So much research!! How do you organize your trip plans?

I am nowhere near as organized as you are! I read as much as I can before, and then leave most of it to chance once I am on the road, but I do create one email to myself that contains all of the links that I think could come in handy. It is a simple, low-effort way to sort the info in case I need it later. I bookmark way more than I need while doing research, so the week before a trip, I flip through all of them, delete the ones that are no longer needed and save the ones I do--and paste them into the email with headings like "hikes near so-and-so," "restaurants in x," etc.
If you will not have wifi on your flight, you could create a file of the info that you can access at any time.

I few years ago I started using a website and app that was featured in I think a New York Times article bublup.com. It let's you save into folders everything: website links, pdfs, notes (I compose some myself or copy from elsewhere), photos. I start with usually a messy folder of random things I find in my initial research and then as my trip nears I make further subfolders and reorganize the presentation to match my plans. I can share a folder with a travel companion, either just to view or to allow them to drop things into it too. I can browse the internet on my computer or my phone and drop things into it from either device. It has an offline feature so you can activate that to see your stuff even if you don't have cell reception or internet connection. Works for me!

What a lovely topic! I am very curious what everyone has to say about it and will follow this thread.

As I research my trip, I bookmark resources just like you. But about 7-10 days before the trip I start a document (nowadays in Google docs) where I write concise notes and organize information by location. So, for example, if my first stop is London, I will have my flight and hotel info, options of things to do & any pertinent info about them (timings, whether booked or just show up, etc). If I am going to the National Gallery, I also write down the main things I want to see, gallery #. I have a few options about food, other sites noted down. I also usually design my own walks so I create separate documents for those too. I repeat this for each other location I visit. I print out these documents, but they are also accessible online with data/wifi.

My trips do not last more than 10-14 days, so this method works for me.

I am commenting so I do see others' replies, but I have a folder in my Google Drive with pre purchased tickets, incl airplane tickets, travel insurance, as well as screen shots of things. I also have PDFs of tickets in my calendar app so they're available there, too.

I’m still a paper and pen planner for the most part. Although all the bookings are saved in an email folder, I print all of them out (usually 1 page with confirmation #etc). I rip out the main pages of each town from whichever guide book is useful and I add some small post it notes with any highlights we want to cover. We explore by neighbourhoods usually so I will have a few possible lunch places and sightseeing highlights listed as well as possible walking/transit routes. I have an itinerary by day/date with the main focus for that day ie a museum or a short day trip. All of it fits into a small plastic folder. Closer to the trip I will review anything I have saved or bookmarked elsewhere to add to my post its. We are slow travellers with usually 3-4+ days in each spot so we have a bit of flexibility on how full the day needs to be. I will also use the evening before to review the general plan for the next day. If we don’t have a local map, we will get one at the TI when we arrive as we like a bigger paper map to see the ‘big’ picture of the place beyond Google maps.

PS we don’t do carry on due to extras needed (medical items) but we still try to keep the info to a small holder that fits in my purse.

Thank you, everyone! These are interesting ideas to ponder. There are so many different ways to plan and it’s nice for me to see what others do.

Now I’m thinking I might be able to save some PDFs into the Books app on my iPad, like regional maps.

We will be having a much slower trip this time around, with extended stays in two main regions. So having the details available for different ways that we might spend our time is important to me….especially since we are actively trying NOT to travel at a frenzied pace this trip. We took a My Way tour last fall, which was great for covering lots of ground…and this time we will be at the other end of the spectrum. I know we will be deciding what to do as we go, and much will be weather-dependent, so having the resources handy (digitally) appeals to me.

Laurie

Except for sights that sell out or have long ticket lines, I don't commit to time-specfic sightseeing plans before I arrive in a city. I find it very helpful in large cities to have a chart with a column for each day of the week that lists all my potential sightseeing stops (in roughly geographical order) with their hours of operation. That allows me to see patterns and logical groupings when I consider my options for the next day's activitihes at dinner or breakfast.

Time permitting, i summarize all the useful info I've found here or in guidebooks in a Word document for each country. I take a hardcopy of all those documents as well as storing them in my phone and tablet. They allow me to make informed decisions about priorities (based on interest, energy level and weather) when I don't have enough time to see everything, but my operating-hours charts are much more helpful for actually figuring out my plans for the day.

