For those who dare to plan
the trip themselves, here are a few tips that could possibly help them plan
better:
Plan
in advance
Unless it is a last minute
trip plan, always ensure that you give enough time for planning the trip. There
could be many unknowns that may need more time. It’ll help to have enough time
in hand for such eventualities. It’ll also help especially with booking of
tickets for flights, trains etc. Most of the time ticket prices are quite low
when booked in advance.
Check-list
It is an absolutely handy
tool to have a check-list created for activities or items required for the
trip. May it be getting a Visa or taking the mobile charger with you, the
check-list is a sure shot success to ensure that you have not forgotten
anything important. It is also a good practice to keep a copy of this
check-list with you so that you can use it for your subsequent trips. You could
even categorize the check-list as domestic vs international or cold weather vs
warm weather etc. and plan the execution accordingly. As and when an activity
is completed, you could strike that through. It’ll give you a sense of
completion for your trip preparation.
Passport
/ Visa Requirement
If it is an international
trip, one of the key factors to be considered is your readiness with respect to
passport and Visa(s). You need to ensure that your passport is valid at least
for 6 months (in most cases) and you’ve a valid Visa for the country or
countries to which you are travelling. Visa processes can differ from country
to country and you’ll definitely need to factor in some time to ensure that you’ve
the required Visa in hand before the trip.
Accommodation
While staying with family or
friends can be quite a comfortable experience and saves you good amount of
money, staying at a hotel can be very liberating. You may want to keep in mind
a famous saying that, “A guest is a guest for two days; after which they become
a pest”. Various online booking options such as Booking.com, Airbnb.com etc.
offer quite a few alternatives for accommodation. You need to be careful about
choosing one by looking at the ratings and reviews of the hotel / apartment. Asking
people who’ve booked earlier through such options is also a good idea. Cost
needs to be a key consideration as well since this is one factor that could put
a big hole in your travel budget.
Foreign
Exchange
For international trips where
you need to handle a currency that is different from your home country, it is
important that you plan to carry certain amount of foreign currency acceptable
in that country. This is where it could get tricky. You need to have a fair
estimate of the amount required for which you obtain the foreign exchange.
Anything less will possibly leave you cashless in a foreign country. On the
other hand, anything in excess at the end of your trip will possibly cost you
more since you could end up losing some amount while returning the currency to
foreign exchanges. Using a pre-loaded forex card or your own credit card are
also options, provided the destination you are heading to accept cards and is
safe to do so.
Food
You wouldn’t believe the
amount that just drains away on this particular expense while at your
destination! One of the tricks of the trade is not to have all meals at
restaurants. Instead, if feasible, plan your own cooking for which you could choose
apartments with kitchen and utensils. Alternately, you could carry a small
electric cooker which could help you cook a bit if required. This is especially
helpful when you have little kids for whom food from outside all three times
may end up as a wrong choice for their health. An alternate to restaurant food
could be local supermarkets where you could buy food items that you could
either consume directly or cook a bit yourself. This is guaranteed to make you
happier at the end of your trip when you look at your budget sheet!
Budget
Last but not the least, all
of the above and more in one way or other contribute to your expense for the
trip. You need to have an idea of how much you intent to spend for the trip. It
is equally important to have a check on your budget during the trip so that you
won’t end up overspending. It could be quite normal for you to have changes in
your plans during the trip, but having a budget will help you to have a hold of
your spending which will eventually help with your financial planning.
Though there are many more
tips that may not have made its way to the above list, there is one not so
obvious factor that you need to give its due respect. It is nothing other than
‘common sense’. This is one critical factor that will ensure your safety above
everything else throughout your trip. Hope you find this list useful and plan
your next trip accordingly.
Wish you a very happy and
safe journey. God bless.
