How To Quickly Travel Plan in Uncertain Times
- Updated: 04/27/2022
Life gets busy. Family and work responsibilities last late into the night. And on top of everything else you have happening; you now need to plan a trip.
I love to travel plan, and at times, even I have felt the burden of having travel planning be just one more thing on my list.
Also, these days, add into the mix a big dose of stressful uncertainty about whether the trip will even take place.
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And to top it off, expectations are always high. You want your trip to be one everyone will love, as well as one that you can afford. And to a place where everyone can stay healthy.
You want your trip to be one everyone will love, as well as one that you can afford. And to a place where everyone can stay healthy.
Find six tips below to help shortcut your trip planning process and protect your travel during these uncertain times.
Figure Out Where to Go Fast
If you are unsure where to go on your trip, consider using Google Explore, a powerful map-based travel search built on top of Google Flights with links to outstanding trip-planning resources.
In the US version of Google Explore, expect to view all travel destinations from one location across a navigable map, including driving and combo flying-driving destinations, to places like National and State Parks.
For example, I can quickly search for all trips from Chicago for specific or general dates (i.e., one-week trip in the next six months).
By leaving the “Where to?” field blank, my results will display all potential regional trip destination options. To view international trip options, I can zoom out on the map.
Looking to learn more? I share tips for getting the most out of Google Explore in “How to Best Use Google Flights Explore.”
And if you are planning your trip far in advance, consider setting a price tracker on Google Flights. Doing this could potentially help you shave hundreds off your flight price. I share how to use it in “Google Flights Price Tracker: It Saves You Time & Money.”
Stick To a Budget
Have you ever spent two hours on a deep internet dive to only discover you are planning a trip to a place you cannot afford? I have. It stinks.
Whether due to expensive flights, high-priced and limited accommodation options, or even scarce rental cars, any one of several components can derail a destination you want to go off the affordability tracks.
Setting and sticking to a budget will help you avoid going down the rabbit hole of unrealistic trip planning. And sidestep the expensive trap of using credit cards to finance trip overages.
Knowing your budget will guide you to look only at places you can afford to travel. Allowing you to build your best trip—and your excitement for it—straight from the start.
To help travelers think through and calculate what they can spend on airfare, ground transportation, lodging, meals, activities, and other trip-related extras, I created the editable budget planning template shown above. And give a free downloadable copy to all my email newsletter subscribers.
Consider Outsourcing
Planning a trip can require a lot of work. Plus, especially for new destinations, you don’t know what you don’t know. It is easy to make mistakes that can have you accidentally traveling in the coal-mining area of China—as my husband knows first-hand.
Instead, consider saving time and frustration on trying to go from zero to sixty on your destination expertise by outsourcing your travel planning. I provide three ways to outsource below.
- Work with a travel advisor.
- Buy a package from an OTA (online travel agent).
- Borrow an itinerary.
More than an indulgent throwback to an earlier era, working with an actual person could be a brilliant way to save time and have a great trip.
Expect travel advisors to be able to provide the following:
- Specialized destination knowledge, especially for international locations
- Expertise in crafting flawless itineraries
- Advocacy when things go wrong
- Upgrades and extras
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What will you pay for an advisor’s services?
That depends on who you use. Luxury and bespoke advisors may charge fees for services, especially for complicated and customized itineraries. However, because many agents earn commissions directly from the lodging properties and companies they book with, they do not charge clients for their services.
How do you find an advisor?
Find travel advisors through one of three ways: word of mouth from friends and family, Facebook group recommendations, and online searches for advisors who specialize in a specific type of travel on Google or an advisor network like Virtuoso.
If you are more of a do-it-yourselfer or your trip is less complicated, consider buying a travel package from an OTA (online travel agent) such as Expedia, Priceline, or my personal favorite—Costco Travel.
Buying a package will save you time by getting all your travel needs from one vendor. And it will also save you money.
When using Expedia and Priceline, expect to buy packages that include your airfare, lodging, or even your rental car, bundled for savings that are hard to duplicate when purchased independently.
However, Costco Travel takes it to a whole better level.
In addition to offering some of the best pricing for vacation packages in the industry, Costco also often provides members with Costco Shop Card rebates valued at 5 to 8% of lodging costs.
Also, higher-tier Costco Executive Members earn a 2% reward on all travel spend and are eligible for exclusive extras, like upgrades, complimentary meals, and resort credits.
One of the more overlooked ways to outsource travel planning is by borrowing an itinerary. I write about it more in “The Highest Form of Flattery: Borrow an Itinerary.”
Great places to find itineraries include:
- Online searches, particularly on Pinterest
- Tour companies
- Guidebooks
Another quick and under-the-radar source for itinerary borrowing is from tour companies offering guided or self-guided trips to your destination. For example, to learn how to combine visits to multiple national parks on a trip to Utah, visit the website of a tour company like Austin Adventures. View their Utah Vacation packages to get ideas.
And bonus—if you see a tour you like, you can save even more time by booking the trip directly with the tour company.
Technically, it is not quick to read a guidebook. However, for our purposes, skimming provides an excellent substitute.
