How do people plan for their overseas holidays?

[Mr Rayon]

How does everyone usually plan their overseas holidays? What processes/activities does everyone actually do when they plan? How do you avoid disasters? Generally, is it difficult to plan your first and following overseas holidays? How much of your overseas holidays do you plan? Does everyone usually plan where they want to go each day that they spend and what they and their family do? How much time is a sufficient amount when it comes to planning holidays? If you go on holidays and you don't plan, is it likely that you will not enjoy your holidays? Is it essential to try to learn the native language of the country you're visiting? How good at the language must you be to become a tourist and survive living overseas? Do people normally enjoy their first overseas holidays? Do people usually get better at planning as they go on more holidays? Can planning overseas holidays be stressful? How often do you go on overseas holidays?

 

Just curious and just incase I go on overseas holidays in the near future.

Edited January 14, 2011 by Voltman

[CaptainPanic]

I've backpacked a good number of times in Europe, and here's what I found relevant for you. Note that this is not a guide. This is just how I personally do things:

 

Planning

Personally, I plan as little as possible. I like backpacking, and I like the freedom of not knowing what my plan is during my holidays. I keep an eye on my budget, and that's all the planning I do... I take it day by day. But not everybody likes that. I think it's a very personal decision whether you plan ahead or not.

 

I have to say that I don't know many people who plan as little as me.

 

I had lots of fun by not planning. I also know of people who would get completely stressed out because they have no reservations for a bed when it's already late afternoon. I am confident that I can find a place. If you don't have that confidence, then you might want to plan ahead a bit.

In the back of my mind I know that if the worst happens, I have backup plans (I sometimes carry a tent and sleeping bag, or on other holidays I keep a little extra budget so that I can include more expensive hotels in my searches).

 

Language

Although it's polite to know a few words in the local language, you can get by using English in all of Europe. Even countries where the locals are notoriously bad at English, like Spain and Italy, you will manage (sorry to all Spanish and Italians). Young people are often better than old people at speaking English.

I wouldn't worry about it. It's certainly not worth the trouble to learn a new language. I don't know how many you speak already, but it takes a long time to speak a language.

 

Where to go

Books like the Lonely Planet are great for planning ahead. You might use that just to get a number of ideas. You can also use it to make a complete day-to-day schedule. Again, it's a personal decision which should depend on your personality and the company you're in (if you're traveling alone, which I can also recommend, that's easier).

 

Where to stay

It's definitely worth planning your first night abroad. After traveling a long way, it's just nice to take it easy. It's weird how sitting in a plane (doing nothing) can make you tired.

After that, it depends if you have your entire trip planned, you might as well make reservations for beds. Personally, I like hostels. They're a good place to meet fellow travelers. I find that the official hostelling-international hostels are often of good quality, but very boring. Independent hostels might have a bar and a place to chill out (both are good for meeting fellow travelers). In the end, my experience is that the best way to find nice hostels is to talk to fellow backpackers. There are often people who just came from the place where you want to go to. And they probably just stayed in a hostel. Always ask them what it was like, and then decide if you'd like to go there too. Receptionists in many hostels will gladly make a call and a reservation 1 day ahead for you. Or can you do that online... as many hostels can be booked online now.

 

If you plan to either go camping or use hotels or Bed & breakfasts, I am not much use for advice.

 

How to get around

Although I am not sure where you want to go, I'll just assume Europe. In general, Europe has a decent train system. The best website for planning a train trip (to find schedules) is the German one (Deutsche Bahn). It works for all trains in all of Europe, and as far as I know it's flawless. Where to get tickets depends. It's different in most countries.

 

In some countries it makes a big difference if you buy train tickets in advance. The UK, and all high speed trains in France, Belgium Netherlands and Germany are expensive if you buy a ticket on the day itself. In this case, the freedom of not planning costs money!

In the UK, coaches (=bus) is an alternative, and tickets aren't so expensive. In the rest of Europe, I wouldn't recommend buses for most trips, although Eurolines is a bus company that would compare to the greyhounds of the USA and Canada. It's damned slow and uncomfortable, but you get to your destination for little money.

