Planning a trip

You can spend as much time, or as little time as you want in planning a trip.  Many people get a lot of satisfaction out of planning and it can be very rewarding. Some may have a good idea as to where they want to go, while others have an open mind and look to advice or recommendations from friends, relatives or travel agents.

There are four basic choices in the initial stages of planning:

• Where do I want to go?
• How do I get there?
• How would I travel around when I get there?
• What do I want to see or do there?

Assuming you have made a decision on the first question you need to do some research on the alternatives available.

“I’ve always wanted to go to India”, you might say to yourself. In that case you will need to check airlines which will get you there.  This is easy enough on the Internet, just by using various airline websites and the details of the various flights.  It is worth considering direct flights versus stopovers, flight times and fares (economy, premium economy, business).  It is worth remembering that each airline has what is called a hub, so that, for example, if you want to fly from Sydney to London you will go via Dubai on Emirates as Dubai is the airline’s hub. If you want to go with Singapore Airlines, then Singapore is the hub. A stopover might be worth it, considering the flight times. There are plenty of cheap international flights available but they may well involve several stops, adding to the inconvenience.

You can actually book your flight online however it may be worth checking with a travel agent as they have more detailed information on flight categories, codes and special discount fares.  So you cannot always rely on booking yourself to be the cheapest option. Early bird specials are often released around October, November for special deals for the following year, but this varies.

Once you have made some decisions on how to get there you will need to decide on how to get around.  You can book a package tour where everything is done for you and you travel with others in a tour bus or coach. Alternatively, you can travel independently.  This may be cheaper, and it may be more fun, but it is really a personal choice.  You can even mix and match the two.  For example you can travel independently to Europe, then buy a couple of tours of short duration.  Equally you can buy a package tour from home, but adapt it to spend some time on your own, say, in a big city before flying home. Cruises are now becoming extremely popular so a cruise could form part of your trip.

When travelling independently, there are several options, such as driving, using trains, buses and/or ferries. With driving yourself, many countries drive on the right so you will need to bear this in mind. This requires a lot more research, but again many people find this a labour of love.  You can book your accommodation at hotels, bed and breakfasts or apartments (such as with Air B&B) or you can take your chances when you get there. This will give you more flexibility but might be risky in popular destination in peak times. Again, the Internet gives you many choices.

An important question next will be how much this trip is going to cost.  It will require a budget. If you are capable with a computer you can use a spreadsheet to assist you.

I use one spreadsheet for planning the itinerary and another for costs.  The subheadings could be flights, accommodation and other expenses (See examples below).

It is important to be flexible, especially in the early stages of planning. Your itinerary can be refined by minor additions or subtractions, or even wholesale changes. Be prepared to have an open mind, or to think laterally. For example, after checking an itinerary ask someone else to cast an eye over it. Perhaps due to weather or climate considerations you may be better to reverse your itinerary, as long as there is a good reason for it.

In organising an itinerary it may be necessary to ‘build in’ some free days or rest days so that you avoid being tired or stressed. You can divide the days into travel days, sightseeing or activity days and rest days.In the latter this is a chance to catch up on washing, reading, or writing emails to friends and relatives.

There is great satisfaction to be had from travel; the planning, the travel itself and the post-travel stories and photo sharing.

 Examples:

			HAWAII – VANCOUVER  2018
Day No.	Day	Date	Details  as at 1st May 2018
1	Thursday	19th July 2018	Fly Sydney – Honolulu Hawaiian Air Dep. 9.25pm Arr. 11.20am
2	Friday	20th July 2018	In Waikiki     Holiday Inn??
3	Saturday	21st July 2018	Board Pride of America for Hawaiian Islands cruise  7pm
4	Sunday	22nd July 2018	Sail to Maui

 

COSTS
Hawaii -Vancouver
	Booked	Deposit	Amt owing	Total Paid
Airfares
Hawaiian Airlines Bus.	Yes	$1,000		$9,542
Cruise
Pride of America	Yes	$400	$8,110
Accommodation
Honolulu	Yes			$305

Keeping a travel diary

Keeping a diary of your travel experiences is definitely worth doing. Many years ago, before my very first overseas trip, I was given a travel diary and so decided to use it. We were going to the United Kingdom and Europe for twelve months.  On some days I wrote a whole page, while on others just a couple of lines.  Since then I have kept a travel diary for every overseas trip I have made, which runs to over 25. It is great to now look back at those diary entries to see where we went and to renew old memories.

Some of the diaries I bought were specially set up with information about such things as world time zones, maps, calendars, world currencies, country phone codes, useful phrases, clothing sizes and plenty of others.  More recently I have simply bought a blank page diary and set it up to suit my purpose.  I usually have an itinerary in the front and ruled pages for writing up credit card transactions at the back.  I may also write down some addresses and phone numbers, email addresses, websites although these now tend to be kept in mobile phones or ipads. Speaking of ipads, there is nothing wrong with doing your diary entries on a device, however I have still kept to the pen and book  despite travelling with an ipad.

What to write? Everyone has their own writing style with special emphasis on some aspect or another. Some write about the landscape, although photographs will describe that more effectively. Some concentrate on the people they meet, others have a lot to say about the food they eat or the drinks they enjoy, or the circumstances in which they are consumed. There is always a place for funny anecdotes.

Some people write diary entries on one side of a double page and use the other side to paste in airline , train or ferry tickets, beer labels, restaurant menus or personal scribbles or doodles. This, however,  is not my preference.

