In this session (part three of my conversation with NomadSOS founder, world traveler, and great storyteller Danny Kaine), Danny gives up his best travel safety advice – if you plan on traveling in the near future, or if you know someone who is, this could be the most valuable thing they could learn before they go.

If you’re just joining the conversation, don’t miss out on parts one and two of the conversation:
Part one: Intro to the traveling life of Danny Kaine and NomadSOS.
Part two: See what an ex-military, biathlete and world traveler considers his worst travel story plus his pick for favorite travel destination.

Read on for some very real details into what motivated Danny to create NomadSOS and his number one piece of travel safety advice – here’s a hint:

“Trust your instinct, if something doesn’t seem right, it usually isn’t” ~Danny Kaine

Where did you come up with the idea for NomadSOS?

The concept for Nomad SOS was born from two separate events that happened close together. Firstly, I was separated from my wallet in a series of unfortunate events in Amman, Jordan. Unfortunately this time, it was my actual wallet with my drivers license, ID, bank cards, visa cards and money. Being a UK Citizen, trying to replace a drivers license and government issued ID while overseas is impossible. In an unrelated event, I was in a restaurant with a friend in Canada when she suddenly went into anaphylactic shock from a peanut allergy. I then had to give her CPR. Later that night at the hospital I found myself wondering what would have happened if it wasn’t me who had been with her.

How would her first responders have known about her allergy?

So, while researching online for replacement photo ID for myself, I was also researching medical ID for my friend and the concept of Travel ID was born. Other than your passport and drivers license, there really are not a lot of other options for photo ID for people online. Also, I couldn’t help notice that a majority of medical ID tags online involved the first-responder calling a phone number, scanning some kind of code, or visiting a website to enter a membership number. All of this is time consuming, and takes time away from the patient in the ‘golden hour’ of treatment. Also, what if there is no cell phone or internet signal?

The Nomad SOS Travel ID

Travel ID by Nomad SOS is the world’s only fully-integrated emergency medical ID and photo ID. A tech-free way to carry your life-saving information with you at all times. Travel ID is printed on poly-carbonate, it’s 100% waterproof and features fraud prevention measures including micro-printing and holograms. Unlike your passport that can take weeks to replace, or your driver’s license which is virtually impossible to replace when traveling, we can replace your Travel ID and send it anywhere in the world, within 48-hours.

What’s your number one piece of travel advice?

*Danny couldn’t help himself here, so instead of just one thing, he created a list. This is the mother load – this is how you should prepare for travel. Enjoy.

• Be prepared. A majority of travel safety issues can be avoided even before you travel by researching and pre-planning your trip.
• Research your travel visa requirements, learn the basics of the local language, make sure your inoculations are up-to-date, learn the local laws and customs (and obey them), read the latest travel advisories through your countries embassy website.
• Know the local currency and if your card allows you to access funds from an ATM.
• Take a local street map with you, print it out if needed and mark where the police departments, hospitals, and other places of interest are in conjunction with where you will be staying.
• Know the local phone numbers of emergency services where you will be traveling.
• Always pay attention to where you are, or what the nearest recognizable landmark to you is in-case you need to give directions to them.
• Speak to your cell phone service provider and unlock your phone before you travel.
• DO NOT travel without travel insurance.
• Photocopy your passport, drivers license, health documents, plane tickets and hotel reservations. You keep one copy, give the other copy to a loved one or friend. It will help you to replace the originals if they are lost.

One last thing, trust your instinct, if something doesn’t seem right, it usually isn’t.