It’s almost time for Cisco Live in Las Vegas. It’s Friday morning here and I have 95% of the packing done and I leave on Saturday. If this is your first time going to CLUS or even going to the US it can be challenging to know what to pack and if you need to bring cash etc. Here are some of my recommendations for packing. Make a list so that you don’t forget to pack things.

Essentials

Make sure to pack your passport. This is pretty obvious. Hopefully you already made sure that the passport is up to date as well.

I bring a copy of my approved ESTA. This is not mandatory but it’s nice having it there in case a security officer asks you. Depending where you are from you might not be part of the ESTA program.

I always print a copy of my booking for the flight and hotel etc. While not something you need when you have electronic check-in etc. I still like to keep a copy so that I have all of the info about my flight and hotel in case I can’t get on my phone.

Electronic Devices

Bring a power bank. There are power outlets in the convention area but it’s nice having the power bank in case you run out of power in your phone. I just bring a small one that fits in the pocket of my jacket.

Bring a travel adapter. If you are from the EU then likely you only have two prongs on your laptop power adapter and your phone charger etc. In the US they have a different power system and the power adapters are three-pronged for earthed power. I bought a travel adapter some years ago from Kross. Has worked fine for me.

Make sure you charge all your devices before going. If you have an electric toothbrush, electric shaver etc. but also the power banks so that they are fully charged in case you need them. In some airports there aren’t a lot of power outlets available.

Other things I put in my laptop bag is:

  • iPhone charger
  • Headset
  • Power adapter for laptop
  • Mouse for laptop
  • USB memory
  • Pen
  • Notebook

Clothes and shoes

Bring whatever clothes you find suitable for the CLUS destination. Las Vegas is very hot of course but you will be inside 90% of the time where the AC is cranked up to the max. For that reason you may want to bring a long-sleeved shirt or jacket in case you get cold in one of the sessions.

Bring some shoes that you are comfortable walking in. On a normal day I usually have around 15000 steps and 10km of walking so be prepared to walk a lot.

Financial

Your Visa or MasterCard will work just fine if you have one that allows for international purchases. The one I use I can select what regions it is active in. In Sweden we have to enter a pin when purchasing something and we have a chip for extra security to make it a bit more difficult to skim and copy the card. In the US you can’t expect those measures to be used and sometimes they’ll take your card back in the store for processing. For that reason I like to bring cash for taxis and for some shopping. I do use my credit card in select places though. I normally use a credit card with 30 days before I have to pay so if someone goes crazy with it I would at least have time to dispute the bill when I get back home.

Phone

My carrier has the option of buying calls, text messages and data (1GB) abroad for around 35$ When that is enabled I don’t have to be afraid I’ll be getting a huge phone bill when I get back home. You’ll be on Wi-Fi almost all of the time but that 1GB of data gives you enough to be able to chat with people, check Google maps etc. Look into if your carrier has a similar option.

That should sum up some of the things you should think about before going. If you have specific questions I’ll try to answer them in the comments. See you at Live!

General – My Packing List for CLUS and Advice for International First Timers
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3 thoughts on “General – My Packing List for CLUS and Advice for International First Timers

  • June 23, 2017 at 5:12 pm
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    Have fun! NHL awards were just done 🙂

    Some folks travelling to the US these days bring a freshly installed laptop/note taking device without any of your keys or passwords ever having touched it.. Not sure if it’s too paranoid or not but if it’s not too much work I might do this if I get to go to the US again 🙂

    Reply
    • June 24, 2017 at 6:06 am
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      Yeah… I was thinking about it but would take a lot of time to set everything up again.

      Kind of bummed EK65 didn’t wint the Norris…

      Thanks!

      Reply
  • June 25, 2017 at 6:31 am
    Permalink

    I wish you safe journeys and a productive confererence, Daniel.

    I attended Cisco Live Melbourne this year (about 1/4 the size of the US event!); so Iwill miss the US event and the CSC/CLN VIP dinner.

    Reply

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