Last Updated on June 2, 2023 by Roslin Dwivedi
Do you think about why should you have an Itinerary during vacation? why we need an itinerary? or why we should spend time creating one? We also ask ourselves – Is the itinerary essential or helpful? I would say it may or may not be pleasing to create an itinerary, but for our family, and even when we were just a newlywed couple, I made itineraries almost every time we headed out. Yes, also for a shopping day out.
Recently I was making an itinerary for our next trip. I was exhausted reading about the place, gathering the information and having these questions in my mind, then I ended up writing these points, which may help you understand why you need it, or you may end up with a decision of having the itinerary at all.
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Advantages of having an Itinerary during your vacation –
- The itinerary is time-saving. As it leads directly to the spot without wasting time. Instead of wondering what to do, you are wandering in a fantastic destination.
- Having an itinerary means having a road map of how the next 3 or 5 days will be during your vacation or any trip you are on.
- Physically and mentally relaxed while on your vacation. Your research and efforts to know the place are listed on that itinerary, which is undoubtedly relaxing. We have realised how easing the itinerary has been since we started making one for us. We are always prepared mentally when we will get rest and when we should be ready to go out for an excursion or dinner. Also, we write the days and times we are meeting our friends at that destination or even where we will enjoy the sunset that day. Do you feel that’s convenient!
- Itinerary makes you pack limited. Nor less, nor more. Unless you want extra clothes or a pair of shoes just in case, you need those. When you have an itinerary, you know exactly what to do, leading you to load suitable clothes, shoes, and accessories for every event, dinner or activity (excursion). So you do not pack extra and have just the required items in your luggage.
- The itinerary help make a budget trip successful. One can calculate the approximate budget and prepare themselves. So, this is what we do; sometimes, we write down the cost of each excursion we like. Depending on the price of the tours, we add or remove extra activities. Are you getting my point?
- The itinerary contains travel details and prepares you to keep your travel papers ready when you check in at the airport. When you check the itinerary, double-check if you have the visa, passport, hotel reservation, covid vaccine certificate or any other essential documents to show at check-in at the airport or at the immigration.
- The itinerary has all the emergency contact info right in front of you, saving you from panicking at the time of emergency or delay in the tour.
- Keeps the backup plans ready at the time of need. So here’s what I do most of the time. I keep the backup tour or activity we can do if the previous one’s cancelled or anything uncertain. This happened to us during our Paris trip. Our Eiffel Tower tour got cancelled, and we had an open slot. We didn’t waste our time thinking about how to utilise that evening. Instead, we went on the Seine river cruise close to the Eiffel tower.
- The itinerary contains a list of things to do. Be it shopping arcades in the town or a famous cafe/restaurant. The itinerary prevents you from missing anything important that you want to do on your vacation. Applies mainly to small things like looking for particular jackets in a specific shop or checking for that hidden lake by asking the taxi driver.
- At last, a planned itinerary is a well-organised trip, and an organised trip is always better.
Disadvantages of having an Itinerary during your vacation –
- Preparing an itinerary and researching are time taking. But take your time and make it by making an itinerary you won’t miss on anything you like or could do on that trip.
- Sometimes, you might find hidden gems off guard of the desired place. You might miss it if you follow the itinerary from one point to another. Yes, this can happen if you walk like a programmed robot. If you don’t like that, go for something else nearby; just keep an open eye while on your trip. You may have to make some changes while on the trip. And that’s where a flexible itinerary comes in handy.
- Going from point A to B and B to C can get exhausting. But to avoid that exhausting part, you need to be mentally ready or use the flexibility of the itinerary again.
- It can be stressful thinking about the upcoming event one after the other. Now, this happens with us also, but then you can change the tour’s timing to the day you have no commitments.
- The itinerary depends on the capacity and strength of family members. Non-consideration may cause miss some spots.
- Lack of research and a non-efficient itinerary may cause problems on vacation.
- Lack of flexibility.
Conclusion –
- Keep your and your family’s capability to follow the itinerary while creating it. I always keep our baby’s nap and meal times in mind while creating itineraries. Otherwise, you may have to cancel a few tours on the spot, which may lead you to miss something that was really in your mind.
- Always make the itinerary after proper research and not only listen to advice or stories from some people.
- Check on google maps for point-to-point distance and plan accordingly.
- Back-up plans on the itinerary.
- If you don’t make any itinerary, you better keep a helping hand, like travel agents and their contact numbers. Otherwise, you won’t have contact information during any emergency, making things worse.
- And lastly, it’s not that bad not having an itinerary. You can simply start from one point to the other in one city, looking for things to do on the way. Or just make your own by going one by one to the places like museums, local markets, antiques or vintage shops.
So hope these points are helpful and clear the second thoughts about having an Itinerary on your vacation or any trip.
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