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Travel Planning – Do You Do It?

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It has become increasingly clear that I make a terrible travel planner for myself. When I know I’m going some place I get so excited, read a whole bunch of stuff and that’s it. Any thoughts of travel planning get throw out the window. I figure out the important stuff of course: accommodation and how to get there. I’ll do a general overview and have a basic understanding of what there is to see and do there, but I have no set itinerary. If I’m traveling with someone else, I let them do all the work for me and plan the whole trip.

Planning for Vienna

This was the extent of my planning for Vienna: the address of my hostel and how to get there and the hours for a few of the Christmas markets.

Usually, once I get to my destination, I get a map, go on a walking tour to get a lay of the land and then start wandering. I like living in the moment and exploring on foot. I can get lost like its my job. I can wander alone happily for hours, not even noticing that I’m tired (but if I’m with someone else, they’ll get my whining).

Then there are times I find out about experiences that I missed out on just because I didn’t plan properly and didn’t do enough research. Like Prague for example. I had no idea I could climb up the clock tower in the Old Town Square and only found out because I was looking up information for my post on Prague. That is something I would have done just to see the city below me. A little bit of research would have solved that problem.

Guidebooks

How many travel inspiration and guidebooks do you have? This is just a small portion of mine…

Often, like the case here, when writing up blog posts, I research the history and random trivia about the places I visit. During the course of my incessant Googling, I discover so many other cool things to do that I miss out on. For some reason I find it so much more interesting to read about a place after I’ve been there already.

This is why I like slow travel. The more time I have in a city, the more time I have to slowly explore the city, research and understand. It gives me more opportunity to discover the hidden secrets that I otherwise would have no idea about. I can go back to places after I’ve read about them to really appreciate what it is that I’m looking at. Yes, I know I can read those informational posts and signs often at these attractions, but who has time for that? It’s all about looking at what is around you when you’re actually there. Reading comes later – at least for me.

NYC Food Planning

I’m very diligent about food planning though, especially in food-centric cities.

The funny thing is that I LOVE planning trips for other people and usually have tons of suggestions for things to do and see. It’s one of the main reasons I started this blog in the first place. Are you going to Budapest, Vancouver or even Victoria soon? Chat me up. I’ll share with you so many awesome things you won’t possibly have enough time to see, do or eat them all. (I promise)

I’m in the midst of planning for a few upcoming trips so we’ll see how it goes this time around.

Are you a planner? How much do you like to research about a city before you go?

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Comments

  1. I travel plan like a demon! Except that I know people who are more detailed, have every minute of the day for a whole trip planned! But destinations, a rough idea of how many days I’ll need in each, and I guess a VERY rough plan of how to get from A to B, thats what I do. And yes, I make many changes on the road. But to plan is to dream, and when you’re waiting for that break to get away, that can be what drives you. me. at least. great post!

    • Too true. Now that I have significantly less vacation time, I do a lot of trip planning for random places just to keep me entertained and looking forward to my next adventure whatever that may be.

  2. I am definitely a planner! Instead of my trip lasting the XX number of days I’m there, it actually lasts three times that amount because I’m already “there” while poring over guidebooks, internet sites, and mapping out all contingencies and possibilities! Sometimes we go on spur-of-the-moment trips (like this upcoming weekend’s camping trips in the Appalachians), but otherwise I’m all about the planning!

  3. Your style of travel sounds like my style of travel. With a few exceptions, I kind of like to go with the flow and just “discover” things, but like you, I have ended up missing out on some cool things that way. I think I need to take a little more of a planned approach, but like you said, I also like knowing about a place AFTER I’ve been there or really encountered it! Totally relate to this!

    • Haha, I take strange comfort in knowing I’m not the only one. I always feel so silly after the fact for missing out on something, but reading about a place after being there makes everything make more sense.

  4. I’m a neurotic travel planner. I get so excited about a trip, I have a hard time not researching a destination every moment I can. I literally spend hours looking things up and hunting for the best possible bargains. But once I get there, all my plans usually fly out the window and I spend most of my time wandering. I like to think it’s the best of both worlds but I know I can drive others crazy with both my planning and lack of follow through!

    • Haha! I wish I had your focus to do all that research. Reading about a place too much before I go makes me so excited and then I can’t focus on what I’m reading anymore. A vicious cycle and then I give up.

  5. Adelina…did I write this post? Really, when I get back and do more thorough research because I’m writing, I always learn of something else I should’ve done. Always. In saying that, I don’t want to overplan, and I certainly love being somewhat spontaneous…but this post just cracked me up…it’s sooooo me!

