Plan!
WHY – DO I WANT TO GO?
WHAT – DO I PLAN TO GET OUT OF THIS?
WHERE – DO I WANT TO GO?
WHEN – DO I WANT TO GO?
WHO – DO I WANT TO GO WITH?
HOW – MUCH DO I WANT TO SPEND?
How do you take a dream, make it into a plan, and then into reality?
Start with a glimmer, an idea, a dream. Anything can spark wanderlust in a person.
A book, movie, the Sunday Travel section, a travel blog, a swatch of fabric, a scent, sometimes just a picture. So how do you make a plan a possibility?
WHY – Do I Want to Go?
Perhaps this is the best first question to ask YOURSELF.
Do I want to PRAY? – Are you looking for a place that is more spiritual than others or more religious? Can you find information on Judaism in Jersey City? I’m sure you can. Can you discover more in Jerusalem? Chances are.
Do I want to EAT? – Some people long to sample two all-beef patties, special sauce, lettuce, cheese at every location on the planet. (WHY?) Others only want to dine on edibles appearing in the Michelin guide. Then there’s the majority of the rest of us.
Do I want to LOVE? – Are you seeking a romantic location with a loved one? Or to fulfill a love of photographic situations, love of wine, love of plants, and animals.
WHAT – Do I Plan to Get Out of This?
Seven nights of deep sleep interspersed with seven days of 8-hr naps in a hammock?
As many stamps in my passport as is humanly possible on a 7-day Eurail pass?
Is there only one thing, or do you want everything? Do you want adventure in that great wide somewhere?
WHAT – Should I Bring Back?
Bags full of memories, experiences, new friends, new understandings, and only souvenirs that support the memories or experiences. And bring back plans on why you will return to that place someday.
WHERE – Do I Want to Go?
Is it a region or country?
Type “Official visit ____ (country name) Look for the “Official” Country Tourism site. These often end in the country code (.fr, .It, .gr) instead of .com.
Is it a city?
Try searching “tourist information _____ (city name) Look for the “Official” website of the city. They often are .org instead of .com addresses.
Is it a specific site you want to see?
Many of the most popular sites have their webpage. Beware, there are probably several hundred results “looking” like they are the official site. Some of these are legitimate third-party ticket sellers, while others are downright deceptions trying to separate you and your money.
I type in my search: “Official website of the _______” (Acropolis, Colosseum, etc.) This search MAY give you the official site, but if not, it should direct you to results that will. On my website, I will try to post the “official” sites on the page for that specific city or venue.
Most of the larger cities will have online resources covering arts, culture, food, drink, and nightlife. Smaller towns should still include what to see, but will not be as flashy. Plan to look at these and links they may suggest.
WHO – Should I Believe?
Consumer-generated reviews.
These may help you plan. Sites such as TripAdvisor and Yelp, (word of mouth websites) give you a real snapshot of a place or tour.
Unfortunately, as fast as these sites gain credibility, other companies spring up to “beat the house.” Hotels, restaurants, and tour companies can hire 3rd party companies to create the reviews they want on these sites.
You cannot (should NOT) believe it just because it’s on the internet. YES, this includes posts on FaceBook.
By removing all the “one” and “five-star” ratings, I can usually get an idea from the remaining reviews.
Don’t discount these sites; they are working daily to eliminate “fake reviews.” Just understand how to read between the lines.
Word of Mouth.
Still, the best source of information if you use it correctly. Almost daily, people ask me, “where is the best place to go?” or “What is my favorite place?” and I answer both of these questions with, “For what?”
My “best” is for the best museums. Another person’s “best” is for the best rum punch, while another’s might be to plant coffee beans.
I have people tell me Athens is incredible. If you look, there is architecture from just about every period for the last 3000+ years.
In the same city, I had a guest comment, “Why didn’t they finish the buildings on the Acropolis?” One man’s ruins are another man’s treasure.
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So how do you use word of mouth to plan successfully?
First, see if this person is the right source. When someone says “I just had the most incredible time in _______,” you ask, “What” made it so incredible? If they say, I had the opportunity to eat live crickets; you then have two choices for your next question. Were they good? (if you like that sort of thing) Or did they have any ________ (museums, beaches, wines) the things you are most interested in learning? If they respond, “Who knows? Who cares?” they are probably not going to be the “Best” source of information for you (Unless you like crickets)
Another option is to take a more direct approach. Plan the question.
Start with the “where is the best” / “What is your favorite” question but make it personal to you. You are looking for a beach. So you start with, “Where is the best,” and add “beach” at the end. Now we are filtering out churches and the “Museum of things that go bump in the Night”. You can probably fine-tune your question even more with “beach for getting away and hardly seeing anyone.”
