Sharing this article - 8 signs of travel burnout...

thanks for sharing! i hope to never do #3 (stop laughing) and i openly admit that i'm a textbook case for #5 (obsessive over-planning) though i hope to keep my mind and schedule open enough to veer from said schedule when the time calls for it. and of course, i'll let the world know--though hopefully not via blog-ranting!

great link--thanks!

'Everyone has a plan until they get punched in the face'
-Mike Tyson

I think the uberplanners find out pretty quickly that it's a recipe disappointment once the trip starts. Either that or they have a meltdown when something goes wrong and vow to never travel again.

Sorry, Tyson, I completely disagree. I would argue that planning helps with unexpected developments and kinks. I'm one of those people who plans what I am going to do every day, but it's just a guideline. I don't follow it slavishly. It's more like a plan of what I might do. Sometimes I follow it, sometimes I start following if but stop when I get tired, and sometimes I throw it out the window if I'm in the mood to do something else. And if I run into a problem that I didn't plan for, well, I always have alternatives in mind. I'm very flexible and adaptable.

I would never tell someone who likes to be completely spontaneous to plan like I do. Everyone is different, and what works for one doesn't work for all. I plan because I really enjoy it and because I think it saves a lot of time when I'm on the trip. But I recognize some people hate to plan and hate to follow a plan. Fine with me. Just don't make the mistake of thinking that planners can't be flexible.

Since it appears I started a little fight, let me clarify... by "uberplanner", I didn't mean not to plan anything. I'm talking specifically about those itineraries we read every once in awhile that go something like this: "Day 1, 8 AM, arrive at hotel. 9 AM, start touring Louvre. 12 PM eat lunch at (fill in the blank restaurant). 1 PM walk the Champs Elysee. 2 PM Arc de Triomphe. 2:30 PM take picture of Champs Elysee. 2:45 PM Visit the restroom and relieve bladder," etc., etc. until every minute of a two week trip is planned in advanced.

I think that problems are more likely to come up for people who plan their days down to the minute. If the schedule get thrown off for some reason (long lines, etc.) it could stress someone out.

I do reserve my lodging in advance. As someone else said, I don't want to waste time and drag my bag around looking for a place. I have in mind things I would like to do or see in each place I travel to. If I do them all, great. If I don't, oh well. I also am totally open to doing something I have no knowledge of ahead of time.

I think the more rigid the schedule, the harder it is to adapt to changes that might come up.

Thanks, Tami, but there was nothing in this article that made me want to give up my obsessive vacation planning. However, it did make me feel a lot better about the fact that I can only travel for two weeks at a time! I think most of the symptoms of travel burnout described in the article appear to come from being on the road for a long time, not from too much planning. I can see where burnout might be more likely if you try to plan too much into a short amount of time or if you are obsessive about sticking to your plan instead of being flexible. But I see no problem with over planning, assuming that you are the type (like me) that loves to plan.

Tami,

Thanks for posting that!

I can appreciate some of the points in the article. I've found from experience that trips of two months are about my limit, and beyond that I'm clearly affected by "travel burnout".

I often wonder... since we often read the travel plans of people who, to put it honestly, sound rather obsessive/compulsive, what happens when an unexpected barrier arrives to prevent them from getting from point A to point B as their pre-determined itinerary dictates? Knowing how often I have to adapt my very loose, limited plans, how to the uberplanners react to the inevitable monkey wrench in the gears?

I'd like to think I don't do any of those. My husband might disagree with that....

Since we fly standby, especially on our travel days, we have to be flexible, and have a plan A, B, C, and D. Usually plan A works, sometimes we have to resort to plan B, rarely do we have to do plan C. But, even with being flexible, we have to arm ourselves with information -- when are all the flights, where can we stay if we can't get out today, etc. So, in a way, we have to over-plan just in case, while being flexible at the same time. I'm in the process of trying to get to a family wedding next month, looks like I can't get a flight into the town where it will be, so I'm having to look into flying into another town, taking a bus, renting a car, etc, all the while knowing that this might all be thrown in the crapper if the weather's lousy.

Traveling with kids brings a whole new level to flexibility. If they're bored, they'll be quite vocal about it, I need to scout out kid stuff ahead of time -- playgrounds, pools, things like that. And, of course, ice cream. :)

Tom...having a plan doesn't mean you don't make allowances for contingencies.

Tami,

I never have this "travellers-burnout" thing, if I have doubts, just think of the alternative.

I do plan more now than I did in the 1970s when travelling in Europe because I cover more territory now. If you are tired and fatigued, just pop into a town/city and rest for a day or two. And, I know where those are.

I totally agree with never stop laughing, I always keep in mind that in the end the worst situations lead to the best stories and laughter after the fact.

I admit I am a compulsive planner, but I rarely if ever have a day to day itinerary planned. I always book accommodations ahead of time because I don't see the point in wasting vacation time lugging my luggage (even if it is only a carry on) around looking for a spot. Other than that the only things I book are items that need to be booked ahead of times, or saves a lot of money for example for this trip: Tea at the Ritz, good seats to Wicked, Eurostar tickets, discount tickets to Disneyland Paris, that I can use anytime within the next 6 months, and prems tickets to Reims.

I like to plan to know I'm not missing anything, but am happy to throw it all out the window once I arrive and live in the moment.

As for what happens when something in my plans go wrong? I work in export for a small company so I'm used to coming up with plan B, C and D at a moments notice so that doesn't bother me. My motto is never let them see you sweat, keep your cool and things will generally work out for the best (this is coming from someone who has lost and then found her passport twice)

There is a difference between those that plan and the uberplanners as Tom stated that have an hourly plan in Outlook format. I don't think it's realistic way to plan. That might be ok for a fairly structured vacation like a cruise or Disney but not in place that you are not familiar with. I couldn't even setup a 2 week plan for places I'm familiar with as there are always variables like weather, transportation problems, festivals, etc.

