I am trying to plan a trip to Italy, for me and my significant other, but I know it will take some time before we get there, for a variety of reasons.
We want to spend a month-maybe even a month-and-a-half there-and live like a local. Of course, having enough money for a trip this big. I'm thinking it will be about a year and a half before we get there, though my significant other finds it odd that I'm planning so far in advance.
I didn't think my early planning was out of the norm, so I decided to ask my fellow writers how early they start planning their vacations. Then I asked some travel agents how early we should start planning.
Fellow writer Ann Lombardi is a free-spirit traveler, but she started to plan a trip to Korea about eleven months in advance.
"I wanted to attend a festival in Cheju Island and a student's wedding, so to be sure about hotels, etc., I started quite early," she said. "I will also do so for a January 2019 South America and Antarctica cruise simply because people book reservations far in advance."
Lola Augustine Brown is planning a trip back home to the UK more than a year in advance.
"I wanted the best price on airfares possible," said the Nova Scotia author.
When Candy Harrington went to the New Orleans Jazz Fest, she started on her hotel reservations a year out.
"Looking back, it was a good move, because prices went up after I booked our room," she noted.
Darryl Musick committed to a Berlin trip a year-and-a-half prior, then started making reservations and buying airline tickets six months in advance. Because Beverly Hurley needed to use frequent flyer miles, she started planning her London and Paris trip nine months in advance.
And, finally, Pat Curry spent a year planning an Alaskan cruise with her parents.
"Coordinating schedules for six people was one reason; saving up the money was another," said Curry, who lives in Augusta, Georgia. "I definitely bought travel insurance for that one. There were too many chances of someone not being able to go."
So who did it the right way? According to the travel agents I asked, it really depends on the destination.
This doesn't mean last-minute planning doesn't have its benefits or perks. Jacqui Whitt of Adios Adventure Travel in Virginia Beach, Virginia, has received phone calls to set up hikes and tours to Peru's Machu Picchu from travelers at the airport gate waiting to board their flight to South America.
"We've arranged some pretty cool very last-minute adventures," she said. "For flexible travelers, this can be an awesome experience, but we recommend that couples or small groups contact us at least 60 days in advance for booking trips to world-renowned heritage destinations. Larger groups can plan at least 6 months or more in advance."
This gives Whitt time to find the best hotels and to provide information about local festivals or other potential congestion that could affect travel.
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