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11 Free Travel Itinerary Templates for Your Next Trip in Google Docs, Excel, & Word

Content Partnership Specialist

May 8, 2024

There are a lot of things that go into planning a trip.

From scheduling flights, booking hotels and car rentals, planning activities, and ensuring all of them fit within your timeline and budget too!

Whether you’re a seasoned traveler or simply someone looking to create an organized travel schedule for your upcoming trip, then you should consider using an itinerary template. 

Itinerary templates help you organize your activities, manage your time , calculate your expenses, give you a breakdown of all your important travel information before a trip, and help you make the most out of your business trip or vacation. 

Head over to the sections below to find out what makes a good itinerary template, and discover 11 free templates you can use to help you plan your next trip! 🏝️

What is an Itinerary Template?

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An itinerary is a document that outlines all of the details of your trip, from your flight and hotel reservations to your planned activities and budget, to ensure that everything runs smoothly.

That said, trip planners should turn to itinerary templates to give you ready-to-use and organized fill-in-the-blank pages that you can use for every type of trip. 

Itinerary templates can help business and leisure travelers:

• Save time, plan more effectively, and provide an organized format for all the important details of their trip
• Have a digital planner to keep track of all the details they need to consider when planning their travel, such as dates and locations, transportation and accommodations, and activities
• Get quick access to all of the necessary details in one place
• Help manage last-minute changes more effectively

Think of these free itinerary templates as your personal travel agent assistant. They’re there to assist you with planning the most important parts of your trip, so you spend more time enjoying the moment than worrying about what’s next and how you’re getting there.

Moreover, creating a detailed travel itinerary is beneficial if you’re visiting a new city or country you’ve never been to before. 

So what should a travel itinerary look like? Let’s take a look!

There are several types of itinerary templates for different occasions. The most commonly used and sought templates are for business trips, vacations, event planning, and global and domestic travels.

And while there are many types of itinerary templates out there, the best ones offer the following basic elements: 

• Have clear and concise language
• Organized and easy-to-read format
• Customizable and easy to edit
• Easily accessible and sharable 

And if you need to shift your plans around due to unexpected changes, a solid travel itinerary template should offer the flexibility to let you make changes without compromising the flow of your trip. It also shouldn’t require you to start your travel itinerary from scratch.

Ultimately, these templates should help you create a personalized travel itinerary, save time, and stay organized to help you become a better planner.

Speaking of which—here are 11 hand-picked travel itinerary templates that can help you with that! Each one offers a unique format and features. Check them one by one to see which templates suit your needs the best.

11 Travel Itinerary Templates for Your Next Trip

Traveling for work? 

This Business Travel Itinerary Template by ClickUp can help you get all your important travel details and work schedules, all in one place. 

Easily notate your travel dates, hotel information, flight number, and other important information in an organized and easy-to-follow format in ClickUp Docs . If you have multiple travel plans or want to keep your past and future travel itinerary docs in one place, then simply add nested pages under one Doc to keep everything neatly organized and accessible.

And because ClickUp Docs allow you to have full control of sharing permissions and privacy, you can keep your pages private to protect your personal information or securely share them with selected people via a link.

Best of all, ClickUp is available on the mobile app , so you can take your itinerary template wherever you go and access it any time of the day.

Use this free travel itinerary template to streamline your business travel planning process and establish a consistent standard itinerary that you can use again and again.

Planning a road trip or exploring a new city?

Whatever type of vacation you’re planning for, this Vacation Planning Travel Itinerary Template by ClickUp can help you create a visual roadmap of your planned activities.

With this free travel itinerary template, you’ll be able to plan your destinations, use ClickUp Custom Fields to add important details such as hotel addresses, type of activity, hours of operation, travel time, accommodations, reservations, and so on to ensure you’re on the right track to hit all the spots you have planned to visit on your trip!

Additionally, this template allows you to visualize your road trip itinerary in Map view, as shown above, and other views in ClickUp, such as List, Embed Board, and Doc view. Each custom view offers a unique look at your travel itinerary to help you visualize and organize your plans in the best way that works for you. 

Use these vacation planning templates to give you the structure and organization you need to plan your next trip and have a stress-free getaway!

Streamline your travel planning with ClickUp’s Trip Planner Template ! Say goodbye to the chaos of scattered details and hello to a centralized hub for all your trip essentials. From flights to accommodations, activities to budgets, this template has you covered. Save time by organizing everything in one place and ensure nothing slips through the cracks.

With customizable features like custom statuses, fields, and views, you can tailor the template to suit your specific needs. Collaborate effortlessly with friends and family to create the ultimate travel experience. Whether you’re jetting off for a quick getaway or planning a work trip, this template provides the tools you need for a successful trip.

Set your budget, research destinations, create itineraries, and finalize details all within ClickUp’s intuitive platform. Track progress, assign tasks, and monitor productivity with ease. From start to finish, ClickUp’s Trip Planner Template empowers you to plan your dream trip efficiently and effectively.

Whether you’re born with natural event planning skills or perhaps someone who’s looking to get better at it, this Event Planning Itinerary Template by ClickUp can help you plan your next events with ease!

This event planning itinerary template includes three highly visual ClickUp Views that can be customized for any need, from organizing and scheduling event dates on a List and Board to drag-and-drop planning on a Calendar.

Each view provides pre-built Custom Fields, which allow you and your team to add important details, such as progress percentage bars, payment status, due dates, budget status, and more. You can also create Custom Task Statuses to help identify the stage each task is, keeping everyone in the loop on where each task stands at all times. 

You can download the app on your mobile device to access your tasks regardless of your event’s location, and use this itinerary template to help you become a pro at planning events and start managing all of your business operations, teams, and event planning —all in one place. 

Sometimes, it’s best to take things day by day, especially when your workload and to-do lists are getting out of hand. 

Seize the day and stay productive (and motivated) by turning to the 24 Hours Itinerary Template in ClickUp to guide you when creating your daily schedule!

This free itinerary template includes pre-built Custom Fields and Custom Task Statuses to help you easily plan and visualize your daily tasks. And because those features are fully customizable, you can edit and add whatever fields and statuses work best for your workflow.

Use this template to assist you with daily planning , so you easily view all of your to-dos, stay focused on what’s on your plate each day, and make the most of every day!

Meetings are a great way to sync with people in real time.

However, without a proper agenda, you might forget to discuss important matters, lose control of the meeting flow, and veer off track, leaving the attendees with more questions than answers or thinking, “this could’ve been an email.” 😅

Don’t let that happen to you! 

Whether you’re hosting a face-to-face or virtual meeting, having a prepared agenda beforehand keeps your meetings productive and helps make the most of your attendee’s time— the free Agenda Template by ClickUp can help you prep for your next meeting.

This template provides you with sections for your meeting details, participants, and so much more. And because this template is available ClickUp Docs, you can easily format the page to support any type of meeting , embed links to add more details to your agenda, and easily share it with your team before the meeting so they can come prepared with insights or questions. 

Use this itinerary template to help you plan and keep your next meetings productive! 

Planning a conference and need a conference agenda template ?

This Conference Itinerary Template by ClickUp can help you create, visualize, and manage your events all in one centralized place.

This template offers pre-built views, such as Box, Calendar, and List view, and Custom Fields and Custom Task Statuses to allow you to create your ideal itinerary for your event. Moreover, you can add custom tags to your tasks to add another layer of organization to your itinerary and add new Custom Fields to keep your tasks as detailed as possible as you plan your live or virtual conference events .

And if you need help getting started, no problem. It comes with a Getting Started Guide to help you get familiarized with the template and serve as a guide to help you plan your next event !

A meeting agenda is a must, especially for board meetings. 

The Board Meeting Agenda Template in ClickUp offers pre-built Custom Fields to help board members and leadership create a high-level and organized meeting agenda, and run productive meetings. You may also add single or multiple assignees to each task and subtask to clearly note who’s responsible for completing the task or presenting the topics and check them off the list as each task or topic has been discussed to easily track and note what is yet to be completed.

Use this itinerary template to help you create an organized meeting agenda , keep everyone in the loop ahead of the meeting, and promote open discussion among all participants, which can lead to stronger decisions and better outcomes.

If you’re an Excel user, then this template is for you.

Microsoft Excel offers a handy Vacation Itinerary template that you can use to organize all of your trip details. Whether you want to start a road trip itinerary with friends or a personalized itinerary of your full trip, this trip itinerary template includes entries for flight information, lodging, emergency contacts, activities, and so on. 

Once you’ve filled out the template with the details of your trip, simply save it on your computer or print it to take a physical copy of your itinerary with you or leave a copy for your friends and family while you’re away on your vacation.

If you like keeping things simple when planning your trips, then this travel itinerary template will work for what you need.

This template allows you to add and edit your travel details, such as destinations, transportation, lodging, and what you need to pack for your trip, in organized tables in Google Docs (where you can also connect to Google Sheets). 

This is one of the many customizable templates that’s free to download. Save it on your computer or print a copy to take with you!

Keep your business trips as stress-free as possible by creating a detailed flight itinerary, meeting schedule, and more all on one page. Use Microsoft Word’s Business Trip Itinerary template to keep track of important dates, departure and arrival times, destination addresses, phone numbers, travel time, and other notes about each item on your itinerary. 

Start Planning Your Next Trip with Travel Itinerary Templates

When it comes to planning trips, having an itinerary is key.

But we get it. Making a detailed itinerary can be quite time-consuming. That’s why using an itinerary template can be such a great tool! Stay organized and use the templates we provided above as a starting point for creating your own customized itinerary for your upcoming trips and events.

And if you’re a fan of customizations, then you’ll click well with ClickUp. 

It offers a fully customizable platform with hundreds of features and templates to give you the power to create a personalized experience, connect all your notes and work together, and build a workflow and itineraries that work for you.

Get access to ClickUp’s customizable templates for free today, and start getting excited about planning your next event! 

Bon voyage! 👋

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34 free travel itinerary templates (word, excel & pdf).

Free travel itinerary templates:  Your itinerary refers to your journey’s more detailed plan. Usually, highlights some places to be visited and the travel plan. By having itinerary templates, you will benefit from having the travel arrangement in one location for easier referencing and retrieval. 

Your travel plan is usually placed in the front of the folder full of your tickets, brochures, and confirmation receipts – this is also a good source to get information on the road. 

Although the information includes the travel plan for yourself or other people might contain different items, the basic structure was usually still retained. You can use your best itinerary templates.

Table of Contents

Benefits of Using an Itinerary Template

Traveling is an adventure! But planning for it can sometimes be stressful. That’s where a  travel itinerary template  can be your best friend.

• All-In-One Location:  Say Goodbye to Chaos!

Do you have flight details in your email, hotel bookings on an app, and excursion times on a sticky note? Stop the madness! An itinerary template puts all these details in one simple place. Just open it up, and you’ll know what’s happening next.

• Easy to Use:  No Tech Skills Needed!

You don’t have to be a computer genius to use an itinerary template. Most of it comes with clear fields for you to fill in. Just type your flight time here your hotel name there, and you’re done! It’s like filling out a fun quiz.

• Be Organized:  Know What Comes After What

The best part about being organized is knowing what’s next. You see your trip like a story when you put your plans in an itinerary template. First, this happens, then that. You can enjoy the trip more when you know what’s coming up.

• Shareable:  Keep Everyone in the Loop

Traveling with family or friends? Send them the itinerary template! That way, everyone knows the plan. If someone asks, “What time is dinner?” tell them to check the itinerary!

• Free:  More Money for Fun Stuff!

The best things in life are free. Well, most travel itinerary templates are free, too! That means you can save cash for fun stuff like snacks, souvenirs, or an extra special adventure!

• Time-Saving:  Quick Changes Made Easy

Plans change. Maybe it rains, and you can’t go to the beach. With an itinerary template, it’s super easy to swap things around. Just a few clicks, and you have a new plan!

• Keeps You On Track:  No More Missing Out

Need to catch a flight or need to remember a dinner reservation? With an itinerary, you’ll get reminders. It’s like having a helpful friend who says, “Hey, time to go!”

• Peace of Mind:  Worry Less, Enjoy More!

When you’re organized, you feel calmer. That means you can enjoy your trip more and less worrying about it.

Are you ready to try an  itinerary template ? Trust us, it will make your next trip so much easier! ????

Essential Elements in a Travel Itinerary

So you’re convinced that a travel itinerary template is a good idea. Great! But what should you include in it? Don’t fret; here’s a list of the  key things to put in your travel plan .

• Title and Dates: What’s the Trip For?

Start with a striking title that sums up your trip. Are you going on a “Summer Adventure in Hawaii” or a “Weekend Getaway in Paris”? Include the dates so you always know the timeframe.

• Names: Who’s Going?

If you’re traveling with other people, write down everyone’s name. It’s an easy way for everyone to know they’re looking at the right plan.

• Departure and Arrival: Take-Off and Landing

Include details about when and where you’re starting and ending your journey. Include times, places, and how you’re getting there. Plane? Train? Automobile?

• Transport Info: All Aboard!

Note any flight numbers, train cars, or other key details. It’s also smart to list any reservations and helpful phone numbers in case of delays.

• Lodging: Home Away From Home

Where are you staying? Include the name, address, and check-in/check-out times for each place you sleep.

• Activities: The Fun Stuff!

What’s a trip without cool stuff to do? List all the tours, visits, or shows you plan to attend. Add times and places so you remember.

• Meetings: Can’t-Miss Appointments

Are you mixing a little business with pleasure? Include any meetings or important appointments you have. Who, what, where, and when—it all goes here.

• Meals: Yummy in My Tummy

Planning to eat at that must-try café? Put it in the itinerary.

• Free Time: Do What You Want

It’s your trip, after all! Include some blocks of free time for spontaneous fun.

• Emergency Contacts: Just in Case

Include some emergency contacts, like local hospitals or a trusted friend back home.

• Checklist: Remember!

Add a small list at the end for any last-minute things you need to do or bring. Passport? Snacks? It goes here.

That’s your  travel itinerary essentials  covered! With everything in your template, you’re ready for an awesome, stress-free trip! ????