 

What to bring

I often bring a lot of stuff. Some people like to travel light... I travel "heavy". Lots of practical clothes so I don't have to wash too often. I bring basic camping gear (tent, thin mattress, sleeping bag, but nothing for cooking) in case I get stuck in the middle of nowhere. I have 24 hrs food and water with me, again in case the worst happens. I have clothing against rain (jacket, but no umbrella). I have maps. I have a good book. I have some rope, some needle and thread, flashlight, pens and markers... basically some practical stuff that is not too heavy.

 

Safety

As far as I know, most towns in Europe are safe (including the ones for example in former Yugoslavia)... but the more stupid you behave, the higher the risks.

You can get robbed in every town, in every country. But making sure that you don't have too many valuables helps. If you have expensive things, don't show them off too much as pickpockets keep an eye on tourists, especially the dumb ones. Get a good insurance. Wear your passport, bankcard and other really important things close to you (not in the backpack). Have a little wallet for small purchases.

 

Stress

For me, holiday is stress-free. But as I said, it's important that you know yourself in this matter. If you like security, and if you feel insecure, then you'd better plan. Stress should be avoided, not simply accepted... so you must do what you like. I don't really know how you can figure this out other than trying.

Basically, you're going to new countries where you know nearly nothing. Just accept that, and enjoy it. Stuff doesn't always go as you want, or as you expect. If you accept that as a fact of life and you're just curious about how it does work, then you'll already take a big step in avoiding stress.

 

If you're interested in a country, and in its people, then you'll do just fine.

 

 

This was one of the best questions on this forum in a long time. I love writing about holidays

cheers,

CP

Edited January 14, 2011 by CaptainPanic

[Marat]

One thing I cannot comprehend about holiday planning is why people choose to travel thousands of miles just to go someplace warm with a sandy beach?! That sounds to me like a holiday worthy of an amphibian or reptile, but nothing that a sentient human being would seek out for thousands of dollars of expense and hours of plane travel. If you want to be warm and sit in warm water, then that seems to be a good reason for turning up the heat in your bathroom and sitting in a tub full of hot water, but not for planning a travel destination. If sand is all that vital (for laying your eggs perhaps?), then by all means, spend $10 for a few buckets of clean sand to dump in the tub.

 

The only reason for travel worthy of human intelligence would be visiting friends and family or enjoying cultural and historical sights abroad.

[vordhosbn]

What about going without a plan and just let things happen?

 

www.couchsurfing.com

[imatfaal]

One thing I cannot comprehend about holiday planning is why people choose to travel thousands of miles just to go someplace warm with a sandy beach?! That sounds to me like a holiday worthy of an amphibian or reptile, but nothing that a sentient human being would seek out for thousands of dollars of expense and hours of plane travel. If you want to be warm and sit in warm water, then that seems to be a good reason for turning up the heat in your bathroom and sitting in a tub full of hot water, but not for planning a travel destination. If sand is all that vital (for laying your eggs perhaps?), then by all means, spend $10 for a few buckets of clean sand to dump in the tub.

 

The only reason for travel worthy of human intelligence would be visiting friends and family or enjoying cultural and historical sights abroad.

 

I thought you had lived in the UK? The climate alone is enough to persuade people to travel hundreds or thousands of miles for a decent chance of some sun. And secondly, swimming in the sea is magical. Travelling can be justified by the need to somewhere removed from one's normal milieu. I live in a country where it is practically impossible to get properly lost, water is freely available, where are no dangerous animals apart from the other humans, and where no wilderness remains; I like to know sometimes that this is not the case.

 

Relaxation comes in many forms; if what it takes for one to leave the quotidian grind behind is the gentle susurration of the sea, the strange mineral conformity of the beach, the plaintive calls of gulls, and the promise of a cold beer in a beach side taverna, then so be it. To declare that one's own delights are the only pleasures worthy of human intelligence is egocentric and unrealistic.