Planning a vacation or trip can be a daunting task. Particularly if you don’t have an answer to the first question… Where should I go? Read on if you are looking for travel inspiration, we have lots of ideas to help.
Vacation planning can be broken down into several stages and for each step of the way there are different planning resources and tools which can assist you. We'll first look at where you can get travel inspiration.
Inspiration - Where to go?
The first stage in planning a trip away is deciding where to go. There are many factors which can go into this decision, including:
- length of vacation time
- time of year
- travel companions
- budget etc.
Sometimes travel inspiration is needed, particularly if you want to visit somewhere you haven’t been before or is not mainstream.
So here are a few suggestions about how you can get that travel inspiration:
Personal Recommendations
Friends, family, neighbors, co-workers all may be able to recommend a great place that they have visited, just ask! This might be useful if they are like-minded people and have similar interests to you e.g. family with children the same age, or you both like adventure sports. You also are more likely to trust their recommendation as it is personal to them. So ask around, you may be given some good suggestions.
Pinterest / Instagram etc.
For many people the starting point for travel inspiration are social media tools, such as Pinterest or Instagram. These are particularly good for visual thinkers. There are plenty of awe-inspiring photographs to catch your attention and give you ideas.
Follow the social media posts of travel influencers which have similar interests to you and find out about the latest destination they have visited. Or search Pinterest and set up a board to pin your ideas or visit other boards for inspiration.
As well as following individual travelers’ posts also follow the likes of Lonely Planet, NatGeo Travel, BBC travel and also country tourism boards.
This is a very visual way of finding out more about a destination. Lots of eye-catching photos and videos showing the best of an area.
A limitation of resources such as Pinterest and Instagram is that the information given is usually in isolation, about a place or area. No comparisons with other areas or details about prices etc. which you would want to take into consideration when choosing a destination.
Travel blogs and travel influencers
If you are following a travel blog or travel influencer who has similar likes and aims from travel to you then the information they provide can be invaluable and a great source of travel inspiration. The information provided in travel blogs can have the benefit of a personal voice and persuasive reasons to go to a particular destination. Also they will usually provide more details about the practicalities and costs, which will help you make a more informed decision. But do bear in mind that the information is usually from the blogger’s own personal view point and experience, so there could be gaps.
Use this as starting point and inspiration, research an area more to discover attractions which you would like to see and build your own itinerary. For many destinations you should be able to find a travel blog which is similar to the circumstances you are travelling e.g. solo traveler, family, budget travel.
Use these sites as a source for tips and travel inspiration, they may also usefully signpost you to where you can get further information.
Maps
Maps can be an excellent way of coming up with travel ideas as well as providing a lot of information. If you really study a map, you will begin to notice areas which you haven’t seen before. Have you ever wondered about that island or peninsula, or whether you can visit a point where two countries border?
Tourist maps or themed maps often have attractions highlighted and can provide more information about places to visit in an area.
Google maps also clearly shows things to do in an area, attractions, parks, museums etc. with links through to the attraction’s website and provides details such as opening hours.
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More detailed travel research/planning
Once you have narrowed down where it is that you would like to visit, now is the time to start getting into the details.
Travel guides - Lonely Planet, Rough Guides etc.
This is possibly the best way to thoroughly research a destination and to get the most out of your trip. Travel guides tend to divide a country/region/city up into zones and go through each in depth. Not only does it give you the highlights or ‘must see’ sights but often tells you of lesser known places that are worth the detour or would make a good tag-on to a trip to an area. They also can be invaluable in providing information about safely travelling within an area, which neighborhoods should be avoided or how to make the most out of your trip. They also can be great for recommending accommodation and restaurants, this can be more useful in remote rural places where there are fewer options than in a city.
Check the attraction’s website before visiting, for the most up to date information about ticketing prices and opening hours, as a guide book can quickly go out of date.
Tourist Board – website
Obviously the country’s own tourism board should know the most about their own country. However, the quality of the travel information on a city or region’s tourism board website can vary, but it is worth checking this out. They will be boasting about all that their area has to offer and hopefully will provide the most up to date details regarding attractions. Possibly including attractions which are new and not yet included in published guide books. It is also a good place to find out about events and there may be details about discounts to museums and attractions.
Tourist Information Office
This may be seen as traditional but walking through the door of an actual tourist information office still has its uses. Early on in a trip if you get a chance, stop at a tourist information office to see what they recommend. Or where you are staying may have a tourist information area with leaflets and maps.
Often you can pick up a paper map here which sometimes can be useful (alongside electronic maps) when navigating around a city/area. You will be glad of the back up map if the battery runs out on your mobile and you can no longer use GPS. Also it can make orientating yourself easier if you can see the whole layout of the region or city on one map.
There might be a leaflet for something which you had not considered. Unlike travel books, these leaflets often have many photographs about the attraction, showing you more about what it is like and this may actually convince you to go to somewhere you had not considered. There also are sometimes discounts to be had on entry tickets.
Those working at the tourist information centers are usually very knowledgeable about an area and can direct you towards attractions you may have overlooked. They also can assist with making reservations for accommodation, transport, tours, theatre etc. Tourist Information Offices are also where you can often get discount cards for either transport or museums in the area.
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Global Sightseer
Global Sightseer can help you with both the inspiration stage and beginning more detailed planning.
The Global Sightseer country overviews are helpful, giving you an idea of the different regions within a country and listing some of their highlights. Use this and the destination guides in the first stage of your travel planning. To see at a glance the diverse list of things to do, and whether there is anything that grabs your interest and gives you a reason to go to a particular destination.
The Global Sightseer destination guides categorize attractions into interest areas and each attraction mentioned then has a link directly to the attraction’s own website. This will help you with the most up to date information about the attractions.
There are a range of destination guides available, including: Busan (South Korea), Arizona (USA) and Vilnius (Lithuania). A list of all our destination guides can be found here.
Global Sightseer is here to help make itinerary planning for your next vacation easier.
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