How to Plan Your Vacation in 6 steps

Did you know that January 31^st is National Plan for Vacation Day?  This was news to me, but I really don’t need a holiday to plan a vacation! I think most days of my year consist of planning our next trip! It’s one thing that I’m truly passionate about!  I love researching destinations and deciding where our family will go and what we’ll do on our trips. Whether you’re planning today or any other day, I have some tips for you!

Where do I begin?

Planning a vacation is really like building a puzzle.  It’s a bunch of little pieces that come together to create a beautiful picture. It’s hard to build a puzzle without having a picture of what you’re aiming for so the first step is to decide where you want to go.

Step 1: Choose a Destination

You need a vision—the inspiration to build your puzzle.  For some, this may be the easiest task, but for others, it may be challenging. 

If you’re struggling with this step, try narrowing down various types of vacations.  Answering these questions will help you choose a destination that you’ll enjoy.  Do you prefer the beach or the mountains? Where do you like to sleep—hotel, cabin, cruise ship, tent or RV?  Do you want an adventure, a place to just relax or a little of both?  Are you comfortable going across country or even somewhere international or would you rather stay close to home? 

Family Goal: Visit all 50 states

One of my goals is to hit all 50 states with our kids before our oldest graduates high school.  He is currently a freshman so we have a little over three more years to accomplish this goal.

So far, we’ve hit 33 states as a family.  We live in Ohio so we’ve knocked out most of the Eastern seaboard all the way to the Midwest with road trips.  However, now we’re at a point where the places we have left require a flight.

I’m typically up for any destination—especially those that are left on our bucket list.  I consistently watch flight prices and pounce when I find a good deal.  One of my favorite apps to use is Skyscanner because you can choose your departure airport and search flights to “everywhere.”

Since our kids are in school, we have to plan our trips when they’re either off or won’t miss too many days.  This app lets me see what’s available in our timeframe.  And in some cases, the destination almost chooses us–whatever flight is the cheapest is where we go!

In addition to hitting all 50 states, we’re also trying to get to all of the National Parks. I promise you that as you check states off your list, hitting a National Park while you’re there will leave you in awe of Mother Nature’s beauty!

Step 2: Set a Budget

If you’re like us, you will have a budget in mind for your vacation.  That budget may impact how you’ll get there and where you’ll stay.  These are really the foundational “edge” pieces to your puzzle.  They’re also typically the most expensive.  I created a budget and planning worksheet to help me decide what we’ll do on our trip and ensure we aren’t overspending. Click the button to download a free copy!

Step 3: Decide on Transportation

Once you decide on when and where you’re going and set a budget, then you get to the fun part—building your puzzle!  Transportation is going to be one of the biggest pieces to the puzzle so the next step is to decide how you’ll get to your destination. 

Driving

Road trips are a great option for many reasons.  First off, they are usually cheaper—especially when you’re traveling with a family.  Plus, you don’t have to worry about booking rental cars, ride share services or public transportation. And there are no delayed or canceled flights either. However, if your destination is farther away or you’re not a fan of driving, a flight is probably your best route.

Whether you’re driving or renting a car, just don’t forget to budget things like gas, tolls and parking!

Flights

Flights are unpredictable. I seem to find the best prices (for domestic travel) one to three months before our trip. Sometimes you get good deals closer to your departure date than you do booking early–it really just depends.  My suggestion is to research flights as far in advance as you can.  I use Google Flights and Skyscanner to get an idea of what a good price is for our destination.  That way, if I do see a good deal, I can book it!

And keep in mind that flight costs are so volatile—they can literally increase $100/person from morning to night!  So, if you see a super-cheap flight, BOOK IT!  But if you see the price jump up, check back often to see if the price falls back down.

When you do book your flight, just pay attention to their change or cancellation policy.  Although you can find car rentals and accommodations with no-fee cancellation policies, flights don’t typically work that way.  Depending on what airline you book, your cancellation or change fees may be more than you paid for the entire flight.

Airlines like Breeze and Southwest have policies that allow you to cancel or adjust your flight with no fees, which is awesome.  We’ve flown Breeze Airways a few times and were impressed with how easy it was to adjust our flight with no penalty. 

