TOP 10 TRIP PLANNING RESOURCES
ASP 12/19/2018 
So many places, so little vacation time! I think I’m one of the weird souls who enjoys planning my trips as much as going on the actual trip. I have spent many late nights and hours scrolling through Pinterest and sitting at the dining room table with a map (and magnifying glass) trying to decide the perfect destination and itinerary. With the internet, it is so easy to get information overload and often downright incorrect information. So I am going to share with you my most trusted tried and true resources.
- Pinterest I love Pinterest. I could spend all day on Pinterest. I get most of my travel ideas from Pinterest. If there is a destination or activity that you have an interest, just search on Pinterest and bam, bam, bam, scroll away until you find the perfect location. And you can start a board to save and organize all your ideas. You can check out my Pinterest boards here.
- Google Flights Sometimes I may not have a particular destination in mind, so I will pull up Google Flights and just look at the map to see what the airfares are to anywhere in the world from my departure point. You can also search by country or region, set price points, dates, etc…. This is especially useful for Europe or Southeast Asia with so many low cost regional carriers. Earlier this fall, I found an airfare from Raleigh to London on American then London to Paris on a low cost carrier that was $350.00 less expensive than flying an all American itinerary Raleigh-Heathrow-Paris. A few caveats, but it is always worth it to check this out during your planning phase.
- TripAdvisor This is my go to for researching hotels. I don’t use this to book hotels, but I do use TripAdvisor for hotel reviews and to read through the destination forums.
- The Man In Seat 61 This is the go to site for train travel anywhere and everywhere. It also has information about ferries. The amount of information here is amazing.
- Guidebooks: The hard copies can become outdated quickly and are cumbersome to carry around during your travels, but I still use them for planning purposes. I especially like Rick Steves for Europe and National Geographic for National Parks. Moon Guides are also very good. Lonely Planet is good for budget travel.
- Maps: Paper maps rule! ‘Nough said. If you are planning a detailed itinerary, you need a big map to spread out on the table or floor. This is also a great way to get the cat involved with your vacation plans!
- Rome2Rio This website is the best planning tool to find the best way to get from Point A to Point B whether they are 5 miles or 5000 miles apart. Just plug in your travel points and instantly your will get trains, planes, automobiles, buses,ferries, caravan, covered wagon and any combination of these to get you to your destination.
- Budgeting tools: Just google “vacation budget sheet” and you will have one million Excel documents and Google Sheets at your disposal. I must admit, I always start a budget worksheet at the beginning of the planning stage, but this usually lasts about five minutes. For me, pen and paper are the way to go.
- US State Department and CDC If you are planning an international trip (this includes Canada, Mexico, and most Caribbean Islands) to check for travel advisories, necessary immunizations, documents and visas. Also, enroll in STEP (Safe Traveler Enrollment Program). This lets the US Embassy know you are in a particular country and they can advise you of natural disasters, travel advisories, political unrest, terrorist attacks, anything that may impact your well being. Always make sure your passport is valid for at least 6 months from your DEPARTURE date. Many foreign countries make this a requirement for entry even though you have a valid passport. I’m unsure why some foreign countries have this requirement. Is this because they don’t want your passport to expire while you are visiting? Or, they don’t want you to overstay your welcome? If you know, please let me know.
10 Insure My Trip Insure My Trip allows you to enter all your information, then comes up with several options that best matches your needs needs and level of coverage you desire. We ALWAYS get insurance for international trips. The only time we purchased insurance for a domestic trip was our vacation to the Grand Canyon. My husband’s logic on this was “clumsy wife plus deep canyon equals helicopter evacuation”! Not trying to be preachy, but I will just give one bit of advice on this topic. Never buy your trip insurance from the airline, tour operator, cruise line or any other vendor you are booking your travel. The insurance covers them more than it does you. Book your insurance independently.
So there you have it! Ten resources to start planning the best vacation ever. If you have any other resources you like to use, please share with us. We’d love to hear from you!