I don't know what works on an iPad, but on my Mac and iPhone, I save a lot of guide book pages and screenshots and bookmarks and miscellaneous stuff in photos in folders. So easy to search. For bookmarks, I screenshot the page I am interested in including the address and add to Photos. On my laptop, I can click on the address and it pops up. On my phone, I can touch the link and then open the link. I know I can just use Bookmarks, but I kind of like having ALL the messier stuff in Photos and not in yet another place. Depending on the trip, the folders might be labeled by town or by type of activity (Churches, Art, Restaurants, etc.).

We also keep a shared spreadsheet and a document in Google Drive, and a Google map with "Want to Go" green flags marking places. Also, I have Google Docs for "Packing" and "B4 Trip."

My guess is that there is a smarter way to keep our research handy, but this is what has evolved.

Acraven and Nancy, thank you!

As you said, I’m sure there are lots of ways to do this… And I am reading along and thinking some of these ideas really resonate with my style of planning! So helpful!

For the Italy trip last year, there were specific tickets we had to buy ahead of time in order to get the days and times we wanted. This is so different for this trip – I can’t even think of a single thing I might need to buy the ticket for ahead of time, transportation, or otherwise. I hope I’m not mistaken! :-D

I like the ideas you’ve shared. Thanks a lot!

For tickets in general, I created a "ticket" label in gmail and move the ticket emails there so I don't have to search. For trips, I do the same thing - create a label, which is essentially a folder, called for example "Spain 2024" - and move all the advance purchase tickets, hotel reservations, etc. to that label.

I also always do a spreadsheet in Google with itinerary, hotel contact info, and links for things we are doing or might do for each stop. I can then share that with adult kids so they know where we are if needed...

Rebbeca, that’s a great idea to put your links into your spreadsheet. I think I will try that. I have a spreadsheet in Google as well with our lodgings listed. It’s so easy to share those documents too.

I also use a Switzerland/France trip folder in my Gmail, but your idea of having a separate label for tickets is great.

Thanks for chiming in!

I use OneNote as my electronic trip planner, creating a "notebook" for each trip and a "section" for each destination within the trip. Pages within the notebooks/sections are for hotels, restaurants, sites - each with as much or as little detail as I want, anything from just the link to a website or snippets and photos and maps and text copied from various sources.

I keep pdfs of all of my reservations and tickets in cloud storage, with names that sort them in date order.

Everything can be synched and access across any of my devices: laptop, tablet or phone, online and offline.

I don't know that I am the most organized, but I keep most things in Bear, which is basically just a text editor.

As I am planning the trip, I stick miscellaneous notes and snippets in a big text file, and I mark a bunch of places on Google Maps. When things begin to take shape, I create a spreadsheet for budgeting and scheduling. Reservation copies and such are stored in a Dropbox folder.

Once everything is mapped out, I create a simple daily itinerary. The itinerary often changes a bit, but it keeps me more or less on track. I don't go into lengthy descriptions in the itinerary. A single day looks something like this:

April 11, Tuesday - Antalya to Pamukkale

• Weather: 45° - 67°
• Sunrise 6:30 a.m.
• Sunset 7:30 p.m.

• 8:00 - Leave hotel
• 8:30 - Arrive airport to pick up rental car
• 9:00 - Depart airport/rental car (3 hours to D330 Aphrodisias turnoff; need to arrive at turnoff before 1:00; 3:50 from airport to Aphrodisias)
• 1:00 - Arrive Aphrodisias
• 4:00 - Depart Aphrodisias (1:20 to Sahin Hotel, Pamukkale)
• 5:20 - Arrive Sahin Hotel, Pamukkale

Overnight: Sahin Hotel, Pamukkale

I also keep printed copies of all reservation in addition to the electronically stored copies.

I use tripit.com for an overview of trip with flight and hotel info. On my phone I use notes. I have a note for each desitnation and have added pdf's of maps, general info I've gathered along with dining options and how to make reservations. Also uploaded a few pages of various guidebooks so the info would be very easy to get to. All the notes are in an overall folder for the trip.

I use a lot of different tools through different stages of my planning. Initially, it’s just a large calendar that I make taping four pieces of paper together. Each day is a normal size Post-It with the city written on it. Ideas for that day are written below the city name, and the lodging name on top. So, if a museum is closed on Mondays, I note it beside the museum name. As I am creating a more solid itinerary, I can easily pick up the Post-Its and move them to a different day. If a Post-It is messy, I can easily replace it.

