1. QUIT YOUR JOB! FOLLOW YOUR DREAMS!
2. Apply for a Visa in Australia (or the country of your choice) and update your passport. Okay, maybe do this first before you quit your job. The work/holiday visa for Australia was easy to get after paying a small fee of course. Book flights when you see a good price.
3. Get an international credit card. There are some cards out there (e.g. Capitol One) that do not charge a 3% international fee per charge. Some offer insurance on flights and car rentals purchased with the card and have points that can be redeemed for a hotel room or flight.
4. Set up your bank account in the country you will live in to help reduce ATM fees.
5. Get vaccinated. It can be expensive, but a lot of health insurance companies cover them or a portion of the cost. Long term stay in Australia only requires a few shots, but I made sure to get ANY shot needed for travel in Oceania, Asia, and Indonesia. If the opportunity comes to hop on a plane to New Caledonia, I won't have to worry about getting sick. I mean who wants to end up with Japanese encephalitis! Awful.
6. SAVE MONEY! Eat ramen, pack your lunch, channel your college days. Every penny counts and will be used abroad.
7. Make an appointment for your travel physical, dentist, and eye doctor. Get a year supply of contacts and any medications you'll need - including something for the flight! Let's face it, there are not enough in flight movies and games that will make a flight to Australia bearable in coach.
8. Have a garage sale, post items on Craigslist, donate to those in need, and find storage if you need it. The less you take, the less you haul. Australia has clothes and toiletries, too :)
9. Find happy homes for your pets or find boarding.
10. Get an international phone plan or cancel your phone. I will be getting a local Australian number on a pay as you go phone and canceling my 412 number (tear, tear). I've set up everyone I know on Skype video chat or Google voice.
11. Have someplace to go when you arrive. Pam-O and I just booked our apartment for the week so we have a place to be comfortable while becoming adjusted to Sydney time. Depending on your comfort level, www.couchsurfing.org , www.airbnb.com , and www.hostelworld.com are great options.
Some people don't want to plan everything, but we have a loose idea of where we'd like to go when we arrive in Australia. Key word is LOOSE. After all this planning, I'm ready to embrace the plan of having NO set plan. I can't wait to see where in the world we end up!
