Planning
How to organise family travel
Know your own travel style
Your travel style will influence your choices.
Do you prefer beaches or mountains; cities or wilderness; lakes or jungle?
Do you want to focus on food and drink; clubbing and nightlife; museums and galleries; or outdoor adventures?
Do you like to stay in one place for a while, or be on the move?
Are you happy to fly or do you prefer to travel overland?
To plan a great trip, get to know your own travel style and preferences.
“Our travel style is busy and active. We like new places that intrigue us and keep us interested.
We love visiting cities with lots of things to do and people to meet, or being in remote areas with wilderness to explore.”
We prefer to organise our own trips and travel independently.
We like to make the most of our trips but that doesn’t mean we rush everywhere.
Ideally we travel overland and stay for between 3 and 7 nights in one place.
That way we get to explore in-depth and learn more. For us, travel is not about checking off ‘must dos’ and selfie spots. Travel is more than just a photo-op.
Knowing our travel style means we can plan a trip that perfectly suits our preferences, needs and budget.
We opt for 3 star hotels, youth hostels, or self catering apartments.
We walk, use public transport or hire small cars.
We eat picnic lunches and one-course dinners, with occasional luxury meals to treat ourselves.
We take lots of photos as our main souvenirs and only buy small souvenirs such as postcards, patches or key rings.
We make the most of free and low-cost activities.
We try to be ethical sustainable consumers - making considered decisions about how we spend money.
Researching and gathering information
Before deciding where to go, we research costs, activities, transport, safety and climate in different places.
We read guide books, travel blogs and magazines. We talk to friends and family about their travel experiences. We read books and watch movies and TV shows about different places and people. We talk with our kids about what they would like to see, do and learn.
Deciding where to go
Choosing where to travel next is fun!
We are mindful of our travel style and preferences and consider the practicalities and cost of travel in different places.
On our 2023 wish list of things and places to see and do were:
Bullet trains and steam trains; snorkelling and rafting; temples and castles; food markets; science museums; modern art galleries; mountains, lakes and waterfalls; and tropical rainforests and beaches.
Based on the above interests, for 2023 we chose to visit: New Zealand, Australia and Japan. And in the UK - Manchester and Ironbridge.
For 2024 we dreamt of rugged wild isolated landscapes and walks with stunning views; historic cities with interesting architecture and great food markets; and travelling by train - efficient, relaxing and more sustainable.
From this wish list we decided to visit Austria and Paris by train; Scotland in our electric car; Belfast for an adults-only city break; and New York City and Philadelphia for the summer.
Longer term, there are many more places we’d like to visit one day including China, India, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Morocco, Kazakhstan, Jordan, Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia and Bhutan. And places we’d love to revisit, like the Republic of Ireland, Mexico, and Japan.
We can’t see everything everywhere all at once (!) so we will have to be patient. In the meantime we can research and plan and dream.
Researching options and making bookings all takes a lot of time and effort.
And while this level of planning takes away spontaneity and flexibility…
…we are always excited to have booked experiences and places that we can look forward to!
Booking it
The Covid-19 pandemic has changed the tourism industry.
It is now necessary to book well in advance to get a good choice of accommodation and travel options, to guarantee entry into key attractions, and to avoid peak and expensive dates.
When organising a trip, first we apply for any visas we require.
Then we book (refundable) flights as soon as they become available, about 11 months from the travel date. Or trains when tickets are at there cheapest.
Once we have transport to a place, we book car hire and accommodation, usually 6 - 9 months ahead.
We take out comprehensive travel insurance, usually with World Nomads or Safety Wing, providers that cover multi-destination and long term travel. It is important to have travel insurance in place as soon as you pay for any element of your trip.
We try to book tickets in advance for activities that we don’t want to miss. Sometimes this requires significant forward planning; especially for popular sights and activities such as Machu Picchu, Ghibli Park or Disney.
Destinations
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