Flight Tips

When you’re comparing costs of airlines, make sure you’re looking at total price including any added costs. 

Seat Costs

Anymore, most airlines seem to be charging for seats when purchasing their cheapest option. If you don’t purchase seats, then your family will likely be split up. However, some airlines like Southwest and Breeze have different seating policies. Southwest doesn’t charge for seats and Breeze offers free family seating in the back of the plane.

Baggage Costs

And when it comes to bags, you will likely pay extra for those too, unless you fly Southwest. If you’re going on a shorter trip, consider traveling with a backpack. Most airlines allow you to travel with a personal item for free–typically around the size of a backpack.

On our most recent trip to Florida, we packed four days worth of clothes into our bookbags saving us money on baggage fees and extra time in the checked bag lines. Airport lines can get crazy so whether your checking bags or not, you should always check to see how early you should arrive for your flight. It’s usually recommended to arrive at the airport two hours before your flight; however, some of the larger airports may suggest three hours. The last thing you want to do is miss your flight so do your homework!

Additional Transportation

Seats and bags can cost more that you actual airfare, so be sure to consider these extras as you’re comparing costs.  And don’t forget to budget in airport parking if you’re leaving your car behind!

And remember to plan your transportation for when you get to your destination. If you’re renting a car, be sure to book as soon as you can–and stick to reservations you can cancel. Rental cars tend to increase as you get closer to your departure date so the earlier you can reserve them, the better! Uber and Lyft are also options as well as public transportation. Just be sure to add these costs, along with parking, gas and tolls, into your budget.

Step 4: Book Accommodations

Once you decide how you’ll get to your destination, then you can book your accommodations.  You have a variety of options from vacation rentals through VRBO or Airbnb to hotels and lodges. Plus cruise ships, camping and RVs are all options too.  

We usually stay in hotels because they often have better cancellation options and are more affordable for our family. 

Now if we’re doing a trip with our extended family or need a longer-term stay, VRBO and Airbnb are usually a better deal.  Do your research and figure out what option gives you the most bang for your buck

Accommodation Tips

Just like rental cars, I suggest booking accommodations as early as you can.  Over the past few years, I’ve noticed that they continue to increase as you get closer to your trip date.  I also suggest only booking reservations that allow cancellations.  Things come up and sometimes plans just need to change.  When you have the ability to cancel, you have that added peace of mind. 

We recently booked a trip to Denver and within a couple of weeks, our flights were changed so significantly that we had to cancel. I already had our hotel and rental car booked, but they were refundable so we didn’t lose out on any money when we canceled.

I also continue to watch prices even after I book.  Refundable booking gives me the ability to cancel and rebook with no penalty and allows me to save even more on our trip!  

Hotel Rewards

If hotels are where you like to stay, find at least one hotel chain that you like and book your stays with them. Most memberships are free, and they usually offer better rates. Our favorite chain is Hilton so we book almost every stay with them. We earn points for staying and for using our Hilton credit cards. We’ve used our points to pay for entire hotel stays saving us tons of money!

Like most reward programs, Hilton offers several tiers of membership. We’re Diamond members now, which means we get added bonuses like extra points for our stays, food and beverage credit, access to lounges, and more. Joining the membership program is open to anyone and is free. Points can be used on future stays, airfare, car rentals, products, etc.  

Step 5: Plan your Activities

Honestly, once flights and accommodations are figured out, you’re on your way to creating some pretty memorable experiences! Now you can focus on filling in your puzzle by figuring out what activities you want to do on your trip!  The questions you answered earlier can also help you plan your activities. 

If mountains and adventure are your thing, you’ll likely enjoy visiting a National Park or a place you can hike and explore the outdoors.   We visited Utah last spring and fell in love with the beauty of the Mighty Five National Parks! 

If resorts and adventure are your preference, then heading to places like Universal Studios or Disney will be right up your alley.  These trips are nice because you buy your tickets to the parks and your activities are covered. 

If you’re going somewhere other than an amusement park destination, then you need to figure out what’s left in your budget for fun.  Having a larger family, we typically try to do some sort of activity each day of vacation.  However, not all of our activities are an added cost.  We usually do three to four activities of various costs and then balance that with things that are free.

