How to Plan a Trip for Dummies

Plan Now, Worry Less Later…

The most disappointing part of travel is when you feel like you haven’t done enough, OR you leave a destination and find something you wish you had done later. The best way to avoid these issues is to plan in advance. By planning, you can make the most out of your trip with having less worries during. My best advice is to research and book ahead of time because at the end of the day plans can always change later. This will not only help you to control a budget but ease your mind when you make it to your destination. Although it is very possible to travel one day at a time, it all depends on your wants and needs. Digital Nomads, Backpacking, and “on the go” can obviously require less planning in advance as there might not be a specific route in mind. As someone who needs a plan, and likes to have the entire trip flow together, I have come up with a planning list on how I do things. I have always planned my own trips... with that being said, these are my 10 steps to success!

STEP 1: Budget

Pick a budget that works best for you and your trip. This goes along with the length of trip, destination, and the type of travel you are looking for. This solely depends on the person! Don’t feel like you can’t travel just because you feel like you don’t have enough money saved. I promise there are ways! If you are unfamiliar with travel levels, I’ll make it simple.. Budget, Mid-Scale, Luxury. For me personally at my age and income I prefer a Budget-Mid-Scale option. To create your initial budget, you can go around it 1 of 2 ways. Either choose a budget and then design your trip based around it, OR choose your destination, do some research, and design your budget. With this being said, being involved in the Hospitality Industry gives me some prior knowledge of how much travel normally costs. For a mid-scale example, my most recent trip was 6 weeks in Europe. With this, I knew I would be staying in a variety of accommodations with lots of transportation expenses, food cost, activities, etc. I set a goal price of $5500 for prior booking with the idea of $500 buffer to cover unplanned costs.

How did you break that down?

The dates I chose were specific to flight cost. I went in early May which is considered to be outside of peak season. The initial flight was much cheaper to get there than it would have been if I started my trip in July. Overall, below is how I broke down my budget:

I had points saved up for the purpose of traveling. With this I booked flights that were around $800 round trip from the states and then two other flights in Europe that made for the extra $200 listed.
Staying in a variety of accommodations made this part very difficult to budget. I ended up budgeting around $50/night to give myself a base to work with. With this, some of the hostels I booked ended up being around $25 a night which gave me some leeway to book some nicer hotels and Airbnbs.
I bought a Eurail pass on sale for $400 which gave me access to all the trains I needed to get from destination to destination. The extra $200 was used for bus, metro, cab, ferry, etc. Transportation is always the thing that tends to add up so this is something to keep in mind.
Again, depending on your type of travel this can vary. I budgeted around $30 a day or $10 per meal (breakfast, lunch, dinner).
There are many free things you can do as an activity, but with some initial research I knew there were some excursions I was interested in doing at specific locations. See the booking section for more information.
I cannot stress enough how important this is. I paid $150 for travel insurance which was recommended for my trip cost and length. This will help to cover medical care, emergency evacuation, and much much more. It is a great safety belt to have especially if you are clumsy like me!

STEP 2: Length of Trip

The length of your trip can impact the budget tremendously, so like mentioned above, steps 1-3 could go out of order depending on how you decide your budget. When deciding how long you want for your trip, think about the following: How long you can be on the road living out of a suitcase? How can I maximize my PTO days? How much time do you need in every location (if going to multiple places)? Also, to note... do some research because some places offer discounts depending on how long you stay.

STEP 3: Choose Your Destination/Route

Once deciding the length of trip, you will be able to decide your route. Take transportation into consideration. What locations have direct flight and train routes? How long will my travel day take? If you’re like me, create a list of bucket locations in your notes and see how they align with each other. Rome2Rio is a great resource that I use ALL the time. It will show you the best and cheapest route from destination to destination. Another thing that helps me decide is to look at a map! This sounds so simple, but sometimes it's better to have a visual to show you at glance what is feasible and what isn’t

Remember when choosing your destination to take time of year and weather into consideration. Weather and temperature are different everywhere... for instance when it's summer in the United States it's winter in Australia.

