Planning For Your Travel

Boost the pleasure of a perfect holiday by planning well in advance. Here are the tips based on the experiences of seasoned travels:

First, get all the information:

Guidebooks, travelogues, travel literature, maps, and brochures are stepping-stones to start you off. There are the standard travelers bibles, like the country and city specific guides from Lonely Planet, Fodors, Rough Guide, Eyewitness, and Footprint publications. Browse the titles you are after in a bookshop or library before buying any. Don't buy old editions because the very latest edition will still be a year old.

The internet is the ultimate resource. Look for travel forums where you can interact with other travelers and post any question you can think of. There are hundreds of travel blogs to read, and your dilemma would be to choose the ones that would be relevant or of special interest. Travel.alltop.com brings you the five most recently published articles from over seventy travel blogs and websites.

State and country tourism boards, and tourist information offices are a good resource too. There are masses and leaflets to be picked up, with special offers, promotions, festivals, and fairs listed. Tourism boards of much visited cities like Singapore and London go all out to produce attractive guidebooks, and websites, and it may be worth your while to check out special seasonal discount vouchers, and contests regularly.

Accessories:

Your travel style, and itinerary should determine the kind of luggage you choose to buy. Choose quality luggage even if you spend more. Sturdy branded suitcases will give you good mileage for years. But if you pick up bargain bags of dubious pedigree they barely last two trips. Hard luggage or soft? Both have their pros and cons. Hard sided luggage adds to your overall weight, but it survives rough handling and also keeps delicate items cushioned. Soft luggage is more flexible when you need to squeeze in some extra packing, but you need to be careful how you pack fragile things. You also need to watch your soft luggage closely because these are easier to get into. In any case, valuable are best kept on your person or in carry on bags that are kept close at all times.

Before you begin packing clothes, take a closer look at your trip itinerary and pack only those clothes, which match your itinerary. Are you going to be walking a great deal, swimming or hiking in the woods? Will you be going to formal dinners or fancy restaurants? What will the weather be like? If we look back on earlier trips, most of us will realize that we rarely wear all that we pack. So it's best to take less than more.

It's best to stick to a basic color palette that you can mix and match, dress up or dress down. Keep in mind that most of your wardrobe is wash and wear, and practically all of your clothes will be worn several times over. So, it is a good idea to go for easy to care, wrinkle resistant fabrics. A traveler's clothesline is a good idea for hostellers and back packers. These have Velcro loops that can be fitted onto any projection, and a fair amount of stretch that will accommodate rooms of any size.

Travelers from the tropics often tend to over pack when headed to a colder climate. Unless you are going mountaineering or living far away from civilization, consider buying some of your woolens after you reach your destination. For one thing you will not know what you need till you see the situation first hand.

Take along two pairs of shoes (one all weather walking shoes, and a comfortable dressier pair) should tide you over for most occasions. A cap, hat, and sunglasses for hotter climates, and a small foldable umbrella and hooded rain coat will set you up for other weather eventualities. Individual cosmetic requirements differ from person to person, but these are a few things that are common to all. Sunscreen, hand sanitizer, toilet paper, insect repellent, and deodorant are staples. To this checklist, you may also add a spare pair of glasses, hairdryer, nail clipper, tweezers, razor, toothbrush, hairbrush, and a comb.

Health:

To stay healthy over your trip, give yourself a thorough overhauling before you leave. Depending on where you are going, get your medical check up done (dental too-because dentists can be prohibitively costly abroad). Take medical insurance. Take along any prescription drugs (and essential over-the counter ones too). If you are generally sedentary at home, get in shape for travel by taking long walks for a few weeks in advance.

Women traveling in remote areas should ensure that the feminine hygiene products they are used to are well stocked up. Certain kinds of sanitary napkins or tampons will not be available everywhere, so, it makes sense to carry enough. Extra vitamins in your medical kit are also a good idea if you are prone to anemia, pregnant, or need to boost your immunity in general.

Accommodation and costs:

Budget your trip in advance taking into consideration all the money in place. You can also apply for travel loans in your country if the banks offer such facilities. Virtualtourist.com, Tripadvisor.com, and Thorntree yield a wealth of tips posted by travelers and local residents in practically any destination you can think of. Hotels, packages, flights, and tourist attractions are reviewed and rated by travelers who have been there, and done it all before. A first-hand report on a hotel, restaurant or service would save you many disappointments long before you get there. You would even see the photographs of rooms. Watch out for special offers during both peak and off seasons.

With an economic slowdown looming, it's going to be a buyer's market in the travel trade, and the customer could always benefit.