DO:
- Take advantage of local resources to build a reliable network of local contacts: tourist offices, CVBs, global sales staffs of international and regional hotel chains, in-market representatives for international DMCs.
- Learn the origins and nationalities of all attendees and the visa and entry requirements for your destination.
- Register your program with the U.S. Embassy or Consulate in the destination country.
- Encourage attendees to copy the first two pages of their passports and keep both electronic copies in the cloud and physical copies in safe locations in case documents are lost or stolen.
- Be sure all attendees have passports valid at least six months beyond the final travel date and have at least two blank pages in their passports.
- Encourage attendees to copy the front and back of all credit cards they carry and keep copies online and in a safe physical location in case of loss or theft.
- Remember the International Date Line and the effect it has on calendar days during travel.
- Compare the cost and ease of printing support materials locally instead of shipping.
- Use a reliable customs broker and have back-up plans for items and materials that are delayed in transit or in customs.
- Check technological and legal barriers to any technology that may be needed, including cell phone compatibility, live data links, Web links, video links, video content and social media.
DON’T:
- Assume that everyone speaks English, or even the same version of English that you do.
- Be afraid to ask questions about anything and everything.
- Assume that “yes” actually means that something will happen. Learn the local differences between “yes,” “maybe,” “probably not” and “impossible.”
- Panic. Just because something is different does not mean it is wrong.
- Assume that vendors understand what you mean when you use industry jargon. Abbreviations, acronyms, meanings and standard practices are different in different destinations.
- Forget to collect emergency contact information for each and every attendee.
- Assume that the laws, customs and practices of the destination country are anything like those you know at home. Expectations and restrictions on behavior, attire, alcohol, communication, media and other activities can vary radically from one country or region to another.
- Expect all attendees to be experienced travelers.
- Forget to prepare and take conversion tables for currency, weights and measures, weather, time and other common needs.
- Forget to enjoy yourself. One of the reasons to meet in a new destination is to discover and delight in new places, new customs and new people!
