& entry.
Documents
start here
The documents and registrations that make your journey easier from check-in to arrival.
Keep a digital copy of your passport photo page on your phone, in a secure cloud folder, or in your email. If your passport is ever lost or stolen, that copy speeds up replacement at a U.S. consulate.
Do this today
Validity beyond your travel dates
From expiry: consider renewing early
Blank, for entry stamps
1 year
2 pages
6 months
Most countries require your passport to be valid for at least six months beyond your travel dates, with at least two blank pages for entry stamps. Check it now, before renewal timelines create real problems.
If your passport is within a year of expiring, consider renewing early. Processing times vary, and expedited service adds cost but buys peace of mind.
Check yours now, not a month before departure.
Passports
01 — passports
ETIAS is a separate pre-travel authorization the EU plans to launch later. It isn't required yet. When it arrives it will cost about €7, last three years, and take a few minutes online. I'll update clients directly when a firm date is announced.
Make sure your passport is in good condition, since wear can interfere with the biometric scan. Current U.S. passports are biometric, which lets you use self-service kiosks where they exist. Use your digital itinerary to keep your first hotel's address and return flight reachable without unlocking an app.
The EU's free app lets you pre-load passport data, take a selfie, and complete the entry questionnaire up to 72 hours before arrival. It streamlines your first entry rather than skipping it, and it's still rolling out country by country. I'll tell you whether it works at your entry point.
You won't go through EES again moving between Schengen countries by train, car, or internal flight. It activates again when you leave Europe, so arrive at the airport earlier than usual.
All 29 Schengen countries, including France, Italy, Germany, Spain, Portugal, Austria, the Czech Republic, Greece, the Netherlands, and the Nordic countries. Ireland and Cyprus are EU members outside Schengen and still stamp passports. The UK runs its own system.
What about ETIAS?
Before you travel
The Travel to Europe app
After your first entry
Which countries
Extra time at your first Schengen entry
Before an intercontinental departure
Your biometric record stays on file
3 hours
3 years
45–60 min
Since April 10, 2026, the European Union requires all non-EU travelers, including U.S. citizens, to register biometrically when entering the Schengen Area.
The first time you enter any Schengen country, a border officer or self-service kiosk captures four fingerprints and a facial image, scans your passport, and asks a few standard questions about your trip. That record stays on file for three years, so later entries are faster. Children under 12 are photographed but not fingerprinted.
The Entry/Exit System (EES) replaces the passport stamp.
Entering Europe.
02 - Entering Europe
Some third-party websites charge far more to process a UK ETA. Only GOV.UK and the official UK ETA app are real. If a site charges more than £20, it isn't official.
A warning
Ireland needs neither an ETA nor ETIAS. But Northern Ireland is part of the UK, so a trip that includes it needs a UK ETA even though there's no border check.
The UK isn't in the Schengen Area or covered by ETIAS. Visiting both means two authorizations, and time in the UK doesn't count toward your 90 Schengen days.
British and Irish citizens, including dual citizens with a valid British or Irish passport, and anyone who already holds a UK visa or settled or pre-settled status.
Visits of up to six months to the UK, Jersey, Guernsey, and the Isle of Man for tourism, family, business, or short-term study. It doesn't let you work or live there. A new passport means a new ETA.
A note about Ireland
Separate from Schengen
Who doesn't need one
What it covers
Per traveler, including children and infants
Apply at least three working days ahead
To apply
Unlimited entries, or until your passport expires
3 days
10 min
2 years
£20
U.S. citizens need a UK Electronic Travel Authorisation before they fly, and it has been fully enforced since February 25, 2026. Airlines check it before you board. Without it, you won't fly.
It works much like the U.S. ESTA: not a visa, but a digital pre-clearance linked to your passport. Apply through the official UK ETA app or GOV.UK with your passport, a payment card, and your email. The app scans your passport, takes your photo, and asks a few background questions.
England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland need an ETA.
Traveling to the United Kingdom
03 — Traveling to the united kingdom
Visa applications can mean consulate visits, paperwork, and changing timelines. For those, and for faster passports, I suggest CIBT Visas or ItsEasy. They check your application against the latest entry rules, handle consulate paperwork, and track your documents. I'll connect you with the right one.
