Our Awesome Tips on Planning a Trip
Like many travelers, my husband and I also have a list of places which we want to visit and experience. For both of us, travelling means to have a relaxed and an immersive learning experience and how to plan a trip to make it a success.
Planning a trip can be overwhelming, but with the right approach, it can also be exciting and fun. Whether you’re planning a solo adventure or a family vacation, this step-by-step guide will help you navigate the process and create a memorable trip that meets your needs and budget. So, let’s get started!
While there could be different trip agendas in mind, there are certain things that we take into account before going on a trip. At the risk of sounding nerdy, we have, over the decades, perfected the Art of the “Plan a trip” Project. 🙂 So, we have decided to share with all of you a few questions that you should ask yourself before shortlisting on a tour.
What do you want to experience during the trip?
What do you want to experience during the trip is one of the first and foremost questions you should ask yourself to plan a trip. Some of the themes to ponder on could be:
- Experience of a small country
- Theme based travel: This could include adventure travel, new cultural experiences, festival events etc.
- Beaches or mountains
- Serene places or big cities
- Cuisine (yes, we know of people who travel just for that tasty sushi in Tokyo) or shopping!
- Experience of exotic places on occasions like honeymoon or anniversary and so on.
Where do you want to go?
Once you have finalized your experience, you should then select your travel destination.
Points to ponder before finalizing:
- References from your friends and family about the places they visited
- Weather consideration. A normal leisure summer tour to Siberia could become an adventure travel in the winters
- Amount of funds available will often restrict the choice of places
- Most importantly, accessibility of these places
What’s the budget and how to save?
While you might find glorious places that you wish to visit, it is also important to take into account the monies involved. The more exotic you want your trip to be, the more expensive it becomes. We need to answer the question, which is an important aspect of how to plan a trip. how to create a travel budget. My husband and I have a thumb rule for budgeting. We split the budget into 3 parts i.e. “Accommodation + Food + Miscellaneous”. This division of 33% each helps us plan better.
If you also have a strong desire to travel like us, you need to learn the Art of Creating a Budget to have better chance of fulfilling your bucket list.
Points to ponder:
- Plan early. This will help you save money on accommodation and travel expense
- Learn about local modes of transport. A lot of money can get saved
- Avoid starting the trip on weekends because the fares are generally higher
- Limit shopping at the beginning of a trip
- Most importantly, start saving for travel early by opening a travel fund
One of the most important components of planning a trip is money. Travelling abroad is extremely expensive and a perfect trip might be achieved with savings of at least 5 years. My husband and I, always plan ahead and start saving early. While saving money is important, we always feel it is equally important to secure our investments. In case, something unfortunate were to happen on an expedition, at least we want our families to have a secure future and means to accomplish their goals.
Considering all this, many people recommend ICICI Pru Smart Life, a plan which gives the double benefit of saving money for passions like travelling as well as protection against untoward happenings. Travelling goals are never disturbed as this plan ensures that the company pays all future premiums on my behalf in case of an unfortunate event. This way, we are completely involved in our travel and do not worry about other things.
How many days for the trip?
A complete research on the destination should be done by pouring over travel books, browsing travel forums and blogs (like ours, pun intended). This will help arrive at the duration of the trip.
Points to ponder:
- Check for any visa restriction on the number of days
- Understand how many days you want to spend in each location
- Plan for inter-city travel before itself
- Always consider the traveling and waiting time
- Keep a day or two as buffer
What is the season of travel?
Timing is everything! You might have an experience or destination in mind but you cannot do an EBC (Everest Base Camp) Trek in the monsoon season.
Points to ponder:
- Research the best and worst time to visit the destination
- The high, mid or low season can also have a direct impact on the budget
- Identify shoulder seasons. Often, the shoulder seasons are the best time for a great experience as one can expect great discounts all around
How to plan your travel itinerary?
Once there is clarity on the budget, experience and destination; the next part of ‘how to plan a trip’ is is to figure out how to reach your dream destination and plan your travel itinerary.
Points to ponder:
- For most of the international trips, travelling through air is the quickest and most efficient mode to reach your destination
- Once you have reached the destination, then you can start using the local transport system
- Try and use night travel as much as possible
- Depending on your places of visit, book your tickets in advance
Importance of getting your visas sorted in advance?
If you are travelling to another country always check the visa requirements. An early research on this aspect can be an important input to how to plan a trip.
Points to ponder:
- Search for the official website of the local embassy or consulate and check the section on visa requirements. In most cases, they are accurate. Also, there are several travel bloggers who have written about their visa experiences. It is a good idea to read them.
- Collect all the documents required
- Keep an extra copy of all the required documents
- Have sufficient buffer time for visa application and processing
- For most countries, the passport validity must be at least 6 months beyond the date of travel and must have a bunch of blank pages for them to deface 🙂
- Often, you might be asked flight tickets, insurance, proof of finances and accommodation details for visa application. This means you might have to spend money before even commencing the travel. For accommodation, many sites offer booking without any payment. Unfortunately, similar option does not exist for flight tickets
How to keep a mode of communication with your family at home?
Communication planning is an integral part of “how to plan a trip”. Previously, it used to be extremely difficult. But, now in this digital word, Wi-Fi makes everything easy.
Points to ponder:
- Buy a local SIM card at the airport or at the earliest location, if possible.
- Most countries have tourist SIM cards with great packages for calls and data
- Always keep an extra budget for such expenses
Conclusion
It is possible that there are other aspects affecting your travel project “How to plan a trip”. This is also not to say that things won’t change during travel. This is just so that the plan is slightly more complete even before you step on to that aerobridge and also, so that you need not worry about minute details while you plan to rejuvenate. Happy Travelling!
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