The One Thing You Must Know Before Planning Your Next Vacation
The one thing you MUST know
before planning your next vacation
We must understand our travel personality in order to guarantee a fantastic travel experience.
Travel can be a life changing experience! Experiencing new cultures, flavors, sounds, and smells is addictive and enriches life. But nothing is worse than a trip that is out of line with your expectations and your personal travel needs. Too fast? Too slow? Too historical? Too active? Our personal travel personalities dictate everything about the experience we will have.
The perfect trip starts with the planning.
It starts with the planning! How much do you like to plan? Do you want a done-for-you itinerary? Travel agents still exist and thrive. They can talk to you about what you want and customize your vacation to meet your preferences and needs. There are also tour packages with customized add-ons. The first time we went to Italy, we booked through a company that managed our hotels, transfers between cities, airlines and one tour per stop. The rest we customized to what we wanted. It was a great option for our first trip!
If you love the planning process, then you know that half the fun is researching, reading and studying up on the destination so you can select the perfect transportation, lodging, entertainment and excursions while you are there.
Stay true to who you are.
One of the easiest mistakes to make when planning a trip is to assume that because you are in a new locale, you will adopt a new personality. If your definition of activity is walking to the store or riding your bike around the block, then an active adventure hiking trip might not work for you. If your dream day is wandering slowly through your favorite neighborhood exploring bookstores, shops and restaurants, then plan to do the same thing on your trip. You will experience your location the way that you love most.
Think about how you and your travel buddy spend time together. My husband and I love walking tours and unpacking small areas at a time. We also love to get a feel for where we are. In each city we go to, we start with a high level overview (like a big red bus tour) and then dive in to the local streets by walking next. We take it one neighborhood at a time and layer in shows, sights and history as we go.
Compliment your strengths and weaknesses.
A favorite way to maximize my vacation is to sit down with my travel partners and figure out what we each love most. Is one of us a planner? Is one of us amazing and finding the best hotels? What activity level are we planning on? If there is a difference in activity expectations, are there days or afternoons where we can go our separate ways? One group heads for the dirt bikes while the other group hits the beach?
You don’t have to travel in a herd of like minded people. You want the differences to enrich the trip. One of you wanting to stay out a little later may result in the early bird experiencing a starry sky she hadn’t planned on.
Knowing yourself and your travel personality is a perfect way to start your travel plans. Take my free quiz today for some insight into who you are and how you can make your next trip perfect!
Can’t wait to hear about your trip!
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a perfect trip starts here