I've had a few people ask me about travel and things they should do for a smoother experience, I'm definitely no expert but I will give advice if asked.
If you plan on traveling and doing some training, traveling for a competition, or just traveling, there a few things to keep in mind to make things go as smooth as possible. When I first started, I was pretty much a shit show, throwing things in bags, always needing something which I'd forgotten to pack. After a bit of trial and error, I wouldn't say I've got it down to a science, but it works.
For Jiu-Jitsu, if you don't bring it with you, more than likely you're not going to find it. It's not as if you can run to Walmart or a local sporting goods store if you're in a foreign country, it's hard enough to find stuff you need at home. You need to bring whatever it is from home, pack light and be ready for anything. I have a solid back pack which, without making it too heavy, can fit my Gi, shorts, spats, rash-guard, compression shorts, rope (15 ft max for a clothes line), some toiletries and a small towel. I always wear my slides while flying, and tuck my shoes in the bottle pouches on either side of my backpack. With this setup, if my luggage is lost or if my Gi is dirty, I can wash/dry the stuff I'm wearing or my training gear. Regarding your training gear....pack a WHITE Gi. Just because your or my school isn't formal doesn't mean that the other schools out there aren't formal also. You want to make a good impression, after all you are representing your school and instructor, plus you are a guest. I also recommend bring a few scented trash bags to put your Gi, no matter how good you think you hand wash it, it's still going to have a bit of a funky smell to it.
For electronic/mobile communication while traveling, myself included, most of us don't have a phone which works out of the country. However you have a few options to work with.
For starters you can wing it or go without...I’ve tried this and I ended up lost in some random neighborhood in Portugal. It’s always good to have a way to contact someone if something bad happens, so I wouldn’t recommend this option.
Now if you are tech savvy, you can get a Google Voice number, download Google Hangouts Dialer and use this number over WiFi and spend nothing. The only thing is you need a reliable WiFi connection but in some places you're going to be out of luck finding a WiFi connection.
Option 3 is to shell out for the international plan with your current network. For example, the mid-tier AT&T plan is $60 for 1Gb data (the overage is $50/Gb), and $0.35 per minute which will add up quick especially if you use SatNav for directions.
Another option is Project Fi, the mobile service from Google. I’ll let you read the fine print, but essentially Project Fi allows you to use your NORMAL data/data plan when you travel to other countries, this would then allow you to use WiFi calling with your own number, not an extra number like prior suggestion.
T-Mobile has a contract free plan called Magenta Plus. This plan gives you unlimited talk, text, and up to 5GB high-speed data in Mexico & Canada and unlimited texting & up to 256kbps data in 210+ countries and destinations.
The best option is to have an unlocked mobile or mobile with a Dual Sim. I have a OnePlus 7T and purchase a local sim card in the country where I am. For example, with Vodafone Ireland/Portugal, you can get a sim and number for €10, top up (add minutes and data) for another €20 with the result being 6GB data, unlimited Vodafone calls and texts and 100 any network minutes & texts. Total cost is prob around $40 for more than enough data and calling while you are on your trip.
One of the most important aspects of travel is the financial part.
I'm not rich (my cousin Brian used to say “bruv, we ain’t got a pot to piss in”) and don't have much money (I don’t work two jobs because it’s fun), but I also have minimal hobbies (Jiu-Jitsu and Travel) so I spend what I have on things I want to do. There are two things which I do in order to facilitate travel. The first is the most basic, pay myself. I put a few dollars away every check and by the time I’m ready to go away, at least a small portion is already paid for. The second thing I do is charge it (the American way), but this is something you need to be careful doing. In the states, you can go anywhere and use your bank card and cash, overseas it's not as easy. If they even work, most debit cards charge you some fees (conversion fee, transaction fee etc.) Some credit cards will also do this (I was caught by this on my first trip overseas). Once I got back, saw what I actually paid in fees, I was pissed although I couldn't really blame anyone but myself. So I did some legwork and found that Capital One Venture card has a card with no fees, so I signed up. The card is pretty handy and earns you points which don't expire on purchases as well as allowing you to use these points to "Erase" purchases within 90 days, giving you your money back, or redeem points for new travel bookings. I've used both options and try my best to keep adding to my point total with everyday purchases.