How much do you plan for your vacations?
By vivasuzi
@vivasuzi (4127)
United States
January 11, 2007 12:04pm CST
I am going on a vacation in 4 months, and have been planning since about 6 months ago! The truth is, when I go on a vacation I want it to be great. So I book the important things ASAP (planes, hotels, cars) then I start the fun part! I start finding things to do, mapping the distance from my hotel, finding ticket prices, etc. I print maps to all the places I want to visit or may want to visit.
If it's a short vacation, and I have a lot I want to do, I even plan an itinerary with general times for going from A to B, time to Eat, time to go to this attraction. I don't set exact times, but I try to set a general time I'd like to do something at. Some may think it's not relaxing to do this, but I find it MORE relaxing! Having a daily plan of action means that while on vacation I don't have to think hardly at all! Plus, there's no need for me to think about "do I have time to go here" b/c I would have already figured that out before the vacation. I will detour from my itinerary if something better comes up, but overall I stick to it.
So how do you plan? Do you like to have it pretty well figured out like me? Or do you at least print out some ideas of where to visit? OR, do you do the complete opposite and just GO and figure it out when you get there? Please explain which method you prefer and why.
5 people like this
49 responses
@ElusiveButterfly (45940)
• United States
11 Jan 07
Unfortunately our vacations are usually weekend excursions. When we go off on a venture we usually go to a place that is familiar and seek out new places to visit once we are there.
@sizzle3000 (3036)
• United States
12 Jan 07
We also take little weekend trips. I have bought extra shampoo and soap and deodorant as well as other personal items to make a travel bag for each person in the family. This makes it so we don't forget anything that is important. I am sorry to say that we do not do much at the spur of the moment. Even if for some reason we do I am packed to a point. I am ready for anything.
@Lasvegasonline (3)
• United States
13 Jan 07
I always plan my trips, as it saves time when you are at your destination by knowing what is available for you to do. Plus some destinations (like Washington DC, or anywhere that has museums, tours, sightseeing, etc) require advance reservations to get into their venues. (For example, you can't get into the White house without contacting one of your state senators months in advance.) I always use tripadvisors.com for hotel and local information, and a travel site such as orbitz for price information. I always go to the library or purchase (so I can take it with me) a Frommers book on the state/city I am visiting to determine highlights of a particular area. I also write to a local chamber of commerice or tourism department as they can send brochures. You can also get a wealth of information using the web on a particular city. There are blogs and chats for cities. I used to do trips without advance planning, and I found I wasted a lot of time trying to find out what to do..do your homework a head of time, and you will see a lot more and more enjoyable..I am an ex travel agent and I've given this advice to many people. (OH yes, and travel agents are a wealth of information too)
@vivasuzi (4127)
• United States
13 Jan 07
Tripadvisors is my fav site :) Thanks for pointing it out for everyone. I never thought about getting a book about the city, I should look into that! I've been using the web and found a lot of info, sites dedicated to the city I'm going to and all.
Doing the homework ahead is what I will always do, but I don't think of it as homework. It's fun to plan vacations b/c I constantly feel like I'm on the vacation already as I play around on the web doing the research :) Thanks for all your tips!
@timou87 (1638)
• Singapore
12 Jan 07
I usually try to go for vactions just before the peak tourist period, this way not only do I get to enjoy the discounts and attractions laid out for tourists, especially in places like Hong Kong and Japan and Bangkok, but I can also avoid the massive crowds. That said, since I do not usually make and holiday plans during peak periods I have the luxury of making plans just 1 month before hand.
1 person likes this
@zeeterman (1066)
• United States
12 Jan 07
Man, I do the same thing! I always plan out my vacation and make an itinerary. Though my itinerary will only assign particular attractions to a particular day. I don't time it out by the hour! I usually like to leave some wiggle room too in case we see something there unexpected that we want to do, or if we have to switch days on something. I'm always on a tight budget, so I try to have as much already paid for as possible before we arrive. Like hotel, attractions, rental car (if needed), etc. I also like to travel in a group of 4. This saves on everything. Also very useful is buying one of those Entertainment books for the city we'll visit. They usually have 2 for 1 coupons for many of the attractions we plan to visit.
Man, a couple of years ago, we did a trip to Florida. It came out to like $225 per person before gas and food!