By typing “What is the best beach” into a search, I see more than 23 million results. Do YOU want to sift through all 23 million results? If I type in “What is the best beach, for families in Florida,” it drops to below 5 million results. In short, the more details you can add, the quicker you can focus on what’s most important to your plan.
Travel Guides, Travel Agencies.
Try to find a travel agent that “gets you.” If you do, take whatever steps are necessary to keep them. Chains in the basement might be a bit much.
Unfortunately, many try to be something for everyone forcing travelers into square holes.
Others are merely warming a seat until 5:00 pm because of all the swell travel benefits they get. They may seem unhappy as the “exceptional travel benefits ship” sailed years ago.
Travel agencies hire me because of my experience, then fire me because I spend too much time answering questions for guests. REALLY? Good luck getting quality travel plans from that agency.
WHEN – Do I Want to Go?
In the Northern Hemisphere, there are generally four seasons, spring, summer, fall, and winter. In the travel world there is:
- Peak Season – Summer, when most people take a vacation, and the weather is warm.
- Off-Season – Winter, when the fewest people take vacations and the weather in most places, is cold and or wet.
- Shoulder Season. – Usually, spring/fall when the number of travelers and weather is somewhere in between Off and Peak. For the Southern Hemisphere – Flip it. Their summer is our winter.
All of these seasons are the best of times to travel; they are the worst of times.
Frederiksborg Castle – Denmark.
PEAK (high demand)
- PRO – Probably comes with more sunshine. It’s a time when families can travel.
- CONS – Comes with the hottest weather, most massive crowds, and the highest prices.
If you must travel during its Peak Season, plan to at least go at the very beginning or very end. You might get lucky on weather not being too hot and crowds, well, they might seem smaller.
I avoid the Mediterranean if at all possible the month of August and the first two weeks of September. This period is when “EVERY” person in Europe is standing directly in front of me. (Well, it feels like they are).
Reservations are a must at the most popular sites. First, this helps you avoid the line to buy the ticket (there’s another line to get in).
Second, some places (Alhambra, The Last Supper, Colosseum Basements) only release a specific number of tickets each day. Many sell out months in advance for peak times. If you plan to see these sites, you better plan ahead.
If it is a destination for cruise mega-ships, plan to visit the “must-see” sites before the floating-mob docks.
Another option is later in the afternoon when their passengers are retreating to the ship. Why? A summer day when seven or more mega-ships, each carrying 3000+ passengers, arrive at the same time… well, you do the math.
HAVE LUNCH LATER
Many attractions show a considerable decline in masses around standard meal times. 11:30 – 1:30ish, 5-7ish. This rule is also true during “special” appearances: The changing of the guard, Astrological clocks ringing, Magic Kingdom parades.
SHOULDER (medium demand)
- PRO – Weather can be pleasant, especially the closer to peak season. Falls at a time when families can’t travel, so fewer people at sites. Lower prices as hotels, restaurants, travel operators now have spaces to fill.
- CONS – Weather can be nasty, especially closer to Off-Season. Staffing at hotels and restaurants may take a hit. They may limit the opening hours.
The drop in prices from Peak to Shoulder (or visa versa) somewhat reflects the change in temperatures. For instance, in the Mediterranean, the average temperature in August is in the 80s°F. Whereas in the spring and fall daytime temperatures are often in the 50s°F. As the temperature (sweater weather) is not drastic, hotels have a more extended season; the price difference is not extreme.
Compare that to the Nordic Countries, where in July, you have temperatures in the 60s-70s °F. In comparison, you are freezing in winter with shortened daylight. Here you may find extreme drops in price, but who wants to be outside very long in that weather? Some do. What will you give to take something else?
OFF SEASON (Low demand).
- PRO – You may have entire sites, museums to yourself. The lowest prices as hotels, restaurants, travel operators fight for business.
- CONS – The weather is probably nasty. Some sites may close or limit the opening hours. Ferries and other forms of transportation cut back or suspend operation.
Whereas the business centers (which you probably do not want to visit) will be frantic, the more touristy areas and sites are far less crowded, especially on weekdays.
Although it may not be a “tourist” season, it is the “cultural” season for locals. Fall to spring is when the Paris Opera House and La Scala present their seasons. The Principles from the Mariinsky Ballet Company and the Lipizzaner Horses are back home from their summer tours. Remember, this applies to the Northern Hemisphere. If you want to catch an Opera in Buenos Aires or Sydney, their winter/cultural season is June – September.
In the off-season, I have seen the floor in the Vatican’s Gallery of the Candelabra. I got to stop and admire this beautiful space.
