I am considered the travel planner in the family. Having planned a number of trips, I find that a good portion of travel planning is making sure that everyone is on-board with the selected destination(s), and that there is something about the trip that everyone is truly excited about. After all, half the fun is the anticipation of the trip — knowing that you’ll soon be heading off to an adventure can do wonders to brighten your day!
1. Be Open-Minded
It’s important to be open-minded when you travel. For example, my brother read about Mannequin Pis in a guidebook and wanted to visit the famed attraction when we visited Brussels. Personally, I didn’t get all the fuss about the attraction, but I was open to checking it out. We trekked our way over. He was happy with the visit, and I had some good laughs when we got there. It was a win-win.
2. Recognize What Makes You Happy
It’s also important to recognize the things that make you happy. For example, I self-studied Japanese prior to visiting Japan and spent most of my efforts on learning how to order food. On our first full day in Japan, my family and I decided to eat at a sit-down restaurant at a local mall. When I finished placing the order (albeit slowly), I couldn’t stop grinning from ear to ear. I ordered food in Japanese successfully! For the rest of the trip, I felt much more comfortable ordering food at various venues. It’s just a little thing, but it made me happy every time I was able to make use of what I learned during the trip.
3. Call Truce (if necessary)
When you travel with others, you find out each others’ likes and dislikes. If you encounter a conflict that cannot be resolved quickly, try not to engage in arguments. Have everyone call a truce. Don’t hold grudges. Plan to hash out the problem after the trip. Arguing during a trip can quickly ruin the mood for everyone involved, and in turn, negatively affect the overall trip.
4. Expect the Unexpected
Sometimes we forget that we travel to see and experience new things. When things sometimes don’t work out as planned (or otherwise different), it can get upsetting for some. If you are one of those people, it’s easy to get caught up in the moment. However, it’s also important to take a step back and look at the big picture. You can learn a lot about who you are and how you respond to things when things don’t go as expected. Whenever I see people step up and handle challenges – even negative ones – in a positive way, it’s actually quite a beautiful thing to behold.
Do you have any travel planning tips that you always stick to? Sound off below.