Tips for Crafting a Useful Travel Itinerary

It isn’t just about jotting down names and places. Here are some tips.

Be Realistic: Time Matters!

Always consider how much time each activity will take. Keep your day manageable. You want time to enjoy the places you visit!

Group Activities by Location: Smart Mapping

Put things that are close to each other on the same day. This way, you spend less time moving and more time doing.

Always Have a Plan B: Be Flexible

Sometimes, things go differently than planned. Maybe it rains, or a place is closed. Have a backup plan, so you’re never stuck with nothing to do.

Check Opening Hours: No Unwanted Surprises

Imagine showing up at a museum you’re excited to visit, only to find it’s closed on Tuesdays. Check opening times in advance to avoid this.

Share It: Keep Everyone in the Loop

If you’re traveling with others, ensure everyone has a copy of the itinerary. You could even make a shared online version.

Local Customs and Laws: When in Rome.

Check for any local customs, rules, or laws you should know about, like dress codes at religious sites.

Remember Time Zones: Sync Up!

If you’re crossing time zones, adjust all your times so you’re always on local time.

Add Some Breathing Room: Take It Easy

Don’t schedule something every minute of every day. You’ll need some downtime to relax and soak it all in.

Include All Confirmation Numbers: Quick Access

For flights, hotels, and activities that require booking, include all confirmation numbers for quick and easy access.

Double-Check All Details: Be Sure, Be Safe

Before you finalize your itinerary, double-check all times, dates, and reservations.

Print and Digital: Best of Both Worlds

Have both a printed copy and a digital copy available. Technology can fail, and you might only sometimes have Wi-Fi.

Keep it Handy: Easy Access.

Put your itinerary somewhere easy to get to. Save it on your phone or put it in a pocket in your bag.

Free Travel Itinerary Templates

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Travel Itinerary Template Word

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Easy to Use

One of the best things about using a Word template is its simplicity. You don’t have to be a computer wizard to figure it out!

Customizable

Word lets you change fonts and colors and even add pictures. Make your template  truly your own .

You can open a Word document on almost any device. It’s super  easy to share  with family or travel buddies, too.

Pre-made Templates

Word offers a variety of  ready-to-use templates . Just plug in your details, and you’re good to go!

Checklist Features

You can add  checkboxes  next to each activity or place. It feels so good to check them off as you go!

Safe and Secure

You can easily  lock the document  to keep your travel plans private.

Great for Printing

Word documents  print beautifully . It is a great option if you like having a paper copy of your plans.

How to Use It

• Open Word and choose a blank document or a pre-made template.
• Fill in your travel details like flights, hotels, and fun stuff to do.
• Add any  extra notes  or  checklists .
• Save it, print it, or share it via email.

Tips for Using Word Templates

• Spell-check : Always run a spell-check to avoid any errors.
• Save Often : Keep up your hard work. Save your doc often!
• Backup : Email a copy to yourself or save it in the cloud.

Using a Word template for your travel itinerary is a smart way to keep all your plans in one place. Give it a try for your next trip!

Free Travel Itinerary Templates Excel

Do you like spreadsheets?  Excel templates  offer even more ways to stay organized. You can sort your plans, filter them, and find what you need fast!

If you’ve been using regular Word documents or even pen and paper for your travel plans, it’s time to  upgrade to Excel ! Here’s why and how:

Easy to Edit: Change On-the-Go

Excel allows you to add or remove items quickly. If your plans change, delete a row or add a new one!

Sort and Filter: Find What You Need

Say you want to see all your flight details at once. Excel lets you sort and filter to find what you’re looking for in a snap.

Color Codes: Make It Pretty and Practical

Blue for sightseeing and red for meals. It makes it easier to understand your day at a glance.

Formulas: Count the Hours

You can use simple Excel formulas to add how much time each day’s activities will take.

Shareable: Easy to Send

Excel files are easily shared by email or cloud services like Google Drive. You can also password-protect it if it has sensitive data.

Collaborative: Teamwork Makes the Dream Work

Everyone can add their activities or notes in the same Excel sheet if you’re traveling with others. It’s a team itinerary!

Tabs for Days: One File, Many Uses

You can use different tabs for different parts of your trip. One tab for flights, another for hotels, and so on.

Links and Notes: Extra Info

You can add links to websites or notes with additional information in Excel.

Offline Access: Always Available

Once downloaded, Excel files are available even without internet access, making them reliable and handy.

Templates Galore: Start with a Bang

It is lots of pre-made Excel itinerary templates available online. It can give you a head start and create planning even quicker.

Itinerary Templates Excel

Itinerary Templates Free

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Free business travel itinerary template excel

Weekly Itinerary Template

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Meeting Itinerary Template

Travel Itinerary Template PDF

Free Travel Itinerary Templates 16

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Free Travel Itinerary Templates 18

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Free Travel Itinerary Templates 20

Itinerary Template – Free Travel Itinerary Templates

Business Tour – Free Travel Itinerary Templates

Business Travel Diary- Free Travel Itinerary Templates

Stable and Consistent

One of the biggest perks of using a PDF is that it looks the  same  on every device. No surprises!

Easy to Share

PDF files are  super easy to send  in an email or message. They can be opened on almost any gadget.

No Accidental Changes

Once you save it, it stays that way. You can’t accidentally mess up your plans!

Universal Acceptance

Almost all businesses can open and read PDFs. Most people can easily check your plans if you need to show them.

Password Protection

PDFs can be  locked  with a password. Your plans stay  safe and private .

Fantastic for Printing

If you like paper copies, PDFs print out  just how they look on screen .

• Make your plans in any software that can be saved as a PDF.
• Double-check all your details and  spelling .
• Save or ‘print’ your plans as a PDF file.
• Share or print your  snazzy  new PDF itinerary!

Tips for Using PDF Templates

• Read-Only : Remember, most PDFs can’t be easily changed. Make sure all your info is correct before you save it.
• Compatibility : Always ensure the people you share the PDF with can open it.
• Document Size : PDFs with lots of pictures can get big. Keep an eye on the file size if you need to email it.

A PDF travel itinerary template is  rock-solid  for keeping your travel plans organized and easily accessible. It’s a popular option, especially if you want a file that stays how you made it.

Common Mistakes in Using Travel Itinerary Templates

Skipping the Details : One of the most common errors is  filling in all the blanks . It can lead to confusion during your trip.

Ignoring Time Zones : Many must remember to account for time zone changes. It can mess up your plans.

Overstuffing the Itinerary : It’s tempting to pack your day full of activities. But this leaves  no room for rest or unexpected events .

Forgetting to Share : If you’re traveling with others,  forgetting to share  the itinerary can make things hard for everyone.

Not Checking Operation Hours : Imagine going to a museum only to find it’s closed. Always  check the working hours  of places you want to visit.

Skipping Backup Plans : Weather changes. Plans fall through. Having  no Plan B  can ruin your day.

Bad Formatting : If your itinerary is hard to read, it’s almost useless. Make sure you use  clear and easy-to-read formats .

Not Updating : Sometimes plans change.  Only updating your template  can make sure you get all the things.

Ignoring Local Customs and Laws : Failing to account for local customs or laws can be embarrassing and sometimes problematic. Always do your  basic homework .

Not Double-Checking : A small mistake in flight numbers or hotel booking IDs can be a big hassle. Always  double-check your details .

Avoiding these common mistakes can make your itinerary a powerful tool for a smooth and enjoyable trip!

Traveling is more fun when you’re organized. Using a  travel itinerary template  can help a lot! So why wait? Download a free template today!

Additional Resources

Want to know more? Click the links below for free templates and helpful travel apps.

• Free Itinerary Templates
• Best Travel Apps

Happy traveling! ????

What Is a Travel Itinerary Template?

A travel itinerary template is like a  map for your trip . It shows where you need to go, what you’ll do, and when you’ll do it.

Where Can I Find Free Travel Itinerary Templates?

You can find free templates online, in apps, Excel, or Word. Some travel websites also offer them for  free .

Should My Template Be Detailed or Broad?

That depends on you! Some folks like a  minute-by-minute plan , while others want just the  big events  listed. Choose what works for you.

Can I Use the Same Template for Different Trips?

Yes, you can! Just  change the details  to fit your new trip.

What Should I Include in My Template?

Include key info like  flights, hotels, and activities . Remember  small but important details  like transport from the airport to the hotel.

Do I Need to Print My Itinerary?

Only sometimes. You could keep it on your phone. But a printed copy is good, just in case your phone  runs out of juice .

How Many Copies Should I Make?

It’s a good idea to have  more than one copy . Leave one with a friend or family member back home, keep one with you, and maybe have a  digital copy .

Can I Add Last-Minute Changes?

Yes, you can. Just  update all your copies  so you’re not working off old info.

What Do I Do If My Plans Change Mid-Trip?

No problem! Just  update your template . You can do it with a printed copy or update the digital one on your device.

Is It OK to Leave Free Time in My Plan?

Absolutely! It’s your trip, after all. Free time lets you  explore  or  rest  as you feel like it.

The content creator team at calipsotree.com is dedicated to making topics accessible to everyone, with over 9 years of experience in writing and breaking down complex concepts into easy-to-understand articles that answer readers’ financial questions.

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How to Write a Travel Itinerary (Template and Tips)

Being able to write a good itinerary is a powerful tool in the travel industry. A travel itinerary isn’t just a list of things to do. It’s a stop-by-stop break down of how a traveler should spend their time.

Whether you’re a travel agent, blogger, content writer, or anything in between, itineraries are fundamental.

Creating effective itineraries is also a valuable skill if you’re a traveler. If you can craft a compelling trip plan, you’re in for a holiday that will show you and your loved ones an amazing time.

Why take our advice? We’re highly experienced in the itinerary game. 🙂 The Travel Tractions content team has crafted over 500,000 words worth of travel itineraries in the last 3 months alone.

We know our stuff, and we’re here to share it with you. The following is a detailed guide on how to make a travel itinerary.

Travel Itinerary Template

An itinerary will pretty much always be broken down into days (unless it’s a 24-hour itinerary). Each day is further broken down into individual stops , which are typically the recommended points of interest and attractions.

The days and stops are the meat of the itinerary, but most itineraries will be supplemented with additional information to further help the reader.

Have a look at how we added a practical packing list in this 3 day London itinerary .

We recommend structuring your vacation itinerary in a similar way to the following:

Introduction

Every good blog post needs an introduction. For your itinerary, this will be a brief overview of the destination and why it’s an attractive place to visit. Sell the itinerary here. Give the reader a good reason to stay engaged and continue reading.

Brief Overview

Offer a bullet-pointed breakdown of the itinerary, outlining the stops. This allows the reader to understand if it’s right for them before reading in full.

Day 1, etc.

This is where you lay out the stops for each day. Give some insightful and interesting information about each stop.

The aim here is to get them excited about what you’re suggesting / offering. Don’t overwhelm them with information, just whet their appetite.

Make each stop a heading, and include useful information such as opening hours, cost, and which kind of traveler is best catered for here. You can add must-visit food stops as well, or simply leave that choice up to the reader.

Check out how we helped our readers organize a 7-day trip to Bali .

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Other Useful Information

In this section, offer some extra information that will help the user get the most out of their experience. Some things you can add include:

• Tell the reader a bit about how to get around, transport options, and things to be prepared for.
• Discuss the best places to stay and suggest a few options for accommodation that you know are great.
• Make some restaurant recommendations and mention any other foodie stops that haven’t made it into your itinerary stops.
• Include a packing list if you feel it’s an important aspect (or write a separate packing list post and take advantage of some internal linking).

This section exists to help close the itinerary in a satisfying way. Offer a brief summary and some final thoughts. Reaffirm the reasons why the destination is attractive, and why your itinerary is the best on offer.

Important Considerations for Writing an Itinerary

So, now you’ve got the outline for a successful itinerary. But you’ll need to fill this skeleton with high-quality content in order to produce something valuable. Taking into account the following considerations and tips will help you do so.

Decide the Length of the Itinerary

Before writing anything, you’ll need to decide the length of your itinerary. Are you offering an itinerary for three days? five days? one week?

The best option will largely depend on the size of the destination and how much it offers in terms of things to do. For example, most travelers will probably spend at least a week in Bali but perhaps just two or three days in Amsterdam.

This can generally be determined with some logical thinking or past experience. But a bit of keyword research can really help uncover what your audience is truly looking for.

If you already have an idea of what you’d like the reader to see and do, you can base the length of the trip on the time it’ll take them to see it all.

Decide on the Stops & Attractions

Once you’ve decided on a number of days, you’ll need to figure out how the reader should fill their time.

Ask yourself questions like:

• What are the most popular landmarks, attractions, and points of interest?
• What will offer the most memorable experience?
• Are there any unheard of spots that will enrich the experience and make it unique?

Deciding on the stops can be done through a combination of experience, prior knowledge, and research.

Looking for expertly-written, SEO content? Click here to view our affordable content writing packages

What’s Achievable?

How much can the reader realistically fit in the time allotted? We know it’s easy to get excited about all the amazing things that a travel destination has to offer. But it’s important to keep it realistic.

The last thing you want is to over-promise on what can be achieved during a trip, only to leave the reader rushing from one attraction to the next without time to appreciate each one. They could even end up abandoning the itinerary altogether.

Plan Out Logical Routes

It’s very important that you consider the geography of the destination when structuring an itinerary. You need to plan out logical routes between stops in order to minimize travel and maximize efficiency. If two or more attractions are close to one another geographically, it only makes sense to visit them at the same time.

Use your knowledge of the area in combination with Google Maps to plot out a route for each day’s itinerary.

Offer Insider Tips

Try to offer unique insights and ideas, insider tips, and some off-the-beaten-track gems.

The reader wants to know that they’re in reliable and experienced hands. Unique and valuable guidance will also help your itinerary stand out against those offering more generic advice.

You can provide these at any point throughout the itinerary. Wherever they fit best.

Be Specific and Unambiguous

Itineraries provide insightful guidance to those who want to be guided. To those who want their trip to be planned for them.

