what to pre-purchase/how helpful are TIs?

yeah, i think i live in a world just under compulsive planner! i guess i feel that i've planned the trip out enough at this point--we have all air and ground transport, and lodging. and--because i live just under compulsive--i feel i 'should' plan the rest of it, but really don't want to slash feel like doing that would take a lot of the fun and spontaneity out of the trip. also i'm freaking out about not learning the entire spanish language in the two months since i booked the barcelona portion of the trip! which, really, is insane. because there's just no way i can limit my travels to only countries where i speak the language--now THAT would be boring!

Tracy, I am a compulsive planner. Sometimes I like to buy tickets in advance if it's something I'm absolutely sure I want to do and it seems like it's going to be time consuming or difficult to get the tickets when I get there. I hate wasting time standing in line for tickets and that sort of thing. On the other hand, sometimes I'm not sure what I'll feel like doing on a particular day, and somethings are weather-dependent, so I generally don't end up buying a lot of tickets in advance for those reasons. Sometimes if you get too many tickets in advance, your vacation can seem like a series of obligations you must do at a certain time. It can ruin the fun.

carroll--i absolutely agree! i'm having the same problem planning a different trip (vegas...shhh...don't tell anyone!) but i also think there is something to be said about having things figured out before hand. the tickets i'm looking at are not time sensitive--they were things like general tourist bus passes and train/funnicular tickets. though there are some specific things i'd like to do--see a show at the palau de la musica catalana, for example--that i'm afraid to book in advance but also afraid i won't 'know how' to do when i get there! i guess that's all part of the adventure...right?

Buy nothing in advance. There's generally not a great deal of savings. Plans change, ideas change. One thing paid for and not used will negate all savings.

Use the TIs, they have a wealth of information you never dreamed existed.

If you're going to the Anne Frank House or the Van Gogh/Rijksmuseums, I would pre-order your tickets from their respective websitees. We did and walked right in at all, past long lines. The Anne Frank line was ridiculous, that's the only one where your reservation is time-dependent. SOmetimes it's more about saving time, than money.

I have had some good luck doing this - had a great three day experience in Iceland for example. But in general I only do the hotels (cancelable or insured) EXCEPT the sights that have entry reservations. As noted, the Anne Frank house, and things like the Louvre, the London Eye and so on. It can be a pain to have scheduled times to go places like that (and I do a lot of planning) but I hate lines with a passion.

Like you I had basically ignored the TIs until last year in Dublin where we discovered how wonderful they are. Besides a wealth of info and time saving, they have a great gift shop. The only ticket I purchased online pre-trip was the Guinness Tour which saved us lots of time and waiting in long lines and we got there early. BTW, we loved the Guinness Tour. There is a lot of historical info about Dublin and the company and I learned how to craft a glass of Guinness.

Not many TIs have gift shops. I think it is a matter of travel style. You would be very uncomfortable with Ed's or ours travel styles of little advance planning. You have to do what is comfortable for you and if loose ends bother you then you have no other choice. Remember the descriptive word in compulsive planning is compulsive.

However not planning is not the same as no research. We do extensive research so that we have a very good idea of what we want to see and do. For the most part we just don't plan how we are going to see and do it. If research indicates sites with very high demand, ie A Frank or Alhambra, then we will purchase tickets in advance but that is rare. Our first stop is always the TI. We are especially interested in tours offered by loacal guides. Then we discuss with the local person the best way to weave in the things we want to see and do. These people are far better than any guide book. We want max flexibility and convenience which you cannot get if everything is planned state side. We have bumped into local festivals and holidays that can affect you original plans but can open other great possibilities. We have often taken a walking tour with a graat guide and then booked an additional tour with the same guide at a later time.

Some of our greatest memories are from some unplanned events that occurred when tentative plan A, B, and C failed. I cannot imagine traveling with everything preplanned. It would be as uncomfortable to us as it would be for you not to plan every detail. Both approaches work.

I plan like crazy so I know my options. When I'm on the ground, knowing what options are available to me, I stay flexible.

A stop in the TI can change my plans. I have yet to find a source that reliably tells me about local events in smaller cities and towns. Sometimes even when I know an event is happening, I can't find good information online. A visit to the TI might yield a lot I already know or a local event (anything from a festival to a rock concert) I didn't know about that changes my plans.

TIs are invaluable sources of information -- use them to the utmost! We just returned from Barcelona ourselves ... before we left for our trip, I was tempted to buy tickets on their tourism site because of the discounts involved but am very glad I didn't. Being locked into things can make you miss out on wonderful experiences.

Also, in addition to TIs, talk to your waitstaff at any bar or cafe you stop at. If you're nice and treat them well, they can be a great help in figuring out what's worth seeing and where any hidden gems might lie.

Hi Tracy,

I think it depends on your style and your ease with travelling. I pre-purchased everything because I did not trust myself to 1.Find a location to purhase things and 2. To not freak out (I am a freak out easy person)if I could not find where to buy tickets. On some level it was great because I had everything and we hit the ground running. However we had zero flexiblity.

Unless you are a compulsive planner <<

Hi, Steve. I see you haven't met Tracy!

Peter--ha! Do you know me? Because you're absolutely right!!!! But I'm working on it, I promise. We just got back from a week on a domestic vacation (Vegas...shhh...no one start a fight about Vegas!) and I planned nothing for that trip. Ok, well I bought tickets to ONE show before we left. But you can't expect me to go cold turkey now can you? Though I'm admittedly freaking out about not having done enough prep for our one-week-from-now Europe trip.

Thanks for the laugh--the truth does not hurt when it is that funny!

I was in Barcelona alone two years ago. I stayed in a hotel on Las Ramblas' upper end, which is near the hop-on-hop-off bus stops and the Metro. I can't think of anything I would have needed a reservation-in-advance for. It's a great walking city. Read Rick's book on Spain for details. BTW, a friend visited Barcelona a year later and found some terrific flamenco somewhere near (or on) Las Ramblas.

Tracy, In many trips to the UK the only pre-purchasing I have done was for my first and last nights accomodation, tickets for the Ceremony of the Keys, tickets to private access to Stonehenge, entry to the old section of Highgate cemetery and tickets to the Tattoo in Edinburgh. The last four of which required pre-booking. We have always used the TI for something. Mostly for booking accomodation.