How to Have Good Luck on Your Travels

An elephant charm is believed by some to bring good fortune.

While not everyone is a believer in superstitions, there are a number of them that revolve around the world of travel. According to various legends and beliefs, here are several ways to encounter good luck during your travels.

Instructions

1. Take a lucky charm along with you. The most popular items in this genre are probably a rabbit's foot and a four-leaf clover. Of course, the foot apparently wasn't too lucky for the rabbit in question, so it's hard to tell how much stock to put into that superstition.

2. Avoid the number 13, which is said to be extremely unlucky. The truly superstitious will avoid sitting in the thirteenth row of a plane, lodging on the thirteenth floor, and sometimes even traveling on the 13th (especially if it's a Friday!).

3. Look out for crickets! Letting them into your lodging, or accidentally killing one, is bad luck. Along similar lines, elephant pictures and ornaments-especially when placed facing the door-are said to bring good luck. And hopefully they'll keep the crickets out too!

4. When visiting the "Eternal City" of Rome, make sure to throw three coins into the Trevi Fountain if you wish to have the good fortune of returning to Rome one day. And visitors to Ireland wanting to be luckily endowed with the "gift of gab" should kiss the famous Blarney Stone, at Blarney Castle (near Cork).

5. Enjoying a live performance during your travels can be a great way to take in some culture and entertainment at the same time. But be sure to never utter the word "Macbeth" or whistle in a theatre-both are said to bring ill fortune!

6. For anyone taking an ocean cruise or other sea journey, some claim that it's good luck to spill wine on the deck. Also, dolphins swimming alongside your ship are considered good luck, if you happen to spot a school. But avoid cutting your hair or nails aboard ship, or bringing flowers along for the cruise, both are considered to cause bad luck.

7. Don't forget to hold your breath when going past a graveyard, or to lift up your feet when your vehicle goes over train tracks. And-of course-if you see a black cat about to cross your path, do whatever you can to avoid that from happening!