Therefore, it is your job to guide them fully . Don’t offer too much in the way of flexibility. Display conviction in your chosen stops. Show confidence that if they follow your itinerary to a T, they’ll have a great time.

Include Captivating Images

High-quality images transport the reader to the destination before they’ve left their seats. They’re one of the strongest mediums for generating excitement and anticipation for an upcoming trip. They also help break up long blocks of text.

Including images frequently is a great way to keep your reader’s attention and enhance their experience.

You can use images from your own trip, or curate some top-notch stock images .

Implement SEO

Data-focused, strategic SEO (Search Engine Optimisation) underpins all of our content. And if your itinerary is being written for the web, it should underpin yours too. Good SEO can help ensure that your itinerary is seen by as many people as possible. And if you’re in the travel business, getting your travel material seen should be a top priority.

Final Thoughts

If you were wondering how to write an itinerary, you landed in the right place. We hope this trip itinerary template helps you craft well-rounded, engaging, and realistic itineraries that leave readers delighted.

More to explorer

SEO Vocabulary | 75+ Words You Should Know

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How to Plan a Trip: A Detailed Travel Planning Guide

Last updated on November 30th, 2023

Looking for the best tips on how to plan a trip? Our step by step travel planning guide goes through our exact process of planning our trips, including our travel itinerary template, so you can plan your next trip easier!

It’s no secret that we love planning trips! We love researching for hours upon hours, digging into everything a city has to offer, learning tons, picking spots we want to check out, and crafting the perfect itinerary. 

We are definitely itinerary-based travelers vs spontaneous travelers (although we’re trying to leave more time for spontaneity during our trips!) and we’ve found that putting in the work to plan a trip beforehand can dramatically change the outcome of a trip. 

There’s no wasting time wondering “where should we eat?” or driving all around town from spot to spot because we didn’t realize how far things were. Instead, we show up with a plan and get to enjoy where we are. Granted, things don’t always go according to plan, but we definitely feel like it sets us up for success!

We originally created this blog to help eliminate some of your headaches when you plan a trip. It can be daunting to figure out how to fit an entire city, state, country, etc into X days. 

Our travel guides in particular are perfect for those who want a solid list of things to do, places to eat, etc. already organized into a well thought out itinerary. Our goal is to do all of the research for you so you can plan your perfect trip without spending hours and days scouring the web.

However, we haven’t been to every city in the world, so we may not always have a travel guide for you. So we wanted to create a travel planning guide, with our step by step list of how to plan a trip, including our travel itinerary template , so you can plan an epic trip and make the most of your time in any destination!

Looking for more travel planning tips? Check out these posts:

• How We Afford to Travel: Our Top Travel Budgeting Tips (+ Budget template!)
• Our Favorite Travel Credit Cards
• Fly for Less: Tips for Finding Cheap Flights

Step 1: Choose your destination

Step 2: make a travel budget, step 3: track and book flights, step 4: book your accommodations, step 5: book your transportation, step 6: research, research, research, step 7: google maps, step 8: make your itinerary (with our travel itinerary template), step 9: book any tours, activities, and reservations, step 10: have a pet find a sitter, step 11: prepare for your trip, step 12: pack for your trip, step 13: have a blast .

The first decision when you plan a trip is often the hardest: where should you go?! If you’re like us, we want to visit as many new places as we possibly can, but we also love visiting places that are special to us. Trying to make the decision of where to spend our precious vacation time and limited travel budget sometimes feels impossible!

While we don’t have all of the answers of how to decide where to go, here are a few things to consider.

Type of trip

What kind of trip are you looking for? Do you want to be in a big city? Hang out at the beach? Go for tons of hikes? Or all of the above? Our first task when figuring out where to go is to think about the activities and vibe we are looking for during our next trip.

If you’re having a hard time deciding, some of our favorite destinations are:

• The Dolomites: The Dolomites are full of adorable small towns, hikes, and epic scenery! It’s absolutely gorgeous and we hear it’s cheaper than the Swiss Alps.
• Matera, Italy: The smaller town, less tourists and crowds, unique cave dwellings, and crazy history made Matera one of favorite spots in Italy!
• Vancouver, BC: We used to visit Vancouver all the time when we lived in Seattle. The city is beautiful and there are so many outdoor activities just minutes from downtown.
• Scotland: We visited Edinburgh and the Isle of Skye and think they are some of the most underrated destinations. Both were jawdroppingly beautiful and have tons to see and do!
• Seattle : Seattle is our favorite city in the US! We lived here for three years and loved it so much. There are so many things to do, including hikes, lakes, beaches, city activities, and delicious food!
• Hawaii: It’s no secret that Hawaii is one of our favorite places in the world! We have been to all four major islands, some more than once, and each one is amazing!
• US National Parks: Want to see some of the best nature in the US? Visit a National Park ! Some of our favorites have been Yosemite , Zion , Grand Teton , Yellowstone , Big Bend , Olympic , and North Cascades .

Is there a certain time of year that is easier for you to travel for work or other reasons? For us, it’s the summer and winter, which can influence where we go. If we don’t want to be cold in the winter, we’ll use that time to go somewhere tropical, and on the flip side, if we want a break from the heat in the summer, we would head to somewhere a bit cooler (or below the Equator).

Peak Season vs. Shoulder Season

Some destinations have very clear peak seasons. If crowds are not your thing, try looking for destinations that will be having their shoulder season (the months between the busy season) during the month you want to travel. The weather may not be as perfect during “shoulder season, but you can save a ton of money (and headaches!) by traveling during the off-peak times.

Flight Deals

We will share some of our tips for finding flight deals in Step 3, but one thing to consider when deciding where to visit is to see where you can get a decent flight deal. We have sometimes made last minute trip decisions and visited somewhere we didn’t plan to visit so soon because we got a good flight deal. 

Specific Attractions or Events

Is there a specific thing you want to see or do in a destination? For example, do you want to attend a music festival in a specific city? See the cherry blossoms in the spring in DC? Want to drive the Going-to-the-Sun Road in Glacier National Park?

Sometimes planning a trip around a specific attraction or event can make the decision a bit easier since you have a limited time to take part in that activity.

After we have an idea of where we want to go, our next step is to make a travel budget. We try to think of every expense we will have on that trip, from flights, lodging, a rental car, dog sitter, food, activities, gas, and more. This helps us get an idea of how much we will spend and to see if we can realistically afford the place we want to visit. It also keeps our wallet in check when actually on that trip!

We have a travel budget template that we use to not only plan out individual trips, but our trips for the entire year. This helps us see how much we want to spend on trips vs. how much we will be saving to travel.

To see how we afford to travel + our tips to save money to travel and while traveling, check out this blog post !

Once we have a good idea of where we want to go and how much we want to spend, we start trying to find cheap flights! We have a few favorite tools we use to find flight deals, which we’re sharing below.

To get a more detailed look into how we find affordable flights, including a tip we used for our Italy trip to save us over $1,000, read our Fly for Less: Tips for Finding Cheap Flights blog post!

Google Flights

We love Google Flights ! This free tool lets you plug in where you will depart from and where you want to go and see lots of flight options from tons of different airlines. You can then track specific flights that work well for your schedule or airline preference. You’ll be notified anytime the flight goes down or up in price, which can help you have a better idea of when it’s time to pull the trigger.

If you’re still stuck in Step 1 and unsure where to go, their explore destinations tool is very helpful to see what destinations are cheapest to fly to from your home airport on specific dates!

If you’re feeling more open on when and where you want to travel and just want a great deal, our favorite paid tool is FareDrop , which allows you to pick the departure airports you want to be alerted about, which destinations you want to travel to, and which months you want to travel.

FareDrop costs $47.88/year (if you use our link you’ll get 2 months free!), which seems a bit pricey, but we get tons of deals weekly! We have yet to pull the trigger on them, but hopefully soon!

Another tool we have used a lot in the past is Hopper . Hopper is a tool that helps predict flight costs and lets you know when the right time to book is. Nothing is worse than when you buy a flight and then the next week it has gotten a lot cheaper!

Scott’s Cheap Flights

Scott’s Cheap Flights is both a free and paid tool ($49/year) that will alert you about deals and mistake fares (when an airline accidentally publishes the wrong fare). Similar to FareDrop, you choose your home airport (and neighboring airports) and get deals from those airports. Or you can see deals worldwide! We only use the free tool of Scott’s Cheap Flights and we get pretty great deals! If you pay for their Premium version you supposedly get even better ones. 🙂

Skyscanner is another very popular tool for finding cheap flights. We have seen flights cheaper on Skyscanner than most other websites. Once you find a cheap flight, you book it through one of their travel partners. The only downside for us is that we typically cannot get that price with our credit card point s , which we would rather use to book travel (since it’s free!).

By far our favorite way to book flights is with our credit card points ! We have saved thousands of dollars by using credit card points and the best part is that we earn these while making our usual transactions, like the grocery store, bills, or coffee. The points add up fast depending on which card you have, so it’s not too hard to get free flights!

We currently have 4 travel credit cards : Chase Sapphire Reserve, American Express Platinum, Capital One Venture Card, and the Alaska Airlines Card and each one has its pros and cons.

For more details on our favorite travel credit cards, the best benefits, and how to pick the right one for you, check out Our Favorite Travel Credit Cards blog .

After figuring out flights, it’s now time to find a place to stay! Once we have a general idea of the dates we plan to travel, we start looking for Airbnbs and other accommodations, saving any spots that catch our eye, and then as soon as our flights are booked, we book our lodging. Here are a few sites we love for finding accommodations!

We are huge Airbnb fans! We probably stay in Airbnbs 95% of the time when we travel. We love getting to stay in more local areas, having more space, being able to cook, and it’s usually cheaper than a hotel!

Tripadvisor

Tripadvisor is our go-to site for hotel reviews! It has helped us make the decision of where to stay (or where not to stay) many times. 

Booking.com

Booking.com is our favorite website to book hotels. Their prices are usually some of the best out there! Another really cool thing about Booking.com is that they have vacation rentals (like Airbnb) as well. So if you want a one stop shop to browse hotels and rentals, they’ve gotcha covered!

Depending on where you’re visiting, you may need to book additional transportation. 

For rental cars, we typically book through rentalcars.com . They have a price match guarantee, so if you find a better price somewhere else, they’ll match it!

We also have used Costco to book rental cars before. Their prices tend to be the best out there, but you do have to be a member or have access to a member’s account. It’s okay if the name on the car is different than the member’s name, so if you have a family member with a Costco membership, ask them if you can use it! 

Note : our travel credit cards give us rental car insurance around the world, so we do not opt into the additional insurance when renting a car. Make sure to check in advance to see if you’re covered! Also, make sure to book an automatic car in Europe if you don’t know how to drive a manual. 🙂

For public transportation , like trains, subways, and buses, purchasing in advance varies depending on where you’re going. During our Italy trip, we booked most of our trains and buses from city to city in advance to take advantage of a lower price. But in most US cities, like NYC, you just get your tickets at the station before boarding your mode of transportation. 

When looking for trains, subways, and buses , we typically start our search with Google Maps to see the routes and find out which company runs that route. Then we go to that company’s website to see fares, schedules, and to see how to purchase tickets. 

Our next step when we plan a trip is to research like crazy! We spend days and even weeks reading blogs, watching vlogs, and scouring the internet for as much information as we can about a destination, including where to eat, things to do, and any helpful tips! As we research, we create a Google Doc and write down the spots we find by category (food, coffee, landmark, activities, etc).

This part can be a bit overwhelming because there is tons of information out there and it can be hard to figure out what to prioritize for your own trip. We like finding a mix of popular spots with thousands of reviews, as well as more local spots with maybe less reviews overall, but very positive ones. And if we see a recommendation mentioned on multiple blogs and websites, that spot usually goes higher up on our “must-do” list. 

There are a handful of tools that we use every single time we plan a trip, each for slightly different reasons. 

Our first step when finding things to do is almost always to do a quick Google search. We like to search for things like “best things to do in ____,” “unique things to see in ____,” “where to eat in ____,” and “X days in _____” to find blog posts (like the ones we write!) for different destinations, which always give us tons of ideas!

Pinterest is an amazing resource for travel planning. It’s a massive search engine and a great way to quickly find tons of blogs about a destination you’re going to and to see what real people recommend. We typically create new boards for a country or region and then fill it up when we start to dream about a trip we want to take.

Once it comes time to actually plan it, we will head to that board and open all of the blogs we saved, write down common things people recommend and then research some of the lesser known options.

If you’re not already following us on Pinterest, come hang out with us here . We love to share pins from all over the world!

Tripadvisor, Yelp, and Google Reviews

Okay, these are definitely the most obvious, but they are high on our list when researching different cities! We know that some people are leery of review sites, but we personally love hearing from regular people about their experiences at a restaurant, attraction, etc.

We think that if you look at a wide variety of reviews for a place, the good and the bad, you can usually feel pretty confident (or not confident) in making it a stop on your trip. Tripadvisor also has forums where people can ask questions and others can answer and these can be really helpful to read, especially if you have questions that others have already asked.

One thing we have noticed is that Yelp is big in the US for restaurants, but Tripadvisor and Google Reviews are much bigger abroad. For our Mexico City trip, we relied heavily on Google Reviews, as the other two sites hardly had any reviews for restaurants. So make sure to look at all three sites to get a better idea of what a restaurant or attraction is like.

YouTube Vlogs

YouTube is our new favorite way to research for trips. It’s like reading blogs, but actually getting to see the experiences! Some of our favorite travel vloggers to watch are: Kara and Nate , The Endless Adventure , and Mark Wiens for awesome food videos! We watch travel vlogs every night and always mark down good spots to check out whenever we go to those destinations in the future.

If you want to follow along on our adventures, you can subscribe to our YouTube channel here !

AllTrails and Hiking Websites

We love hiking during our trips and one of the best resources we have found for trails is AllTrails . What we love about AllTrails is that it has trail information, such as miles and elevation gain, as well as hiker reviews, for trails all over the world!

We have used AllTrails for hikes all around the US, as well as in Italy and Canada, and it has always helped us gain a better understanding of what to expect on the trail, as well allowed us to follow our progress on the trail map.

