As a travel journalist based in Toronto, I’m often hopping on planes and exploring the world for work and for fun. When I get home, I write stories for a variety of magazines, newspapers and websites. One of my strengths is what’s known as service journalism: stories that tell you where to go, what to do, where to stay and other practical advice.
Recently I gathered up all my travel wisdom for my new book, “How to Plan a Vacation,” walking readers through the stages of building the perfect trip. Here are just a few of my essential tips.
On the most important thing to consider
While most travel-advice columns say choosing a destination is the first order of business, that decision is really much lower down the list. The first decision you must make is to determine how many days you have to play with. This is a huge deciding factor for the whole travel experience, including where you go and what you do. How rigid are your dates? How much flexibility do you have to, say, extend your travel into Monday or Tuesday of the following week, which can often trim the airfare?
I would be remiss not to point out a travel trap many people stumble into: cramming too many locations into the time allotted. Don’t plan to traverse the whole of Western Europe if you have only a week off. Just pick one country. Portugal is nice! Don’t go to Ireland and expect to also visit Scotland. That’s actually two proper trips — save one for later.
On planning a friends’ trip
Maybe you have good friends you’ve been wanting to get away with somewhere, other couples who have similar “fun levels,” budgets, palates and pace. Picking people with similar interests is key: if you’re not a golfer, don’t travel with people who don’t want to do anything but golf.
Determine where on the “busy scale” your potential travel pals lie. The person who can’t sit still and the person who just wants to sit in a chair won’t mix. People who just want to drink around the pool all day won’t blend with those who want to get up early to hike or paddle. Two very good rules: make sure everyone on the passenger list has similar ideas about what they want to do on holiday, and the same threshold for cost.
The writer in Mount Rigi, Switzerland.
On the best time to travel
I’ve created dozens of “best time to visit [fill in the blank]” stories, outlining when (and when not) to go practically everywhere in the world. And while a definitive answer is elusive, this critical decision boils down to the weather, the crowds and the cost. You have to consider your priorities and your thresholds for both comfort and value.
All that said, the best time to travel is always, always, always the shoulder seasons. These are the sweet spots, and, luckily, there are usually two: spring and fall, in whatever months those land, depending on which hemisphere you’re travelling in. Ergo, with just a little research, you can time your shoulder-season jaunt so it delivers decent weather yet sidesteps both the hordes of people and the cash-ectomy.
On interpreting hotel reviews
After checking into hundreds of hotels around the world, I’ve come to consider the choice of accommodations in the trip-planning process one of the most exciting. Always check the reviews before you book. The bad reviews are usually where the most useful info is, but you’ll have to read between the lines a bit. You can usually tell if someone is letting emotion colour their view or is just plain mad about something.
Take these critiques with a grain of salt. Ditto fake reviews, written by friends or bots, always displaying overly simple or unspecific language, like “great staff” and “clean rooms.” Keep an eye out for consistencies in the reviews. If three or more people are grumbling about noise, shoddy service or slow Wi-Fi, they’re probably right. And remember, recent equals relevant — don’t be reading bellyaching that is out of date.
On the “best place” to go
When people find out that I am a travel writer, they invariably ask, “What’s the best place you’ve ever been to?” I swear, I’ve been asked this a million times, so I have the answer down fairly pat: “I like different places for different things.” I like Curaçao and Anguilla in the Caribbean; Iceland for its geo-oddities; Scotland because I seem to get all the jokes; Singapore for its delicious food. Australia has become a new favourite, because the people seem to have such relaxed lives, as has Austria with its terrific wine. And next to my own town, London is my favourite city, due to having lived there for a couple of years in my impressionable 20s.
I always hope my answer encourages people to think outside the vacation box and set their sights on something new, and not just book another week in Puerto Vallarta, fun as it is.
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