Trip Planning
All Part of the Travel Experience
Planning a trip overseas is all part of the experience of travel, it takes a lot of research into destinations, flights, accommodation choices, what to see and do, how to get around once you are there, etc, etc, etc.
My trip planning system is to decide on where I am going, then decide on the dates, then research the destination mercilessly to find out all the things that might affect me during that time, in case I need to change the dates to fit in with something specific.
You also want to make sure there is no big event on at that time that you don’t want to be part of, as it will be more crowded, and more expensive.
Once the dates are decided on – I start researching flights. Again, this could end up changing the date by a day or two in either direction.
The current trip I am planning is to Malta and Sicily, I found that flying from Sydney to Malta, via Dubai or Singapore was outrageously expensive, but a flight from Sydney to London, then a flight from London to Malta was more reasonable.
Of course, I will then take up the money saved on these flights by staying in London for a few nights!! But I can catch up with some friends, go to a few exhibitions – there is always something I want to see at the Victoria and Albert Museum, and London is always a good idea! I will need to fly back to London to catch my flight home to Sydney, so I’ll have another few days in London then too.
This gives me the opportunity to leave some of my heavier items of clothing in London, as it will be much warmer in Malta and Sicily. Lots of research needs to happen into what the weather is normally like in the chosen destinations at the time you will be there. Of course, this will only be a guide because weather will do what it likes! It won’t be until just before you go that there will be a slightly more accurate forecast.
Once the flights are locked in, paid for with a credit card that gives me free travel insurance, (never leave home without travel insurance) seats are chosen and lounge passes
allocated (also free with the credit card), I am ready to start filling in the fun bit in the middle.
Starting with an idea of the cities/towns/villages I want to stay in, or visit on day trips from one place, I then start researching these places. This often leads to more information on other places to visit, and gives me an idea of the area I want to stay in. Then I become familiar with the place on Google Maps, and decide how many days to spend in each place.
On this trip I know I am flying from Sydney to London and return, so I book that first, then London to Malta, so I book that flight next. Then I know I will catch the ferry from Malta to Sicily, and after that, trains all over Sicily, until I fly back to London from Palermo. I look for hotels next…
Usually booking directly with the hotel, as they generally advertise they offer the best deals, but when I could get a much better deal on booking.com and called one of the hotels to see if they would match the booking.com price, they weren’t interested!
I found the booking.com website and phone app very good. Locating hotels in the right areas was easy as you can see all the prices in the one place, and you can see the location on a map. Then looking further into each hotel on the hotel website and Google Maps just to make sure, then back to booking.com, selecting a deal was just a matter of choosing the type of room, if I wanted it to include breakfast, or not, if I wanted it refundable, pay now, pay later, and it all started coming together.
I try to find hotels that are easy to get to with luggage, from the train station, Google Maps street view helps out here to look at the way to walk to the hotel, or if a bus or taxi needs to be involved. As I am a solo traveller, I don’t want any hotels that are hard to get to, or down dark alleys!
Malta for 10 days, ferry from Valletta to Pozzallo, in Sicily. Train to Syracuse for 3 days, train to Taormina for 5 days, train to Palermo for 6 days…..I decided to stay in Palermo an extra night because of the flight timetable back to London.
Once all the accommodation is locked in, I start booking the trains. Italian trains are very easy to navigate, and there are plenty of them, Trainline or Trenitalia are both great websites to sort out all your train travel.
Now all the logistics are locked in, all research can concentrate on what to see and do, what to eat and where to eat it!!