There is a free version, but we recommend paying for the AllTrails Pro app ($30/year) to have guaranteed offline map access, off-route notifications, and family and friend notifications.

Beyond AllTrails, we love finding local hiking websites. When we lived in Washington, we used the Washington Trails Association website for every hike. Similar to AllTrails, it has reviews, photos, and hike information, but it is typically more detailed.

Instagram 

Instagram has opened our eyes to sooo many places in this world! The popularity of the app is both a good thing and a bad thing, as some places are becoming Instagram famous and are definitely being visited too much and/or disrespected, but it is also showing us how beautiful some lesser known places are.

Similar to Pinterest, you can bookmark posts on Instagram and even organize them into different collections. We use this feature to save spots that look cool to visit in the future. However, we love Instagram more for the ability to see places in real time. 

When we know we are going to visit a place, we will look up the locations on Instagram (both posts and stories) to see what it currently looks like, crowds, and to try to find cool photo spots. We did this a ton in Washington to plan our hikes and to see if there is still snow, what the hike looks like in different weather conditions, etc. It’s also helpful to find out if a specific spot is under construction *cough* Big Ben *cough*. 

Don’t follow us on Instagram yet? Head on over to our Instagram page to see even more adventures!

Family and Friends

If you have friends or family members that have visited the destination or live in the destination you’re heading to, ask them what their favorite spots are! These recommendations can often be the best, especially if you know and trust that person’s taste.

One of the best food recommendations we ever got was from one of our best friends. She told us we had to go to La Romana for gelato while in Rome, which wasn’t originally on our list, and it ended up being our favorite gelato during our entire two weeks in Italy! We owe her a scoop (or two) of gelato for that recommendation!

After we make a big list of all of the restaurants, landmarks, activities, and tours that catch our eye while researching, our next step when we plan a trip is to look at Google Maps to see where everything is in relation to each other.

We try to structure our days in a way that we don’t have to travel all over town, but instead stick to a general area so we can maximize the time we have to explore. We suggest making a map on Google My Maps so you can pin all of the locations and then start to group together the things that make sense to do together. This will help you big time with Step 8!

So you’ve done your research, written down some spots, and have seen where they all are on a map…now what? Our next step when we plan a trip is to start organizing all of our must-do and must-eat places into an itinerary.

Our friend Callie created the most detailed, helpful travel itinerary template in Google Sheets that has helped us SO much with our last few trips. We told her we were going to have to share it on our blog because it was very useful and would help so many people, so a BIG thank you to Callie for creating this!

We like creating an itinerary because typically our trips are short and we want to maximize the time we have in every destination. We realize not everyone likes to have as structured of a trip, so feel free to modify the template to fit your needs better! We always recommend being a bit flexible in case the weather is bad one day, you are exhausted and need more rest, or things just don’t go according to plan (which happens often when traveling)!

With this travel itinerary template you can list out the activities for your day in order, write down addresses, add notes (such as: arrive before X time to avoid a line, how to get somewhere, note that it’s cash only, etc), add helpful links, keep track of costs, have a rough estimate of timing for each stop, etc.

It’s also great for collaborating with others! We have used it for our couples trip to Arizona to make comments back and forth and decide what we want to do. 

You can download our travel itinerary template here . Note: To use the sheet, please go to “File” and then “Make a Copy” to create your own version! We included an example as well so you can see how we would fill it out.

Once you have a good idea of your itinerary, start locking down any tours, activities, and meal reservations for a time slot that works best for you!

Tours + Activities

When we were in Italy, we booked our tours and entrances to museums in advance to save a little bit of money. While we typically had to commit to a timeframe, it helped us structure our days better and ensure we had a tour to go on. 

For attractions where you can get early admittance (like the Vatican) or they get busy during specific times, booking ahead of time can also help you beat the crowds.

Not sure where to find tours? We’d recommend looking on Tripadvisor and Airbnb Experiences !

Want to save some money on a tour or experience? Book on Tripadvisor and use our code APLUSK10 for 10% off!

Reservations

If during your research you find that a reservation is heavily recommended for a restaurant, set a reminder on your phone for a month or so beforehand to give them a call and secure a table. When you have limited time to explore on a vacation, the last thing you want to do is wait in line for a restaurant, especially if you’re hangry. 🙂

One big thing to consider when traveling are your pets! We travel full time with our pup Kona, but there are some times where she cannot go with us on a hike, to a park, or if we are flying to a destination. For any flying trips, Kona will stay with Kathryn’s parents in Austin, but for road trips, National Parks, and other domestic destinations, here is a detailed guide to how we travel with Kona, and where she is if she is not with us. Note: if traveling during holidays or peak season, try to book a sitter far in advance!

Depending on your trip and where you’re going, there are a few extra things to consider looking into before you travel.

Book luggage storage

The only downside about staying in an Airbnb vs. a hotel is that sometimes you’ll arrive before check in or have time to explore after check out and have nowhere to put your bags. We have used Luggage Hero or Bagbnb to find safe places to leave our bags while we explore before or after checking out.  

Get travel insurance

We highly recommend buying travel insurance for any international trip. We recommend using SafetyWing , which is travel medical insurance that will cover you outside of your home country for however long you need it. We have purchased their Nomad Insurance plan for international trips, which not only gives us travel medical insurance, but also provides coverage for lost baggage and travel delays. We hope to never have to use it, but it gives us great peace of mind to have it!

Look into driving rules

In Italy, we had to get an International Driving Permit. You can get this from AAA for only $20. We aren’t sure how many countries have this rule, so definitely check the road rules beforehand to avoid getting a ticket or having issues getting your rental car.

Find out if you need a Visa

Depending on where you are visiting, you may need to get a Visa to enter. This website shares the Visa requirements for US citizens for both business and personal trips for every country! We suggest checking this right after booking your trip to see what the requirements are and how to obtain one.

Check vaccine requirements

Some countries require that you have certain vaccinations before your arrival. You can search the destination you are visiting and see if it requires you to get a vaccination on the CDC’s website . We suggest checking a couple months in advance, as different vaccines have different timeframe requirements to get them.

Get local currency

If you’re traveling to another country, make sure you look into the local currency. We typically will order some foreign currency from our bank before our trip (try to do this at least a week before you leave, as it takes a few days) just to make sure we have some on us when we land.

After we land, we will try to find somewhere to get additional currency during the trip. Make sure to research where the best place is to get this currency. In Italy, for example, the best place to get Euros was from bank ATMs—the ones in actual banks, NOT the ones just on the street in the big cities, as those will charge you massive fees. 

You may also need coins for restrooms in some countries, so plan to have coins, as well as bills, handy for your trip.

Also, let your bank know you’re traveling abroad to avoid them thinking there is fraud with your card.

Learn the local culture and etiquette

It’s important to understand the culture in a different country or region, especially if something that is considered inoffensive in your home country is considered offensive elsewhere. 

Tipping is another important thing to look into. In the US, tipping 20% is pretty standard, but in Europe, tipping is not common at all. 

Figure out your internet plan

If traveling abroad, we highly recommend getting an an eSIM card with Airalo ! This is a SIM that you can download to your phone. It saves the hassle of having to get a physical SIM in every country you visit! You can get an eSIM for a specific country or for an entire region, making it extra easy to use if you plan to hop between countries. But before you get an eSIM, make sure you truly need one! Our Verizon plans give us 2 GB of data everyday in Mexico and Canada, so we do not need an eSIM for those destinations.

We also suggest downloading offline Google Maps so you can use maps without eating up data.

Download Google Translate

Google Translate has been a lifesaver when traveling internationally! We used the conversation feature to communicate back and forth with our Airbnb host in Italy and it not only was so much fun, but it allowed for us to converse even with a huge language barrier!

Let someone know your plans

Make sure a family member or friend knows your plans just in case something were to happen. We always send our parents our flight info, as well as our itinerary, just so they are aware of what we’ll be up to during our trip.

Do you pack in advance or are you a last minute packer? We used to start packing days in advance, but lately we procrastinate big time! Regardless of when you pack, figuring out what to bring on your trip, while also not forgetting anything important, is hard! 

Check out our top travel items and packing list to see which items we cannot travel without and to download our packing list, which includes common items and some easy to miss items, that you won’t want to forget!

Our most important packing tip: Don’t forget your passport and make sure you have an adapter if traveling abroad! We love this one !

After all of your hard work, it’s time to enjoy the trip! We hope that you found this travel planning guide helpful and that it’ll make it easier to plan a trip in the future! 

Ready to plan a trip?

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2 thoughts on “ how to plan a trip: a detailed travel planning guide ”.

Love your enthusiasm. Many carefully thought out ideas. When you post a photo on your blog, it covers up what you wrote. For instance I can only read one Credit card, Chase, the other three are covered by the happy photo of you two. Your three how to plan a trip guides cover up what ever your conclusion/close suggestions? Hope you can fix this as you seem to be very thorough…. I don’t have this problem with my other sites I read regularly. Just thought I would mention.

Also, you should always have a photo copy of the your passports and front and back of credit cards with your parents In case of problems… You can ge it all replaced many hours /days quicker than without…

I am so sorry you’re having issues reading our site. Everything looks normal on our end, so that’s very odd and we’d love to figure out what went wrong. What internet browser and type of device are you using? We will look into this to make sure no one else has issues like this.

And thats a great tip about passports and credit cards!

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16 Easy Steps for Planning Your Next Trip

I remember when I started planning my first trip around the world. I had no idea what I was doing.

When I decided to quit my job and travel the world , I walked into a bookstore and bought Lonely Planet’s Southeast Asia on Shoestring . Buying that guidebook was my first step toward long-term travel. It made the trip seem more real, more tangible. It made it all seem possible.

While helpful, the book didn’t exactly prepare me for planning a trip around the world. Back then, there weren’t really travel blogs, sharing economy websites, and apps like there are today. I was excited and determined — but I was lost. I had to figure it out as I went, hoping I didn’t miss anything important.

Trip planning can be a daunting task. Where do you begin? What’s step one? What’s step two? What’s step three?

It’s easy to get overwhelmed, especially when you haven’t done something like this before — and especially considering just how much information there is out there these days. Blogs, social media, and guidebooks have never been more plentiful. There’s a firehose of information out there that can sometimes make the task of planning a trip even more challenging and overwhelming.

After a decade of traveling the world , I’ve planned countless trips and vacations for myself, friends, family, and even group tours. In the beginning, it was trial by fire and I learned a lot of lessons the hard way . However, that helped me develop an efficient checklist that ensures I don’t miss anything important during the trip planning process.

After all, I don’t want to get to my next destination and then realize I forgot something. And neither do you!

There is a lot of information on this website ( and even more information packed into my book ), but one question that comes up frequently is, “Matt, how do I put this all together? How do I plan a trip?”

In a continuing effort to help you get out the door and into the world, I’ve created this step-by-step guide on how to plan a trip. It works for any kind of trip — no matter how long you’re going for! Just follow this checklist and you’ll be off in no time!

Table of Contents

Step 1: Decide Where You Want To Go

Step 2: decide the length of your trip, step 3: research your costs, step 4: start saving money, step 5: get a travels rewards credit card, step 6: switch to no-fee atm cards, step 7: stay focused and inspired, step 8: check for last-minute deals, step 9: book your flight, step 10: book your accommodation, step 11: plan your activities, step 12: sell your stuff, step 13: automate your bills, step 14: pack, step 15: buy travel insurance, step 16: enjoy your trip.

If you want to jump ahead, simply click on any of the links above.  

It’s a lot easier to mentally get behind “I am going to Paris in the summer” than “I’m going to Europe” or “I’m going somewhere.” Not only will your trip become more concrete for you and easier to commit to, but it will make planning easier as well…because you know what to work towards. Get specific with your plans. Get detailed. The more focused and concrete your goal, the easier it will be to actually reach it.

Resources for picking your travel destination:

• 200+ In-Depth Destination Guides
• 10 Destinations Under $50 Per Day
• The 10 Best Places to Visit as a Budget Traveler
• The 20 Best Tropical Islands in the World

How much does it cost to travel? That depends!

Without knowing how long you’re going away for, I can’t answer that question. And it’s a question you need to answer so you can start planning!

In order to figure out how much you need to save you’ll need to know how long your trip will be.

Are you going away for a week? A month? A year?

The length of your trip is a huge factor in determining how much money you need. Spend some time mulling that over until you have your answer.

For example, after you say “I’m going to Paris this summer,” add “for X days.” That way you can start to narrow down just how much money you’re going to need to save. “I am going to Paris for 10 days” is a trip that you can plan for. It’s an attainable goal.  

So you know where you’re going and how long you’ll be there, but to really nail down how much money you need, your next task is to research the costs in your destination at the style of travel you want.

Do you want to backpack, or would you rather stay in luxury hotels?

How much are hostels, hotels, restaurants, and attractions?

Knowing will allow you to estimate how much money you’ll need for your trip. Here is how to research costs:

• Buy a guidebook.
• Check out my travel guide section .
• Google prices for specific things you want to do, such as scuba diving, bungy jumping, winery tours, etc. ( Get Your Guide is a good place to start for that)

You don’t need to do more than that. There’s so much information on the web that if you go down the rabbit hole of overplanning, you’ll get lost and confused by the firehose of information. Stick to those three things and you’ll be set!

In our example, if you are going to Paris for 10 days and need at least $75 USD a day (not including your flight), you know you need to save $750 USD (though round up to $800-900 USD since it’s good to have extra) for your trip.

If you were to travel around the world for a year, you’d need $50 USD a day .

Here are some other insightful posts that will help you better estimate your costs:

• 5 Ways to Make Your Money Last When You Travel
• How to Know the Travel Info You Find is Legit
• How I Research My Solo Travel Destinations

People bleed a lot of money every day through small purchases: a coffee here, a snack there. All of that adds up. In order to make changes to your spending habits, you first need to understand them. Making a list will do just that. It will also put your financial needs into a better perspective.