When the plan is more solid, I will enter the info into TripIt. I also make an Excel 1-page spreadsheet that I print and bring with me.

During the months of research, I bookmark a lot of sites & videos into my Favorites that show on my iPad internet view. I also create an iCloud folder for each city. Screenshots, photos of things I would like to see or do, and any tickets purchased are in these iCloud folders. I don’t worry about flooding an iCloud folder. A few months later, I know better which screenshots I actually want to keep. My last trip, I stayed in 14 different B&B’s or small hotels, so having these iCloud folders is essential, although my main “go to” during the trip is just the 1-page view Excel spreadsheet.

During my initial planning, the Post-It calendar makes it obvious what places need some activities, so I like it for effectively using a free hour or two to make some progress.

During my train ride to the next location, I look through the iCloud folder for the next town as a quick review, or I glance at my TripIt activity options.

There are at least two other really good threads from the last six months or so on exactly this topic. With dozens of replies. Unfortunately, I can't find either of them to be able to link them here !!! (Sad emoji face)

A comprehensive hyperlinked document
I create a detailed itinerary in Google Docs. I then create links to websites, hotel reservation, pre-purchased tickets, etc. within that document. I also create offline Google maps for my iPhone when I have lots of walking to do. All goes on my iPhone and on my Kindle. For me, a three week trip will require around 15 pages of detail.

An iPhone app folder
I download a public transit app for each city I plan to visit, plus train line apps. I keep all of these apps in a single folder on my iPhone. I also keep Google Translate and Currency Converter in this folder. Once I depart a destination I take a few minutes on the train to delete any apps I no longer need.

Travel books on Kindle
My Kindle also has ebook versions of travel books, either purchased or borrowed from a library and bookmarks for museums, cities, restaurants, etc. Even though I have read them while planning I find I like to have the ebooks to browse through on the train or over a meal in my newest destination.

Paper Backup
I print a papercopy of my Itinerary the goes in a notebook as a backup. This notebook also has any paper documents or tickets, etc. that I can't keep on my phone (this is becoming more and more rare!). And, since it lives in the hotel safe, it has photo copies of my Passport, driver's license and credit cards and my emergency credit card and cash.

We put confirmation emails in a folder so we can easily access them easily on our phones. Sometimes we will mark something in our Notes. We are pretty mixed off-the-cuff and planned travellers--hotels and car rentals as needed are planned. We do a quick look to see if there are things to see that require reservations. Then we play it by ear. Rare that it doesn't work, and when it doesn't, we adapt. I'm always impressed with those people who can plan trips so exactly.

I generally keep track of information by --

On my web browser within bookmarks I'll create a main folder for each country I've visited or intend to visit and under that main folder there are sub-folders for accommodations, transportation, and attractions. All of the various websites and internet research get bookmarked to those folders.

In my email I'll create folders for each trip and all bookings, confirmations, and emails related to that trip get saved to that folder. Documents get down loaded and available in both Google Documents and Samsung Notes.

I'll create an itinerary in Google Docs organized by day centered mainly on my transportation schedule, hotel check-in/check-out, and firmly scheduled activities/tours.

TripIt app. It allows me to keep track of information for several trips all at once.

Once all of my planning and preparation are done, I make a single document that lists each day of the trip detailing stay, reservation details, contact numbers and websites. For each site I note transportation details if there are travel days. I also make a brief list (by day) of interests. This is flexible. I only lock down a reservation for a site if it is one that requires it, the Vatican as one such example. Otherwise I never detail any of the days to the extent that I list, wake up, 7:02. Brush teeth, 7:04. Exit hotel, 8:13...... I'm not keen on the idea of turning an adventure into an extended rat race. I carry a hard copy, a soft copy on an SD card and the originals on my PC.
All locations that I plan to visit are added to my Google Maps. That way I have a way to navigate to and from them without consulting my "masterplan". My schedule (a rough one by location) is on my Google Calendar. If you looked at it today you would see "take train to Berlin", but not a time or train number. That will get decided when we get to the train station. I do know the schedule so I'll probably try to be there at a roughly ideal time, but if we miss, we'll get the next one. I'm not sweating to get from the plane to seat number X on 13:07 train.....not happening.
As we travel, I adjust. I look at the master list daily, decide what to add or remove and as accommodations permit, change destinations based upon our mood.
I like the idea of being able to decide as we go, so nothing is ever pinned down that does not need to be.
It is not at all unusual for us to wake up in the AM and decide to totally freestyle.
But the Porsche Museum, I can tell you exactly what day we will be there, just not what time.