I have a list of things I'd like to do, I have alternative ideas if something goes wrong, which it normally does. If I run out of things to do I sit at the bar and ask the locals what they would do or move on.

Tom's comment reminded me of a trip my mom took with my aunt and uncle -- my uncle had the trip planned to the minute, and provided all of us with a blow-by-blow itinerary, complete with where they were going and when, everywhere they were staying, contact information for these places, and exactly how they were getting there (car, train, bus, and exactly when they were leaving). We got a good laugh over it. My husband proposed to me while they were on said trip, so we laughed that it actually came in handy so we could call Mom and tell her the news.

to plan a trip is to build a scaffold. you can climb up any way you want, but without it, you are left standing on the ground, wondering how the heck you're ever going to get to where you want to be.

I travel spontaneously in the way that I purchase my airline ticket and pre-pay my "home-base hotel room" before the trip. Then I print out all the maps of things I want to go and see. But on the days I go out, I just decide then and there what I want to see that day. I cant imagine having to plan a minute by minute trip. I have been to Europe 3 times and have never been burnt out.

I do realize I might save money by planning ahead to pre-purchase tickets for things, but I would hate for it to be the moment I have to do X and not at all be in the mood for it.

Also the reason I call my room the "home base" is because I tend to be even more spontaneous than most, and if I am in London, I may just want to hop a train to Scotland and stay the night, just bringing bare necessities and change of clothes in my messenger bag, leaving my luggage in my cheap Easyhotel room. Since its only 25 pounds a night and already paid for, it's well worth not having to drag 2 bags around and pay 8 pounds a bag per day at Excess Baggage Co.

Great article. I loosely fall into the 'Planner' category in so much as I like to have my accommodation organised in advance. I know this might lessen the spontanaiety of a trip, but for me that is a trade off against wandering around an unknown town, not speaking the language and looking for a bed. Also I am very strong on having a Plan B.
I try to lessen the stress of travel by being at airports/railway stations with ample time to check in and to get my bearings. At the age of 67 I no longer feel the need to 'fly by the seat of my pants' - been there done that.

Tami,

There are ways to maximise the rail Pass if you just limit the train travel to Austria and Germany where you more than break even. So. you preserve flexibility and still see a lot of the lovely country side. Between France and Germany it is a little more expensive because the reservations are required even during day travel. At night just don't reserve a couchette or sleeper, sleep upright in the Sitzwagen.

I don't understand how anyone can plan an hour by hour schedule. How do you know if you are going to want to spend 1 hour or 8 hours in the Louvre until you've been there?

Of course, I also don't understand how anyone can go to Europe without having confirmed hotel reservations - leaving out those youngsters who only need a bed in a dorm.

I usually only eat dinner out every third or fourth night on average. I like to pick up stuff at the local super or market and eat in my room, while I'm catching up on the news on tv, or email or uploading my hundreds (don't ask) of photos to my notepad, planning the next day's itinerary based on the weather, or whatever, and all in my comfy sleep tee after a refreshing shower. Saves me money and time.

I've also found that when I'm on longer trips (3 weeks or more), it helps to not pack too much into successive days.

I plan like crazy but it's never so I can have a strict schedule when I arrive. I plan so I know every option available to me. The thing I hate most is missing something I would have really liked to see because it's not high on most tourists lists and isn't included in a guidebook. My first forays into Asia were like that. I hit the major sites on the beaten path but didn't realize till later that there were medieval city/castle ruins I could have visited.

We each have our personal favorites, sometimes you have to do some digging to find the sites you are most interested in.

As an example, we'll be visiting Gdansk in a couple of weeks. Gdansk has a great Royal Way that I'm looking forward to seeing. The shipyards where Solidarity rose aren't interesting to me at all, even though it's a top attraction for most visitors. I had to dig a little deeper before I realized that Malbork Castle (formerly Marienburg) is less than an hour away by train. It's the largest brick castle in the world and was the seat of the Teutonic Knights as they waged a Crusade against the Pagans of Lithuania in the 13th and 14th centuries. For me Malbork will be the highlight of my visit.

Even tours don't plan down to the last minute--the good ones, that is. Some unstructured time is essential for taking care of individual needs and interests. If a super-scheduler is traveling with other people, how could this possibly work unless the others are completely in thrall to the planner?

I'm a fairly "loose" planner. I reserve most of my hotels, but have only a suggested itinerary for each day. I may decide to take a train somewhere or I may explore a nearby neighborhood. Or I may spend most of the day sitting somewhere reading.

I do all the advance planning -- where, when, how, hotels, transportation, etc. Then we both do some serious studying to decide what we want to see/do on the trip. He is responsible for the logistics of the day-to-day itinerary......but I have to remind him that flexibility is key because the unplanned happens. We've been on the wrong train; one of us has gotten sick for 1-3 days on 3 trips, etc. We just put one foot in front of the other and find a way to make it work.

I try to have plan B options just in case.
I do agree with the poster who mentioned getting burned out on eating out daily. I have found that to be true of myself.

First, this article gave me a huge laugh. I can think of numerous reasons you might land yourself in prison in a foreign country, but punching livestock was not one of them.

Second, I think this article proves just how important planning is and not just where to go, what to see and where to stay but learn something about the culture before you leave so you'll have some idea of what you'll be facing. That's why I spend so much time on this site.