How to Plan Your Travel Itinerary
Whether you’re visiting an exotic overseas destination or even just heading out of town for a long weekend, having a travel itinerary can be a huge advantage. You know where you want to be, how you’re going to get there and back and when, so you’re free to relax and enjoy the experience more. Far from stifling your freedom to do whatever you like on your holiday, a well-planned itinerary means you’re less likely to miss out on the activities you really wanted to experience. It’s all about creating enough structure to make sure you get to enjoy all those must-see attractions and experiences, whilst leaving enough wriggle room to be spontaneous.
Let’s go through some of the do’s and don’ts to creating a travel itinerary that leaves you plenty of room to break with the schedule when you feel like it, and still, make sure you get the most possible out of your well-deserved break!
Do – start with a list of the attractions you really, really want to see
Once you have your travel dates set, take a look at local tourist sites that cover upcoming events in the area. If there’s a major event like a music festival, cultural week or parade for example, you might want to be aware of the dates before you start planning your other activities. Sites like Instagram are often excellent places to find inspiration for your destination!
Now make a comprehensive list of everything you’d like to do, and then arrange them by priority. Writing them out on cards and doing this as a family or couple is a good way to make sure everyone’s getting to do something they really enjoy.
Now all you need to do is consult a map so you can plot a route that includes as many of your priority activities as possible. There are some really fantastic apps like Google Trips that will help you along every step of the way, even making suggestions of similar attractions you might enjoy too. TripCase, Tripit, TouristEye and WorldMate are just a few examples of apps that can make planning your itinerary even easier. If you prefer to of course, good old pen and paper work just fine too!
Don’t – try and cram too much into your stay
We all have a tendency to overestimate the amount of free time we’ll have on a trip and forget about those inevitable delays! Never plan an activity for the day you arrive, as you’ll almost certainly be tired from the journey and want to settle into your accommodation. This is especially true if you’re travelling with children, so don’t plan anything for the first day other than where you’re going to be eating!
Make sure you leave a few days completely unplanned for. This will give you time to spend the day just chilling out, letting off some steam with round of golf, a few paintball games, or just exploring the area a little bit in a leisurely manner – whatever floats your boat. It’s supposed to be a holiday, after all. This also gives you the freedom to include some activities that you might only have found out about once you arrived too, or fit in activities you had to cancel if the weather hasn’t cooperated with your plans.
Do – always have a plan B
The information you’ve been given about a destination isn’t always up to date or accurate, so make sure you have as many backup plans as possible. Public transport may prove more difficult to use than you anticipated, or things might turn out to be a lot more expensive than you hoped. It’s a bummer, but always expect to need more spending money than you anticipated! A good travel itinerary should act as a guideline that helps you avoid bumps in the road wherever possible. Have a backup activity and alternative transport arrangement whenever it’s feasible.
Don’t – try and plan everything down to the last minute
Planes and trains get delayed, strange airports can be disorienting, that awesome venue might be closed on the day you wanted to visit – you get it – not every aspect of your trip can, or should, be planned in exquisite detail. Try to avoid committing to any strict times or making too many activity bookings ahead of time before you’ve had a chance to get a feel for the destination.
Do – throw all the plans out the window sometimes
If you stumble across something really amazing on your journey, you really shouldn’t let sticking to the itinerary get in the way of your enjoyment. Embrace and savor the spontaneous moments too!