STEP 4: Transportation

When booking transportation, there are more options than you may think. Again, Rome2Rio is a great initial resource to see the best route and price from location to location. Here are some of the forms of transportation I have used during my trips: Plane, Car (rent, uber, cab rideshare), Metro, Train, Ferry, Bus, Walking, Bike. As I mentioned in the budget section, transportation always seems to be the thing to add up. Make sure to compare prices beforehand.

TIP: Always ask cab drivers the cost before you ride in the car and compare the cost to UBER.

TIP: Do research on safe and recommended public transport as it is different everywhere.

STEP 5: Accommodation

Depending on the type of travel you are looking for there are many options for accommodation including: Hostels, Hotels, Airbnb, Homestays, Digital Nomad Stays. Prices can vary a lot depending on the type of stay. Another option to look at would be a work exchange. This is a great way to travel with minimal cost. Use Worldpackers to research location and see what type of work the host offers in exchange for what. Accommodation is one thing that is similar to flight cost in that the earlier you book the best rate and experience you will probably have. My biggest fear when traveling is getting to a location with nowhere to stay.

TIP: If you are arriving late at night and staying at a hotel make sure to call the day off and let them know you are still coming so they don’t give up your room.

TIP: Look at the refund policy associated with all bookings, so you know how much you are entitled to if something happens during your trip.

**AirBnb App**

Easily view dates and stays while using one platform to make bulk bookings and excursions at different locations.

STEP 6: Day to Day and Restaurants

Planning your day to day is extra... but can help ease your mind during your trip. Having at least an idea mapped out can help save time during your trip for relaxing instead of researching activities and restaurants. Depending on travel destination and time of year, you may need reservations for certain restaurants or activities. These can book up to months in advance. When researching activities and where to eat, I normally use Pinterest, Yelp, or TikTok. Again, plans are always tentative to change. Whenever I arrive at a new location, I always ask for local recommendations on what to do. The locals always know best! This is great especially if you are looking to immerse yourself in culture and not be “a basic tourist”.

STEP 7: Excursions

This is by far the most fun thing to book. Make sure to read reviews and compare prices of excursions for the best experience. To book activities I have used the following resources: Trip Advisor, Get your Guide, Airbnb experience, HostelWorld experience. Take into consideration the place you are visiting. For instance: I booked a paragliding excursion in Interlaken, Switzerland because they are the adventure capital of Europe.

TIP: There are so many things that you can do for free or discount! If you are a student (or if you are already graduated) bring your student id with you while you travel. There are student discounts at many places and museums where you can get in free instead of paying. Other low cost activities include: hikes, sightseeing, beaches, etc.

Paragliding in Interlaken, Switzerland: Click here for website.

STEP 8: Packing

My relationship with packing is love hate. Considering myself to be a pro packer, I map out what I bring based on the day...which is why I try to plan out my day to day before a trip! For a longer trip I recommend versatile clothing that you can rewear in different ways. Staple pieces are always a good investment. Make sure to look up the weather for the time of year and destination you are traveling to. Packing cubes are key to making the most out of your luggage. They are also useful for organization purposes (tops in one, bottoms in another).

TIP: Research the TSA limitations when it comes to liquids. Some countries require you to take them out of your suitcase when going through security. Make sure you aren’t the person holding up the line in the airport!

STEP 9: Create You Itinerary

There are so many platforms or templates that you can use to organize your trip for subscription. With this being said, you can also put it together yourself! I have used sites as simple as Google drive, and Google Calendar to create my itinerary and budget. This resource makes it SOOO simple to share plans with fellow travelers if they want to help plan your trip! Use sheets to organize and keep up with your budget throughout the trip. Having a visual will always help you to stay on track with spending goals. A simple document can be sufficient for laying out day to day plans. Don’t worry if its super long, it will still work (mine was literally 10 pages)! Google Calendar can help as an overall view of day to day along with an easy glance to create a packing list. All of these platforms can easily be accessed by your phone so no need to print. Easy access to everything while saving the trees!

STEP 10: Enjoy!

Now that you have put in the work to organize and book your trip the best that you could beforehand... you can enjoy it! Remember that you don’t need to follow the created schedule to a tee. Sometimes it is fun to go off the path and do something spontaneous!