For example, if you need $2,000 USD for the trip you’re taking in eight months, that means you only have to save $8.33 USD per day. Couldn’t you find a way to save $8 USD per day? Heck, your daily coffee is most of that!

If you’re struggling to save money, here are 23 ways to cut your expenses and save money for travel . This will help you get started and on the road to saving money in no time!  

These days, most cards have welcome offers of up to 100,000 points when you meet their minimum spending requirement. That’s enough miles for a free flight almost anywhere in the world!

If you want a free flight, sign up for the cards that help with that. If you want free hotel rooms, get a hotel card. Either way, sign up for a travel credit card and start earning points today. As long as you can pay off your monthly balance, you’ll get free travel credit.

You don’t need to sign up for very many cards either; pick one or two and focus on those. Do this the moment you decide you want to travel. Don’t wait — waiting equals lost miles, which means less free travel.

Collecting points and miles is what all the experts do to cut their costs and travel longer. It’s what has kept my costs down and me on the road for so many years. While the best cards are only available in the US, there are still plenty of options for Canadians as well as folks from Europe, Australia, and New Zealand.

For more information on travel credit cards and using points and miles, check out these posts:

• Points and Miles 101: A Beginner’s Guide
• How to Pick the Best Travel Credit Card
• The Best Travel Credit Cards
• How to Earn Points by Paying Your Rent
• The Ultimate Guide to Points and Miles
• How to Use Points and Miles in Canada

Once you’re abroad, you’re going to need money. While many countries accept credit cards, in the majority of countries cash is still king. That means you’ll need to use ATMs to withdraw the local currency.

And that also means you’re going to get dinged by ATM fees.

If you’re just away for a week or two, paying a few dollars in ATM fees isn’t the end of the world. But if you’re away for a longer period, those fees add up and chew into your travel budget — a budget you’ve worked hard to grow. Don’t give banks any of your hard-earned money.

How? By using a no-fee ATM card.

I use Charles Schwab , but there are lots of other banks (don’t forget to check your local banks) that don’t charge ATM fees. Additionally, you can join a bank in the Global ATM Alliance .

By using a no-fee ATM card you can avoid those pesky ATM fees, leaving you more money for what it was intended for: travel.

Here’s exactly how you can avoid ATM fees while traveling .  

While you get closer to your goal, make sure that you keep feeding your desire to travel. Travel planning can be exhausting and overwhelming — especially if you don’t have support from your friends and family (and especially if your trip is still months away). It can often get discouraging and feel out of reach at times.

Luckily, there are tons of ways to stay focused and keep your spirits high thanks to the amazing community we have on this website. Here are some inspiring travel stories to help keep you inspired to travel:

• Why It’s Never the Perfect Time to Travel
• 13 Travel Books That Will Give You Serious Wanderlust
• How to Change the “I’m Too Poor to Travel” Mindset and Say Yes to Travel
• 8 Ways to Stay Motivated to Travel

Additionally, be sure to join our online travel community The Nomadic Network . Not only will you find support (and tons of tips) online, but we also host regular in-person and virtual events all around the world. These are a great way to get inspired, meet other awesome travelers in your area, and get travel advice.  

Okay, you’re inspired, prepared, and on your way to saving money for your trip. But before you go buy that flight or book that hotel, check for deals you might have missed. You may dream of Paris but maybe there are great deals to Berlin right now. Or maybe you can get a seven-day cruise for 70% off, a package deal to Hawaii for the price of your flight to Paris, or 50% off sailing trips around Greece.

These days, there is always a deal to be found — especially if you’re flexible with your dates and/or destinations. Some deal websites worth checking out are:

• Going (Formerly Scott’s Cheap Flights)
• The Flight Deal
• Holiday Pirates

Fortunately, there are still many ways to avoid being the person on the flight who paid the most for their ticket. My two favorite sites for finding cheap airfare are:

• Skyscanner – Skyscanner is the best website for searching multiple destinations at the same time.

For the best deals, book your flight about two-three months in advance. Here are two articles on how to score a cheap flight:

• How to Find Cheap Flights
• Booking Flights: Everything You Need to Know

For trips longer than two weeks (or if you are going to be traveling long-term) just book your first few days. That will ensure you have a place to go on arrival. Once there, you can get insider advice from your hotel/hostel staff as well as other travelers. You can then use that info to plan your next steps.

While you can book more than your first few nights, you might end up wanting to change your plans once you land. I prefer having flexibility, which is why I always just book my first few nights and go from there.

Here are my go-to sites when it comes to finding the best deals on accommodation:

• Hostelworld – Hostelworld has the largest selection of hostels and is my go-to site for finding affordable hostels.
• Agoda – Agoda has the best results if you’re heading to Asia (though they sometimes have good US deals too).
• Booking.com – Booking.com is the best overall platform for finding budget hotels and guesthouses.

If you’re on a tight budget or you want to connect with more locals during your travels, consider joining platforms like Couchsurfing or BeWelcome . These communities allow travelers to stay with locals for free as a sort of cultural exchange.

Long-term travelers can also try housesitting or WWOOFing as well as they both offer free accommodation (in exchange for pet sitting or farm work respectively).  

Search online for discounts as well. While some countries offer cheaper prices in person, others give discounts to those who book early/online. Research which is which for your itinerary so you can save money.

For shorter trips, you can also book your activities in advance to ensure you get tickets. For longer trips, book as you go.

Additionally, before you leave home, have a rough idea of what activities are priorities for you. That way, if you run out of time or money, you can focus on your top activities so you don’t miss out. Also, make sure to double-check that there are no holidays or other obstacles that will prevent you from certain activities as well.  

If you are going on a long-term trip (six months or more), consider selling your stuff in order to earn extra money for your trip. Start doing this about 60 days before you leave. Some sites to use are:

• Gumtree – An online classified site with a focus in the UK and Australia.
• Amazon – The biggest online store in the world.
• Craigslist – Online global classifieds that have both local and global reach.
• eBay – Another global online classified site.
• Facebook Marketplace – Great for finding people near you (so you don’t need to ship your items).

If you aren’t going to be gone that long, skip this step. If you are going away long-term but want to keep your stuff, move it to a friend’s house or keep it in storage. A good storage company in the US is Public Storage . It’s one of the most affordable options out there.  

Get rid of your mail, go paperless, and set up online bill payment for your recurring bills to ensure you won’t miss any while overseas. If you are still going to get paper mail, use a service like Earth Class Mail , which will collect and scan your mail for you. (If you are going on a two-week trip, you don’t really need to worry about this, so you can skip this step, too.)

If you have the option (and don’t want to pay for a mail service), you can also have all your mail sent to a friend or family member.

Additionally, you’ll want to make sure you cancel any phone plans you have or switch your plan to one that is more travel-friendly. T-Mobile is great for travelers going on trips under 3 months. For any trips longer than that, you’ll want to cancel your plan and just buy SIM cards abroad as that will be much cheaper.  

I travel with a 45L REI bag and then a smaller day bag.

Unless you’re heading to multiple climates and need bulky winter gear, you don’t need a massive 70L bag stuffed to the top. Here’s my suggested packing list to help you take just the right amount of stuff and avoid overpacking ( here’s a list for female travelers as well ).

While what you pack will depend on where you are going, remember that you don’t need to pack everything you own. You can buy things you need on the road. You can do laundry overseas. At the end of the day, you have to carry everything you bring. So bring less!

There are a few extra items you might want to pack beyond your everyday clothes, though. Some things I like to bring with me are:

• First aid kit
• LifeStraw bottle with built-in filter
• Packing cubes (to stay organized)
• Travel lock (for hostel lockers)
• Travel adapter
• Quick-dry towel

Additionally, make sure you bring any prescriptions with you so you have enough for the duration of your trip. If that’s not feasible, bring a doctor’s note and prescription with you so you can fill it abroad.  

While a lot of people think, “I’m healthy, I don’t need travel insurance . I won’t get sick,” travel insurance is much more than just medical protection. It covers you when your camera breaks, your flight is canceled, a family member dies and you have to come home, or if something gets stolen.

Yes, it’s an added expense. But it’s always better to be safe than sorry. I never leave home without it because I’ve seen first-hand just what can happen on the road.

I never thought I would pop my eardrum while I was scuba diving in Thailand or break my camera in Italy .

I didn’t know I would get knifed in Colombia .

My friend never thought he would break his leg hiking.

Another friend didn’t expect her father would die and she would have to fly back home.

Unfortunately, bad things can happen when you’re traveling. True, these events are few and far between. But they can cost tens of thousands of dollars to handle on your own. If you’re not prepared to pay out of pocket, buy travel insurance.

To help you figure out the best plan for you and your trip, here’s my ultimate guide to picking a good insurance company . It will show you how to pick a good plan that covers you for when you get sick, your flights get canceled, if you get injured, something gets stolen, or your trip is delayed.

Here’s a breakdown of my recommended travel insurance companies so you can see what company offers the best plans for your needs and budget:

• SafetyWing – Super affordable plans for budget travelers.
• Insure My Trip – Best for senior travelers.
• Medjet – Provides additional evacuation coverage to ensure you get home should an emergency occur.
• Insured Nomads – In-depth emergency and non-emergency coverage for long-term travelers and digital nomads.

For more information on travel insurance, you can check out these posts:

• What Does Travel Insurance Actually Cover?
• Is Travel Insurance Worth It?
• Do You Need Medical Evacuation Insurance?

Additionally, make sure you know your rights as an airline passenger. For example, delayed flights to/from Europe often mean you’re entitled to compensation (beyond anything insurance-related).

Learn how to ensure you are compensated if your travels are delayed or your flight is canceled .  

If you’re feeling nervous, don’t worry — that’s perfectly normal. You’re about to embark on an amazing adventure — and that’s a huge change. Feeling anxious or nervous or unsure is something every traveler experiences. But you’ve made it this far. Trust your planning, follow your instincts, and you’ll have the trip of a lifetime. I guarantee it.

By using this post as a guideline for your trip planning, you can better organize and prepare for your trip. You’ll check all the boxes, not miss anything, and have plenty of money for your vacation. It can be as simple as booking a flight and packing or as complex as rearranging your entire life to go backpack the world forever.

But, no matter how long your trip may be, this list will help you stay organized and motivated as you plan your trip and step out into the world.

P.S.  – Yes, I did leave out visas and vaccinations, because needing those isn’t as universal as the other stuff on this list, but don’t forget to check if you need those, too!  

Book Your Trip: Logistical Tips and Tricks

Book Your Flight Find a cheap flight by using Skyscanner . It’s my favorite search engine because it searches websites and airlines around the globe so you always know no stone is being left unturned.

Book Your Accommodation You can book your hostel with Hostelworld . If you want to stay somewhere other than a hostel, use Booking.com as it consistently returns the cheapest rates for guesthouses and hotels.

Don’t Forget Travel Insurance Travel insurance will protect you against illness, injury, theft, and cancellations. It’s comprehensive protection in case anything goes wrong. I never go on a trip without it as I’ve had to use it many times in the past. My favorite companies that offer the best service and value are:

• SafetyWing (best for everyone)
• Insure My Trip (for those 70 and over)
• Medjet (for additional evacuation coverage)

Want to Travel for Free? Travel credit cards allow you to earn points that can be redeemed for free flights and accommodation — all without any extra spending. Check out my guide to picking the right card and my current favorites to get started and see the latest best deals.

Need Help Finding Activities for Your Trip? Get Your Guide is a huge online marketplace where you can find cool walking tours, fun excursions, skip-the-line tickets, private guides, and more.

Hi, I’m Nomadic Matt, the New York Times best-selling author of How to Travel the World on $50 a Day and Ten Years a Nomad, as well as the founder of this website! And I’m here to help you save money on your next trip.

Got a comment on this article? Join the conversation on Facebook , Instagram , or Twitter and share your thoughts!

Disclosure: Please note that some of the links above may be affiliate links, and at no additional cost to you, I earn a commission if you make a purchase. I recommend only products and companies I use and the income goes to keeping the site community supported and ad free.

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Destinations that will leave you Breathless. Plans to make it happen

How To Build Your Travel Itinerary (Free Planning Template)

Building out your travel itinerary is where your vision comes alive! This trip itinerary planning guide will take you from DREAMING about your trip to BOOKING the most important pieces. Use the travel itinerary PDF template to track it all in one place.

Before you plan your travel itinerary, ask yourself: “When I get back from my vacation, what will make me say that it was a fantastic trip?” Your answer should go at the top of all your trip planning documents.

If you start planning a vacation with the experience in mind, it’ll guide your itinerary planning decisions so you actually get that experience.

This travel itinerary planning guide and PDF template builds out that vision.

How To Build Your Travel Itinerary: 5 Steps

• Step 1: Research ACTIVITIES and build your itinerary must-dos  
• Step 2: MAP it out to create a simple trip itinerary  
• Step 3: Pick your ACCOMMODATIONS
• Step 4: BOOK the critical pieces  
• Step 5: FILL IN your itinerary with maybe-do ideas  

Note: Some travel bloggers recommend booking your flights before deciding on activities or accommodations. I disagree.

Some incredible experiences book up well in advance and are only available certain days, weeks or months. Unless there’s no flexibility to when you go, first finalize your must-dos. Then plan everything else around them.

Get your FREE travel itinerary planning PDF when you subscribe to our email list. This 6-page fillable PDF walks you through the entire trip planning process.

First Name:

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Step 1: Research ACTIVITIES and Itinerary Must-Dos

Start filling in your travel itinerary PDF template by feeding your fantasies!

What do you KNOW you want to see and do? And what are those gems you don’t know about yet?

Let’s dig in.

RESEARCH your destination

Researching your destination is a bit of a chicken-and-egg thing. You need to know a bit about a destination before you’ll want to research it, and you need to research it to know if you actually want to go. 

So, find a research process you enjoy . Books about far-off places, maps and delicious coffee. Surround yourself with happy . 

Are you quick to go online in your research? Many people are. I get that it can be super efficient, especially if you use helpful tools like Pinterest to save and organize what you find. My Pinterest boards have some truly inspiring destinations!

BUT … may I suggest that this is also the best way to get overwhelmed? When you’re in the dreaming phase, it’s easy to get distracted and bogged down in too much detail.