Most guidebooks offer multiple itinerary ideas catering to different interests. Swing by your local library to browse one if you do not want to buy one. Snap photos of itinerary suggestions to reference later. I share more on why guidebooks are excellent resources in “For the Love of Guidebooks.”
Activity Plan Quickly
To plan trip activities quickly, I recommend using one of the resources below. Which one you use depends on what you plan to search.
- For the best activity overviews.
- For detailed activity lists.
- To find activity and day-trip providers.
I use Google Things to Do to get the best activity overviews for my destinations. Use it to search any destination to discover top-rated sights and activities. Or search by interest. For example, view the mini-video clip below for Google’s things to do in Palm Springs.
Pinterest is also an excellent source for activity lists. Search for things to do in any destination, and expect to find links to lists for sights to see or places to shop, eat, or drink. For example, view the search results for a Pinterest search for “things to do in Palm Springs.”
When you want to pre-book an activity or day-trip experience with an expert for an upcoming trip, I recommend using one of the four resources below:
Airbnb Experiences is my first stop for activity searches for every trip. Why? Because each highly-rated experience I have booked through them—without exception—has been excellent. Expect to select from creative options focusing on arts and culture, the outdoors, cuisine, and more. For example, I found and booked this highly rated guided hike in Palm Springs for an upcoming ladies’ trip.
For whatever activity you are interested in doing on your trip, search for it on Google. Scroll through the first few pages of results to view options. Why go beyond the first page? Because some truly excellent independent tour operators are not necessarily web-savvy, and their sites might not rank as highly in search results.
Although Tripadvisor offers a convenient way to search for Things to Do from its homepage, I primarily rely on it as an excellent resource for tour provider reviews. Its users write more and better feedback on activity experiences versus other sites. Find and read these reviews by searching for specific operators by name.
For example, a search for Palm Springs Mod Squad on Tripadvisor showed me over 100 outstanding reviews. Compare this to Google with only ten reviews.
The likelihood is high that you know someone who has gone to the same destination you are considering for a trip. Ask around. You may be pleasantly surprised by the enthusiastic response. People thoroughly enjoy taking time to share about places they love.
And for when friends can’t help, consider mining the gold that is Facebook groups.
If you are not already part of a local neighborhood, parent, or travel, Facebook group—join one. Search Groups on Facebook to find one that fits you best.
Look for past conversations in a group on your destination. Or post a question to get feedback on where you are going. Other group members will weigh in with excellent first-hand experience and advice.
Or considering checking out one of many Reddit travel threads.
Keep Your Trip Simple
These days, it pays to keep your trip simple. Why?
Opting out of complicated itineraries with multiple flights, tight turnarounds, and several lodging changes will minimize travel frustrations and decrease the likelihood things may go wrong.
Despite plenty of planning and pre-trip research, we have experienced many unforeseen issues on our recent travels. Examples include restaurants booked for a big group closing last minute, flights or activities canceled due to staffing shortages, or food service shut down at small airports.
Consider adopting a slow-travel mindset for your trips. Although issues can and do happen anywhere, staying in one location and using it as a base, or moving around a contained region, will limit the chance of them happening.
Know Your Priorities
When planning any trip, it helps to understand your group’s travel priorities.
For example, families may prefer direct flights and extra accommodation space. And adults traveling together may have a strong preference for separate rooms and a destination with a restaurant scene.
Take a little time upfront to understand these group must-haves—especially when they come to location and lodging.
Take a little time upfront to understand these group must-haves—especially when they come to location and lodging. And you will save yourself a fair amount of frustration and group grumbling later down the road.
For finding the best accommodation, consider using a ranking worksheet, like the one I include in the article “Find Better Trip Accommodation Faster: Make A Priority List.”
Protect Your Trip
Given the times, we have all felt some measure of uncertainty about upcoming travel. Will the trip happen? Should I even go?
The reality that illness and other factors may disrupt your trip these days makes it extraordinarily important to protect both yourself and your trip investment before you even roll your carry-on out the door.
The best way to do this is by purchasing travel insurance.
In “Travel Insurance Simplified: 4 Reasons You Need It,” I share why most people need travel insurance, and cover the pros and cons of my top two recommended providers.
If you think you would like to take a chance and go without it—as I have done many times in pre-2020 days—or are on the fence about buying insurance, skim the article to see if any of the reasons apply to you.
If they do, then you may want to adjust your budget to make room for this worthwhile trip essential.
Learn More in This Podcast
Much of what I share in this article recaps a conversation I had with Christine Pittman on her podcast. Listen to our talk on Episode 51, “The Five Best Travel Planning Tips For Uncertain Times,” on her TMI With Christine Podcast.
Did you find this article helpful? Then signup to receive my Discovery e-newsletter for more time-saving travel tips. I will send you a free trip budget calculator as a thank you.
Hi, I am Janice and and I run the Gather and Go Travel blog. I am a travel writer, blogger, and bookhound, specializing in family and group travel. I have traveled extensively domestically and internationally to 40+ countries. I am fascinated by other cultures, religions, and languages—and love to share what I have learned in my writing. For more on my background, read my bio, our story, and how to work with me.
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