Seasoned traveller Emma Killick shares her favourite tips.

Take a T-shirt on the plane

When flying, always bring a change of underwear and a spare T-shirt rolled up in the corner of your hand luggage on the plane – just in case you get stranded, or experience turbulence and end up throwing a Bloody Mary over yourself on the flight (not that this has ever happened to meJ, of course.)

Travel like the locals

When driving, use satellite navigation as a back up, not as your only guide. They are a great invention and can save a relationship, but they are no excuse for not using your noggin. You can end up taking the long way, which isn’t usually so bad on a holiday, but worse, the wrong way.

Usually you need to know the name of the province and town to get to the correct location and plugging in a guess is asking for trouble – spend a couple of minutes consulting an old fashioned map or at least plotting the journey on a website like Mapquest before you go. It’ll give you a rough idea of your direction and how long it should take you so you don’t end up on the wrong side of the country.

Pack three pairs of shoes

When packing, my general rule is three pairs of shoes. Difficult, but if you think about it, unless you are attending Milan Fashion Week, you won’t really need more if you choose wisely. Plus, it means there’s a good excuse to buy more at your destination.

Steam your clothes

Steam in the bathroom really does work to get wrinkles out of clothes – you need from ten minutes to a couple of hours (depending on the fabric) for it to work and then dry off enough that you don’t feel like you’ve been subjected to the worst humidity in the world.

Take the bus

Try to travel like the locals. It can be a bit more difficult than just taking taxis everywhere, but you see and experience more. One of my most memorable journeys was taking a local bus on an island in the Seychelles – we whizzed around the corners and over mountains with all the windows down and the locals laughing and singing all the way.

Walk with confidence

Wherever you are in the world, walk with confidence, even if you don’t know where you are going. You may be fair skinned and blue eyed in Bangkok (so you’ll never look like a local) but walking with purpose means you could be an ex-pat too, and you are far less likely to be hassled – by shopkeepers, lurkers, or muggers.

Checking in late?

When you know you’ll be checking into a hotel late, do call in advance, especially in Europe. Unless you are staying at a large chain of hotels, they’ll expect you before 6pm and might give away your room – or go to bed! – unless you warn them. Plus, it’s only polite.

Online hotels

Use a site that only reserves your room with a credit card and then pay the hotel directly on arrival. A website like www.booking.com is a good one to use. Some other sites may be quick to take the money and rather inefficient, shall we say, at telling the hotel about your reservation. Plus, because of block booking and the site taking a large cut of the room price, you’ll usually be choosing from the worst rooms the hotel has to offer.

Be culturally aware

When packing, be culturally aware. Always bring a long dress or skirt and a scarf. A lightweight sundress plus a big enough scarf to cover your hair and shoulders won’t take up much room and will ensure that you don’t stick out like a sore thumb. You do not want to offend the locals, and/or attract unwanted attention by not adhering to the dress codes expected in certain locations or during certain religious holidays. I remember being horrified in Jordan when a few female Brits were in a remote area attired in short shorts, tank tops with bra straps exposed, and long hair flowing in the breeze! A definite no-no.

Change your travel guides

When buying travel guides, keep in mind that the best one for you changes over time. If the radio stations you now love used to be just for “old people”, or the TV shows you used to watch aren’t funny any more because they’ve become a bit juvenile – well it is probably time for you to change your travel guide too. I used to be a diehard Rough Guide girl and now I find that Cadogan and Wallpaper City Guides suit me best.