Few things are more annoying than arriving in a country for a vacation and discovering you can’t plug in your devices and need to seek out a hardware store for an adapter.
Although many hotels offer USB charging outlets, travelers can’t count on that. If you accidentally leave your converter in one hotel and arrive at the next converterless, don’t hesitate to ask the front-desk staff if you can borrow a charger or converter that another guest left behind. Power Plug Standards
If the country you’re visiting operates on 220-240 volts, Matthew Price, owner of a Mr. Electric (mrelectric.com) franchise, recommends packing a converter with surge protection, because it acts “like a sponge — if any voltage spikes, it absorbs it and takes it safely back to ground.” (Mr. Electric is part of the Neighborly platform (getneighborly.com), which helps connect consumers to home-service providers.)
Conrad McGregor’s worldstandards.eu website, the source of this chart, notes that the voltage in most countries is between 220 and 240 volts (50 or 60 Hz) rather than between 100 and 127 volts, on which the U.S. operates. Worldstandards.eu also lists countries (ranging from Afghanistan to Vatican City) omitted here.
“For travelers, it’s about safety,” Price said. “The cool thing about 100-240 volts is that most smartphones are designed to charge at either 110 or 220 volts.”
Also, the International Electrotechnical Commission’s website is another resource. Here’s a listing of plugs and sockets and some of the places where they are used.
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