Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Don't forget to take travel time into consideration
. It is easy to forget that traveling from
place to place takes a lot of time, and “whirlwind” travelers should pay special attention to
this. In addition to the plane or train ride, there are a lot of little additional activities that eat
into your precious travel time. For example, it takes time to pack your bags, check out of your
hostel, travel to the train station, and wait for your train (you'll also need to arrive a little
early so as not to miss your train). Once you arrive to the new city, you have to find the hostel
(hopefully you don't get lost), check in, and get settled in. All of this extra time can easily take
a few hours and quickly adds up if you change locations every few days.
STEP SEVEN—Rework itinerary.
Now that you have a better idea of how long to spend
in each location, you can start to choose your top destinations and eliminate destinations that
will not realistically fit into your schedule.
STEP EIGHT—Plot your route.
Create a Google Map with each location on your list and
see if there is a logical route to take. Be sure the route you take makes logical sense—e.g., don't
backtrack as it wastes valuable travel time. If you have one location that is considerably farther
away from all the others, you might consider skipping it, because it may not be worth the time
and expense for going out of your way.
STEP NINE—Explore arrival and departure airports.
The airports which you arrive into
and depart from will not only affect the amount you'll pay for the ticket, but it will also shape
your travel route. The largest (and usually most affordable) airports are in London, Amster-
dam, Paris, Frankfurt, and Madrid—although you might find good deals at other locations so
search around.
It's important to note that you don't have to arrive and depart from the same airport (this is
called an open-jaw ticket). In fact, it often makes more sense to use different airports because
it means you're not forced to travel in a circuit. For example, if you arrive in London but spend
the next few weeks traveling south into Spain, it would be a waste of time and money to travel
all the way back to London just to catch a flight. In this case, flying back home via Madrid is a
smarter choice.
STEP TEN—Estimate transportation costs and travel time.
Once you have a good idea
of where you want to travel, you'll need to figure out transportation options and costs between
each location. You basically have four choices—plane, train (rail pass or single tickets), car, or
coach. Each has its own advantages and disadvantages. Read the transportation chapter to get
a better idea of travel costs and options. For a quick reference about travel times and costs, vis-
it
rome2rio.com
—it isn't perfect and the prices aren't always accurate but it will give a rough
cost estimate.
Don't forget that your time is just as valuable as money—especially if you are on a tight
timeframe. For example, the $50 coach journey from Paris to Marseilles may be $80 cheaper
than taking the train, but the journey will take thirteen hours—compared to a little over three
hours for the train. I know I'd rather pay the extra money to save a full day of travel.
