You want to travel but don’t know where to start?

@365daysofbliss__

We got you! When we first started planning our travels, we were clueless. What helped us was researching what other people did and going from there (also slightly winging it), but if we could do it then so can you!

To figure out your starting point, you are going to have to ask yourself a few questions. This will give you an idea of your travel route and will make the planning part a lot easier.

1. Where do you want to go?

First things first, where do you actually want to go? Are there any countries or cities that are on your absolute MUST-see list? Think about what you want your travel vibe to be, beaches, cities, jungle, countryside, remote, populated.

It’s best to stick to one area at a time to lower cost of flights/ reduce travel times eg. South East Asia, South America, North America, Australia/ New Zealand. You can get some inspo on Travel Tik Tok, Pinterest, Instagram and Google (Head over to our Instagram which has lots of ideas and routes).

2. How long do you want to travel for?

Weeks? Months? Years? Never coming back? The length of your trip will affect everything from budgeting to packing, so it’s good to have a rough idea if/ when you are booking that return flight.

3. What is your budget?

It would be silly to say that money doesn’t matter but it doesn’t matter as much as you think. You can travel to some places for way cheaper than others (Southeast Asia!), while others are definitely on the pricier side (Australia, New Zealand!).

Depending on your budget, you can decide what wype of traveller you want to be, which brings us to…

4. What type of traveller are you?

This may sound like a loaded question or one that you might not know the answer to, but it's something to think about before booking certain countries and certain accommodation.

Are you happy to rough it in a hostel and go as cheap as possible, or are you okay with shared dorms but don’t mind paying a little extra for a nice hostel? If you like your space but still want to socialise, you can look into private rooms in a hostel, or if you are a solo female traveller, you might prefer to book into a female-only dorm.

Practically, the more privacy and nicer experience you want, the bigger your budget will have to be.

5. Do you want to travel solo or with friends?

Figuring out who you are going to travel with or if you are going alone will play a major part in your planning! If you are hung up on whether to travel or not because your friends aren’t interested, then take it from us that you don’t need to go away with people to make close friends and get the most out of a trip.

It became a running joke that we picked up ‘recruits’ during our travels, where we had people join the three of us if they came over alone.

But, if you don’t want to go alone but currently have no one to book with, check out some of the Facebook groups for people who are in the same boat. One of our friends met her two best friends on a Facebook group for travellers looking for someone to go with! (always make sure to Facetime etc. beforehand so you know who you are travelling with)

6. Are you a planner or a go with the flow traveler?

So are you the type A friend or the type B friend? Understanding how you travel and your pace will help you figure out how you are going to plan (as well as who you are best suited to travel with).

Do you prefer to have an itinerary sorted that details day by day what you are going to do and where you are going to stay? Or, would you prefer to see what the locals are saying, see if you meet people and stay with them and be a bit more flexible with your plans?

We would recommend that once you figure out what countries you want to visit, to create a rough travel route so you know your next steps, but to book flights/ accommodation as you go. This will give you the flexibility to change plans if you don’t like a certain area or meet a great group of people and want to stay but also means that you won’t leave feeling like you didn’t actually see anything that you wanted to!

Okay so what’s next? Check out the rest of our planning series for more inspiration, tips and guidance!

Love,

365daysofBliss 🍀