TODAY WE ARE GOING TO TEACH YOU WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT WORLD POWER PLUGS, TRAVEL ADAPTERS, AND CONVERTERS.
When you travel domestically, life is easy peasy. That phone charger you’ve got? Fits perfectly into the outlet at your hotel. That hair curler? The blow dryer? Fits like a puzzle in the bathroom outlet.
However when you travel internationally, things can get messy. Outlets take on a life of their own abroad. From circles to squares and two prong to three prong, finding a way to charge your electronic necessities can be a struggle.
Trying to plug your electronics into international outlets is truly like trying to plug a square peg into a round hole. Your plugs won’t fit into their outlets. You’re lucky if they even have outlets conveniently placed in the bathroom for you to use.
What do you do? You scramble around at local stores to try and find the right converter and adapter for the country you’re in. If you’re lucky you find one promptly. If you’re not so lucky, you are unable to find one and are left with untamed hair and a dead cell phone.
The solution: Buy the correct power adapter and converter before you travel.
Today we are going to make things easy for your travel prep in typical #organizedtravel fashion. Part One you will learn what adapter you’ll need by country. Part Two you will learn what converter you’ll need if you live in North America.
PART ONE | ADAPTERS
Travel power Adapters can be of the following types: A- O.
In general, the best match by country is:
- Japan, Taiwan, Central America, Caribbean, South America | A or B
- Europe, Middle East, Israel, some Asian countries, some African countries | C, E, or F
- United Kingdom, Ireland, Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia, some African countries | G
- China, Australia, New Zealand, Fiji | I
For more specifics by country, check out REI’s Electricity Guide.
Be sure you buy one that is nationally recognized and tested with one of these labels.
Here are some quick links to some good combo pack power adapters:
Includes Types A, B, E/F, G, I –>
Includes adapters for countries: HK/UK/Ireland(UK), Germany/France/Spain(EU), Australia/New Zealand (AU), Italy(IT) –>
PART TWO | CONVERTERS
The second device you may need to power up is a converter.
The world runs on two types of electricity: 110/125V (North America) or 220/240V (the rest of the world). Those of us traveling from North America to another country therefore need a converter to change the voltage of electricity to match the voltage of our device.
Check out your electronic devices (ie phone charger, straightener, hair curler, razor, etc) and if it’s 110/125V, then you’ll need to pick up a converter before traveling outside the country.
Be sure to get your adapters and converters before traveling! You don’t want to risk getting to your destination and being stuck with an adapter or converter that is not certified and tested. World power plugs are different in every country so be sure be prepared ahead of time.