Health Advice
It is important when travelling abroad to bear in mind that health facilities, hygiene and disease risk differ from those at home. We offer some general information about these differences below but for more specific health enquiries, please access the Foreign and Commonwealth Travel Advice Unit site for more information.
Vaccinations
Having the appropriate vaccinations for your chosen destination is incredibly important and is your responsibility. Check with your GP for any recommended vaccinations prior to travel.
The Department of Health recommends Hepatitus A, Polio, Tetanus and Typhoid vaccinations when travelling to Cuba, Dominican Republic, Egypt, Goa, Jamaica, Maldives, Mexico, Morocco and Tunisia. Anti-malarial precautions are also essential when travelling to Cuba, the Dominican Republic and Goa.
Please seek advice from your doctor before travelling and please note there may be a fee
for vaccinations.
Beat The Bites!
Spending valuable minutes of your holiday scratching irritating insect bites is not at all ideal, so we have a couple of suggestions about how to avoid them.
Dampen a cotton wool pad or tissue with hot water, add a few drops of lavender oil onto it and apply to your body. Lavender is great for relaxing and mosquitoes hate it!
Start taking vitamin B1 it 1-2 months before you travel. It's smell deters insects and because humans can't smell it, it makes a perfect repellant.
Traveller's Tummy
Gastric illness is relatively common when travelling abroad but luckily, there are many ways that you can reduce the possibility of being affected.
Avoid eating undercooked food, ice drinks and over-exposure to the sun and ensure that you drink plenty of bottled water. In your travel medical kit, take some diarrhea control tablets and electrolyte replacement powders for children.
Sunburn
The best treatment for sunburn is prevention so avoiding sunbathng between 11am and 3pm, applying waterproof suncream that protects against UVA and UVB every 2 hours and using t-shirts and wide-brimmed hats to protect yourself are all great ways to prevent sunburn.
Accommodation Safety
As one of the leading holiday companies, Direct Holidays realises that travellers may have concerns about health and safety issues whilst they are abroad, including the detection of carbon monoxide. For further advice on gas safety on holiday visit the Health & Safety Executive website.
Direct Holidays Team Tip
Do not stray too far away from your normal diet on holiday nor pile your plate up with lots of different foods on the first night. Having lobster, prawns, salad items and a little bit of steak washed down with 10 pints of the local brew is more likely to be your problem - not food poisoning.
