Grassroots with passion 09
© Irina Silvestrova
nights or other perks. You can also book through such like Airbnb, but pay attention to their cancellation charges.
flexibility on which day to visit and which attractions to visit on the fly, plus a full refund if you do not activate the pass within a year of purchase. Outlet shopping A must-do is outlet shopping, found in every major city. Literally, everything – clothes, shops, bags, luggage, toys and kitchenware – at near crazy discounts. Member discounts and privileges are even crazier, so you may want to get a membership (online) before dropping in. Timing your visit is also important: aim for their end-of- summer sales in July and August or their end-of-winter in February. In November, the Thanksgiving Day and sale of pre-Christmas merchandise are both big shopping days. From December 26 through mid-January, they hold big after-Christmas sales. I had gone for outlet shopping twice during Thanksgiving (fourth Thursday in November) and enjoyed fantastic discounts (up to 70 percent) in several stores. Black Friday (day after Thanksgiving) and Cyber Monday (Monday after Thanksgiving) are also good shopping days. Safe driving As USA is left-hand drive unlike Singapore’s, do give yourself time to familiarise with driving in the opposite direction. All passengers must have their seat belts on and children must be secured with child seat. For long- distance driving, have a front-seat passenger chat with the driver throughout the journey and plan for a pit stop after two hours of driving. After the pit stop, rotate the driver and front passenger whenever possible. For example, during my six-hour driving from San Diego to Las Vegas, I planned for three pit stops at Lake Elsinore Outlets, Tanger Outlets and Fashion Outlets of Las Vegas so that I can have a-break-cum -outlet-shopping. In summary, free and easy self-drive holiday in USA can be a lot of fun if ample planning is done before departure. What are you waiting for; grab a tablet and start planning now.
SIM card Get on the internet to find the best pre-paid SIM card (voice and data plan) before you leave for USA, and check for their price, package and most importantly coverage in the places that you will be visiting. Ordering online of your SIM card not only allows you to have it delivered, usually free, to your first stop hotel so that you can start using it upon arrival, it also commonly comes with discounts and free deliveries. SIM cards bought at physical stores are usually more costly plus they may not carry card type that you need. In fact, some SIM card plans are only available online (www.readysim.com). For example, I paid US$100 for two SIM cards which were selling at a petrol station for recommended retail price US$35 each; it is also not easy to find nano-SIM cards for iPhone. City passes Major US cities (such as Los Angles, Boston) packaged multiple attractions into a City Explorer Pass (www. smartdestinations.com) that allows you to build your own package or choose from the 1- to 7-day package deals. The City Explorer also offers up to 45 percent savings on admission to top museums, tours and activities and allows pay nothing at the gate. Multiple day-passes come with
© Supannee Hickman
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