Included Activities

Depending on where you’re going or what your accommodations offer, some of these things may be done right at the hotel/cabin/campground.  My kids love to swim so no matter where we stay, I make sure some type of water activity is available.  On our trip to Myrtle Beach, we went to the beach for the day and not spend a dime!  Plus we saved on food costs because we packed a lunch instead of going to a restaurant.

Often times, hotels have activities throughout the day that are free for guests.  We’ve stayed at hotels that offered nightly movies, karaoke, volleyball, cornhole, crafts, etc.  The more the hotel offers, the less you have to spend in this category.  This is why we love all-inclusive resorts like Sandos because we can spend our entire vacation inside the resort and do as much or as little as we want.  If we feel like being adventurous, we can snorkel or kayak.  But if we just want to relax, we can grab a cabana by the pool or beach and just enjoy the view.

Check out Pinterest

In most cases though, I want to see what the town has to offer!  That’s when I head to Pinterest and just start searching “things to do in xxx” and see what pops up.  I’ll also search “things to do WITH KIDS in xxx” to help narrow my search and find kid-friendly activities.  I get a ton of great info from other blog posts and even Facebook groups that help me plan activities our family will enjoy.

When I find something that I think our kids would like, I add it to my vacation planner as a potential activity.  I include the operating hours and cost too so I can easily choose the ones make the most sense for our family.  No matter where you go, there are so many options to choose from.  And you don’t always need to spend money to have fun. We love finding cool playgrounds and roadside stops where the kids can burn off some steam.

More often than not, we have some sort of membership to either a local zoo, science center, botanical garden, etc. These places usually include reciprocal memberships, which means that you can visit other zoos, science centes, etc. for discounted rates or even free. This is a great way to help balance your budget with an inexpensive activity that offers the same amount of fun as something pricier.

Step 6: Choose your Food

Although this is listed as the last step in the process, I can easily move it up on my list. I love food–and finding awesome restaurants to try! By the time we leave for our trip, I usually know what I am ordering from each restaurant on my list.

Eat Local

When we travel, we love eating at local restaurants!  Not only are you supporting that small business and community, but the food is typically so much better than a chain!  I find places to eat by reading blogs on Pinterest or by searching “best restaurants in xxx” on Google.  I love checking out the stars and reviews on Google.  Once I find some highly rated restaurants, I check out their menu to ensure they have food we’d all eat.  Prices are usually posted too so that helps me get a rough estimate of what we’d spend. 

I typically plan around $100-$150 for dinner and $50-$75 for lunch.  If the kids eat off the kids menu and we order just water to drink, we can usually get a meal for around $60.  However, on vacation, we like to try new drinks, appetizers and desserts so I budget a bit more to cover that. 

Eat breakfast at the hotel

We almost always stay at hotels that offer free breakfast. It’s so nice to get up and quickly grab breakfast before we head out for the day. If breakfast isn’t provided, we’ll either bring breakfast foods with us or stop at a grocery store to grab a few options, which saves us quite a bit of money.

Consider All-Inclusive Resorts & Cruises

Be sure to include food and drinks in your budget because it’s another big expense. If you’d rather not have to plan for food at all, consider checking out an all-inclusive resort, like Sandos. It’s really nice to pay one price and not have to worry about budgeting for any additional costs.  And cruises work similarly too.  Food is included, but pop and alcoholic drinks are usually an added cost. However, add-on packages are avilable that give you unlimited drinks.

Finishing the Puzzle

Wow!  Your puzzle is just about complete!  Now it’s time to sit back and wait for your departure day to arrive.  Then enjoy it!  Take pictures and create memories that will last a lifetime.  Step out of your comfort zone–try new foods and activities. 

I absolutely love seeing my kids (and even myself) overcome fears.  We’ve eaten weird things like frog legs and escargot, gone horseback riding in a canyon, done ropes courses, rode roller coasters and waterslides, surfed, ziplined, sandboarded, and more.  Some of these things were challenging, while others were a fun adventure, but I’ll tell you that the feeling of accomplishing something that scares you, is worth trying it! So, get out there and do something new!  Experience life because once it’s gone, you can’t get it back.

Looking for more tips?

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Where are you headed?  What destinations would you recommend?  We’d love to hear your tips and recommendations!