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As we are getting closer to the end of the year, something people often think about as they plan out resolutions is what they want to improve in their life. For some people, it’s weight loss. For others, maybe it’s financial. But then for others, it’s to travel more. In this Wanderlust Wednesday blog post, we will discuss how to plan your dream vacation. This is perfect for those who are tired of saying “someday” and ready to make it a reality.

How to plan your dream vacation

1) Start Saving

Let’s start with the basics. Travel is a huge priority for me. I often get questions about how I can travel so frequently. I don’t want to get too sidetracked, so you can look into more details about that here.

The main thing is that you do not want is to go into debt for a vacation. So start saving! You can create a specific vacation account that is separate at your bank and watch it grow as you contribute. You will also be less inclined to take any money out of your travel fund if you have it earmarked away. Here you can find even more travel tips for saving money.

2) Pick your Destination

Since the title of this blog post is “How to plan your dream vacation”, I’m guessing you already have step 2 down and you have a location in mind. Still, if you know you want to go “somewhere” but don’t have the place nailed down, consider doing some research.

If it’s really up in the air for you, you might consider basing your search off of the locations that have good flight and hotel options (read: cheap). If everywhere is on your list, might as well start with the lower cost options while they are there. Learn how to book cheap flights here.

While bucket list destinations like spending 10 days in Thailand, checking out these must-do Kauai activities, exploring coffeeshops and waffles in Amsterdam and Belgium, or visiting the New Zealand South Island are epic, consider something a little closer to home if you have less time or want to bring your pets. Here are some dog-friendly activities in Franklin, TN to consider.

3) Consider the Season

Super crowded places are usually the opposite of fun. Since this is your dream vacation, consider booking your travel on shoulder season, or the time frame right around the most popular time to visit a destination. This will help cut down on both the cost and the crowds.

Off season can be a good time to visit, but consider if the destination is prone to any dangerous weather (monsoons/hurricanes) or if what you are hoping to do is available at that time. For example, if you are planning a trip to see the Northern Lights, you wouldn’t head north in the summer time as it doesn’t get dark enough to see them.

4) Book your Flight

Flights tend to be one of the more expensive parts of the trip, but it’s also one of the most important parts of how to plan your dream vacation. If you want to learn how to book flights for cheap using Google Flights (my favorite tool), check out this post here. Alternatively, you can also consider travel hacking to get the cost of your flights down to $0, or close to it.

Of course you don’t have to fly to get to your dream vacation spot. If you’re planning to drive instead, go ahead and map out your itinerary. Is there anything cool along the way? Why not add a few stops along the journey and add to the fun?

5) Book your Accomodation

Another important piece when deciding how to plan your dream vacation is to book your accommodation. While this usually means securing a hotel, it could mean staying at an Airbnb (here’s a code for a $40 discount if you have never used Airbnb before), or sleeping in a RV like we did in New Zealand.

Regardless of where you want to sleep, your accommodation will likely be the other most expensive part of the trip besides your flight.

Tip: You can use travel hacking to reduce the cost of your lodging. See how I stayed in an over the water bungalow in the Maldives for free here.

6) Plan your Itinerary

The last thing you want to do is get home from your vacation only to realize you missed out on opportunity to do something really cool. Avoid this and maximize your vacation by creating an itinerary.

This will help you decide if you need to rent a car, learn about the local public transportation, arrange for any excursions, etc. Try avoid sticking to the same activities every day. Even your most favorite things can become a bit mundane.

7) Don’t Wait

While of course there are some things you need to get in order before you go on a big trip, this needs to be appropriately balanced with the idea of waiting for the perfect time to plan your vacay.

I’ll give you an example. As a resident, Austin gets 3×7 day blocks of vacation time he can use throughout the year. And I mean 7 days. Not both weekends surrounding the week. This means it’s awful difficult to plan epic trips. But does this mean we stay home? Heck no!

If I had a dollar for the number of people who told me that I “can’t go to [insert vacation destination] in only 7 days”, I would at least have $10 (Okay, that’s not a lot of money, but I think people now realize I’ll do it so they stopped telling me this silliness).

Would it be better if we had two weeks (or more) to go to our destination? Of course. But does that mean we aren’t going to go? Nope. We just do what we can. For example, when we went to France, we just stayed in Paris. Although I would love to go to the countryside, Normandy, and the Riviera, there just wasn’t time.

How might this apply to you?

Are you waiting for the kids to get older? Could you bring a babysitter? Go to a more family friendly destination? Travel with family? Leave the kids and the grandparents?

I don’t want to go into all of the excuses here. Whatever they are, approach how to plan your dream vacation with a “how can I make this happen” attitude and watch it come to life.

Make it happen

Are you planning your dream vacation right now? Let me know in the comments where you are planning to go and what tips you have to help everyone get to traveling.

Looking for something special for that traveler in your life? Check out this blog post for 10 gifts for travelers under $50 and get them something they want without breaking the bank.

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