Stuff You Should Know About: January 2016
Welcome to “Stuff You Should Know About” – a monthly collection of travel news, tips, photos, and other odds and ends that don’t really fit in anywhere else but that I still really want to share with you.
Random travel news
Using a driver's license as ID
At the end of last year, news stories were circulating about how the TSA was no longer going to recognize driver's licenses from certain US states as valid forms of ID for flying in 2016. This could have definitely been a problem, considering that licenses from 12 US states and provinces are on the “not-valid” list. But now the TSA says your license will still be fine for traveling by air until January 2018 – and hopefully by then all states will switch over to TSA-friendly licenses.
Free national parks in Canada
To celebrate its 150th birthday, Canada is going to offer FREE entry to all of its national parks for an entire year. The only downside is that this won't happen until 2017 – but definitely something to look forward to.
Cool travel app/website of the month
I get a lot of emails every week — sometimes every day — about new travel apps and websites. I don’t write reviews very often about apps/websites (only the ones I really, really love), but some of them are still worth mentioning!
This month, check out:
Hopper
I know that no one really NEEDS another flight search app, but this new one is nevertheless worth checking out. There's no website, so you'll have to download the free app for either iOS or Android. But once you do, you can use the app to figure out the best time to fly, as well as the best time to buy your ticket.
This is perfect if you know you want to go somewhere, but you don't have exact dates in mind. You plug your destination into the Hopper app (along with where you're flying from), and the app shows you when you can find the best prices for that flight. It also has price predictions, and the ability to “watch” a trip and get alerts for when the price drops.
Top Instagram shots from this month
Instagram is one of my favorite social networks. I mean, who doesn't love pretty photos?? If you aren’t following already, follow me on Instagram @dangerousbiz!
Here are some of my most-liked photos from the last month or so:
One of my favorite new cities I visited in 2015 was Colmar, a gorgeous little city in the Alsace region of France. If you want a fairytale-looking city, look no further!
Iceland definitely knows a thing or two about waterfalls, holy crap. This is one of the more famous ones – Seljalandsfoss, or the waterfall that you can actually walk behind! ? A photo posted by Amanda (@dangerousbiz) on
When you travel, you aren't always going to run into good weather (no matter what all those sunny travel photos might lead you to believe). But sometimes the bad weather leads to some really interesting sights – like this fog-shrouded house in the middle of a canal in Strasbourg, France. ??
“Take only memories, leave only footprints.” ? A great quote to keep in mind as we roll into a new year of travel! A photo posted by Amanda (@dangerousbiz) on
Don’t forget to follow me on Instagram!
Featured bloggers of the month
Check out this month’s Featured Blogs:
Sabina Trojanova is the founder of Girl vs Globe – a blog documenting her international adventures and personal style. Her stories aim to inspire and empower women, showing them how to be the leading lady in the story of their life. Since launching her website in 2014, Sabina has built it into a full-time career while also finishing her university degree. She has been featured in publications like Huffington Post and Matador Network, and visited fifteen countries in 2015 alone. When she is not traveling or taking photos, she is most likely eating copious amounts of sushi, trying to fit all her sparkly dresses into a carry-on or planning her next journey.
Interested in being a featured blog next month?
Go here to learn more!
You should pack this
Each month, I’ll feature one or two of my packing must-haves. This month, Im recommending:
SKROSS Travel Adapter
There's one thing that every single traveler needs to pack on an international trip: a travel adapter so you can plug in all those electronics! I've bought and used all sorts of adapters over the years, and I think my favorite so far has to be this one by SKROSS.
The compact adapter will work all over the world, and I love that you don't really have to worry about losing pieces. This particular model also comes with the added bonus of two built-in USB ports, making it even easier to charge up all those gadgets.
>> Buy one on Amazon.
What I'm planning right now
Because my blog runs a little bit behind of what I'm currently doing, I figured I would use this monthly update to let you know what I'm up to, and what adventures are coming up next! (You can also find more detailed info in my monthly newsletter.)
Coming up:
- A trip to Minnesota to visit the Mall Of America in early February.
- A weeklong adventure to Arctic Norway with my friend Marie from To Europe and Beyond in late February. Fingers crossed we can catch the Northern Lights!
- A trip to the American Southwest with Elliot in mid-April to visit as many national parks in Utah as possible leading up to National Park Week.
- AFRICA in May! My dad and I are going on a tour to South Africa and Victoria Falls, and then I'm planning to stick around and hopefully do an overland trip through Namibia and Botswana.
Which adventure are you most excited to read more about?
That’s it for this month’s edition of “Stuff You Should Know About!” Which section was your favorite this month?
*Note: There are some affiliate links in this post. If you buy through one of the links, you won’t be charged any extra, but I’ll earn a little bit to put towards running this site!
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