You’re currently looking at a blank page. You’re at the beginning of the planning stages of your trip and you’re trying to decide where you want to go. These are some things to think about.
- Where have you always dreamed of going? Have you dreamed of the castles in France since you were a little girl? Have you always wanted to go snowboarding in Canada? Have you wanted to visit the beaches in Thailand since Leo took you to The Beach all those years ago? Make a list of your must-see places in order of priority. Add in some of your want-to-see places too at the bottom of this list.
- When looking at this list, jot down why you want to go there. Were you wanting to check out the wine regions of France from a luxurious castle with a spa? We’re you hoping for an insane backcountry skiing experience in Canada? Was it art and culture you wanted, adventure, or just a sampling of the world’s foods? Were you hoping to be there for a festival or event, to volunteer, or to immerse yourself into the culture fully or learn a new language by working and living there. Now can you picture yourself doing these things? Be honest with yourself. Travel is about crossing borders and broadening your horizons, but you need to remember who you are, what your travel style is and what you’ll actually be willing to do when it comes down to it. If you get anxiety in crowds, going to Glastonbury Festival in the UK’s summer is maybe not the thing to do.
- Think about when you’re going to be able to take the time off to do this. If you only have six months that you can take off work and those six months will be the dead of winter in Canada, unless you’re keen on cold, snow and winter sports, you may choose to skip this one off your list and head somewhere where the weather will be more in line with what you want to do.
- Once you’ve pinned down your prioritised list of destinations and have a bit of an idea what you want to do there, contact one of our agents to get an initial quote. Bear in mind that if you do want to be somewhere for a specific event, you need to let our agents know the timelines as well.
- Now that you have the initial set of costs, you can talk through your itinerary with your agent and narrow down whether the destinations are worth the costs, or whether you can add destinations for cheap. If your trip is mostly through Asia, the side trip to North America to go skiing might not be worth the cost at this point. See our Factors Affecting Price page to help narrow your destinations based on price and value.