Traveling may seem like a piece of cake, more than just choosing the desired destinations and booking a plane ticket. What makes it look like a piece of cake is an itinerary. Itineraries make every traveler’s trip a breeze since itineraries help you in avoiding any common traveling hitches. Consider securing yourself an itinerary as a requirement when you will be traveling as it can provide you with a clear guide and outline for the entire duration of your trip.
Given how itineraries can make a whole difference to your trip, it is important that you should learn how to create one especially if you travel a lot. Worry no more for in this article, we are going discuss to you the basics of preparing and creating an itinerary with the help of some guidelines, of course, itinerary examples and templates that can give you a good start.
Here are the elements that you must include in your itinerary in order to make it an effective one.
1. Program: The program of your itinerary covers every and any single activity you will be engaged and involved in during the duration of your trip. And by every and any single activity, it can even include the bathroom breaks, the waiting time, and the walk from nearby locations to another. Having a program will enable you to maximize your time well during a trip.
2. Timetable: You have to accept the fact that you can never have enough time within the day to visit a lot of places in a certain destination. Manage your time wisely in order to visit at least half of the places you can possibly visit within the day. This is when the role of a timetable would come in. Aside from the aforementioned, timetables can also be helpful when it comes to helping you in setting time for allowances, emergencies, and other unforeseen circumstances.
3. Duration: Aside from preparing a timetable, there is also a need for you to identify the duration you will be spending at a particular place or the duration you will be needing to carry out a certain activity. You will be able to make sure that you are always on time and that you are not behind your schedule. You will no longer be worrying about allocating time for bathroom breaks and even spontaneous photo shoots at the scenic places you will happen to pass by.
4. The Four A’s: Are you a first-time traveler? There are four A’s that you should keep in mind, namely attraction, accessibility, accommodation, and amenities. Listing the places you want to visit can be easy but figuring out how you will get to the places you want to go, where you will be staying, and what your activities you can do in those places is not something you can consider as a piece of cake.
Now that we’ve covered the basics of developing an itinerary, here’s how you can enhance yours with the help of the guidelines below:
1. Set realistic plans: Sure, you want to get to a lot of places in one day but given the fact that there will be a lot of unexpected events as well as the varying distances, it will always be impossible to be in so many places within a day (unless you have a helicopter as your transportation means). Set realistic plans so you can set equally realistic expectations and be at realistic destinations in a realistic time frame.
2. Keep things organized: The main reason why itineraries were made is that it makes trips smooth and flowing. If you are going to keep your itinerary all over the place, it will surely get you confused during the entire trip, resulting in a messy and unorganized trip. Simply put: an organized itinerary means an equally organized trip.
3. Determine the possible unexpected circumstances: No matter how good you are planning trips, you will always fall short because there’s always the possibility for the unplanned and uncontrollable circumstances happening in one of your trips. Who plans inconveniences and delays, anyway? Always take into consideration the possible unexpected things such as the delays in your flight and the traffic from point to point.
4. Take down and keep notes: Your travel agent or your favorite travel blogger might have some guidelines, travel hacks, and other reminders that they want you to remember. Consider taking them down and keep these for the duration of your trip so you will be kept reminded about it. Who knows, these hacks and reminders can be lifesaving during your trip.
5. Make sure to K.I.S.S.: Always make sure to Keep your Itinerary Short and Simple (K.I.S.S.). Do you really have the patience to read a long and wordy itinerary? You obviously do not, so always make sure that before you finalize your itinerary, you have already checked that it is written directly to the point. Don’t make your life difficult and complicated by including unnecessary details in your itinerary.
Do you have any idea how to create an itinerary that will exactly suit both of your personal and/or professional needs? Listed below are the types of itineraries that can help you decide.
Here are the answers to the most frequently asked questions regarding itineraries.
Also described as a travel plan, itineraries are used particularly for trips that will help you keep reminded of the places where you should go and when you will be arriving there. An itinerary, depending on how thoroughly made it is, can also help you determine how you should be budgeting both of your time and money effectively. Itineraries can be used by groups of people to pairs and individuals and its effect will remain the same.
An itinerary is important for so many reasons. Having an itinerary during your trips can help you maximize your time by making sure you can get to numerous places but still have leeway for unexpected events. Aside from enabling you to manage your time, an itinerary can also help you in managing your expenditures so you will no longer have to deal with any financial-related problems.
An itinerary must contain every single important information about a group or an individual’s trips. It must contain the route that should be traveled during the trip, the distance for every point to point, the estimated time of arrival from one destination, the means of transport, the accommodation, and of course the activities and the attractions that every tourist must be able to experience during his or her trip.
Securing yourself with an itinerary is the very first thing that you must create before you embark on a trip. Traveling can be a stress, and with an itinerary that is created the right way, you will surely be having the best time of your life. We hope you found this article helpful when you finally create your own itinerary. Do not forget to check out the fully editable itinerary examples and templates that you can download for free here in this article.