I have just returned from a twelve-day stay in the United States and it was great. I was able to visit two of its major cities: New York and Washington DC. I'm dedicating two more posts to each of these cities to tell you what both experiences were like and what I saw in particular. I invite you to read them and get ideas!
When I arrived, I met super nice people, discovered restaurants worth visiting, visited film locations and practised my English, among many other things. I was also lucky and the jetlag didn't affect me (which did when I got home). One trick I used for this was eating and sleeping at the right times in that country. It was not a difficult task because I arrived at dinner time and I was very hungry.
Photo: Pexels
Basic considerations
The time difference between Washington D.C. (which is where I landed) and Spain is 6 hours less and the same is true of New York. At the same time, meal times are also different from here, and dinner is the most important meal of the day for them. The ideal is to eat before one o'clock in the afternoon and to start thinking about dinner around seven o'clock in the evening.
In order to travel to the United States I had to prepare the paperwork in advance, it's not as easy as travelling in Europe. I started researching what I needed to prepare and made a list: accommodation, flights, passport, visa, dollars, prepaid card, travel insurance... I'll tell you more about it now:
Documents required for travel to the United States
Before going, I had no idea how many preparations are necessary to travel to the United States. I consulted several pages, such as the recommendations of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to make sure I didn't leave anything out. Here is the list of essential things to prepare for your trip to the USA:
1. Passport and ID card
If you have never gotten your passport, now is the time. The first time you get your passport you will be charged €30 (unless you are a large family, then it is free) and you will need to present your ID card and passport photo once you are at the police station. Please note that your passport must be valid for at least 6 months to enter the country.
Photo: Pixabay
2. Visa or ESTA
If you are going on holiday to the United States for a period of less than 90 days, you do not need a visa The visa is for stays of more than 90 days or if you are travelling for work or study. If you are going on holiday you need to obtain an ESTA.
How do I get my ESTA?
You get it online through the official website paying 14$. You will have to enter a lot of data and answer some questions: personal details, accommodation details once there, questions about whether you have previously been to certain countries... Nothing serious, but make sure you apply for the ESTA at least 72 hours before your trip. Carry a copy of the document in your backpack.
Photo: Pixabay
3. Travel and Medical Insurance
Bring medical and travel insurance to the US is a must! In case something happens to you the medical bills can be sky-high, really, look at thesereal cases. Calling for an ambulance can cost you $3,000 and things like that or worse. Besides, you never know, I never get sick, I was really sick there on one of the days.
In my case, as we have house insurance with Mapfre, I paid €75 and was fully insured. At the same time, I was also travelling with the Tarjeta Gaztetxartela (Youth Card of the Basque Country) which also includes insurance for these cases. Many bloggers also recommend taking out insurance with IATI Seguros.
4. EU to USA Power Adapter
Another difference between the USA and Spain is the power socket. You will need to get an adapter from the EU to the USA (type B) in order to be able to use your electronic devices there.
Photo: Pixabay
5. Round-trip tickets
As a recommendation, it's best to buy your return tickets before you go to the United States. This is not because it will be cheaper (which it might be), but because sometimes they may ask for a return ticket when you enter the country to make sure you don't overstay. Below I explain what my experience was like when I entered the USA.
6. Prepaid mobile phone card
Unless you want to be on WiFi all the time, I advise you to buy a prepaid card before you start your trip. I asked my operator to see how much they would charge me to use my data and it was a huge amount, so I looked for other ways. For about 45€ (because I used a discount code I found on a blog) I could enjoy unlimited data for 15 days in the USA. If I wanted to call, I could just use WhatsApp Calls or the Skype app.
7. Buy dollars
As for money, remember to ask for US dollars at your bank before you go. Here is a dollar to euro converter, accurate and in real time, in case you need it. Despite carrying a VISA credit card, I had trouble paying with it in more than one establishment, so remember to carry cash whenever you can.
Photo: Pixabay
8. International Driving Licence
Finally, if you are interested in driving once you are there, you must have an International Driving Licence, which is valid for one year. It is a procedure that you will have to do at the DGT and the price should be around 10€.
Some more tips for travelling to the United States
On landing be patient to get through immigration control at the airport, I was waiting for two hours. Also, as I said I was going to see my partner who lived there, they asked me questions: I got through without much trouble because I had no food, all the liquids I carried were in bottles of 100ml or less and my hair straighteners were small.
As for nightlife, if you're going to party in the US, pack your wallet. We were lucky enough to go out with one of my cousins who lives there and he warned us about everything. A shot alone cost 7$ and you had to add the dollar tip that you had to leave. There's a 15-20% tip in bars and nightclubs, too, so take advantage of the"Happy Hour" in some establishments. The live music is very good, though.
Photo: Pixabay
Other websites that can help you organise your trip to the United States
In addition to the links I have been sharing with you throughout this post, I would like to mention a few more sites that turned out to be quite useful. I hope they can be of help to you as well:
To discover more curiosities about this country and its cities, check out the rest of post about America that are on the blog. I hope this post has helped you and if you have any questions or if you think any information is missing in the post, please leave me a comment or contact me, I'll be happy to help you, thank you very much and have a nice day!
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