You know that feeling of anticipation when you’re getting ready for a trip. You’re looking up restaurants, mapping out what you want to see, and counting down the days until you can finally just unplug. The last thing you want to be thinking about is whether your financial life is buttoned up while you’re gone.
Last year, I had a client whose wallet and phone were stolen during a trip, and it shook us how quickly things unraveled. Within hours, the thieves had gone through his credit cards, ATM cards, and the banking apps still open on his phone. He was left trying to piece everything back together from memory while still reeling. It didn’t just bring his vacation to a halt—it felt like his entire life was suddenly on hold.
That experience changed how I talk to my clients about travel. A little bit of planning together before you go, the kind of thing we can walk you through in a single conversation, can make all the difference in your finances if something unexpected happens along the way.
Why Your Financial Advisor Should Be Part of Your Travel Planning Checklist
This might not be the most obvious call to make before a trip, but it can really make a difference. When I know a client is traveling and loops me in, I’m able to tell the difference between legitimate account activity and something that looks like potential fraud.
Time zones play a role, too. If I need a signature or you’ve requested a wire transfer, knowing you’re nine hours ahead keeps things moving without confusion or unnecessary delays. And if something does go wrong while you’re away, the fact that we already know where you are and how to reach you means we can step in quickly rather than spending precious time trying to track you down.
Related: Click here to read “Digital Estate Planning: Why Your Online Life Needs a Plan, Too.”
Your 3-Step Financial Travel Planning Checklist
This preparation holds everything together, so your accounts are secure before you head out.
1. Notify the people who watch over your finances.
- Let your advisor know your itinerary, including travel dates, destinations, and the best way to reach you. If something looks off in your accounts while you’re away, we want to be able to act quickly and reach you without guessing.
- Notify your banks and credit card companies about where you’re headed and when, so your own transactions don’t trigger a fraud lockout at the worst possible moment.
- Pay outstanding bills, send any pending wires, and handle any time-sensitive financial tasks, so you’re not trying to authorize a transfer over an unstable internet connection halfway around the world.
2. Know what’s in your wallet (and leave what you don’t need).
- Inventory your wallet. Write out every card you carry along with the issuer’s phone number, and then make a decision about which ones you’ll need on this particular trip. You probably don’t need five credit cards at the beach, and every extra card you bring is one more thing to cancel and replace if your wallet disappears on a bus or gets left behind in an Uber.
- Copy your essential documents. Think passports, driver’s license, insurance cards, your full itinerary, and any confirmation numbers you might need. Store digital copies somewhere secure that you can reach from any device.
3. Build your safety net.
- Consider creating a digital account vault and keep it current. A simple cloud-based folder can hold copies of everything that matters: estate planning documents, a list of assets, insurance policies, and healthcare directives. If your phone is stolen, you can still log in from a borrowed laptop or a new device and have everything at your fingertips.
- Give a trusted person access to that folder. Whether it’s a spouse, a parent, an adult child, or your financial advisor, someone other than you should know where everything lives and which accounts exist. If something happens and you’re unable to act on your own behalf, even temporarily, the people who care about you shouldn’t have to start piecing things together from memory.
- Review your travel insurance and healthcare coverage. Confirm that your policy applies to where you’re going, especially if it’s international, and make sure your healthcare directives are stored in that digital vault so you can pull them up from anywhere if the situation calls for it.
Think of this less as a one-time checklist you rush through the night before a flight and more as a system you build once and maintain over time. Before each trip, you’re just reviewing and refreshing what’s already there.
Digital Security: 5 Steps that Most People Overlook
Your phone holds your entire financial life now, from banking apps and investment accounts to authentication codes and saved passwords, and losing it or connecting it to the wrong network can expose far more than a stolen credit card ever could.
There are a few cybersecurity habits worth building into your routine, whether you’re traveling or not, though they become especially important when you’re away from the familiar rhythms of home:
1. Never log into financial accounts over public Wi-Fi.
Hotel networks, airport lounges, coffee shop connections, restaurant hotspots; none of them are secure, and logging into your bank on one of those networks is a bit like leaving your front door wide open in a neighborhood you’ve never visited.
Use your phone’s personal hotspot instead.
2. Move from text-based to app-based two-factor authentication.
Any two-factor authentication in place is a great practice, but an app-based method is the best route. Text messages can be intercepted if someone manages to compromise or redirect your phone number, and the sophistication of these scams is growing every year.
An authenticator app adds a much stronger second layer of protection that stays tethered to the device itself rather than to a number someone could reroute.
3. Remove the financial apps you won’t need while you’re away.
If your banking app is sitting on your phone and your phone is stolen, that’s one more door someone can try to open.
Deleting apps you won’t use during the trip and reinstalling them when you’re home is a small step that can meaningfully narrow your exposure.
4. Keep your devices locked and their software updated.
Those software updates you keep postponing often include critical security patches, and running them before you leave means you’re traveling with the strongest protection your device can offer.
5. Wait to share your trip on social media.
Posting your location in real time tells people, including people you don’t know, that your home is sitting empty. The vacation photos will be just as beautiful when you share them after you’re back, and you’ll probably enjoy the trip more without the distraction of curating it for an audience while you’re living it.
In the case of hacked accounts or stolen identity, the speed and clarity of your response can make all the difference between a simple inconvenience and a drawn-out financial headache.
If something ever does happen, we’re always here. We can help freeze accounts that we have access to and flag suspicious activity. That kind of backup is part of what it means to have a team looking after your whole financial picture.
A Quick Conversation Before Your Next Trip Can Make All the Difference
Travel should feel like a gift you’ve given yourself, not something you spend worrying about logistics back home. The preparation we’ve outlined here takes about an hour, and most of it only needs to happen once. After that, it’s just a quick refresh before you head out the door.
If you’re already a Team Hewins client, reach out before your next trip. We’ll help you make sure your accounts, documents, and digital security are all in good shape so you can pour your energy into the trip itself rather than worrying about what might go wrong while you’re away.
And if you’re not yet working with Team Hewins, we invite you to learn more about how our team can help you feel grounded and confident in your financial plan, wherever life takes you.
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Team Hewins, LLC (“Team Hewins”) is an SEC-registered investment adviser; however, such registration does not imply a certain level of skill or training, and no inference to the contrary should be made. We provide this information with the understanding that we are not engaged in rendering legal, accounting, or tax services. We recommend that all investors seek out the services of competent professionals in any of the aforementioned areas. Certain information provided herein is based on third-party sources, which information, although believed to be accurate, has not been independently verified by Team Hewins. Team Hewins assumes no liability for errors and omissions in the information contained herein.