Travel Insight: How I Pick, Plan and Pack

For me, picking a destination and then planning and packing for a trip is always exciting. I love researching, budgeting, creating itineraries, picking outfits – basically everything that travel encompasses. Anyone who knows me knows that I’m a planner. I like to plan what I’m doing the next day, week, month, and even year. While I’m aware that not everything goes the way you’d want, I still love to have structure and guidelines. This is probably why I love traveling so much because I get to showcase these strengths.

Below, I wanted to share travel insight on how I pick destinations, plan my itinerary, and pack for trips.

Picking the destination

There are a few factors that play into the destination I pick for a trip, which include:

Budget

This plays a huge role in the destination I go to, and the timeframe.

For example, European travel is usually most expensive during the summer months. I try to avoid going to destinations during its peak season to save $$$ on flights, accommodations, and attractions. When looking for budget flights, I use sites like Momondo and Skyscanner — I also use the app Hopper to set alerts for flights. And for cheap accommodations, I usually opt for hostels through Hostelworld — or I get an Airbnb.

Consider your budget when picking a destination. Some countries are more expensive than others, so you have to research how much you’ll need for the amount of days you’ll be going.

Amount of days needed

Once I know the locations I’m interested in visiting, I research how many days I’d need to fully explore. This is based on attractions I’m interested in and the amount of time I’d need to dedicate to each.

For example, when researching for our New Orleans trip, my sister and I knew we wanted to visit a plantation. Every plantation we found had day tours lasting a few hours, plus the ride to the plantation itself. 

You have to take into consideration that some activities will take up a chunk of your day(s). If you realize a certain destination requires too many days that you don’t have, especially if you work full-time, then it might be time to look into other places. Or, realize you’ll have to take two separate trips to the same location and break up what you do the first time vs. the second time.

Connections

A lot of my travels have been possible due to me knowing someone living at a specific location. A few of the destinations I’ve picked were solely to visit a friend living there. This has allowed me to get the local experience from someone I know and trust. The possibility of free accommodation is also a plus. A few of my close friends have lived in other countries for various reasons and I love visiting them because the experience is even more special and memorable!

What I envision for my trip

What do I ultimately want to get out of this trip? This is usually what I ask myself when picking a destination. Do I want to get away from the cold climate that I live in? Am I looking for adventure and nature? Or do I want a bustling city with rich art and history? These are the type of questions you should ask yourself as it’ll help you pick a destination.

Planning the trip

Once you’ve picked your destination and your flights are booked, it’s time to start planning and building out an itinerary. This is my absolute favorite part of the trip. I get excited doing research and using the following tools:

Social media

I’m a visual learner, I connect to things easier when I can see them. Social media has made it easy to see things you’re interested in doing through others’ experiences. From landmarks, restaurants, or even your accommodation – nine times out of 10, someone has documented it on social media. Before traveling, I can decide whether or not something is worth my time based on images or videos I’ve seen on social media. You’ll be amazed at how helpful social media can be when planning your trip.

• Facebook: There’s an abundance of Facebook travel groups that allow you to interact with other like-minded people. I’m part of the Girls vs. Globe, Girls Love Travel (#GLTLove), Mixtries (a GLT subgroup) and Melanin Globe® community. In those groups, I can ask other travelers about their time in the destination I’m interested in. You’ll be amazed at how many responses you can get with personal recommendations and even blog posts to read! These are also great platforms to ask other questions that may concern you (e.g. converters, currency exchange, language barriers, long-haul flight entertainment, etc.).
• Instagram (IG): When helping to plan a trip to Berlin with some friends, I used the hashtag #Berlin on IG. When I scrolled through, I saw a picture of delicious waffles and took a screenshot to show them. If you read my post on my time in Berlin, I talked about this place called Wonder Waffel and how delicious it was. Well, I found out about it through IG.

Bloggers/Vloggers

If you have a favorite blogger or YouTube vlogger who posts about their trips, look to see what they did at that specific destination. If you don’t have a favorite blogger or vlogger to reference, do a basic Google/YouTube search of your destination and see what comes up. For example, if I’m going to Brussels for a day then I’d use search terms like “Brussels travel guide”, “Brussels Day Trip”, etc. You can get creative with the search terms to get the results you want.

TripAdvisor

A large online community for travelers, TripAdvisor is my best friend when building my itinerary. TripAdvisor is like the modern-day guidebook. You can purchase flights, accommodation, and even attractions – as well as read reviews and tips from fellow travelers. I primarily use TripAdvisor to read reviews and look at photos to gauge whether something is worth putting in my itinerary.

Family & friends

If you know someone who has been to the destination you’re going to, definitely ask for their recommendations. Who knows, they may suggest the best place to get fish and chips in London or a cool bar to visit in Los Angeles.

Take it step-by-step

You must have enough time to plan your trip and take it step-by-step, as you don’t want to plan everything in one sitting. The worst happens when you’re rushing to make your itinerary. So, make sure you’re allocating enough time to thoroughly plan each aspect of your trip to not overwhelm yourself. I focus on one day at a time and figure out which locations make sense to visit based on: distance, time needed at the destination, and business hours (if applicable).

Packing for the trip

Give yourself enough time

Going off of my point in the last section, I like to allocate enough time to plan and prep for my trip. I don’t perform at my best under pressure, so I like having adequate time to think about every aspect of my trip. When packing, I like to have ample time to modify my luggage throughout the week as the weather changes, or as my feelings on the outfit change (it happens lol). This step is especially beneficial for me when deciding on how to pack for my natural hair.

Budget

When packing, I evaluate my budget. If I’m trying to avoid paying for a checked bag because I’m going to a few different countries in Europe, meaning I’ll be on several flights, then I’ll opt for a carry-on. If you’re determined, you can get a lot into a carry-on and a personal item (e.g. backpack or purse) as long as you pack wisely; which brings me to my next point:

Pick items to pack wisely

Pick versatile clothes and work for different occasions, like a basic pair of jeans or tank tops. This ensures you’ll wear what you’ve packed and might even lighten your suitcase.

This same notion could also apply when picking hair products. You should try to pack products that are versatile and will serve multiple benefits to your hair. Do not pack products that you’ve never used before as you won’t know how your hair will receive it.

Track the weather

What you pack will be influenced by the weather, so monitor the weather leading up to your departure. The last thing you want is to be freezing, or sweating, during your vacation.

I’ve also mentioned this when packing for natural hair. Checking the weather helps you plan for how you’ll wear your hair and what products you’ll need to pack.

Refer to your itinerary

What you have planned will help determine what you’ll need to pack. If you’ll be doing a lot of walking, pack comfortable shoes. If you’ll be visiting a warmer climate, then pack breathable clothing. Make sure what you’re packing makes sense for what you’re planning to do on vacation.

This can also apply when deciding how to manage your natural hair while on vacation.