One thing I enjoy about travel is experiencing local food
and culture along with exploring natural resources in the area. I’m an avid hiker, so nothing works better
for me than hiking during the day, and checking out the local restaurants in
the evening. Plus, it’s a good way to
relax at the end of a busy day.
If driving it’s easy because I don’t need to consider the cost
of a flight, and I like to engage in budget travel for the most part. Here are the steps I take if flying to a
location (if driving, simply eliminate step 1):
1.
Use Google Flights to find cheap flights:
a. In the Where from box, enter the city and
state (or airport code if you know it) of the airport you normally fly out of.
b. In the Where to box, type “Anywhere” (I use
this when I don’t care where I’m going, and just looking at the cost to get to different
locales in the world. If you have a
specific destination in mind, type in the city and state (or airport code) for
your destination).
c.
Enter your departure and return dates, then hit
the “Explore” button.
d. Once the map pops up you can see the cost of flights all over the world. I don’t know about you, but I find this exciting!
e. Decide on a destination! Once the flights pop up for that particular destination I look to see which airlines are offering the flights, and I book the flights on the individual airlines’ website. Why? Because if I run into problems somewhere along my flight journey the airline will help me. If I reserve through a third party the customer service might be lacking. However, you choose your comfort level.
2.
Next, you’re going to need somewhere to sleep!
a.
There are so many options for this! Hotel, resort, AirBNB (try to find a super
host), VRBO, hostels, just to name a few.
b.
I use a site called Kayak to search for hotels
in the area I’m visiting. However, I
always go to the website of the property to reserve it for the same reasons I
use the airlines’ websites to reserve flights.
3.
Next, find out what interesting things
there are to do in the area you're visiting:
a.
TripAdvisor is a great resource for this, and offers
tours, etc. if you don’t feel comfortable trying to find a local person on your
own, or don’t want to go solo. This is
also a great resource for finding dining options; the reviews are helpful in
deciding what interesting place to eat next! I have discovered many great
nature activities through this site.
b.
Once I decide what I want to do in the area, I
create a Google Sheet and enter all the info for my trip: flight details, accommodations details, etc.,
including phone numbers, and times an activity location is open. Then I list in
order the things I want to do on any given day; this is especially helpful if
you have specific days you have booked tours, etc. Plus, a Google Sheet can be accessed from my phone,
making it SO convenient! If you are like me and want to cram in as much
sightseeing as possible, you can arrange the activities by location so that you’re
not doing an excessive amount of driving.
I hope this has helped you be more confident in making your
own travel plans. Let me know if there is
something specific you want information about!
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