10 Best Resources for Planning a Trip on Your Own

18 Jun 10 Best Resources for Planning a Trip on Your Own

Posted at 12:00h in Travel Tips, Trip Planning by Caroline Rose 1 Comment

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When it comes to planning a trip, many people are boggled by the process, unsure of where to start or how to organize a vacation. But planning a trip on your own doesn’t have to be difficult. For me personally, I plan all my travels on my own. And for every single one, whether its backpacking months at a time, a road trip, or a weekend trip, I always use these 10 resources for planning a trip.

1. Pinterest

Pinterest is by far what I use the most to plan a trip! I simply type in where I’m going in the Pinterest search bar, and then maybe add some key words or phrases like, “places to see,” “where to stay,” “hiking,” really whatever I’m looking for in that country or place! It’s also great if you enjoy browsing Pinterest, because then you can create boardsfor yourself. For example, a board for every country (that’s what I do), then when it’s time to plan a trip, you all ready have all these resources saved!

2. Google

I know this seems like common sense, but seriously so many people ask questions like, “How do you know the best time to visit __?” And my answer is always, literally google it. I mean, that’s exactly what I do! Whatever question you might have about a place, or trip, there’s probably an answer on the internet.

3. Blogs

When you search on Pinterest and Google, blogs are most likely going to be the first resource to pop up. Blogs are full of information from people who already actually traveled to where you’re planning to go, so they’re really informative. They will typically appear on their own in your Google and Pinterest searches, but my advice is, if you find a specific blog that was helpful in one post or that you’re interested in, browse through their other posts and subscribe to continue to follow them and get great information! Now, I may sound biased as I share this advice from my own blog; but really, there are so many travel blogs I’ve stumbled upon while trip planning and found that they had loads of information on other places I want to visit! Therefore, they continued to help me in future travels.

4. Facebook Groups

Travel Facebook Groups are awesome for connecting with like-minded people and ultimately being apart of a community. They’re also great for any questions you have when planning a trip! Whenever I can’t find answers to my questions searching the internet, I simply posted my question in the group. And the beautiful thing is, so many people are incredibly eager to help and answer you! My favorite facebook group is Girls Love Travel (sorry guys); but there’s also others such as Travel Community and more, you just have to search on Facebook!

5. Books

Before the internet, there were books. And guess what, books are still an amazing resource! Sometimes they have even more information because you paid for the book, it wasn’t just a free blog post. Lonely Planet books have always been really popular, and are a wealth of information! Other travel books I like are Off Track Planet’s Travel Guide for the Young, Sexy, and Broke and Aggie’s InstaTravel!

6. Instagram

Instagram is a huge place for travel inspiration! And inspiration is part of planning. To find places I would like to visit, most ideas stem from somewhere I saw on this app. Additionally, I treat it similar to Pinterest in the sense that I have a saved folder for every country I want to visit. That way when randomly scrolling through my timeline (full of travel content), if I see something that pops out to me, I check the location and then save it to the designated folder. And just like my Pinterest boards, then when I decide to visit a country, I already have a whole folder of instagram inspiration!

7. TripAdvisor

TripAdvisor kind of has it all! You just type in the place you’re going and it gives a list of restaurants, places to see, things to do, tours available, everything!

For me personally, I don’t necessarily use TripAdvisor as square one when planning my trips. But I do like to come here to find more options and to get the real nitty-gritty information on what I already have. For example, a lot of times on Instagram, Pinterest, and blogs, everything looks so aesthetically pleasing as all the photos are edited. Which makes sense, but Trip Advisor is where you can go to see the average, authentic, and real pictures of a place. You also get ratings and reviews by all sorts of people to help you plan!

8. Rome2Rio

For most people it’s not difficult to plan places and countries they want to visit. It’s the technicalities of the trip like where to stay and how to get there that boggle them. But nowadays with so many accommodation websites out there, ‘where to stay’ is no longer a huge issue. What most don’t realize, is there’s also a website&app to answer ‘how to get there’ too! And it’s Rome2Rio!

Rome2Rio has helped me countless times figure out how to get from point A to point B. Unlike map apps, it’s not for finding a route, it’s for finding transportation. And it’s typically remarkably accurate. I refer every new traveler to this website and it’s probably one of my favorite travel resources!

9. Google Docs & Google Sheets

I am HUGE lover of Google Docs and Google Sheets It’s essentially where I plan and keep my ideas for a trip, my list of places I want to see, and create itineraries. I literally use it for everything! And it’s great because you can easily share it with your travel buddy by just adding their email.

10. Trip Planner Apps

If you like to have everything in one place, then trip planning apps are for you! There’s two that I recommend: TripIt for any type of trip, and Roadtrippers specifically for a roadtrip! TripIt creates a detailed itinerary connecting your flight times, rental car pick up time, directions, where you’re staying, everything! Roadtrippers is kind of a one stop shop as well, but for road trips. You can search guides on the app, things to do and food stops along your route, and find accommodation close by. With the subscription you can also create a mapped out itinerary.

Self-trip-planning gives you a chance to create a unique itinerary to you, provides flexibility in your travels, is a lot of fun, and adds to the building excitement of your future travels. Not to mention, it’s totally fulfilling! It’s a really awesome feeling when you have an incredible travel experience that you planned yourself. And the best part is, using any or all of these resources, anyone can plan a trip!

For more travel tips and resources, check out related posts!