How to research your destination without getting overwhelmed

This is my process for researching a travel destination. It maximizes the dreaming and minimizes the distractions that can make it overwhelming.

• Buy a paperback guidebook. Go old-school, and buy a physical guidebook for your destination. Lonely Planet guidebooks are my favorite, because they’re written by locals or frequenters to the area and feature lesser-known gems. 
• Pick up a highlighter. Yup, get a highlighter in your favorite happy color. Use it sparingly to mark only the activities and accommodations you’re seriously considering; overuse can make your guidebook overwhelming. Not good. Another option: an erasable pen in your favorite color!
• Find the right time and place. Trying to plan your dream vacation while someone’s yelling at you for your attention or you’re stressed about getting dinner in the oven won’t cut it. For me, reading on public transit actually worked as long as I got a seat. But stealing time alone at a coffee shop or in the evenings with some wine was really productive.

There are two other things I love about having a paperback guidebook. First, your favorites (i.e. highlights) are automatically sorted and easy to find in each chapter. And second, you also have a handy reference guide while on the trip (with addresses, phone numbers, etc).

Shop Lonely Planet guidebooks on Amazon now!

VERIFY your must-do activities

Now that you researched your destination (with a healthy dose of dreaming), it’s time to turn on that computer.

You want to verify that what you read about is still great. And to start prioritizing your must-dos versus your maybe-dos for your trip itinerary planning PDF template.

How to verify must-do travel activities:

• Read traveler reviews. Start going through your highlighted activities in the guidebook to see what travelers say about them. My favorite places to read reviews is Google and Trip Advisor. Remember to take reviews with a grain of salt and consider if traveler complaints would be an issue for you.
• Start a list. If activities still sound great to you and as you find other activities online, start adding them to a list. I just use my email so I can access and modify my list wherever I feel inspired. Like at home, work, or commuting.
• Share your list. If others are going with you or you want advice, share your top to-dos with them. (This is also why I build my initial list in my email.) Traveler reviews are great, but reviews from people you know have been there are even better. This is also a great time to talk priorities with your travel companions and how you might negotiate or separate to do different priorities.

Add DETAILS to your list of must-do activities

At this point, you’ve narrowed down the top things you and your travel companions want to see and do. Go back to your original list and strip out the things you’ve cut out. Then use the travel itinerary PDF template to add in the details listed below.

Add the following details about your must-do activities:

• Address and general area (i.e. which city or quadrant of the city), plus any tips you read about finding it
• Website and phone number
• When it’s open or running, including days and times
• Specifics you’re interested in, like tour name or seat section

You should now have a tidy little list with your top things to see and do, along with their details. Now you can start mapping them out.

Remember to SHARE this trip planning process with your TRAVEL COMPANIONS!

Step 2: MAP Out Must-Dos for a Simple Trip Itinerary

After you researched and ranked the things you want to see and do, map it out – on both an actual map and a calendar. The map will give you a visual on how near or far apart everything is. And the calendar will help you plan around activities only available on certain days or times.

Together, your map and calendar will help you figure out when to group certain activities, where you might want to stay, which airport to fly into, and how you might want to get around.

Create a visual MAP for your trip

If you haven’t discovered Google My Maps, this is a great time to try it out!

A very helpful step while building out your travel itinerary PDF template is to map out all of the activities you’re considering.

Google Maps quickly shows you how near or far apart certain activities are. And it comes in super handy for figuring out the best road trip routes and public transit commutes.

How to create a Google My Maps with your must-do activities:

Once you have a Google account, it’s easy to create and find your maps from your Google Drive.

• Search “Google My Maps” or from your Google Drive, click “New” and “More.” Click on “Create New Map.”
• Name your map and add a description.
• Use “layers” to organize your trip. For example, you might organize activities by location, activity type or must-do versus maybe-do. You can drag and drop across layers and hide layers, so you have lots of flexibility (but note that you get a maximum of 11 layers).
• Add activities within layers. Generally it’s best to use the search bar to find activities, because Google will automatically add the address and website link for you. You can also include directions between your hotel and activities (by car, transit and foot). NOTE: Directions cannot be in the same layer as locations.
• Click on “Share” to share it with others. You can share it publicly by search or link, or only with specific people. You can allow others to edit it or only view.

Create a simple CALENDAR itinerary

Even if you hate travel planning and want to do as little of it as possible, you really should do this step. Plot out your must-do activities on a simple calendar so you know which days and times you’re committed.

Many activities only happen on certain days and at certain times. Make note of any specifics for activities you really want to see and do. Then, work around them to fill in the remaining days in your travel itinerary PDF template. (Or, leave them blank to figure out when you get there.)

How to create a simple calendar itinerary with must-do activities:

Use whatever system you prefer to start plotting out when you want to do what. You might use an online calendar like Google. A spreadsheet. Or a pretty journal – just use erasable pens! The trip itinerary planning PDF has a spot to record this, too.

Here’s how to create a simple calendar trip itinerary:

• Mark in your travel start and end dates.
• Separate your days into morning, afternoon and evening.
• Transfer the things you really want to see and do into the days/times they’re available. 
• Look at your map to see if there’s a natural fit to group activities in the same area on the same day or back-to-back. Do your activities follow a natural route?
• Tidy it up. I like to bold my must-dos and italicize nice-to-dos. You could color-code by companion must-dos or by activity type. Whatever makes sense for you and however planner-crazy you like to get.

The main point here is to record which days you’re committed and why. Plus your brainstorming of when it might make sense to do other things. 

Top 3 TIPS for planning your travel itinerary:

1. take a day off at home before and after your trip..

I know we’re all eager to maximize our time off work by being away as much as possible. But since I started adding a free day at home before and after, I’ve enjoyed my trip experiences SO much more. This gives you a day to finalize last-minute things before your trip and before going back to work.

BUT the main reason is that it gives you a day to mentally switch gears. It’s like taking a nice deep breath, so you can enjoy your vacation from moment #1. And let it linger when you get back. Seriously. Try it and see what you think.

2. Protect your first and last days at your main destination.

This tip is similar to the first. If you’re planning a day trip away from your main destination, give yourself at least one full day at your main destination. This lets you settle in and get comfortable with getting around.

And, give yourself at least one full day back at your main destination after your day trip. Flexibility is GREAT on your last day.

3. Plan one or two things per day, plus options.

I’ve planned both go-go trips and go-with-the-flow trips. I recommend neither!

Take a good, long look at the experience you defined when starting to plan your vacation . Keep this in mind when building your travel itinerary.

Even if you like to pack in a ton of things to see and do, allow time for those fantastic spontaneous travel moments. To linger over a fantastic dinner with a view. Or to join new friends at a once-in-a-lifetime experience you just couldn’t plan for. And for unexpected delays.

If you like to just go with the flow, I also recommend penciling in something for every day. I HATED sitting around on my phone, researching what to do that day. What a waste of time!

A good rule of thumb is to plan one or two main activities per day. Plus a few backup ideas to choose from when weather’s bad, you feel jet-lagged, etc.

Tip:  Use the trip itinerary planning PDF to capture your activity ideas.

Step 3: Pick Your ACCOMMODATIONS

Now is the time to look into potential travel accommodations. You know when you want to do certain things and where they are. And, depending on the type of trip (i.e. road trip versus one city), you know if you’re looking at one or multiple places to stay.

I was surprised to read that SO many travelers hate picking a place to stay! Are you one of them? If yes, take a few seconds (yes, right now, please!) to write down the experience you defined when you started planning for a trip . What will make you say, “THAT was a fabulous trip”? Now look at it often while you search. Even if you’re on a budget, you CAN find your diamond in the rough!

Picking travel accommodations is actually one of my favorite parts to planning a trip. It’s like being on a treasure hunt. You’re looking for that special place you want to go back to after a great day of sight-seeing. A place that aligns with what you love about your destination.

Use the travel itinerary PDF template to compare accommodation options.

Where to SEARCH for great travel accommodations:

• Google search hotels at your destination. Enter travel dates, filter by guest rating (I use 3.5+), and sort by price. You can also filter by hotel class and amenities. Google gives you a map with your results ( very helpful, now that you know where most of your activities are). Plus, guest reviews from multiple platforms (like Trip Advisor and Booking.com) and prices from multiple platforms (like Booking.com and Expedia.com).
• Search “the best” and “the coolest” places to stay at your destination. Sometimes you can find a really fun place that’s a destination in its own right, but doesn’t come up on the main travel websites. Some gems just don’t list with Booking.com or Expedia.
• Check out hostelworld.com and glamping.com. These are often among the “coolest” and most fun spots that can take your trip up a few notches.

How to use REVIEWS for travel accommodations:

• Look for patterns. If a lot of reviews tell you the rooms are dated, they’re likely dated. If some love the food and others hate it, it’s likely a matter of preference. Customer service is the biggy that’s tougher to interpret. Does a complaint read like a personality conflict with one staff member, or like a bigger issue? How did the hotel respond? Was it an issue you’d worry about?
• Beware the complainer syndrome. Take one-off comments with a grain of salt. Some people are impossible to please, especially if they’re used to a different style of accommodation than what they’re reviewing. Or they’re generally unhappy with their vacation. Again, consider if it’s about something you’d worry about.
• Follow your no-go hunch. Certain comments flag enough for me that I won’t book a place. Like patterns of poor cleaning service or bedbugs. Or security issues handled badly. Let your spidey senses guide you.

SHARE your top picks for places to stay

Now, add your top potential places to stay to your map. Do a few rise to the surface? Are some in great central locations or along public transit, so it’d be easy to get around? Do some offer great value beyond price and location, so you’d actually enjoy staying there? Do they align with the experience you’re looking for?

Hopefully you naturally narrowed down your search to 3 favorites. Yes or no, it’s time to tap into your travel companions.

Add your favorite places to stay to your list of activities (so everything is together in one place). The travel itinerary PDF template has space to record and compare your top accommodations, too.

Details to include on your list of potential hotels:

• Cost, plus any extra fees like resort fee, parking, breakfast, etc
• Features you like, plus how close it is to public transit and activities
• Initial thoughts on what you like and what you’re hesitant about, including traveler reviews

Send your list, map and calendar to your travel companions to get their thoughts. Again, your trip itinerary planning PDF is an easy way to this.

Want more tips? Check out: 21 Tips to Pick BETTER Accommodations for your Trip  

You’re SO close to getting this wrapped up!! Hang in there!

Step 4: BOOK the Critical Pieces

Whew … you’ve done a TON of work. You know the experience you want, and you know what’ll get you there. Now it’s time to book the time off work and lay down some cash.

WHEN to book your trip

When you should start booking your trip will depend on where you’re going, when, and if you need a travel visa.

• If you need a travel visa , apply for it as soon as you know your dates.
• If you’re going to a popular place like Maui over the busy Christmas season, plan to book it about a year away so you get the hotel you want.
• All other destinations are usually fine booking two months out.

As soon as I know my dates, I’ll start monitoring flight deals. I really like Expedia.com for this because they pull from various companies.

WHAT to book soon

The key things I book sooner rather than later, and in this order, are:

• Insurance (if you’re getting it)
• Key activities you’d be really sad to miss out on
• Accommodation (your initial one, at least)

Record your booking confirmation details on the trip itinerary planning PDF.

Look into travel insurance

The specific travel insurance that makes sense for you will depend on many different factors about you and your trip. I generally don’t get trip cancellation or interruption insurance unless I’m spending a lot in advance. But I’ll always get emergency medical coverage and full car rental coverage.

Before deciding on what type of travel insurance to get, look into what you already have (and clarify anything you don’t understand):

• Credit cards often insure trip cancellation and interruption up to certain amounts as well as certain aspects of car rental insurance.
• Private health insurance benefits (i.e. through your employer) sometimes include some coverage for emergency medical services while traveling. Make sure you read any exclusions in detail.
• Personal car insurance will sometimes include coverage on car rentals.

Keep in mind that third-party travel insurance is usually best. This is because you get to decide how to spend the money. 

Remember: You can’t get travel insurance after something goes wrong. Buy it as soon as possible after your first major purchase (like flights or a cruise).

A helpful post on buying travel insurance is by fellow travel blogger NomadicMatt.com . 

Step 5: FILL IN Your Itinerary With Maybe-Do Ideas

Now that your main trip itinerary planning is done, take a loooong deep breath. When it’s fun again, go back to your activities list, map and calendar to consider how you might want to fill in the blanks .

Some people love leaving a lot up in the air until they’re at their destination. If that’s you, awesome! Just keep in mind that this might drive your travel companions crazy !

I’ve come to appreciate the art of slowing things down and living in the moment while on vacation. But, I hate feeling like I’m wasting my time on vacation pouring over internet reviews to decide on the best tour to take. I’d much rather have done my research ahead of time so it’s a quick reservation and then off to enjoy my day.

So, add your “maybe” activities to your list of things to see and do. Include their details so it’s easy to book whenever you decide. And pencil them into the calendar on your travel itinerary PDF template on a day and time you think they’d fit best.

This is a win-win approach for planner lovers and planner haters!

Get your FREE travel itinerary PDF template when you subscribe to our email list! This 6-page fillable PDF walks you through the entire trip planning process.

Summary and Resources

Planning your trip doesn’t have to suck! Find your happy place, plant yourself in it, and let the experience  you want guide you. That’s why I highly recommend plenty of time with your favorite coffee. 

This post has taken you from dreaming and researching about your trip to booking its critical pieces. The travel itinerary PDF template captures the details of your activities, hotels and bookings. Now you can linger over all the other activities you’re debating between. (And compare/contrast them to death?? Anyone else out there like me?)

Remember: The KEY to getting the trip you want is keeping the experience you want at the very center of all your trip planning and decisions. Start planning your vacation with the experience in mind, so it acts as your compass when building your travel itinerary.