When you need one
U.S. citizens can visit most of Europe, much of the Caribbean, and parts of South America and Asia for short stays without a visa. India, Australia, parts of Southeast Asia, and several African countries require a visa or electronic authorization before you travel.
In the Schengen Area — France, Italy, Spain, Germany, Greece, Portugal, and most of Western Europe — you can stay up to 90 days in any 180-day period without a visa. The UK, Ireland, and Turkey have their own rules.
I'll flag any requirement early, while there's time.
Visas
04 — visas
If you lose your passport, have a medical emergency, or need legal help, you'll be relieved to have the number ready instead of searching for it. Your Tern itinerary lists emergency contacts for your trip and the embassy contacts in the country you are traveling.
A free State Department service that registers your trip with the nearest U.S. embassy or consulate. In a natural disaster, political unrest, or a family emergency, the embassy can reach you. You'll also get safety updates for your destination. Worth doing for any international trip.
Save embassy contacts
Enroll in STEP
Five minutes you'll hopefully never need.
STEP & U.S. embassies
05 — STEP & Embassies
Even with Touchless ID, always carry a physical ID. TSA officers may still ask for it, and you'll need it elsewhere on your trip. Think of it as a faster lane, not a replacement for your documents.
A note from Rachel
The program is entirely opt-in. TSA states photos and personal data are deleted within 24 hours of your scheduled departure, aren't used for law enforcement, and aren't shared. You can opt out any time.
An optional PreCheck upgrade that verifies you by facial comparison in about ten seconds, no ID or boarding pass handed over. It's expanding to 65 U.S. airports, including Phoenix Sky Harbor, on American, Alaska, Delta, Southwest, and United. Enroll once in your airline's app profile with an active KTN and a passport on file.
Speeds customs and immigration when you return from abroad, where the longest lines are, and includes PreCheck. If you travel internationally more than once a year, it's the better investment. It requires a background check and interview, and approval can take months, so apply early. Link your Known Traveler Number to every airline reservation.
Faster security at U.S. airports: shoes, belt, and light jacket stay on, laptops and liquids stay in the bag. A five-year membership with a short application and a quick appointment. If most of your flying is domestic, this is the one that matters. Add your Known Traveler Number to every airline reservation.
Privacy
Touchless ID
Global Entry
TSA PreCheck
Faster U.S. airports, on both ends of an international trip.
PreCheck, Global Entry & Touchless ID
06 — Traveling to the united kingdom
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& preparation.
Packing
Packing & preparation
The right things, and nothing forgotten. That's the whole goal, and it takes one evening at home to get there.
Squeezable, refillable, and under 3.4 oz.
No liquid limit, no leaks at altitude.
TSA-sized, flat-bottomed, and sturdy enough to last years.
The liquid rule is loosening, but not everywhere yet: containers of 3.4 ounces (100 ml) or less, together in one quart-sized clear bag. Airports with the newer CT scanners have begun waiving it, and signage at the checkpoint will tell you. Pack to the old rule and treat any exception as a bonus, since airports have their own timelines. Bar soap, solid shampoo, and solid deodorant skip the bag entirely, and they don't leak at altitude.
Sharp objects, large scissors, and most multi-tools go in checked luggage. Medications, prescription and over the counter, are fine in your carry-on and don't need original packaging, though a prescription label helps for anything controlled. When you're unsure about an item, TSA's search tool settles it in seconds.
The simplest way around the liquid rule is to skip.
What TSA actually cares about
what i pack
TSA
Passport, boarding passes, receipts.
Two payment cards, one hotel key.
Confirm no card expires mid-journey, set a travel notice if your bank still asks for one, and screenshot each card's international lost-card number.
The typical 3% surcharge adds up quickly. Chase Sapphire, Capital One Venture, and most premium American Express cards waive it, and you may already have one.
Amex acceptance still trails Visa and Mastercard outside upscale and tourist-heavy places, so never make it your only card.. Discover is rarely accepted at all.
When you land, stop at an airport ATM for a small amount of local currency. It covers the taxi, the coffee, and a tip. Skip the exchange counters, which charge a worse rate for the same money.
When a terminal offers you dollars or local currency, choose local. The dollar option comes with a markup built into the rate.
Carry them separately, so a lost wallet or one bank's fraud hold doesn't strand you.
