New Travel Philosophy!

[artnbarb]

For years the planning phase have been my favorite part of every vacation! I loved researching and reading, getting tips from St and now SE, figuring out what to do on Sundays, or holidays, checking to make sure the museums are open on the days I want to be there. and on and on. And then I started to plan for this year's vacation and I was quickly overwhelmed. I simply had too many new places to research - 2+ week in Ireland, Yorkshire and Sussex, 1 week in Austria, 11 weeks in Umbria, then a transatlantic cruise home.

My biggest challenge was setting an itinerary for Ireland, then finding lodging. Once that was done I felt as if a huge burden had been lifted! It's our first time in Ireland so I feel confident that our 2 guidebooks, along with recommendations from our hosts, make any more detailed planning unnecessary. Rental car, driver for the Ring of Kerry, last night airport hotel - check, check check. Ready for Ireland!

For Yorkshire I scoured websites for the perfect cottage in the perfect village in the perfect location at the perfect price. Hopefully I got it right! I researched the area, got recommendations here on SE, printed out some notes, and I'm done. With both the Yorkshire Moors and the Yorkshire Dales, the city of York, and the eastern coast of England to explore, I think we'll have plenty to see and do!

For our 2 weeks in Sussex I have a list of places to see, and a few notes on drive times, but that's about it. This is when I realized that suddenly, for the first time in my life, I'm willing to enjoy the moment without any advance planning! I've decided that at this stage of the game I should be concentrating more on the moments than on the "must-sees".

For our 1 week in Austria we'll have a coupon book for lots of activities, lifts, busses, and also including the one and only thing on my "must-do" list: the longest toboggan run in Europe!!!

I think at first I was feeling a little guilty because I was dreading putting in the time and effort as has been my practice in the past. This year each phase of our vacation is less and less structured, which I finally realized is a good thing. At this point if I haven't seen it, it's probably not that important to me, and I'm enjoying the comfort of returning to familiar places with no agenda, no sense of urgency, no list of sights to see! Other people seem to 'wing it' all the time - time for me to give it a try!

This doesn't mean that I'll be using SE any less, but it does mean that I'll be a lot less stressed when planning future vacations. I think politics has used up my supply of stress, and I just can't bear the weight of any additional stress. Wow - a vacation that's relaxing and stress-free - what a concept! Fingers crossed!

 

[jan]

I totally get what you're saying and feel very much the same!

 

[Mom83]

The older I get, the less structured I have become. The general research is still so helpful, but then I have learned to just take every day as it comes. Weather is unpredictable, as is our energy level on certain days. If there are certain things I really want to make sure we see, I make reservations if necessary. But those types of venues are becoming less and less important the more we travel. I am so glad you are feeling less stressed about your upcoming trip...it sounds absolutely wonderful!

 

[Ian Sutton]

The older I get, the less structured I have become. The general research is still so helpful, but then I have learned to just take every day as it comes. Weather is unpredictable, as is our energy level on certain days. If there are certain things I really want to make sure we see, I make reservations if necessary. But those types of venues are becoming less and less important the more we travel.

That's pretty much where we are, with me enjoying the prep as a way of getting my mind into the new location. If that prep ever got to be a bind, then I think ArtnBarb's approach would be the natural progression.

For me the prep can be a very good way of avoiding those moments I dread on holiday, where we're tired, but not sure what to do / where to go for food, and the mood can rapidly turn to exasperation / knee-jerk choices driven out of mental/physical exhaustion. We we've managed to pretty much avoid these scenarios through the planning, having options on hand to support whatever takes our fancy en-route.

 

[Fletch]

Research was something I enjoyed, and still do, but not obsessively anymore.
When my husband retired he started to "help" and I didn’t like that.
I am used to it now and am very happy for him to take over some of the planning.

 

[Sharon J]

So agree with artnbarb. We leave tomorrow for Montepulciano, and I am so looking forward to not hearing political news. It is exhausting. We now mostly return to our favorite spots in Italy, as we can just relax, and not worry about what sights we might miss. Usually, we take a day for something new, but I'm not sure that will even happen this time. Last year, we went back to the Dordogne area in France, and had to fly home after five days, because of the Hurricane heading for South Carolina. A lot of stress, trying to find flights, which also meant sitting in the middle seats, after all my work of choosing the perfect ones. Thank goodness, my husband has status with Delta, or things might not have gone so well. It does pay to always use the same airline. We then caught the last flight out of Atlanta, before the airports closed. Nightmare!!

So Italy, Here We Come!!! No Plans, whatsoever.

 

[artnbarb]

Enjoy and relax @Sharon J ! Hopefully no hurricanes this year!

 

[Sharon J]

Enjoy and relax @Sharon J ! Hopefully no hurricanes this year!

Thanks artnbarb. Problem is, we can't travel during the Fall anymore.