I love planning travel. I'm energized by the possibilities of new places, new discoveries, and new cultures. I get excited by piecing together transportation options and finding new ways to use my airline points. It's like a puzzle to me, so, when I'm looking for something to entertain me, I plan hypothetical trips, thinking maybe someday I might need a 6-week itinerary to Peru and Bolivia or details for a 10-day trek in Alaska. I do this so often that I had to stop and think when a friend recently asked me, "How do you plan for a trip?" She wanted to go on a trip with her siblings, a sister and brother, and wanted to keep it budget friendly. From there, she wasn't sure where to look next for locations, deals, and activities. I think that a big trip can seem overwhelming when there are so many details to arrange and things to decide. Plus, you feel like it's a big expense so you don't want to screw it up! This inquiry presented the perfect opportunity to blog about some of my trip planning techniques and favorite sites. Here's how I plan for travel! Throughout this post, I will use our 3-week summer trip to Europe as an example. 1. Determine your limiting factor(s)Pretty much everyone has at least one limiting factor on travel plans. Your limiting factors will help you pick a place to travel. These are some of the most common:
You might be looking at the list and thinking, "ALL of those are my limiting factors." You very well might have more than one! Once you determine your limiting factors, you will have a better idea of where you can go. When I was planning our summer trip, all of the mentioned limiting factors were at play:
These limiting factors led us to choose a trip to Europe, primarily Eastern Europe, which is cheaper for travelers than Western Europe. 2. What Kind of Traveler Are You?Some people prefer to see a lot when traveling. Some would rather lay on the beach. Some people want to try new cuisines. Others still want to experience the great outdoors through active travel. Many people like a mix of these things. What do you want out of this particular trip? Are you stressed at work? You might need a low-key getaway. Hate feeling constantly connected? Find somewhere off-the-grid. Love hustle and bustle? Look into big cities with lots to do. Answering these questions for yourself will help determine specifics of where to go. Brett and I love the outdoors, trying new food and drink, and immersing ourselves in the culture of a place. We wanted to be active on our travel and move between multiple cities. This gave me a framework for what to plan: multiple countries in Europe and accessible ground transportation (trains, buses) to move around easily. My favorite websites when looking into destinations are Wikitravel, Rough Guides, and Nomadic Matt's Travel Guides. Type in a city or country of interest on Wikitravel and get a general sense of things to do, how to get there, and the safety/security of a travel destination. My absolute favorite part of the Rough Guides website is the "Things Not to Miss" for each country, a slideshow of the highlights in beautiful pictures. Check out this example of "Things Not to Miss" for Slovenia. Nomadic Matt has amazing tips on budgeting and how much you should expect to spend in a country. 3. Find Your AirfareStart with airfare because your arrival and departure determines the number of nights you need for accommodation, as well as the amount of time you have for exploration and fun. It's also likely to be one of the biggest chunks of your budget, unless you are using rewards points to book airfare. My favorite websites to use when searching for flights are the ITA Matrix by Google and Airfare Watchdog. You can't book directly from the ITA Matrix but you can compare various airlines, write down the flight numbers, and search for those cheap flights on the airline website. Tips for affordable airfare
4. Research Other TransportationIf you're planning to stay in one place for the duration of your travels, skip this step! Transportation within or between countries determines a lot about your itinerary. Flying between cities will save you time but will cost more. Trains and buses are affordable but take time. Again, look at your limiting factors! Do you need to save time or money? In planning for Europe this summer, Brett and I had settled on Eastern Europe for budgetary reasons. But, Brett really wanted to try Trappist beer in Belgium. For the sake of time, I decided we would have to fly between Belgium and Eastern Europe, so I turned to the RyanAir Interactive Route Map to find out where they flew from Brussels. I discovered cheap flights between Brussels Charleroi Airport and Budapest. This saved us time and, actually, money because the flights were priced so low compared with train travel. From there, I looked at the rail networks in Europe - where could we travel easily from Budapest? Ultimately, I picked Slovenia and Croatia. Transportation pulled together the details of our itinerary, allowing me to see how much transport time we needed between places and how much time we could spend in each city. My favorite website for researching train travel is The Man in Seat 61. This guy is amazing. He has guides for train travel across the world. Prior to reading his website, I assumed I would have to purchase Eurail passes to travel between Budapest, Slovenia, and Croatia, which would have cost us over $300 for two travelers. Using The Man in Seat 61's tips, I discovered that there is a train between Budapest and Ljubljana, Slovenia for 19 Euros per