Yes, you probably just want to kick back and relax while you’re out being a tourist, but that doesn’t mean that you have to leave all of your skills behind as well. In fact, many times, having certain skills will actually improve your vacation experience!

So, can you think of some that might be useful? If you can’t offhand, consider the following five, many of which aren’t even all that hard to learn the basics of, including basic medical skills (you never know when someone will get sick or hurt), survival skills (for those exotic vacations), language skills (for foreign countries), navigation skills (for confusing cities), and technical skill (like how to make your phone or computer work).

Basic Medical Skill

So there are a number of ways to learn basic medical skills, including just doing your basic research online before heading out on your next adventure. However, if you want to take it to a big deeper level, consider taking some online medical assistant classes as part of your routine. This will give you a much more complex understand of how medicine, and the human body, work, and those will translate directly to you being able to handle health emergencies while out and about.

Survival Skills

If you’ve ever been camping in a forest, or gone on a rafting trip while out on vacation, you know that there are always dangers present. And it’s actually dangerous in those occasions not to at least know your basic survival skills. So brush up on those before you head anywhere there are mountains, lakes, or no cities within a few miles of your destination, or you may end up extremely frustrated with your lack of knowledge.

Language Skills

If you’re traveling to Mexico, why not learn some Spanish? If you’re traveling to Russia, learn some Russian! It will probably only take you a few weeks to get the absolute essentials down, and that basic knowledge of language will help you out immensely, as well as allowing you to give off the impression that you care about the local culture.

Navigation Skills

If you plan on walking around or driving in a foreign or at least unfamiliar location, you’d better brush up on your navigation skills. Sometimes this means getting the right maps on your phone, and sometimes is means learning how to read maps and directions in general without getting confused.

Technical Skills

And finally, having technical skills will always help you out when traveling. For example, knowing how Wi-Fi hookups and cable inputs is a great idea, because there are places where you’re going to want to get connected, but without that basic knowledge, you might be sunk!