When travelling, either for work or leisure, it is difficult to make sure you are making the most out of your time. It can feel like you are constantly figuring out what to do next, or how to get places, and it can seem like you missed the very features of a country that you travelled there to see. To have the best possible experience, whether you are at a location for a single day or a whole two weeks, follow these top tips to keep the fun rolling and the memories recorded.
1.Planning is everything
Some people make a lot of money on Instagram by making everything look spontaneous, unplanned, romantic and perfect. Any seasoned traveller knows that this is not the case. Unless you have a long time in a country, in which case it doesn’t matter if you waste four days going to the wrong place, managing your expectations and organising how you will get around is crucial. If you are visiting a city, download a map of their public transport to your phone. When hiring a car, check the terms and conditions before you get there. If you are venturing into the wilderness, make sure you are adequately prepared. Do not go on a hiking weekend and forget your boots – rookie error.
2. Utilise the Internet to its full capacity
If you go for the cheapest option, with no substantial reviews, be prepared to turn up to your ‘serene, peaceful’ cabin and discover it is rat infested and or has no doors or windows. Channel your inner stalker and thoroughly check the accommodation you have booked. If there’s nothing on trip advisor, research other means for finding out what is highly rated and what is to be avoided.
3. Take a Decent Camera
Invest in good equipment, and you will be blessed with good photographs. Take nothing at all and chances are all you will get are shaky phone shots of nights out. If you are going somewhere with stunning nature or amazing wildlife, consider digiscoping; invest in a digiscope over at Phone Skope. It is the best way to get photographs from far away, and you can connect it to the camera on your phone. Be aware that weather conditions and stability affect quality. If taking a digiscope, it is probably a good idea to also take a tripod.
4. Make an itinerary
To save those precious hours when you are deciding what to do, or where to go, put together a detailed itinerary of places to go and things to see. If you do it in advance, you can group all the things that are close to one another together and work out what the best way to cut down on expensive travel is.
5. Rip up the itinerary
If you have overestimated your capacities, and most of us do that often, it’s worth just saying ‘to heck with it’ and clearing an afternoon to discover your destination by foot and intuition. While being organised is important, it is also important to know when to let go and relax. For most of the time at least, holidays are supposed to be fun.
