10Best's "Been There, Made the Mistake, and Bought the T-Shirt" Wisdom for Travelers

10Best Inc. – which includes 10Best.com, 10Best Mobile, and 10Best Travel Network – is staffed by a team of well-seasoned travelers who provide the company's signature "trusted advice." When a group of 10Besters recently unpacked their collective suitcase of challenges, experiences, and things learned, this list of 10 pearls emerged:

•Greek beer and Romanian folk songs can soothe the seasick traveler.

Just before pulling into port on a ferry ride to Athens, an Odysseus-caliber storm rolled in, creating huge waves, tossing the five-story vessel up and down. An intrepid 10Best editor found solace and a cure for motion-sickness by drinking cans of Mythos and listening to Romanian students strum their guitars. 

•Sometimes you have to get scammed to get some sleep. 

After the aforementioned ferry docked in Athens, a countrywide transportation strike affected the 10Best editors' ability to get to a hotel to ride out the chaos. Unfortunately, a group of scam artists/taxi drivers preyed upon the group, grabbing their bags and telling them that, as Americans, they'd never find a cab or hotel that would accept them during the strike – except for their own cab and their cousin's hotel. Having no other choice, the travelers accepted their fate and managed to get out of the country the next day. 

•Always get a receipt. 

And speaking of scam artists, car rental companies in the Cote D'Azur have gotten a bad reputation for cheating foreigners by charging them for unfounded violations. On a recent trip, 10Best's CEO was hurriedly returning a car in order to catch his return flight to the States. Since the rental agent had rushed him through the initial process and knew of his time constraints, the CEO found himself charged $60 over and above the rental fee. The reason? The agent claimed that the CEO did not have a full tank of gas, which he could not prove without paperwork.

•There is a cure (actually several) for jetlag, especially when you are going as far as Asia and Australia. 

Our CEO has found this out the hard way, through much trial and error. He recommends getting lots of exercise the day of departure, and taking melatonin to help sleep on the flight. Once there, drinking lots of water and continuing to do as much exercise as possible aids sleep and helps the body regain its natural rhythms. Taking naps is good too. Even though the prevailing wisdom is against extra sleep, a cat nap can do wonders to refresh a weary traveler. Getting a massage on arrival also helps knead out post-flight kinks.

•Use the available resources if you don't speak the language. 

In China, hotels will often print their address in Chinese on room keys so foreign travelers have only to show the card to the cab driver to communicate their destination. Key cards also have important phrases written phonetically so you are able to say simple things like "Take me to..." and "How much is..."