Favorite resources for travel itinerary planning:

• Destination research: Lonely Planet guidebooks .
• Verify research: TripAdvisor.com for traveler reviews on things to see and do; Google and Booking.com for traveler reviews on hotels
• Accommodations: Also check out hostelworld.com and glamping.com for fun and surprising options
• Booking critical pieces: Expedia.com for flights; Booking.com for hotels; and TripAdvisor.com for activities
• A travel journal! If journaling and doodling make you happy, make it part of your trip planning process. My favorite spot with everything you need to start your own bullet travel journal is on DIYCraftClub.com .
• Road trip planning:  Check out How to Plan a Road Trip You’ll LOVE with this step by step guide.

Continue on to your Vacation Countdown Checklist: Things To Do Before you Leave

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Plan, Ready, Go®

How to Plan a Travel Itinerary: The Complete Guide

You’ve chosen your destination, booked your transportation, and maybe even your accommodations. Now…you just have to figure out what in the world you’re going to do while you’re there.

In this post, we’re going to take a deep dive into how to plan a travel itinerary , the nitty-gritty of how to put together your schedule of sites, museums, and activities.

Key takeaways

• Prioritize and list your “must-do” sites and activities.
• Do thorough research on your destination
• Organize your wish list into “must-do,” “want-to-do,” and “nice-to-do” categories.
• Compile all the practical details for each activity, such as operating hours, fees, and booking requirements.
• Build your itinerary by scheduling must-do activities first and filling in with want-to-dos and nice-to-dos.

This post includes affiliate links. If you make a purchase through one of these links, I may earn a small commission at no additional cost to you. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.  See disclaimer.  

I’m a very detail-oriented kind of person (you know, the kind of person who makes lists for EVERYTHING), so this method of itinerary planning may not be of interest to the fly-by-the-seat-of-your-pants kind of traveler.

If you’re not as hyper-organized as I am, you can easily modify this method for how you like to travel. It’s logical itinerary planning at its best.

I won’t be going over in this post how I research and plan for dining options since that’s a more complicated topic for me and my husband (as a celiac and a vegetarian) than the average traveler.

That’s probably a topic for a separate post. So, let’s get planning.

Getting started on your itinerary planning

“I’m heading to Rome/New York City/Paris/Mexico City for X number of days. What should I do and see while I’m there?”

I see similar questions all over Facebook literally every day, and I understand why. It can be overwhelming to plan a travel itinerary.

Let’s say you’re planning to spend five days in New York . How do you decide what to do for those five days? Where do you even start your search for the best ideas for sites to visit?

Side note: for simplicity’s sake, throughout this post, I’m going to use the word “site” to refer to anything (not eating) that you will want to make time for on your trip. These could be monuments, national parks, palaces, museums, activities, guided tours, etc.

There’s no real wrong way to plan your itinerary…just kidding. You have to do it my way.

No, seriously.

Okay…let’s get started.

When I’m planning a travel itinerary, I go through five phases of the process before I arrive at my final draft.

• Preliminary brainstorming
• Destination research
• Fleshing out my wish list
• Site/activity research
• Building my itinerary

I know this seems like a lot, but trust me, you’ll want to know you’ve considered all your options before you go on your trip.

You’ll thank me later.

Read More → Travel Planning Resources

Planning an itinerary starts with brainstorming your wish list

So, you’ve booked your trip, but your itinerary is completely blank. Your destination is your oyster, but where and how do you start?

Your first step is to do some preliminary brainstorming. If you’re heading to a top tourist destination, you probably already have some idea of the specific sites you want to visit (e.g., the Colosseum, Eiffel Tower, Chichen Itza, etc.).

If you’re going someplace completely unfamiliar to you, your brainstorming phase may be quite short but it can also be less specific if that helps (e.g., important historical sites, whatever the most important art museum is, popular beach, etc.).

To help yourself with your brainstorming, you can ask yourself the following questions:

• What are the famous/popular sites my destination is most known for?
• What are the top, must-do sites or activities I already know I want to do on this trip?
• Why are my spouse’s/travel partner’s must-do sites or activities for this trip? If children are traveling with you, why not include them in the brainstorming? They’ll love feeling like they’ve been a part of planning the trip.
• What are the kinds of activities we most enjoy while traveling in general?

Great! Write all of this down. Don’t worry. Nothing’s set in stone yet.

And the sky’s the limit. We’re not yet worrying about the costs involved or how much time we have.

Write it all down. Go ahead. I’ll wait.

[cue Jeopardy! theme music]

Okay, keep this list handy; it’s time to do some basic research on your destination.

TIP: Keep track of all of your important travel details with a digital travel planner like this . Prefer paper planners? Grab your printable travel itinerary planner pages here.

Research your destination

This is where I start to go crazy with research. I’ll take in anything and everything I can about my destination. The more good information I have, the better equipped I am to make good decisions about my itinerary.

And don’t assume you already know enough about where you’re headed.

Before I started researching Paris, I had never heard of Sacré-Coeur (which is one of the great free things to do in Paris , by the way) or Les Invalides.

We ended up visiting both on our trip.

Here are the questions I keep in mind as I do this research:

• What is my destination known for? Is it art, the natural landscape, history, architecture, etc.?
• What season will it be at my destination? Are there any popular seasonal activities I’d like to try while I’m there?
• Are there any special holiday events or festivals taking place there that I’d be interested in attending?
• What is the weather typically like there that time of the year and month? In other words, will I be comfortable spending long periods outdoors, or will I want to spend more time indoors?
• What are the public transportation options at my destination? Is there a good metro/public transportation system or will I have to rely on taxis, ride-sharing, or walking to get around?
• Where are my accommodations in relation to the major site on my list?
• Does my destination offer any kind of city or museum pass?

Side note: If you haven’t yet booked your accommodations, now is a good time to take a look at a map. Do a large number of must-do sites on your wish list cluster in a certain area? If so, you might want to consider booking accommodations nearby to simplify your transportation needs. This isn’t always a good idea but consider it.

Read More → Is it Worth it to Use Booking.com?

Read More → Booking.com or Direct with Hotel: Which is Better?

Where do I find this information? Here are a few suggestions:

• Do some simple Google searches and look around the different results for up-to-date information about your destination.
• Head over to Pinterest to discover what travel bloggers ( ahem ) have to say.
• Buy some good travel guidebooks and start reading.
• Watch YouTube videos about your destination.
• Armed with this pile of new information, you’re going to go back to your list.

Flesh out your wish list

As you researched your destination, you likely noticed certain sightseeing ideas or recommendations coming up over and over again.

• If they’re already on your brainstorm list, great! Leave them there.
• If you’ve never heard of or considered them, but they now sound interesting, add them to your list.
• If there’s something you’ve changed your mind about, go ahead and take it off your list if you really want to, otherwise, leave it on the list. You can always remove it later.

It’s okay at this point if your list has far more ideas on it than you can possibly fit into your trip. We’ll work on narrowing it down later.

After doing my research, I discovered a lot more ideas for things to do in Paris and sites to visit than were on my first brainstorming list. But…what if you’re finding the opposite to be the case?

What if you’ve booked yourself a round-trip plane ticket to your destination, but you’re finding only enough you’re interested in doing to fill a much shorter time than you’re planning to be there?

You have a couple of options:

• If you haven’t booked your accommodations yet, or you can still change/cancel your reservation, consider adding a destination to your trip. For example, if you’re flying into and out of Zurich, Switzerland, but are finding more that interests you perhaps in Lucerne (or beyond), consider spending at least a portion of your trip outside Zurich.
• If you have booked your accommodations and your reservation cannot be changed, consider adding day trips to your itinerary. For example, if you’re staying in Florence, Italy, you could take the train to Pisa or Lucca for the day.

By now you should have a good sense of what your itinerary could look like; it’s starting to take shape.

Specific site or activity research

Okay, so you have this beautiful, and probably fairly lengthy list of things you’d like to see and do on your trip.

Now you get to do research on each of these items individually. Yay! Seriously…I love this part.

To start, you’re going to break down your wish list into four sections. If your list is pretty long, you can re-write it into these four sections, but if it’s on the shorter side, it’s okay to do this mentally.

Must-do sites.

These are the places people traverse the globe to see…the Eiffel Tower, St. Peter’s Basilica, the Pyramids of Giza, Great Wall of China. You get it.

These are the non-negotiable ones. They go in the itinerary no matter what.

Want-to-do sites.

These are the second-tier sites for your trip, the things you want to make room for, but won’t necessarily dissolve into tears if you can’t manage it.

Examples from my travels would include the Rodin Museum (Paris), Trevi Fountain (Rome), or walking the entire High Line in New York City.

Nice-to-do sites.

These are the minor sites and activities that will become the filler in your itinerary. On my itineraries, these are things like “sit on the Spanish Steps” or “buy cheese from a fromagerie.”

I don’t care if we do this or not.

These are the sites that are first on the chopping block once we start to build the actual itinerary. Or you may have cut them already once you did your destination research.

Now that you have your sites grouped, the next thing to do is your research. For at least each of your must-do and want-to-do sites you need to know the following:

• What days of the week is it open and what are the operating hours?
• What is the entrance fee (if any)?
• What is the best day of the week to visit?
• Do you need to book tickets or make a reservation ahead of time? If so, how far in advance can you book/should you book?
• Where is it and how do I get there? I especially want to know how far it is from my accommodations and how far it is from other major sites on my list.

Side note: The My Maps feature in Google Maps is an invaluable part of this phase of the itinerary planning process for me. You can pin locations, organize and color code sites to visit, and even add personal notes.

Narrowing it down

Okay, now you have even more information about your destination. Here’s where you start making some changes to your list.

At this stage, I may move sites from one section of my wish list to another. Something might move up on the list, for example, if I discover that it’s very near one of my must-do’s, or if it’s free to visit.

This is how we ended up going to Les Invalides; it wasn’t anywhere near the top of our list, but it’s right across the street from the Rodin Museum (which was something I wanted to do) AND it’s covered by the Paris Museum Pass. It was super easy to just pop in for a bit after the Rodin Museum, but we probably wouldn’t have made a separate trip.

Something might move down the list (or come off the list entirely) if I learn it’s very out of the way or more of a financial investment than my particular budget for this trip can support.

Should I purchase a city or museum pass?

Let’s revisit the city/museum pass question from the destination research phase.

If your destination offers one (or a few), take the time to consider if it’s worth it for you to purchase for your trip. We used the Museum Pass on our trip to Paris (and highly recommend it), but decided against buying the Firenze Card for our trip to Florence, Italy .

Here are some criteria I use to judge whether a city or museum pass is worth it for us to purchase for a particular trip:

• What sites are covered? Will you have to book entrance to many of your must-do/want-to-do sites separately or are most covered by the pass?
• Does the pass offer you unlimited entry to covered sites or can you use it one time only?
• Will you save money if you buy the pass? It’s not necessarily a deal breaker if it doesn’t. The convenience of not having to book entrance reservations to sites ahead of time can outweigh some financial disincentives.
• Does the pass cover any public transportation you’re planning to use or just site entrance fees?
• For how many days is the pass valid versus how many days you will be at your destination? For example, we chose not to buy the Firenze Card on our trip to Florence, because it’s only good for 72 hours, and we were spending 8 nights there. Purchasing two cards each would have cost us far more than paying for our chosen sites individually.

How do I decide what to cut from my itinerary?

This part of the process is highly personal. Only you can really decide if a particular site or activity is “worth it” to you.

The decision to buy or not to buy a city or museum pass may affect how you narrow down your list. If you have to purchase entrance tickets to all of your sites individually, you may end up having to spend more money to see everything (or cut sites to stay within your budget).

Or if you do decide to purchase a pass but a site on your list is not covered, you may find yourself considering leaving it off your list.

On the other hand, if you have a pass you may see more sites overall because you’ve already paid for admission.

…If that makes sense.

At this stage of the itinerary planning process, if there’s anything on my list that makes us say “meh” it goes on the “I don’t care” list.

Build the trip itinerary

Okay. You’ve done your research, you’ve decided whether you’re buying that city pass and you’ve refined your site wish list.

You’re ready to build your itinerary! I’m going to use our recent trip to Paris to demonstrate how I put it all together.

The non-negotiables get top priority.

For each full day on your trip, choose one or two of your must-do’s or want-to-do’s: one first thing in the morning and one for later that day.

Your must-do’s (your non-negotiables) go on the schedule first and as early in your trip as you possibly can.

If you arrived in Paris on April 14, 2019, and decided to put off seeing Notre-Dame until later in the week, you were probably pretty disappointed on April 15 as the world watched the devastating fire that closed it down.

Don’t. Put. It. Off.

For our trip to Paris, we each had one non-negotiable: the Louvre and the Palais Garnier. We did them both on our first full day there.

Then add any other must-dos that require advanced booking or warrant a full day on your itinerary or both. So, I needed to choose days for Versailles and the Eiffel Tower.

My research told me that I should plan a full day at Versailles and that it is quite busy on the weekends and on Tuesdays (when the Louvre is closed).

I also learned that the Eiffel Tower is open every day until late, that I should plan to spend about three hours there, and that I needed to book tickets for the summit as far ahead as possible.

Add in your want-to-do’s.

With the must-dos scheduled, I’m ready to schedule the want-to-do’s. I added Musee d’Orsay and Musee Rodin, then Musee de l’Orangerie, Champs-Élysées, Arc de Triomphe, etc.

Nice-to-do’s fill in any remaining gaps.

I then fill in the rest of the itinerary with the nice-to-do’s, leaving our last full day intentionally blank.

When staying in one place for four days or more, we try to keep our last full day completely open. This is so we can return to any place we want to see again, or so that we can add more of the items from our “nice to do” list depending on what we’re in the mood for. It helps us create a good balance between sightseeing and relaxation .

If you’re taking a trip that includes multiple stops, you can just repeat this process for each place you’ll be staying.

Keep in mind as you’re planning a trip itinerary that if you’re bouncing from city to city every other day, you’ll be spending a lot of time traveling from one destination to the next.

I do feel like I need to say, that even though you now have a meticulously planned itinerary it doesn’t mean you can’t be spontaneous. We often find that we spend far less time at some sites than we think we need to allow for, giving us time to do even more on our trip than we hoped.

Or sometimes we just don’t feel like doing something on our schedule…and that’s okay too.

