Travel Planning – To Plan Or Not To Plan?

The Pros Of Travel Planning

Depending on the length of your trip, planning can be time consuming, especially if you want to plan every little detail. But planning ahead can have it’s advantages:

You Know Your Destination Before You Arrive

You know where you want to stay, what museums you want to see, what day trips you want to do and have maybe even planned how you will be successful in seeing everything. You’ve already done the groundwork and don’t have to worry about figuring everything out once you’re there.

You can literally hit the ground running. I was in Puebla and I knew I wanted to get to Loreto Fort, the Museum of Religious Art in Santa Monica, Santa Rosa and Museo Amparo. I had originally planned to do all of these over two days, but because I figured out the best order to do these museums I was able to get the bus to Loreto Fort and work my way through them all. I managed to see them all in one day – and I didn’t rush them at all. This meant I ended up with an extra day in Puebla and was able to see another nearby town.

It Can Save You Money

We all know that booking in advance tends to be cheaper than booking last-minute. Whether it’s a flight, train or bus, transport is cheaper in advance. If you know where you’re going and what you want to do you can keep an eye out for deals online, say for that street food tour in Bangkok you really have your heart set on. Another great plus to research is you can find out when museums are having a free day, and see if you can take full advantage.

You Can Save Time Too

By planning your transport in advance, you can avoid having to stay over somewhere that you didn’t want to. Sometimes connections really don’t work when you don’t plan ahead. Another way it can save time is the fact you can plan your sightseeing. You can plan your routes around the city (like I did in Puebla) and make the most of your time there.

Helps You Stay Secure

One reason I like to plan ahead with accommodation is the fact that it means I will always have a roof over my head and a bed to sleep on. I like to have that security. There are also popular attractions that you may have to book ahead to ensure you can see them.

You Can Get To Difficult Locations

Some destinations are difficult to get to, unless you have your own car. To get there you do have to plan. One destination I really wanted to get to in Mexico was Calakmul. But these ruins are hidden deep in the rainforest and are hours away from anywhere. To get there I had no choice but to plan ahead and I booked a trip with Bacalar Adventure Tours – it was one of the best tours I did and with all the transport it took over 13 hours! No way could I have made it without booking ahead.

The Benefits Of Not Planning

On the other hand, not having a plan can be said to be the true spirit of travel. And not planning does have its advantages too:

Flexibility Is Always Good

With no plan, you can be flexible. Whenever you get to a destination, there’ll be an amazing thing to do that you haven’t heard of before. When I got to Merida, everyone in the hostel was talking about the Homun Cenotes. Despite my research I’d never heard of them, but they sounded great. Luckily I had extra time so was able to adjust my plans to fit this.

You Can Be Spontaneous

You never know what will happen when you meet new friends, but you do know that you’ll probably want to spend time together. Not having a plan means you can go with the flow and be spontaneous. In Puerto Vallarta this happened to me. I ended up joining some new friends for a walk to a secluded beach.

Nothing Can Go Wrong

With no plan, nothing can go wrong. So there’s no stress when a bus doesn’t turn up, or you get on the wrong train. When in Mazatlan I was catching an early bus as I had to get to El Fuerte for early evening for the start of a trip I was booked on (the journey included one bus change and then a colectivo drive). The bus never turned up. I have no idea how an entire bus full of people just disappeared, but it did. It was the most stressful travel day of my life. If I hadn’t of had the trip planned, it wouldn’t have mattered at all.

You Can Follow Local Advice

Local knowledge is the best. With no plan you ave the time to seek out local people and get their recommendations, which are always better than anything you will find in a guidebook. I went to a restaurant in Puebla, based on TripAdvisor reviews and it was terrible. The service was appalling, food was good but everything else was horrific. On the other hand in Valladolid someone told me about a local food court and I had some of the best food I had in Mexico there.

Locals can also tell you how to best get to a place. I was trying to get to the ferry to Isla Mujeres from Cancun. I knew that there were two ferries, one cheaper than the other. After a short conversation in terrible Spanish with the colectivo driver, saying I wanted the cheap ferry, he refused to let me out at the second ferry stop, which I thought was the cheap one. He took me to the car ferry, which was even cheaper.

You Can Save Money

I know I’m contradicting myself here, but not having a plan can save you money. If you literally have no plan, you don’t really care where you are going or when, you can just jump on the best deals with no forward planning. Last minute bookings can also be cheap for hotels.

You Can Take The Time To Absorb A Place

If you have a plan and really want to see all the attractions of a place, you risk missing out on the place itself. Sometimes it’s nice just to wander around, sit and sip on a coffee in a cafe, act as the locals do. Being planless gives you ample time to do this.