Hey there, JFC-ers!
We've come to our final edition of the year, and what a year it has been for exciting travels.
January kicked off with a bunch of the JFC team making the most of an error fare to Tanzania that our flight finding geniuses dug up in late 2023. Of course, they made it their duty to test out all the sun, sea, sand, and safari they had time for so that they could whip up a cracking Zanzibar guide for you on their return.
Then in February, I put on the Out of Office and headed off on my honeymoon. Our week's Caribbean cruise was a great experience â very different to the way I usually travel â but topping that off with Mardi Gras in New Orleans and 5 days taking in the Costa Rican cloud forest truly made it a trip to remember.
Come spring time, Flight Finder Fran took off on a tasty Sakura-hunting adventure in Korea and Japan, while Lauren hit the Andes with a trip to Peru and Bolivia.Â
Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan were next on my list, and I wasn't the only one, as Flight Finders Kash and Kristi also found their way to Central Asia courtesy of cheap fares from Pegasus Airlines. Meanwhile, our Flight Finders from across the pond found themselves hitting Europe â but not without a couple of hurdles.
Across the team, we've rounded out the year with trips to Spain, Georgia, Turkey, Canada, Switzerland, Italy, and more, and honestly we couldn't feel more fortunate. So, where did you visit this year, and what were your memorable moments? Just hit 'Reply' to share your travel tales :-)
Today, we're going to keep things simple and share a couple of our favourite articles from earlier this year â our team's top packing hacks, and Bali tips from the JFC community.Â
And as for 2025, here's to another great year of travel! We look forward to sharing all our travel tips and stories with you, our wonderful Detour readers!Â
Katy - Editor of The Detour
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One-Bag Packing Hacks
You love low fares, we love low fares. Itâs why Jackâs Flight Club exists, and itâs why youâre here! If youâve ever tried flying anywhere on a budget, youâve no doubt run into low-cost airlines like Ryanair, easyJet, Spirit or Frontier. With fares that are often dirt-cheap, itâs hard not to be lured inâŠ
But when it comes to actually booking your flight, you quickly find out that these prices come with seemingly endless additional fees for things we used to take for granted. Sitting with your travel companions, having a drink (even water!), andâtheir top moneymakerâbringing a regular-sized cabin bag onboard can apparently be classified as true luxury these days.
Thatâs where so-called âone bag travelâ comes in. More than just a logical way of being tight-fisted and sticking it to the man by refusing to pay up, itâs become a whole way of life with a passionate online community. In fact, many travellers prefer the one-bag life, even when they donât have to pay extra for a checked bag.
It wonât surprise you that many among the JFC team also like to travel light (or, in my case, resent the idea of paying for a full-size cabin bag!). Knowing that itâs something they do a lot, I asked them for their top tips on keeping those bags under control:
"Collapsible everything! Only buy water bottles, Tupperware or household goods that you want to keep with you if they can collapse."Â -Â Olivia
You can find lots of â10 best collapsible water bottlesâ articles online, with options for all budgets. Iâd recommend checking reviews for mentions of durability and leakageâthe last thing you want is your one bag to be soaked through!
"Packing cubes/stuff bags!"- Tara
Absolutely no disagreements from me. Flight Finder Lauren swore by packing cubes to keep everything in order when backpacking across Europe, and Iâd go as far as to say that packing cubes are now an essential part of my packing regime at all times.
Regardless whether Iâm travelling light or with a full suitcase, I rely on them to maintain some semblance of organisation. Even my giant, sturdy (absurdly neon) Herschel number gets the packing cube treatment these days!
Flight Finder Kristi puts her somewhat superhuman packing skills down to her cubes, too:
"I'm very good at packing. We usually travel carry-on only, but even for our year of digital nomadding with two kids, we got enough stuff for 4 people for 1 year - from winters in Iceland to summer in Croatia - into 2 bags. One for clothes and one pretty much just for emergency medication! The key is packing cubes!" - Kristi
Next step, packing the kids in the cubes?
"This bag went viral, and now itâs on my whole familyâs must-have list!" - Andrea
I must admit, it does look like an especially smart solution for carrying a suit or dress that you donât want to get creased in your bag. Not everyone is an expert in tight rolls!
So You Want to Go to Bali...
âŠbut youâre worried about all the tourists? Youâre not alone.
Even with a reputation for being firmly on the beaten track, lots of us just canât shake that longing to see the lush terraced rice paddies and Hindu temples of Ubud with our own eyes.
The JFC Facebook community seems to be chock-full of Bali-ebers (hey, if Justin Bieber can do it, so can Bali). So when member Laurie shared her draft itinerary and admitted that she was overwhelmed by the choice of places to visit there, it was all hands on deck!
First up, sorting out the schedule. With around three weeks, how would JFC-ers divide their time? Our main takeaway: Ubud is worth the hype!
âI went to quite a few places for my honeymoon in September. We did Canggu, Ubud, Lombok, all 3 Gilis, and Uluwatu. Our favourite places were Gili T, Uluwatu and Ubud, but your favourites will depend on what kind of traveller you are!
We were also worried about Bali being too touristy (we didnât love Santorini for that reason) but definitely didnât find it bad at all.