This included our hotel room for a week, 2 days at Universal Orlando, Kennedy Space Center, Dali Museum in St. Pete, a Pirate Cruise in Clearwater, etc. We drove there instead of flying, but man I had that trip so budgeted! We had a blast!
@vivasuzi (4127)
• United States
12 Jan 07
I do that too, try to pay for things ahead if I can. OR I at least mentally set that money aside to pay for those things. The hard part is determining how much extra money I'll allow myself to spend so I don't go crazy :) Sounds like you are good at budgeting b/c our trip will definitely be more than 225 per person.
@sizzle3000 (3036)
• United States
12 Jan 07
You sound great. I start about six months or more in advance too. I like to search the net for the best hotel or cabins to stay at. I also map out how we are getting to our destinaction. I reserve as much as I can in advance. I also check out attrations on line. I map them out too as far as how far, how long and how much. I have tons of envelope laying around with attraction name and the amount of money in the envelope to complete the activity. My mom thinks I am nuts. The more I plan the better the trip. My husband supports me. I print all the information out and then him and our daughter talk about what we want to do. I have found that by doing this in advance we have enough money to do quite a lot of things while on vacation. My husband sometimes laughs and says he need to go back to work to have a vacation from our vacation.
1 person likes this
@vivasuzi (4127)
• United States
12 Jan 07
Yep I'm going to reserve things in advance if possible. Like this boat cruise i found, you can only register 2 weeks ahead but you know I'll be doing that :) So therefore I have to plan which day I will do that cruise so I can book it, than the other days are either Open, or I'll plan other attractions.
I like to do as much in a vacation as possible and I've often been worn out after- but it's a good worn out :) Thanks for your response!
@ComputerK1ng (79)
• United States
12 Jan 07
I just went on a carribean cruise last month. We did no planning and took 700.00 american cash to spend plus our bank cards. They had plan a day on the cruise but we waited till we got to our destinations. 700.00 did not quite do it for the two of us. we ended up spending about 500 more but that was for drinking, snorkling, tour guides everything plus the 925.00 it cost for our cruise. even for playing in the casinos. im not sure what money you should take but just have some general ideas and get there and whatever you do have fun doing it. Dont be worried about how long it will take to do it.
1 person likes this
@vivasuzi (4127)
• United States
12 Jan 07
Cruises are different then your everyday vacation though, you can just "go" and plan when you get there. The difference is that the cruise boat schedules when you will visit places, and you just have to choose which excursions you will do. In those cases, you don't really need a day by day itenerary and you can just basically show up. But on a regular vacation, the possibilites are endless so I like to think about it ahead :)
@kfg20012003 (1037)
• India
12 Jan 07
no i dont plan for a vacation instead i go for a package that some travel companies give,they also give some discount and it is cheap
@snakeyes (569)
• India
12 Jan 07
I also plan my vacations well before i leave,if not all the minute details but atleast all the important things like hotels,planes & cars etc.I also figure out well beforehand what all places i would visit and how much time to spend their.I think planning beforehand is a wise thing to do because when we go on vacation we have a very limited time and money and a proper planning can help us manage our resources well.
@vivasuzi (4127)
• United States
12 Jan 07
Yep that's a good phrase "manage our resources". Some people don't understand that limited time prevents me from seeing everything so I have to make a plan. Plus limited money means I probably won't visit the same place twice, so it's not like I can miss something and say "I'll see it next time".
I plan every trip as if it's the last time I'll ever go there, that way I can try and hit all the major things I want to see.
@kareng (59125)
• United States
11 Jan 07
Well that all depends on how long we are staying. For a week's vacation we usually decide on what the majority wants to do, if the kids are along. Then we will plan to do several of the top choices. We usually don't really make solid plan until we get there.
If I were taking a longer vacation, I would be into detailed planning such as what you are doing! It only makes sense. Besides, that way you won't forget something that could easily slip your mind and cause you to miss an attraction!
1 person likes this
@vivasuzi (4127)
• United States
12 Jan 07
I haven't had to plan a trip for more than 4 people so far, and the 4 people I went with were willing to do whatever I want. So I haven't had to deal with deciding what everyone wants to do! I think I'd drive people nuts b/c I like things set in stone. My one friend wants to plan couples vacations with me in the future, and I'm worried about it working out and deciding exactly where to go and what to do. I gotta get over that though b/c I think vacationing in groups is fun! I think planning top choices might be a good compromise rather than planning the whole trip.
