Tips for planning your trip by yourself.

For those of you that plan your trip yourself and not through a travel agency, here are some tips for you, suggested by experienced travelers in travel planning.

•    Book your airline tickets on a weekend; prices are 19% less (This does not mean that traveling on weekends is cheaper, just booking your tickets on the weekend!).
•    Tuesday, Wednesday, and Saturday are the best days to fly. Choose these days if possible
•    The best websites to use for low fares are www.skyscanner.net and www.momondo.com. Momondo is especially good because it includes train fares and doesn’t use cookies (which often result in higher prices on a return visit to a website). www.seatguru.com is a website that will tell you when it’s worth it to purchase premium seats.
•    For hotels, use www.hotelscombined.com (1st choice) or www.booking.com (2nd choice).
•    River cruises are the newest big trend. Use www.rivercruising.com to book your river cruise. You get the best deals at the last minute or when you book in advance for low season. For cruising in general, always book with a travel agent because they are often given perks or discounts they can pass on to you. However, do not to take a cruise if you’re more interested in sightseeing on land.

Photo from Vlada Karpovich

Preparing for a trip is much easier when you plan ahead. As you plan your trip, you can determine what to take with you by considering the weather, location, and planned activities. It also helps to make sure you have a sturdy bag that fits your basic needs. Whatever bag you bring, you can make the most of it by packing carefully to optimize your space.

11 TIPS TO AVOID OVERPACKING

1. Overpacking starts when you choose a travel bag or suitcase that is too big. Start with the ‘carry on’ size options and size up if necessary.
2. Choose what you think you will need for the trip and start removing up to half of what you have chosen.
3. After making some basic deductions, lay out your clothes and determine how many combinations of clothes you can make. You’ll find that you can mix and match your clothes in more ways than you ever imagined avoiding the need for too many clothes in your bag. Just because you’re packing for a multi-day trip doesn’t mean you should take more than you would for a week-long vacation. Just 8 items of clothing can make 26 unique outfit combinations that can be enough for both a weekend and a week-long or longer trip. Clothes that can be worn on top of each other (layers) are very useful.
4.Remove items of clothing that are too close in style and color.
5. Make sure the pieces you choose go together according to your taste. Clothing should be interchangeable. A blouse to match a pair of trousers or a pair of trousers and a skirt. Limit the coats to one, or get one thick and one thin.

6. Remember to take more tops with you during the winter months and replace with dresses in the summer. In any case, take more clothes for the top (blouses, T-shirts,…) than for the bottom (pants, skirts, etc.). They provide the ability to change appearance.
7. Try to choose clothes that have multiple uses and can be worn on more than one occasion.
8. Take along light accessories like scarves/scarves, belts, a hat, which add style to the look.
9. Stock up on travel makeup/shampoo sets etc., small in volume and weight
10. Shoes: 3 pairs is usually a good amount for any trip. Depending on the place you will visit or the season you may need a pair of flip flops, sandals, and heels, while accordingly these will be replaced by comfortable walking shoes or boots etc…
11. Don’t get carried away thinking “let’s get this too in case I need it”! If needed you will buy it there! Remember that you can wash your clothes if you need to while you travel. There are many laundries that will serve you on a multi-day trip.