You do need some discipline in ensuring that you write up the diary regularly. Some like the morning time, others just before going to bed. The problem is often in either being too tired or forgetting completely and having to backtrack a few days.

The benefits of keeping a diary are many. One of them is to settle bets or disputes, such as,  ‘we have never been to San Sebastian’or ‘we spent two nights in Dubai in 2005’ and ‘no we didn’t’.  Another advantage is in labelling your photographs, whether digital or prints in an album, when you get home.

The back pages of a diary can be reserved for special moments, amusing anecdotes, great meals enjoyed or contact addresses of people you meet and want to stay in contact. Your collection of travel diaries can thus become one of your more prized possessions.

The funny side of travel

Part of the fun of travel is in the stories and anecdotes you bring back with you. Imagine how many of these stories are told over drinks or at dinner parties or wherever.

Here are a few examples from my travels. In a market in Penang I saw watches being sold.  Trying to be funny, I asked ‘Are these watches guaranteed?’ ‘Yes’, was the reply.  ‘For how long’ I enquired?’  ‘Until I say goodbye to you sir’.   Serves me right!

On a recent trip to China we were in a tea house watching a demonstration. One of the amusing items was the ‘pee-pee boy’ . A little ceramic figure of a boy was dipped in cold water for a while and then hot water was poured over the top of him, causing him to pee in an arc across the table.  I decided I should have one of them to ‘demonstrate’ at dinner parties, or whatever.  I was told I had to buy packets of tea to get a free one but I did not want any tea, so I had to pay 50 yuan for the boy.  At a market a few days later I saw them for 5 yuan!  Furthermore, when I tried it at home it didn’t work very well, just a little dribble!!

On another occasion we were staying in a cheap hotel in the quaint Spanish town of Ronda. After an enjoyable dinner we were offered, for free, a little ceramic jug of their local wine (Vino de Malaga – a type of sherry).  We went up to our room only to find that the key would not open the door.  After the burly manager tried unsuccessfully, we were given another room together with another little jug of this wine for free.  We were assured that a locksmith would be employed early next morning to remedy the situation.  Sure enough, early next morning a team of people arrived but they succeeded in solving the problem by hacking and splintering the timber door frame, accompanied by much noise and complaints from other guests.  So much for the delicacy of a locksmith! By the way we were given one of the little ceramic jugs as some sort of compensation.

There are many more but these ones come to mind.

Travel tips – a personal view

There are plenty of people who will willingly give you advice regarding travel.  The magazines and newspaper supplements are full of tips and ideas.  These few tips of mine are based on years of experience in travelling.  Some will be familiar, others you may disagree with and there are of course lots more tips worth sharing with fellow travellers. A good tip, for example is not to leave your passport at home, and to make sure it is up to date.  I must say I have never done that but plenty of people have.

One of the things I learned early on is the importance of swapping information with other travellers. You give advice; you receive advice, sometimes casually in conversation.  For example, I was talking to a fellow traveller in the shower block of a campsite in Madrid when he suggested a day trip to Toledo. I acted on that advice and we had a wonderful day, visiting the great cathedral on the hill.  On another occasion, also early in our travels we had planned to head from Rome to Florence and have a quick lunch there before heading further north. After advice, we ended up staying three nights in Florence, and could easily have had more. What a wonderful city!  At a hotel in Rome we asked for a recommendation for a good restaurant. The meal we had there was fantastic.

So the first travel rule I have established is to always seek advice from others, no matter how small that advice may at first seem.

Another important travel rule is to always secure your onward journey.  I was once almost stuck in a town in Mexico assuming that there would be a daily bus out to the next town, but almost missed it due to changing bus schedules.

My wife’s favourite travel rule is ‘a bird in the hand’. This came about when she saw an item she wanted to buy but decided to wait and see if it would be cheaper somewhere else. It wasn’t and decided that in future if you see something you want, you buy it.  Perhaps sometimes you may be sorry.  I have been known to buy some silly little gadget only to find it in a market for one tenth of the price I paid. So be it.

 

How travel grabbed hold of me

How did I get to do so much travel and love it so much?

To answer that question you may want to know a little more about me.

I was born in Ashfield, educated at Fort Street Boys High School, Balmain Teachers’ College and Sydney University. I taught for over 37 years, the first eight of them in primary schools. In the secondary school system I was a Head Teacher (Social Sciences) a Deputy Principal and Principal, having retired in that position from Northmead High School. I also had some brief experience as an Inspector of Schools.

I have spent over 30 years writing Geography textbooks, and with a long term interest in photography, took many photos which were used in the books. The books all sold well and one edition received an Award for |Excellence in Educational Publishing.

My first overseas experience was in an exchange teaching position in England for twelve months in 1972. With my wife Nancy, we took our two young children there and enrolled them in local schools.  On the way we stopped over in Singapore and we will always remember the sights and smells, the food and  the culture of that city.  We have been back there several times since and have appreciated the changes. Our twelve months in England were very rewarding travel-wise, having purchased a motor caravan and charging all over the United Kingdom and on the Continent.

Many other overseas trips followed to all parts of the globe.  One exception is Antarctica as we deemed it too expensive and too cold.  We are still travelling and still taking photographs and videos of our experiences.  This year, in June  we will be in the south of France, in particular in the area of Languedoc, around Carcassonne.  Then it will be to Spain and Portugal.