The D.I.Y. Travel Itinerary

If you’re a Type A traveler, you’ve probably already figured out you like to have a plan before you set out. You may even plan a few months in advance of your trip, researching every last detail of your hotel, transportation and activities so you can make the perfect itinerary, pack list and to-do list before you leave.

Some travelers, however, are more unorganized and wouldn’t know where to begin with planning a travel itinerary. Some may think you have to hire a professional to create an itinerary for you, but that’s not the case. As many Type A travelers will tell you, creating your own travel itinerary is easy.

Whether you’re visiting a brand new destination or an old favorite, make a list of all of the things you want to do while you’re there. Keep in mind how much time you have and what your budget is. Remember — everything costs money when you’re traveling and every snack and taxi ride has to be considered. If you’re not sure on costs, look it up online. If you’re going to a new location and aren’t sure what you want to see, search out travel forums and reviews. Trust the people who have already been there to tell you where to go or whether or not something is overrated, rather than relying on someone whose primary goal is to make money off of your tourism.

Lay out your list of things you want to see and do by geographic location. Pick one day or time for each geographic point. On day one, you can see and do everything on the north side of the city, for example. Then on day two, you can switch to a different neighborhood. If you need to spend more than one day in a particular area, that’s fine, too.

Give yourself plenty of time between activities, as well as in the mornings and at night. This allows for weather, traffic or just stopping into a really cool shop you happened to notice. You don’t want to be so stuck to your itinerary you don’t allow yourself room to have fun. While a D.I.Y. itinerary can ensure you see and do everything you’d like to on your trip, there’s nothing wrong with a little spur of the moment fun either.