I use Wanderlog. I have the pro version as I use it a lot, and it works well for me. I can link my hotel confirmation/excursion emails to it which is nice.

Then for random note/tips, I make notes on paper and then organize them into an email to myself.

We do carryon only a this works well for us. I don't bring any guidebooks or iPad or anything else except my phone.

I was hoping for at least one I pay for the tour and show up.

If it brings comfort and confidence then do it. If you’re on a once in a lifetime trip that requires precise timing and detailed support planning then do it. Is the reliance on apps always successful?

At the other end of the process, this focus on a digital representation of every waking moment carefully stored seems to suck the life out of spontaneity. A few years ago my wife and I traveled to Lorient to see a few specific sights. Hotel reservations and general information in order and the visit was fun. On the way back to home base in Normandie we came on the exit for the French Army Academy at St Cyr. ( the French “ West Point”) . Exited the freeway and spent an afternoon with a grizzled old paratrooper who explained the vast significance of this location.

How do you detailed planners allow for the unexpected opportunity outside a planned
and structured journey?

Similar to you, we use Google Sheets with columns for dates, times, towns, daily agendas, local currency rates, USD rates, multipliers, hotel info, things to consider, and reference links. It's quite detailed, but it's evolved over years to work as we need. It's easy to replicate for the next trip and start adding in new information.
Tabs at the bottom include potential activities. For each activity, there is a link and other at-a-glance information such as hours and days open. Once we decide on one, and purchase tickets if needed, we cross it off (leaving it there to see that we actually have already considered it), and add it to the main document. We also have a packing tab depending on the location.
The main document is the key, though. Anything that is scheduled and has a ticket is highlighted in red and includes booking numbers. I also include if tickets are pdf, digital, in Apple wallet, etc. It seems complicated, but it's easy enough to use once we get going. It's a shared document we can each access on our phones, although I do print out a hard copy just in case. We do take one small, lightweight Windows Surface computer in case we need it for other things but that stays in the hotel safe during the day. I'm past carrying anything heavy around. My husband downloads any tricky directions we might need ahead of time, but I don't like to the idea of looking at a screen the whole time while I'm walking around. For that reason, we preview the streets, etc before we set out and only double-check our headings if we seem off course. Like you, I prefer all the information in one area. Part of the magic of traveling is not always following the "path" and making new discoveries.

How do you detailed planners allow for the unexpected opportunity outside a planned
and structured journey?

My detailed planning does not imply that all of my time is planned and structured. I often plan an activity for mornings, with less structure in the afternoons.

For my upcoming trip, I have 4 days for which the "plan" is to choose from a variety of options that I've researched. And if something new comes up, I'll do that instead.

I used to use Google Docs and Sheets, but recently began using Wanderlog for my trip planning and love it! I spent a lot of time on it when I was planning my 5 1/2 week trip to England. It is an app (for both laptop and phone) that provides a way to save everything in there for your organizational purposes. For example, any bookings you make can be stored in the various categories (flights, lodging, car rentals, public transport), then you can break it down day by day, and add in sights you are interested in, restaurants, cafes and so on. You can put places/destinations in a broad category at the top (i.e., Restaurants) and/or put them into your itinerary.

It was incredibly handy to have. I would log on the night before to look at the next day's itinerary, check out things I needed to do, and sometimes would move things around. It was so convenient to have all this information in one place and yet be fluid enough so that it could be changed. Sometimes I would add in a restaurant from the Restaurants category at the top, or just use the app to look at what I still had to see that day and figure out if it was still feasible.

Like mikliz97 above, I use the paid version, but there is a comprehensive free version that is well worth using.

Replying to these two posts:
How do you detailed planners allow for the unexpected opportunity outside a planned
and structured journey?

