When we first shared with our friends our plans to travel for six months, they were amazed and bewildered. “How do you begin to plan out a trip of this length?” “How much time goes into the preparation?” “It’s nice to have that kind of money”
Its really not that complicated and no we dont have “that kind of money”.
It all begins with the following:
1. List of countries to visit
2. 6 month Climate chart
3. USD exchange rate
First Steps To Follow
The first step is to narrow down the countries you definitely want to visit and line them up in proximity to each other.
Next you want to determine if the weather will be agreeable during the time you plan to be there. This will help you decide if you want to begin the trip in the front end or the back end of the list.
What Will The Weather Be?
Knowing the weather for the countries during the months you are traveling, will help you determine how much time you will stay in each country.
Another key factor to consider is the exchange rate. This will help you stick to your budget for the trip. Factoring in your lodgings costs, also determines how long your visit will be. We are huge fans of hostels and Airbnb, but those are topics for future post.
Budget
Unless you have an unlimited amount of income, which we dont, having a budget beforehand does play a key role in the entire process.
Mode of Travel
Upon completing these major steps, I begin to focus on our mode of travel. Being a frugal traveler I let price be the driving force, although there are exceptions from time to time.
Spreadsheet Notes & More
One of the most important things I must have to guide me is an Excel Worksheet summarizing the journey. I keep the sheet in a 3 ring binder with any supporting documents in separate sleeves. At this point some of you may be thinking,” In this techie age why doesnt she use an App like Google Trips?” Good point, I do use Google Trips among other Apps, but there are some travel documents that require I have a hard copy. These are kept in a clear sleeve, secured in my binder. Im also a touchy feely person, who still enjoys reading paperbacks, so I find comfort in having my binder with me. I use it as a travel diary. As I depart each country the corresponding pages in my binder are lovingly move to the back where they become future memories. Or I use the clear sleeves to store memories, such as a postcard. I never travel without a digital backup plan, which I share with my children. 