In the Peak season, you flow along like you are on the rapids of a fast-moving river. The masses are pushing you from behind, and you never stop (you can’t) or see the floor.
I remember spending a morning in the Mendoza wine region (and the sun rising over it) all to myself.
Or wandering the tiny whitewashed lanes of an Aegean island whose nightclubs and jewelry shops are empty until the next season. Would I trade any of these experiences?
That’s a “general” overview of the traveling year, but you have to look at each location specifically for the best/worst.
In the summertime, snow skiing in Switzerland is not good. Their peak is the “cold” season.
The Peak season in the Mediterranean and parts of Asia is close to four months in length. Alaska about three, and Northern Europe, maybe two months or less. Antarctica, Ummm, define good weather. (they do have “better” months.)
WHO – Do I Want to Go With?
PLEASE take this comment in the spirit I mean it. With each additional person in your plan, you lose one more part of your individuality. For most, this is acceptable, to a point.
UNESCO World Heritage Site – Iguazu National Park.
GROUP SIZE.
If you are looking for your inner voice, you may not find it on a cruise ship with 5000+. And if you do, you may not hear it.
On the flip side, you are in a group of 80 going to Graceland for Elvis’s birthday weekend. You just may come away with 79 new friends and a new appreciation for blue suede shoes.
So how many people is the “right” number?
Some general thoughts:
- The larger the group, the slower it goes.
- Larger groups, often overwhelm a destination, if they can even fit in.
- The larger the group, the ability to taste “authentic” local cuisine goes down. You cannot serve the same quality to 2000 that you can to 20.
However, the larger the group, usually the lower the cost.
How much do you want to cover?
- A party of 2-3 can move quickly, use public transportation, and make last-minute changes on the fly.
- 4-8 people. You add the cost-effectiveness of a van, which can often go more directly to a site than public transportation. This upgrade in transport means you can fit in more locations if tight on time. However, chances are someone’s NOT going to want to go “there.”
- A group of 10 – 14. Depending on the size of the transportation, you can zip in and out. Also, the cost is even less as more are sharing it. Consequently, there will probably be a few more who don’t want to do “that.”
- 14 or more, and you are going to end up on some form of a coach. It may or may not be able to get through many of the narrow medieval streets or Asian cultural villages. Frequently, you may have to park several blocks away from sites in bus parking lots. This point is not great news if walking is a problem and you are not wearing sneakers or other sensible walking shoes. As this additional walking takes time, you will visit fewer sites.
- You only need to see one site, such as The temple of Borobudur. It’s a 3+ hours drive from the closest cruise port. Who cares how many are on the bus? The more, the merrier, (The more people sharing the cost.)
In short, there is NO one perfect group size number. It may be uno if you want to have quality time by yourself. Coming and going when you choose. It may be ten coaches with 50 people on each going to the Taj Mahal. All that matters to you is seeing the Taj Mahal.
HOW – Much do you want to spend?
In general, the fewer people sharing the cost, the more expensive. But just as there is no one right or wrong answer to group size, the same is true of value.
- For example, the couple who have a driver and guide to the Vatican is going to the same museum. They use skip-the-line tickets and zoom through the Vatican Museum, at a personal pace. They see the Sistine Chapel, ending in the magnificent St Peter’s Basilica.
- The backpacker stands in the ticket line. Then the line to get in. And another line to check the backpack. It takes time to reference the guide book for what to see or to figure out, “what is that?”
Are they seeing a different Vatican Museum? A separate Sistine Chapel or is Michelangelo’s Pieta any less magnificent? Absolutely not!
A “good” guide adds another dimension to sculpture, a painting, a site, and an excellent guide is worth every penny. But don’t rule something out due to not being able to afford a private guide.
You can afford the Vatican Museum entrance and owe it to yourself to visit.
While you may not have the funding for a private guide, don’t give up. Besides the group tours offered by the museum, sometimes a beat-up guide book is the best answer.
Not to mention, the churches of Rome. They have incredible paintings, carvings, and statues by some of the greatest artists, on display. And most of the churches are free. (for a donation).
GREAT THOMAS!
My confusion level is at an all-time high since I began this article.
Is it confusion? Maybe what you’re feeling is the beginning of inspiration. And hasn’t that been on the back of the shelf too long?
Consequently, the possibilities in your mind are already twisting and turning. Your imagination is already packing. A rough draft of a plan is already starting to form right now.
Also, you no longer want to look at travel as something you buy, like a can of peas. YOU want to be part of the planning.
YOU want to experience the world the way YOU want to see it. THAT’S what makes a voyage an adventure, a small excursion a lasting experience.
For a suggested planning outline, see PLANNING 101