Welcome back to our series on trip planning, where we spill the details on how we plan our adventures. So far, we’ve talked about buying your flights (Week 1), researching your destination and finding accommodations for your trip (Week 2), and finding things to do (Week 3). This week we’re talking about the last step in our process before being ready to head out on your exciting adventure: finding transportation for your trip. Read on!

Getting To the Airport

You may think we’ve already covered this, as we’ve already found our plane tickets, right? That’s all well and good but what happens once you get there?

Let’s take this one step at a time, shall we? First, how are you getting to the airport? For most folks, the immediate response is to park their car at the airport. Yes, it’s super convenient, but we don’t like to leave our car at the airport for two reasons.

1. They’re expensive. Nobody wants to pay hundreds of dollars to just park their car. We’ve got way better things to do with that cash and so do you.
2. Protection, or not. We live in the Midwest, and that means intense storms out of nowhere. I don’t want to come home and find my car buried in snow or the windows bashed in from a hailstorm. Plus, you know…tornadoes. Not fun.

Instead, we recommend grabbing an Uber (not happening where we are), or asking a neighbor, friend, or family member if they’d be willing to take you to the airport. If you have someone unfamiliar take you (like Uber or a taxi), just be mindful of the fact that you’re essentially telling a stranger you’re leaving your home unoccupied for a period of time. Most of the time, all will be well, but just to be safe, it’s a good idea to ask someone to keep an eye on things, just in case…

Storing Your Luggage

Hopefully, you made it to the airport and are on your flight, and if you’re like us, arrived with no sleep. Now you’re stumbling around your destination airport wondering what to do next.

If your hotel is nearby and you can check in early or they’re willing to hold your bags, grab a ride-share (check what is popular in your destination before you go and download their app), taxi, hotel shuttle (if they have one), or hop on the local metro system if it links to the airport (this is usually the least expensive option), and drop off your stuff. Most hotels we’ve stayed at are happy to hold your bags even if you can’t check in yet. This means you can set out to explore right away without having you tote your bags. If you aren’t sure, just ask the front desk.

If your hotel won’t hold your stuff, check a nearby train station for luggage lockers to stash your stuff and come back for it later. Or, check out a luggage storage service like Stasher to find locations all over the world to store your luggage for various lengths of time.

If you’re renting a car straight from the airport, easy peasy, stash your luggage inside, and get on with your journey. Friendly reminder: if you leave your luggage, even at your hotel, make sure you take your valuables (like your passport & money) with you just to be safe.

Once you’ve unloaded your luggage, you’re free to explore those to-dos you gathered last week and keep yourself awake until it’s time to sleep in the local time zone – this is important to reset your internal clock for your trip. It makes for a very long couple of days, but it makes the rest of your trip much smoother.

Getting Around In-Country

The local metro, tram, and train system are typically the easiest and least expensive ways to get around a city. If you prefer private taxis or cars, you do you. We usually rely on the rail systems when we’re in Europe as much as possible because it is extensive and very reliable! Typically, there are stops near all the best tourist destinations or within a few blocks of anywhere else you may want to go. In some cities, the rail system is also operated by the same system that operates the buses. This is helpful because you can buy one pass and use it on all modes of public transport in the city. Make sure to figure all this out before you go so you know what kind of pass you need and where to get it.

Speaking of passes, if you are planning to use a train frequently, look into a Eurail pass. These passes are a great way to save money if you’re planning on lots of train travel within or even between countries in continental Europe. You can choose your number of travel days anywhere from a few days to a month and pay one price for as many trains as you need within the time allotted. Don’t forget to check the train times and pick your seats to be sure there’s space for you.

If you’re staying in the city for a while, it might be worth getting a one-day pass with a Hop-On/Hop-Off bus company. The busses themselves almost always offer audio tours, but they’re a great way to get your bearings around the city, and most of these companies stop at the major tourism destinations. We’ve done this a few times on our first day in a new city to get our bearings, and then get a metro pass or something along these lines for the rest of the time we’re there as they’re significantly less expensive. You can always opt to only use the metro, but it can be difficult to see where you’re going and what’s around you if you’re underground. Give the map a good study before you set out so you aren’t stumbling around when you’re top-side again.

If you’re zipping between cities or countries, we highly recommend high-speed trains. They’ll have you there in no time and will have connections to the next rail system when you get there. Easy peasy. If there’s not a high-speed train and only a regular train, we still recommend that. You’ll get to see a lot more of the country and if it’s a long journey, we turn it into a workday or a great nap. If it’s a really long journey or even overnight, this is a great way to eliminate the expense of a hotel room for the night and wake up in a new destination. We’re trying out the Caledonian Sleeper train on our next trip to get us from Glasgow to London overnight. This way we don’t lose precious site-seeing time, but we will miss seeing the English countryside during the day since we’ll hopefully be getting some shut-eye in our cozy bunks. Trade offs.

If, like us, you try to spend the majority of your time outside of the cities, many train stations also have car rental companies either inside them or nearby. Some will deliver cars to a station, and for others, you may have to walk a few blocks to pick up your car. Many times this means you will be leaving from the center of a city, which is a little intimidating if it’s your first time driving in a new country. So, make sure you’re brushed up on all the rules of the road, and check if you need an international driver’s license before you go (get one here if you need it). Make all your car reservations online before you leave so you aren’t stranded when they’re all sold out. Also, double-check our post on credit card insurance policies for your rental cars, just to make sure you don’t spend unnecessary money.