    • Haha, I’m glad I’m not the only one! Hopefully we both learn to read a little bit more so we don’t miss out on things 🙂

  6. I travel plan but not so much of a detail, more of rough guides, estimation of how long I will reach certain places and also possible scams at the areas I am visiting. Just in case! Plus lonely planet can be a great help at times! Oh and I am heading for a 10 day solo trip to Canada in Vancouver but have not decide in a plan yet hmmmm

    • That sounds similar to how I get ready for a trip as well. And woo! How exciting! Let me know if you need someone to talk your ear off about this great city or if you want to meet up at some point while you’re here 🙂

  7. I love planning and reading about a new destination but when I am there I just go with the flow. My favourite memories are never of planned experiences, always something that just happened spontaneously. I find traveling around Asia requires much less planning than our upcoming Europe trip but I expect to have many wonderful moments especially as my kids always open us up to different people and places.

    • I can see the Western countries requiring more planning – at least on the accommodation front. Going to some of the Balkan countries is pretty flexible though. I went to Serbia on a whim with 3 days before I left I think.

  8. I think I need to start building a memory palace, one for every destination I’ve been.
    Yes, that’s a lot of palaces; some will be taller and sparklier than others. 😉

  9. I am such a planner. I spend hours, days, weeks planning by reading guide books, blogs, searching Pinterest, reading reviews on TripAdvisor, looking up menus, reviewing maps and creating an itinerary that I load into my phone with locations so I can get GPS walking directions from place to place. I’m insane but it makes our family trips smoother and we feel free to rearrange and deviate when we get there but at least we understand the consequences of switching an activity from one day to another (like they may not be open on that day).

    • Do you want to plan my next few trips for me then? 😀 I need that level of organization! I’m lucky because a lot of the time I travel by myself or with just one other person so I don’t need to juggle the wants and needs of a variety of people. The next few trips I have planned are all with people so it’ll be interesting how much planning we actually do.

  10. I love this! My husband and I are a bit of both as well. I like to scope out the net for some ideas and travel books as well. Then I ask for recommendations from FB friends and bloggers I know who have been to those places/live in those places. After that I make a word doc to peruse. We typically have more on the list than we can see/do/eat so we pick as we go from there. But we always make sure that we each get our top few taken care of. 🙂 Great post! -Alexandra

    Simply Alexandra: My Favorite Things

    • Thanks Alexandra! Asking for recommendations from others is so important. I love getting first hand experiences and tips. I do the same – have a list and then pick and choose which ones I get to.

  11. So this summer isn’t a good example because I am on tours, but yes, I plan insanely!

    For example I have to travel from San Seb to Barca for my flight to split. My train gets to Barca at 13,30 so I have time to visit la Pedrera, I know the metro line and stop I need to get to. I know where I can put my backpack in a locker so I don’t have to carry it around with me! So… yeah. I plan a lot!

    • Do you want to plan for me? 😀 I like it to a point and then it becomes too tedious. One thing I do like know is how to get from point A to point B like in your example, but once I get some place then plans go out the window.

  12. I love reading about a place and then being able to see it up close and in person. It is amazing to know the history of a place and what you are looking at!

    However, as you mentioned, a lot of my travel planning goes out the window when I am traveling with other people. I usually do a bit of my own research but sometimes it is nice to be surprised if another traveler in the group has some of their own suggestions that I may have never heard of!

    • True, I wish I had more patience to read about things before I go so I can really appreciate it while I’m there. I usually don’t find out all the cool bits about places until after I go because I’m silly like that.

    • True, I wish I had more patience to read about things before I go so I can really appreciate it while I’m there. I usually don’t find out all the cool bits about places until after I go because I’m silly like that.

  13. I’m not a huge planner, but I do use custom google maps to make sure that for all that reading I do (like you) – it gets stored somewhere super useful. Then, when I arrive, I open it up and know what’s nearby where ever I am. It’s lazy planning, just to pop a pin on a map with no set plan on when to see the thing. But it’s great for when people you meet mention that you should totally see X, which I would otherwise forget the details of instantly 🙂

    • Google maps is a good one! I use to have all these custom maps, but for some reason I can’t open them on my phone anymore. I’ve resorted to making lists on Foursquare and using that as my guide. Not as user friendly as Google though.

      • Oh that is a shame Adelina! I use some ‘Google Map Engine’ app on my phone to see them. It’s clunky and a bit annoying that it doesn’t just integrate with the Google Maps apps – but it works well enough.

  14. Yes, yes I do! I usually make a spreadsheet outlining the important costs like flights, accommodation, insurance and spending money, and I write down some of the main things I want to do on the trip. I always read up loads on the places I a visiting beforehand, not necessarily for planning, but more because I just enjoy doing it, I find learning about new places fascinating!

    • You sound a LOT more organized than I ever am. Do you want to do my trip planning for me? You should totally make these spreadsheets available on your site. 😀

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