I would say you probably want to condense the amount of places and spend more time in each one. We moved around every few days and it did feel a bit hectic.
Iâd say miss out Kuta (we didnât go but it hasnât got a great rep) and I donât think you need too long in Nusa Penida. You can do a day trip there from Bali if you want to, although weâre quite glad we didnât go, as our friends said itâs not for the faint-hearted when it comes to climbing down the rocks to the beach!
You could probably also choose between Canguu and Seminyak depending on what kind of vibe you like (apparently Seminyak has glitzier hotels and shopping).
Would go back to Bali in a heartbeat, despite the negative press it seems to get these days!â - Amy
âI recommend doing Leke Leke Waterfall, it was magical. I would do 4 nights in Ubud if possible. There is just so much to do. We also did a rafting tour, didn't expect much of it, but it was amazing. Just paddling through the jungle. I think 2 nights on Penida is indeed enough.
I also did a water purification, not at the touristy spots. But at a waterfall where it felt so pure. It was raining when I was doing it, which made it even more special!! It's called Beji Griya Waterfallâ - Fien
Kuta, on the other hand, is nobody's favourite:
âConsider doing Ubud, Seminyak, Gili Air and Komodo. Kuta is just a very busy city type placeâyou can do a day trip to Kuta or stop there on the way from Seminyak to Ubud.â - Anu
âKuta and Seminyak are literally 10 min apart, so Iâd personally do that as one area. Ubud is absolutely amazing, and I highly recommend the Mount Batur overnight trek. We found this such a chilled vibes place, late night coffee bars etc.
I finished my trip with a full week in Gili T and wow, I wish we did longer! We took the boat across to the other 2 Gili islands, but it was hard to top Gili T. Itâs probably the best place Iâve ever been to, it has something for everyone (or at least it did my multiple personalities) Maybe overly busy with tourists now, it was 6 years ago when I was there.â - Bethany
Despite its tiny stature, Gili Trawangan gets rave reviews. Unlike much of Bali, you wonât find any mopeds here, so itâs all about that bicycle life. Itâs the place to go for snorkelling, diving, and catching epic sunsets by the shore. And thatâs all before the nightlife kicks in!
But over the water lies the real gem in Indonesiaâs island crownâLombok.
âLombok was great after staying in Bali (Denpasar). Totally different cultures, and Lombok is less crowded. We spent 4 days in Bali, then took a fast boat to Lombok (via the Gilis). After 4 days in Lombok, we flew back to Bali.
We stayed at the Puri Mas. It was exceptional. It is owned by Dutch ex-world ballroom champions, who used it initially as their residence until the law changed, prohibiting foreigners from owning villas on the coast. They developed the site and built their residence a couple of miles inland, which is also the spa. The accommodation is amazing, quirky and memorable for all the right reasons.
There is a fair bit to see and do. We went on some tours (just the two of us) that included the monkey sanctuary, a village life tour and trekking. We went on a trip to the Gilis and snorkelling (these can be arranged through the concierge). Private tours too, and relatively cheap.
We also chatted to the bar staff, and they took us to their village one evening for supper.â- Frank
Just next door, but so much less popular with the Instagram crowd (except maybe Pink Beach!). The landscape on Lombok is varied, with hikeable volcanoes, a deluge of waterfalls, and a huge selection of quiet beaches, where you can build sand castles without worrying some big brute will come and kick them over. Unless youâre on Selong Belanak beach at sunset when the water buffalo come out.
2024's Pick of the ClicksÂ
Some of our favourite important (or silly, or strange) travel news from across the web this year.
- January: A flight attendant went viral last year after he worked out how to bake a cake at 30,000 ft and shared the evidence on TikTok. Unfortunately for Miguel, it also seems to have been his downfall.
- February: According to the South Korean Food Ministry, you really shouldnât eat deep-fried tooth picks. Nope, not even when topped with powdered cheese.
- March: Take a look inside the unexpectedly vibrant rave scene of Lagos, Nigeria. Warning: you may suddenly feel the urge to dance!
- April: Watch out for the owls in the bog! Enjoy these 20 incredibly entertaining idioms from around the world. Lid shut, monkey dead.
- May: Meet the 101-year-old passenger who keeps getting mistaken for a baby when she flies American Airlines.
- June: This video from the BBC Archives reminds us what life was like for women pilots back in the 1970s.
- July: Oslo wins the internet this week with its brand-new city tourism ad. Less of a "look how amazing it is here" and more of a humorous insight into real life in the Norwegian capital, we're already packing our bags to hop on the next flight over!
- August: Hereâs the moment a giant humpback whale took part in the Olympic surfing competition in Tahiti.
- September: *Moo Deng entered the chat* Who knew it was possible for snot bubbles to be so cute that theyâd have their own fan base?
- October:Â Whether youâre a fan of obscure locations, a budding Geoguessr champ, or really just donât want to run into anyone else on your next trip, this map of Americaâs loneliest roads should come in handy.
- November:Â Airlines in the US now have even more reason to make sure their services run on time, and the automatic refund rule comes into effect.
- And finally, December:Â Thanks to its new route connecting Istanbul with Santiago de Chile, Turkish Airlines has bagged itself a Guinness World Record! Operating in 131 countries around the world, it has officially been named the airline that flies to the most countries around the world.