Get Goin’!

In-country transportation is typically the last step in our planning process because by now, we’ve done all our research and we know where we want to go. We just need to make those final links to make the journey smooth and enjoyable. Make sure you sit down with your itinerary and understand how you will get from place to place and where stations, train lines, rental companies, etc. are located on the map. Once you make all those links – it’s time to book!

The post How to Plan a Trip, Part 4 – Finding Transportation for Your Trip first appeared on The DeBode Way.

For the most part, when we tell people we’re going on a trip abroad, that means we’re flying into a city, renting a car and charting our own path in the area, preferably out of the city as soon as we’ve recovered from jetlag. For us, this accomplishes what we view as our most important goal when travelling: immersing ourselves in the local cultures, meeting local people, eating at local restaurants, staying at B&Bs, and really feeling like we’ve experienced the country. As we’ve said before, there are plenty of neat things to see in the major cities of Europe, and we’ve experienced many of them. That said, just like here in the US, when we’re abroad, getting out of the city gives you a completely different experience, and one we’ve come to enjoy. Just think New York City vs. Upstate New York, two hour drive, completely different worlds.

However, as much as we love getting behind the wheel of a car and doing our own thing, there are other ways we like to travel, too. Some take a little bit more planning, studying timetables and judging distance from stations and airports, calling a taxi/Uber/Lyft, and plain ole hoofin’ it. Others are so easy you almost don’t have to think, just follow directions – find man in orange shirt, get in car. Got it.

In a recent post we talked about our experience travelling to the Secrets Akumal resort on the Yucatan Peninsula in Mexico. To say the resort was an amazing experience would be a gross understatement. In fact, our only regret is that we didn’t stay longer – who goes to Mexico for 3 days? Sigh. There’s something to be said for going to a single place, unpacking and not having to worry about anything the entire time you’re there. Want an adult beverage? It’s already paid for, so help yourself. Hungry? Don’t worry about the bill because you’ve already paid for it. Want to go snorkeling with the turtles? They have equipment for that. Want to walk on the beach or hit the gym? See ya! Want to sleep in and lazily order room service? Every day? No judgment. If your goal is to relax, unwind, and re-center yourself, there are far worse places to do it. Just keep in mind that once you’re back home, when you call for ‘room service’ the outcome might be a little different.

By the same token, we’ve been on cruises that we thoroughly enjoyed as well. A recent example, we went on a cruise with Jason’s family in the Mediterranean for New Years 2020 (had we know that would be our last hurrah for quite some time, I think we would have done a few things differently – like staying longer) and our friends at Viking Cruise lines showed us a great time – 1000% recommend for a truly quiet/laid back experience. It was awesome to board the ship, unpack once, and see a new destination every day. It was also helpful that they provided educational excursions, so you didn’t need to plan anything if you don’t want to. The food was amazing, the staff was the best you could ask for, we went to the spa every day after our excursion and our stateroom (okay, cabin, we don’t need to be fancy) was comfortable, roomy and had a great balcony to hide on with a book. Were we to do this again, we’d probably do a few more of our own excursions. Nothing against the included ones; the guides were great, and the destinations were amazing. However, as we’ve said before, we like to do things a little differently and go off on our own sometimes to find those uncharted locations. Seeing a place from a bus isn’t the same as walking the streets, popping into an alley shop and talking to the people. Beyond the included excursions, there were others that were a bit more extensive that you could pay for, or you can do some planning ahead of time and do your own thing. All of this is completely doable so long as you watch the time: that boat is leaving at the pre-determined time with or without you. You don’t want to be waving from the dock as they pull away!

Looking for a bit of adventure but don’t really want to drive, pay for gas and pay for parking in cities? Have you considered the train? I know we don’t have a great extensive train system in the US, so this is something we aren’t super familiar with as Americans (but we really hope to see in our lifetime). We’ve stepped out of our comfort zone and taken quite a few trains in our travels: high speed, snail speed, metro, airport shuttles, etc.; but one thing we haven’t done yet is a long-distance, multi-city train trip. In fact, we think we should check that off our list, so we’re currently planning one right now. Europe has the Eurail system that allows you to buy a single pass for unlimited train rides in a certain amount of time. Now to decide, Norway to Spain? Prague to Paris? Stockholm to Rome? Mountains? Lowlands? Cities? Desert? The possibilities are truly endless. We’ll keep you posted.

As with all things, when you travel it’s important to know your goals. Looking to stay in one place and relax? Awesome, perhaps consider an all-inclusive resort or a cruise. Want to explore? Nice, maybe an all-inclusive resort isn’t the right option this time. Grab that car and fire up the GPS or hop on a train and grab your walking shoes. Either way, knowing what you want when you travel and planning accordingly will help make sure you have a great experience. After all, if you aren’t enjoying yourself and maybe learning something along the way, what’s the point?

The post The Way We See It: Two Excellent Ways to Travel first appeared on The DeBode Way.