@kathy77 (7486)
• Australia
11 Jan 07
I believe this is a great idea what you are doing when you go on vacation, and this way you would be more relaxed knowing where and what you are going to do on that day. I do book my important things I have to do and normally I just go and visit family in other countries or even my own but they normally choose where I would like to go as they know my likes and dislikes.
@vivasuzi (4127)
• United States
12 Jan 07
It is easier when you are visiting people b/c they usually make the plans for you. This honeymoon in May will be my first vacation without family, or without school, or basically with no one else to "plan". Even though my mom let me plan our last two trip iteneraries, she was still there with me making final decisions. So this trip will be interesting! and I want it to go well :)
@vivasuzi (4127)
• United States
12 Jan 07
I'm actually good at last minute planning, that's what happened in my Chicago trip. My sis came up with the idea like 2 weeks before and I found a hotel, and lots to do! We had a full schedule and hit everything we wanted.
However, I prefer to have more time to plan so I'm not stressed out for weeks ahead.
@contusion12878 (669)
• United States
11 Jan 07
I dont plan much for my vacation. When my time is accumulated I just go wherever I want to go. Kinda just point to a map and go for it. Most of the time I just wind up staying home and sleeping, but sometimes sleeping is the best part of a vacation in itself. Good Luck.
@Desdemona (1301)
• Canada
11 Jan 07
Ohhh I am soo last minute.
I never plan, outside of booking the time off at work.
I usually find a last minute flight somewhere the day before and than take off. I will do the research first to see other peoples opinions before I book travel (the day before).
Outside of that, I just throw everything in the suitcase and buy what I need when I am there.
Have fun on your trip!
1 person likes this
@momwatittude (542)
• United States
11 Jan 07
I always plan my vacation at least 10 months in advance. I figure out where we are going first,get plane tickets , firugre out a full itinerary for everyday, map out the destinantion, then I figur all cost of the trip plus spending money divide that by 4 months and put it away every month for the trip. Then I make a list of all the cloths and supplies we will need for the trip so that we could check it off 4 days prior to our trip. I like doing this because it makes it less stressfull on myself considering that I know I will get no help from my family they just go I do all planning and packing. Then the day of the trip I can sit back and enjoy with no worries. You are fine just keep doing what you do.
@vivasuzi (4127)
• United States
12 Jan 07
Ha that sounds so much like me. I've already taken some clothes that would be great for Florida, and put them in a bag so I don't wear them and then have to wash them before the trip. I like to plan expenses too, otherwise I might go way overboard. I don't plan down to the dollar, but I at least like to have an idea so I'm not shocked when I get there.
@groomtobe23 (635)
• United States
11 Jan 07
Vacation? What does that word mean? Hold on while I grab a dictionary...
OHHHHHH... Vacation... yeah I haven't really had one in a long time. Typically the only thing I (we) get to do is take a weekend trip somewhere close. I have been saving up vacation hours though, so hopefully sometime soon I can go someplace warm!
In regards to planning, I don't like to do very much of it. As long as flight reservations, and hotel reservations are taken care of, I just want to go and have fun. If I can decide on the spur of the moment where to eat, or where to have fun, I think it ends up being far more exciting. So, as little planning as possible if I can go that route.
1 person likes this
@vivasuzi (4127)
• United States
12 Jan 07
It may be more exciting for you, but it brings me stress! If I didn't plan, I'd go and be like "i wonder where all the good restaurants are?" I'd get lost looking for things, it would be no fun.
When we went to Toronto and Chicago the last few years, I planned it out and the others with me just went with whatever I planned. We all enjoyed it b/c we didn't have to think too much or make decisions. Plus, we got to hit every hot spot I found online :) Glad you can go on a whim, too bad I can't do that - I'm a wimp when it comes to exploring new places.
@deshmukhashay (147)
• India
12 Jan 07
yes i do plan a bit......not too much....but money estimates is very imp and sightseeing also has to be planned
1 person likes this
@crew_purple82 (18)
• Indonesia
12 Jan 07
I always plan my vacation two months before especially if i want to go to other country...With the plan i make , i can simply know how much it cost , I usually make the plans with microsoft excel with a table that contains how much it cost to eat , cost of the hotel , the differences between using one or the other air fares , for city tour etc. And of course never forget the LONELY PLANET reference from the internet or from the book :)