Before you leave
No foreign transaction fee
Cash for the first hour
Always charge in local currency
About Amex and Discover
Two cards, two networks
Nothing sours a first day faster than a declined card and no backup.
Money & cards
what i pack
Money & cards
One cable for every device anyone in your party brings.
A full phone charge for travel days, small enough for a pocket.
Bought on arrival. Rarely worth the hassle anymore.
The simplest option, and the most expensive on a longer journey.
Whichever you choose, set it up at home on reliable Wi-Fi. Then download what you'll want offline: maps for your first day, boarding passes, and any tickets that won't load on the move. Your digital itinerary works offline, but a dead phone doesn't, so pack a charger and a battery bank for travel days.
From a provider like Airalo or your own carrier. Usually the least expensive, and it loads onto most recent phones in minutes.
Local SIM
Carrier day pass
eSIM
Decide how you'll have data before you leave.
Being connected
what i pack
Being connected
Hardside spinners in carry-on, medium, and large. Measure the carry-on against your carrier's limit before you fly.
If your journey crosses two carriers, the connection may cost extra on the regional leg. When this affects your itinerary, I flag it in your trip documents so it's never a surprise at the counter.
The trap on connecting flights
Allowances change by airline, route, and fare class, and what was included last year may not be now. Check your specific airline before you pack.
Watch carry-on dimensions above all. International and intra-European airlines set stricter limits than U.S. carriers, and unlike at home, they measure. The budget European carriers are strictest.
Check every leg, not just the long one.
Baggage
what i pack
Baggage
One outlet, several devices, built-in plug adapter.
Same story as the dryer, for the flat iron.
Works on 220V without burning out.
Covers the Continent and the UK in one well=made piece.
Three rectangular pins, and a European adapter won't fit. If your itinerary includes London and the Continent, pack both.
220–230V across France, Italy, Spain, Germany, Portugal, Greece, the Netherlands, and Scandinavia. One standard European adapter covers all three.
One well-made universal adapter with USB ports rather than a handful of cheap ones. I always bring at least two, because hotel rooms are not generous with conveniently placed outlets.
What I pack
What I bring
UK & Ireland
Continental Europe
Type G
Types C, E, F
There are two voltage standards: 110 to 127V in the U.S., Canada, Mexico, and Japan, and 220 to 240V across Europe and most of the world. Your phone, tablet, laptop, and camera chargers almost certainly handle both, and you can confirm it by looking for "Input: 100 to 240V" on the brick. All they need is a plug adapter.
What gets destroyed is the hair dryer or flat iron. Those are usually single voltage, and a 110V appliance in a 220V outlet can fail the moment you switch it on. Bring a dual-voltage version, use what your property provides, or leave it home.
The wrong adapter, or none at all, is a small oversight that becomes a daily problem.
Your hair dryer isn't.
Your chargers are fine.
Power & adapters
worth keeping.
Anything you can't afford to lose: medications, documents, a passport copy, phone and chargers, one full change of clothes, jewelry, and skincare within the liquid limit. Enough to manage comfortably for a day.
Clothes in one, shoes in another, clean separated from worn. They also compress, which matters when a bag has to meet a European size limit.
A flat, foldable duffel inside your suitcase, for the linens from Florence, the wine, and everything you didn't plan to buy.
Weigh at home, then pack the scale for the journey back. Regional flights often allow less than your transatlantic carrier.
An AirTag in each checked bag. If a bag is misrouted, you'll often know where it is before the airline does.
TSA-approved locks on checked bags deter casual tampering and open for security without being cut off.
A complete set of skincare and makeup in travel sizes, permanently packed in its own bag. You're never decanting product the night before. It lives in the suitcase and gets refilled only when something runs low.
A travel kit you never unpack removes more last-minute friction than anything else on this list.
The one I'd start with
02
06
05
07
04
01
Packing cubes
03
Know what's carry-on
Weigh it, both ways
Track it
Bring an empty bag
Lock it
A travel kit you never unpack
They make packing faster every journey, and they make the suitcase easier to live out of once you arrive.
Packing the bag itself
Your bags are collected from home and delivered to your property, and you travel with a carry-on. It removes the risk of lost luggage entirely, and it's worth considering on longer journeys, multi-city routes, or any itinerary with several train connections, where hauling suitcases up platform stairs takes something out of the day.
I work with a trusted shipping partner and can build it into your journey from the start.