Wales Week USA

A stag do abroad can be one of the most enjoyable weekends you and your friends will ever go on and the excitement can mean it is easy to forget the simple things needed to make sure you have a trouble-free trip. But large groups of lads in a foreign country, combined with high spirits and lashings of booze can sometimes be a tricky combination. Here are five simple tips to remember to make sure your trip doesn’t take a sour turn:

Think about the numbers
It is easy to get carried away when organising a stag weekend and invite everyone you’ve ever met and plenty of people you haven’t. But remember, if you’re going to an unfamiliar country then there is a lot that could go wrong, from large groups being turned away from nightclubs to gaining unwanted attention from angry locals. Make sure you can keep the numbers under control and, as with any holiday, be respectful and behave yourselves.

Take out insurance
Boring details like insurance are probably far from your mind as you prepare to set off for a weekend of debauchery, but plenty has gone wrong on stag weekends in the past and it will do again – don’t end up picking up the tab. Accidents do happen on adventure activities such as quad biking or even an innocent game of football, not to mention the alcohol-induced slips, trips and falls on a night out. If you need medical treatment then you don’t want to be picking up the bill, while lost bags, missed flights and stolen wallets are just some of the other things that you will want to protect yourself against.

Look after your passport
It’s essential to take ID with you whenever you go out as it’s not uncommon for someone to have a few drinks too many and end up lost, passed out or hospitalized with no phone, money or identification. But make sure you keep your passport safe at all times, preferably in a locked safe back at your hotel. You won’t get any sympathy from airport security even if you only have a day to get back from your wedding.

Take it easy on the flight
The excitement is bound to be building when you arrive at the airport and it’s not unheard of to start the day off with a shandy or two before getting on the plane – just make sure your group doesn’t get too carried away, especially mid-flight. Being drunk and disorderly on the plane over could see your weekend cut short before it’s even begun – and you could be swapping your hotel room for a police cell if you don’t behave.

Take care at strip clubs
Trust your instincts when trying to find a strip club. There is no shortage of horror stories of groups of stags held at gunpoint, locked inside until they hand over all their cash or marched to cashpoints by strip club ‘security’ staff, especially in some Eastern European cities which have become relatively recent additions to the stag circuit. The ‘tourist’ strip clubs in busy, safer areas may charge you more for entry and drinks, but it’s safer than venturing off the beaten path.

Written by event organizer of Chillisauce Tom Tolladay, specialized in Stag Weekends & Activity Weekends