My detailed planning does not imply that all of my time is planned and structured. I often plan an activity for mornings, with less structure in the afternoons.
For my upcoming trip, I have 4 days for which the "plan" is to choose from a variety of options that I've researched. And if something new comes up, I'll do that instead.

I totally agree with this reply! On this particular trip, we’ve deliberately planned week + stays in two main regions. So I’m not trying to itemize the day to day plans, just summarize the options for us to choose at our leisure. Lucky for us there are many options! I do want to capture highlights to consider, and restaurants that have been recommended. And I love to just read and learn more about the places we will be visiting - all of them new to us on this trip.

I really appreciate people taking the time to share their strategies here. You’ve given me a lot of food for thought! For me, planning is a big part of the experience. Now I have some more ways to consider organizing all the resources I’ve bookmarked and gathered.

Thanks!

I am a planner, but have no problem throwing the plan away if we decide we want to do something else. Last summer we had a day planned, and due to weather we had to scrap the main thing. So while sitting in a hot spring we decided to go hike the volcano. I just like to have an overall plan, and I always add options within the plan. That way if we are hungry for lunch I already have a few places noted and I don't need to sit there looking at my phone to decide, or wander up and down a street to decide.

Another nice thing about Wanderlog is that you can share it with others. You can allow them to edit it or not. A friend asked for my help in planning a trip, and send me her link. It was so easy to make sense of it that way and I could easily give her feedback.

Kim, I think this one started by Pam might be what you were thinking of.
https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/general-europe/how-do-you-organize-your-trip-research

"If it brings comfort and confidence then do it. ....At the other end of the process, this focus on a digital representation of every waking moment carefully stored seems to suck the life out of spontaneity."

"How do you detailed planners allow for the unexpected opportunity outside a planned
and structured journey?"

I think that's the beauty of the detailed planning. After months of research, I have several options at each city of things to do. 1-2 of them are a priority; the rest are secondary or usually just options. So, when I'm on the train heading to the next city, I have that one thing in mind that I will be doing that day. Because of all of the research ahead of time, there's options I'm very familiar with by that point that I don't need to waste time looking up hours, etc. but my day is completely flexible to do whatever sounds interesting, including something new I discover as I check into my next B&B.

Exactly what Jean said.

You're right Laurie, for many of us planning is part of the fun! But there's very little I wouldn't throw aside for a longer lunch where the food is great and the wait staff want to chat, or meeting an amazing 90 year old Italian woman who'd climbed all those darn steps up to the top of the Capitoline Museum cafe..... We like to have a list of options - We still have Ostia Antica, an e-bike tour to the Aurelian walls and a day trip to Trevi on the list, but we just never got around to it. When our feet hurt and we're tired of museums, it's time for gelato and a siesta.

Thank you TTM. I rummaged around looking for that other feed on travel planning, glad to see you found it.

There were some good ideas on how to store things, thanks everyone! I just use TripIt and Notes. Jean's comment about starting with a paper calendar and sticky notes is great, I've added it to my (much looser) planning strategy.

Right now I have a separate Note on Bologna, Budapest, Sicily and South of France. I cut & paste ideas from the Forum into separate Notes as I go along, (man those Bookmarks are tough to track, unless I save them separately onto my laptop, yikes I’m not THAT organized.) Physical guide books ripped apart - Thought I would use these more than I have recently, I think we will leave them at home next time, we can always look things up on our iPads.

Youtube video watching (link in Notes). There are some amazing shows that help me understand a place better before we get there. We were looking at some Caravaggios in a church in Rome, I couldn't figure out what the guy at the dining table meant, only discovered later it was the 'Calling of St Matthew', ah well.

I too put restaurants, museum times etc into a 'Save' setting on Google Maps. I have saved maps for places I'm hoping to go, just add them as they appear in books etc. It's really nice to have restaurant options when you find yourself tired and hungry.

Weirdly, I'm not too worried about reliance on apps such as TripIt and Notes, we're carrying 4 electronic devices between 2 people, and have emails of much that's then been put into TripIt. Like many others, I still print out some reservations. Before leaving for Rome in December, I printed out 15 pages off Notes, to highlight with colored highlighters museums, areas and restaurants, that turned out to be the best guide book.

And if most of this sounds awful, that's OK. For me, the fun of travel starts the first time I think, 'Hmmmm I'd really like to go to Bologna!'