person. He detailed how to book these cheap fares and whether it was better to book in advance or buy tickets at the station. With these tips, I have pieced together train and bus routes around Eastern Europe for about $160 total - 50% of the cost for Eurail passes! For bus travel, google "bus between [city A] and [city B]". Travel forums and blogs are helpful for this. I typically look at forums and blogs as a starting point. People will share comments like "We took a bus using [company X]. It cost this much". Then, I google that bus company to look at prices and schedules. You might not be able to book the ground transportation now or even before you go, but it's a good idea to research how long transport will take in order to determine your itinerary and book accommodation. In your research, you should be able to find out whether you can book ahead or buy your ticket in person at the train station. 5. Make a working itineraryIt's not complete yet but you need a working itinerary so you can plan for accommodation Some people don't like to plan. If you want to just buy a train pass, hop on the train, and find accommodation when you get to each place, go for it! I like to have accommodation and know how long I will be in each city, but I enjoy scheduling tours and activities when I arrive, based on the recommendations of locals. To make a working itinerary, list the dates of travel and start filling in the things you know from researching transportation. It might look like this: May 28 - Fly out of Austin, TX (overnight) May 29 - Arrive in Brussels, Belgium (midday) May 30 - May 31 - June 1 - June 2 - Fly Brussels to Budapest June 3 - You should have blank spaces by some of the days! This allows you to fill in what you will be doing when you're not traveling between cities, which might look like this: May 28 - Fly out of Austin, TX May 29 - Arrive in Brussels, Belgium (midday), train to Ghent May 30 - Ghent May 31 - Ghent June 1 - Ghent June 2 - Fly Brussels to Budapest June 3 - Budapest Since it's a working itinerary, you can move things around and change ideas. You can also add in ideas for day-trips or excursions if you would like. By doing this, you will be able to determine how long you will be in each city, so you can book accommodation! 6. Book AccommodationYou know where you're going and how long you'll be in each place! Yippee! Now you need a place to stay. Here are some budget-friendly options: Airbnb My new go-to spot for budget accommodation is Airbnb. Since Brett and I got married, I have realized that those hostel dorm prices don't look quite as low when doubled, since they are listed per person per night. Plus, there is no privacy for a married couple in a 14 bed dorm. I've realized by doing a price comparison that I can often find an AirBnB room or apartment that works out to be cheaper than a hostel for two and offers more privacy and flexibility with cooking and coming/going. Hostels Hostels offer a safe and social space for travelers to interact. The cheapest option is typically a large dorm. Most hostels offer mixed dorms as well as same-sex dorm rooms. When we travelled to Ireland, my friend and I stayed in a female dorm in Dublin and a private room in Galway because the private room was equal in price to a dorm. In addition to being a great place to interact with fellow travelers, hostels offer a variety of amenities, from breakfast to free wifi to luggage storage. Luggage storage can be a huge help if you have to check out but want to continue sightseeing before your flight or train. When hiking in Chilean Patagonia, our hostel stored our extra luggage for the entire 5 day, 4 night trek. My favorite website to find and compare hostels is HostelWorld. Camping If you are going on an outdoorsy trip or a trek, camping might be your only option. Or you might wan to camp in order to save even more money. Check out these beautiful campsites around the world. Of course, you will need to have or purchase camping gear and carry it with you as you travel. Unusual Accommodations Did you know you can work on an organic farm in exchange for accommodation? The organization is called WWOOF, World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms. You can also stay in monasteries around the world fairly cheaply. 7. Fun Fun Fun!You know where you're going, how you're getting there, and where you're staying. Now it's time for the fun part! You can either sit back, relax, and wait for your trip, or you can plan things you want to see and do when you get there! Start googling!
For our European trip, I wanted to leave plenty of time for unstructured exploration because I love the surprises you can find while wandering around a city. However, I looked up how to get to the Trappist brewery in Belgium, since that was the one thing Brett requested that we do. I also looked into allergy friendly restaurants in each city because I am allergic to gluten and Brett is allergic to dairy. It was important to me to find some allergy-friendly restaurants beforehand. While doing that research, I found these travel cards that explain Celiac Disease in various languages. The tips and helpful hints available on the internet these days are truly amazing. Happy travel planning, everyone!
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AuthorMy name is Alyssa Good and I have a passion for travel, adventure, culture, and new experiences! I focus on budget friendly travel, trip planning resources, and seeking out new experiences. Archives
December 2017
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