Some people have been in awe of my travel plans, and not because they include wildly creative and adventurous activities. Rather, it’s because I did not yield to a tour. I plan most of my trips from A to Z. I love doing the research!

DIY travel planning lets you go deep to discover a place long before you get there. You build anticipation for the vacation, or what I call the “pre-vacation glow.” I research websites, like TripAdvisor, and other blogs, and read travel guides and travel memoirs. I  give myself plenty of time to customize my vacation.

First, make some basic decisions, and then add layers of detail.

1.   Length of time:  Long weekend? One to two weeks? Longer?

2.  Pick a continent or region; and then country, state, or province.

3.  Refine your destination through a signature event or activity.

You can design your travel itinerary around a signature event or activity. These are examples:

Sports competition or sports events

Team travel to USTA National Championship in Indian Wells, CA.

Mutua Madrid Open – Madrid, Spain

Football – The Ohio State University Buckeyes at Ohio Stadium

Festivals and concerts

Barbados Food, Wine, and Rum Festival – balsamic braised lamb at the Ambrosia event.

Detroit’s Concert of Colors – Annual July event

Photography

Belle Isle (Detroit).

San Francisco – a most photogenic city.

View of Golden Gate Bridge.

Route 1 – California Coast, south of Big Sur. Combined two days of photographing the coast and Carmel-by-the-Sea with a week in San Francisco.

Shopping

Gallery on Cape Cod  – Scargo Pottery – Dennis, Massachusetts

Culture

Prado Museum – Madrid Spain

National or state parks 

Green Monkeys – Barbados

Trio of elephants – Chobe National Park (Botswana)

A dune at the Cape Cod National Seashore

Foodie experience

Neighborhood bar in Williamsburg (Brooklyn, NY)

Retreats

La Crisalida Yoga Retreat – Albir, Spain

Other fun examples:  cycling, snow and water sports, beaches, hiking and camping, cooking schools, conferences, visiting friends, family reunion, and amusement parks. 

4.   Climate:  What climate is ideal for your activities? Hot, cold, or temperate? 

Answers to these questions will also help you further refine your destination(s) and when you’ll travel.

For example, if you want to go to Australia and hike the Tasmania Overland Trail, peak hiking time begins in October. That is Australia’s spring season.

As another example, snow sports require cold, snow, and mountains. Though, as I recall, the unique destination of Sochi, Russia for the 2014 Winter Olympics seemed to have a little of something for everyone. Sochi’s weather was temperate, affecting ski and snowboarding slopes. But, at sea level, among the palm trees, visitors to the Sochi Olympics had the experience of being in Russia during winter and not freezing half to death.

You can check this site for a three-day snow forecast anywhere in the world, or this site for annual ski resorts with highest annual snowfall.

5.  Travel Mode: Plane, train, or automobile? 

Look at a map. Check airline routes, if you’ll be traveling by plane. You may need to consider a combination of transportation modes.

For instance, if you’re going to Martha’s Vineyard, you might fly to Boston, take the bus to Woods Hole, and the ferry from there to Vineyard Haven or Oak Bluffs. Or, if you drive and want to have your car with you, make a reservation in advance to ferry your car over.

6. Mix it up.

When I knew I would be going to Abu Dhabi (UAE), my flights in both directions included a stop in London. So, I added London as the second major travel destination and spent eight days there in late May. This required packing for two different climates: desert hot-as-hell and London cool-and-drizzly. (London, by the way, was a very pleasant surprise…only one rainy day and the other days were warm.)

You can also mix it up with coastal, mountain, rural, and city destinations.

7. Plot your destination(s).

Think about the kind of traveler you are (or want to be). Do you want to cram in as many places as possible? Or, do you want “slow travel,” that is, taking time to linger, tarry, and absorb local culture? (I plotted four destinations in my two week trip to Spain that only covered a small slice of the country from Madrid to the Mediterranean coast.)

8. Plot out activities at each destination.

This will help you figure out how much time to spend at each destination. I always start with this list of “must-see” places. Check out whether a destination can serve as “home base” for day trips.

For example, when I went to Belgium, I used Brussels as a “home base” for my first week. From there, I took day trips to other Belgian provinces within a two hour train ride of the city.

Historic Belfry in Tournai – Oldest belfry in Belgium

9. Plot out activities for each day.

Some activities will have fixed times, like a concert or the theater. You can build in leisure time and factor in travel time, if your destination is a day trip. This way you’ll at least have a clue as to how you might spend each day.  I don’t know if you feel the same way, but vacation time and the cost are too precious to waste. I want to make the most of each day.

If you’re traveling overseas to a city, a bus tour could be a good first day activity to help you get oriented, especially if you arrive jet-lagged. Thereafter, you can strike off on your own by urban transit or on foot.

Once you’ve finished Steps 1 – 9, you’ll have your DIY itinerary.

10. Review your itinerary daily.

The beauty of DIY travel planning is that you create a flexible itinerary. Except for ticketed events, like the theater, sports event, and concerts, you can deviate from the itinerary. It’s a plan and things can change. You might drop some activities because you changed your mind; you discovered something else great to do; or, you wanted more freestyle time in your day.

Check the weather forecast each day for outdoor activities. While you can do museums and shopping in any weather, rainy days are great for those activities.

Now that this phase of DIY travel planning is complete, you can work out the travel and lodging arrangements!

Bon Voyage!