process the better for you. I love my Corcoran Boots for their big zipper side.
- Consider if you wish to take your collar off temporarily. Yes I know our human pup collars are intimate however I think for the purpose of smooth travels even a hardened master would allow you to take off a chunky metal collar to allow easier travel. If you do choose to wear your padlocked collar it never hurts to have a key handy should the FDA want to get busy with bolt cutters.
That said my chainmail collar has never triggered the system. - The same goes for chastity devices. Unless you are an exhibitionist, absolutely comfortable showing your junk to an underpaid, probably grumpy, security guard... Do you really want that potential hold up going through security?
- Best tip I was ever given was "these guys are underpaid, over worked and yelled at all day. Give them a break, just follow the rules and they will leave you alone... Remember the less they have to deal with you means they can devote their time to protecting you from bad things happening on planes."
Douching while travelling
One thing that can be a pain to travel with is a douching kit. They can be fiddly, wet and bloody annoying to pack.
Today I saw this cool new travel douche by the guys at Mr S. You can check out the Skwert Douche here, and a great video with Pup Amp demonstrating below:
Help, I've Bought Too Much!!!
What can I say, one of the pleasures of travel is seeing so many amazing things, books and gear when visiting new places. It doesn't take too much to suddenly be over your weight or hand limit when it comes to carrying stuff!
This is where the local post service has saved my bacon! Books, leather and even gifts that I don't immediately need I pack up in boxes and send home.
Depending on the weight of your gear as well as how urgently you'll need it when you get home air or regular mail can be a great choice.
Be sure to check out for special deals. In France you can buy a prepaid 7kg box that ships airmail and costs half of what you would pay for normal airmail!
For non urgent but heavy items I will send by sea however remember it might take up to 10 weeks to arrive depending on where you send from.
If you ebay, DHL or other shipping accounts be sure to check out what's available before you travel. You may be able to get some great pre purchased deals!
On tip that can save you a lot of time and fiddly pen work is to pre print some home address labels for boxes as well as the forms you need to fill when posting gear home.
Final Tips
- Prebook as many tours, restaurants and tickets as you can before you go. This can save you heaps of money and also help you plan your days while out and about.
- Don't let people embarrass you for doing "tourist stuff". You're a tourist, go enjoy!
- TripAdvisor.com is a fantastic resource. Do your research here for hotels, restaurants and attractions. It usually has heaps of GLBTI listings as well. It's a great resource and don't forget to leave your reviews after you leave! (Here are some of mine if your interested!)
- Remember you can also pre-purchase tickets for public transport in most cities.
- If you are heading to a country that does not speak english, learn a little of the local language. Enthusiasm and having a go will get you far and is a great way to meet fun people!
So there you go pups, just a few tips and tricks from our recent trip to Folsom Europe.
Please, if you have any travel tips, drop me a message in the comments below! I'd love to hear from you.
Hugs and tugs,
Gpup Alpha