Now you have the tools to build the perfect itinerary for your next trip. Enjoy!

More articles to help you plan your travel itinerary

• 5 easy steps to planning a trip
• Travel planning resources you need
• The best travel guides (online resources and books)

Pin this post!

Darcy Vierow is a busy professional and travel planning expert with years of experience maximizing travel with limited time and on a less-than-average salary. Her tips have been published by Forbes, MSN.com, Yahoo! News, Yahoo! Finance, Aol, Newsbreak and GOBankingRates. Read more about Darcy Vierow .

10 Comments

Absolutely love this perspective on travel! It beautifully captures the essence of what it means to explore the world. Travel isn’t just about ticking off destinations; it’s about slowing down, immersing yourself in new cultures, savoring moments, and absorbing the rich tapestry of life that the world has to offer. 🌍✈️🌏

My sister wants to travel for her honeymoon, so she’s interested in starting to plan it this month. I liked what you explained about choosing a destination and the places you’d like to visit, so I’ll share this with my sister right away. I appreciate your insight on considering what you want to see and visit and booking accommodation near those places.

You are so much more organized than we are – we usually book places the day of or the day before and figure out what we are doing day by day. We like to leave things pretty wide open to see what happens and what we find. This is such a great guide though for planning a vacation!

Thanks for your comment! Yeah, I actually have a hard time just going with the flow…it’s something I’m working on.

This is so perfect! I enjoy the entire planning process, so this definitely speaks to me. I particularly enjoy researching locally owned restaurants and off the beaten path places. Thanks so sharing such a great way to plan

Thank you for your kind comment!

This post resonates a lot with me as like you, I too plan extensively before I travel. I believe planning well helps us make the most of our time and also gives more peace of mind. Excellent tips!

Thank you! And I definitely agree with you about how helpful good travel planning is for traveling well.

It is so helpful to find a guide on how to organize and plan a trip! For a lot of people (me included) this is the most traumatic experience about traveling as you want everything to go perfect and smoothly. I plan trips all the time and this guide was literally how I do my planning! Thank you so much for sharing and I hope it helps a lot of travelers out there too!

Thanks so much for reading and for your kind comment. I really do hope a lot of travelers find this guide helpful.

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The Ultimate Free Travel Itinerary Template

Over the years, I’ve used Excel spreadsheets to help organize all trip details. Saving them offline as a PDF has also meant that I can easily keep track of my itinerary and confirmation numbers while on the go. It was important to me that I could access all the necessary information while on the road.

So I’m sharing with you a free travel itinerary template that makes travel planning easy. This travel itinerary template is for keeping track of the major details. One of the more frequently requested questions was how to plan and keep a trip organized, so this here has been the way I visually do so. Being organized for me has changed the travel experience. Plus, having all of the travel itinerary details with me at all times means less stress.

This travel itinerary template is designed to keep track of the most important parts of an itinerary. It’s not a home for every cafe or sight you want to see. The itinerary is designed to keep track of key components of an itinerary like flights, hotels, transfers, and a daily schedule. 

Below, you’ll find the download for the free travel itinerary template that includes an example itinerary, and some tips for how to use it! 

What’s In the Template

• Instructions on how to use the itinerary template.
• The itinerary template for you to use.
• A sample itinerary template so you can see what a finished itinerary looks like. 

A Guide to Using the Travel Itinerary Template

Thank you for downloading my travel itinerary template! I hope it helps you plan out your trips and keep things organized (plus stress-free).  There are a few key tips to using the itinerary template that will help when using it and while on a trip. 

Why A Travel Itinerary 

The whole reason for having this itinerary is so you can keep your travel plans readily available while on the go. It is also very helpful while planning your trip in order to see what days are there and any holes in the booking sections. Ultimately, this template helps keep an itinerary plan. Important confirmation numbers and transfers are key to a smooth trip. I find that visually, a day by day list keeps it the most simple.

Uses for the Travel Itinerary Template

• Road Trip Itinerary
• Vacation Itinerary
• Business Trip
• Bachelorette or bachelor’s party

How to Use the Travel Itinerary Template

The Itinerary Planner tab is designed for you to write over my prompts. Where you see the words “insert” is the location for each data field. You can find my Example Itinerary on the final tab to give you an idea of what a finalized itinerary will look like.

Always start with your flight details . Once you know your full dates, add in your departing and return flight information, including confirmation numbers.

Next, figure out your general itinerary and label the number of nights in each destination . List out your days and dates into the sheet so you know how much time to plan for. This will create blocks for each destination to help you stay organized. In each block create placeholders for important details like transportation, accommodations, and necessary reservations that you need to book. If you still need to book certain parts of a destination, you can fill a block with bright red or yellow to remind yourself to come back to it later. Once you make a reservation, add it to the appropriate block with the most important details like reservation name, time, and confirmation number.

Reminder: This template works best when it includes only the most vital planning details. Your goal is to keep it condensed and easily readable.

How to Keep the Travel Itinerary With You

It is printable! One option is to print this sheet or to save it offline as PDF. 

Saving the Travel Itinerary Offline

1. Save it as a PDF.

Go to “File” and select “Save As” Select “File Format” and select “PDF” Save to Desktop

2. Send it to your own email as an attachment. Once received, open the PDF on your phone and take screenshots. Save the screenshots as photos so you can access the itinerary without the internet.

3. Another option is to store the itinerary on Dropbox as an offline file (must have the Dropbox app on your phone). Once it is loaded on the Dropbox app, select the option to store it offline. You can then access it without data or the internet.

Save this post for later on Pinterest:

PS — Are You Booking a Trip Soon? Use My Booking Checklist!

These are the sites I use most to book my own trips. Using the links below is a great way to support Bon Traveler’s travel journalism at no extra cost to you . If you need help organizing your itinerary, get my free travel itinerary template here .

1. Book Your Flights

Use Skyscanner to find the best flights. It searches 100s of airlines and websites across the globe to ensure you’re not missing out on any route options or deals.

2. Book Your Accommodations

Use Booking.com for hotels and guest houses. They have the biggest inventory and consistently offer the best rates.

3. Book Your Tours & Experiences

Use Viator or Get Your Guide to find the best tours and experiences. They are my favorite tour search engines. I always check both as their inventory varies depending on the destination.

4. Book Your Car

Use Discover Cars or Rentalcars.com to find the best car rental deals. I recommend comparing rental agency reviews on Google to ensure you are booking with the best company in that destination, as the reviews are often more accurate than the car rental search engines.

5. Don’t Forget Airport Lounge Access

Get a Priority Pass membership to gain access to 1,400+ VIP lounges and airport experiences worldwide. The Priority Pass app is the first thing I check when I have a layover. I’ve been a member for over a decade, and having a comfortable place to relax before and between flights makes air travel so much more enjoyable.

6. Don’t Forget Travel Insurance

I never leave the country without travel insurance. It provides comprehensive protection in case anything goes wrong (ie. illness, injury, theft, and cancelations, etc.). I use it frequently for my travels to stay protected.

My favorite companies that offer the best coverage and rates are:

• World Nomads (best for all-around)
• Safety Wing (best for frequent travelers)

Xx, Jessica

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Itinerary Template for a Trip: Free Downloadable Examples & More Resources

• Updated: 04/04/2024

If you are looking for a free, easy, and detailed itinerary template for a trip that you can download and conveniently add your own travel details—then you are in the right place. 

Find the sample trip itinerary template I created and tweaked over years of travel to include the most relevant information in one easy-to-scan document and in four different file formats. 

Additionally, I share alternative template ideas  that include my top picks for itinerary-building apps  and other online places where you can find more free or affordable trip itinerary designs  and layouts. So, go to the file format that works best for you, scan my quick tips for editing, and get your trip details organized in a downloadable, easy-to-edit, and very sharable document. 

Table Of Contents

Itinerary template for a trip in 4 file formats.

Find my travel itinerary template in the four different file formats below. Choose the one you like to work in best. Then find more recommendations here .

• Microsoft Word trip itinerary template
• Microsoft Excel trip itinerary template
• Google Sheets trip itinerary template
• Canva trip itinerary template

About This Template: 7 Main Components

There are seven main components to this template. I have included each because it contains the information I reference most while traveling, organized in a way that helps me figure out when my trip schedule is overloaded or lacks the right amount of buffer time between activities or transit.

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The 7 trip itinerary template components include:

• Header. For a destination image and title. Replace this image with your own.
• High-level trip summary: An at-a-glance summary of essential trip information—the number of travelers, dates of travel, flights (or other transit), and location(s) of the trip.
• Travel day column. Know which day of your trip an activity is happening. 
• Day of the week column. Know the day of the week and date to ensure lodging, tour, and transfers are booked correctly.
• Activities column. A place to capture details for all activities and lodging. Hyperlink text to websites for additional information.
• Location(s) column. In this space, recap the destinations for each day, link to lodging websites, and include important notes such as included meals or overnight flights.
• Lodging contact info sheet. A second tab or sheet for additional lodging information is included in all template files except for Microsoft Word 

Since the detail on this template prints small, consider saving it to a PDF file , allowing you to zoom in as needed and easily share it with others.

Additionally, reference your itinerary offline when you save a PDF version of this itinerary to your phone to an app like iBooks (Apple users) or Google Play Books (Android users). Having an offline itinerary comes in handy in travel situations when you have limited or zero cellular or wi-fi connection. 

Microsoft Word Template

Click on the image below to download a free version of this trip itinerary template containing actual details from a visit to Iceland in Microsoft Word. 

6 Editing Tips (Word Template)

As Microsoft Word is the most universally used software program, it is the trip itinerary template file I share first. Here are six essential editing tips when using the Microsoft Word version of this template.

Header area editing (Word template)

• To change out the image at the top of the itinerary, right-click on the image and select Change Picture. Select from a stock photo or upload your own image. I am a Canva user and found this image there, added a text overlay, and saved it using the dimensions 2000x458px.
• However, you can upload any size image file you would like. If your uploaded image is not the correct size, click on it and drag its diagonal corner to resize and fit the page. If you find it too tricky to insert a new image, delete the existing one and type your preferred itinerary title. It might not look as pretty without a picture, but the template will still convey all essential information.

Main itinerary body editing (Word template)

I created this itinerary using a table in Microsoft Word, hiding vertical gridlines to achieve a cleaner look. 

• To edit text , select and delete existing text. Then, type text as you normally would in Word documents.
• To add a table row , select a row by dragging your mouse to highlight it, then right-click and choose Insert to add a row above or below. Repeat the process to delete a row . Find one additional blank row at the bottom of the template.
• To add or change hyperlinks , select the word(s) you would like to link (or unlink) to a website, right-click, select Hyperlink, and from the sub-menu, select Edit or Remove Hyperlink.
• To add back vertical gridlines , select the entire table, right-click, and select Borders and Shading to adjust the design with the gridline configuration you like best.

Microsoft Excel Template

Click on the image below to download a free version of this trip itinerary template containing actual details from a visit to Iceland in Microsoft Excel. 

9 Editing Tips (Excel Template)

As Microsoft Excel is more specialized software, I share nine file-specific tips, knowing that the traveler who prefers to download this file type is likely already familiar and comfortable editing in Excel.

Header area editing (Excel template)

To change out the header image at the top of the itinerary, right-click on the image and select Change Picture. Select from a stock photo or upload your own image. I am a Canva user and found this image there, saving it using the dimensions 2000x458px. Once uploaded, I added the semi-transparency in Excel.

However, you can upload any size image file you would like. If your uploaded image is not the correct size, click on it and drag its diagonal corner to resize and fit the page . If you find it too tricky to insert a new image, delete the existing one. It might not look as pretty without a picture, but the template will still convey all essential information.

• Though—if you upload a new image and want to keep the semi-transparency , double-click on your picture to get to the Picture Format menu. Find the Transparency icon in the header menu and adjust it to your preference. 
• To change the header text , click on the text in the Text Box and edit all elements.

Main itinerary body editing (Excel template)

• To insert bullet points , copy these from an existing cell in the document. I created and copied the bullet points from a Word document and pasted them into Excel. 
• All cells are set to wrap text and are oriented to align left and at the top of the cell. If this changes or the format structure is lost, right-click on any cell and select Format Cells to reset the cell structure to your preference. 
• To start a new line of text in a cell when using a Mac, press the Option+Return buttons on your keyboard. Using a PC, press the Alt+Enter buttons or get more tips from Microsoft Help .
• To insert hyperlinks , select the cell you would like to hyperlink, and from the main menu, select Insert. From that submenu, choose Link. Microsoft Excel—from what I can tell (please correct me in the comments if you know how to bypass this)—does not allow users to link individual text within a cell. Google Sheets does, and it is one of the reasons I prefer using that format type. 

Lodging contact tab editing (Excel template)

Note a second tab in this Excel template for lodging details—set to print landscape (horizontally). Edit all elements in the same way as the main itinerary.

Google Sheets Template

Click on the image below to download a free version of this trip itinerary template containing actual details from a visit to Iceland in Google Sheets. This image links to a read-only document. 

To copy it, click File from the main menu and select Copy . Doing this will create a copy of the document on your Google Drive. You will want to be logged into Google when you do this.

7 Editing Tips (Google Sheets Template)

Google Sheets is my preferred file type to create, edit, and share new trip itineraries. I find its slimmed-down menu is easier to use than Excel. Plus, I appreciate the ability to highlight and hyperlink specific text using Sheets vs. having to link an entire cell (in Excel).

Additionally, I find this file type easier to share as not everyone uses Microsoft documents. And I find it convenient since I already use Google Drive to manage my business documents and keep my travel information organized . Here are seven things to know when editing this template.

Header area editing (Google Sheets template)

To change out the header image at the top of the itinerary, right-click on the image and select Change Picture. Select from a stock photo or upload your own image. I am a Canva user and found this image there, added a text overlay, and saved it using the dime nsions 2000x458px.

However, you can upload any size image file you would like. If your uploaded image is not the correct size, click on it and drag its diagonal corner to resize and fit the page . If you find it too tricky to insert a new image, delete the existing one and type your preferred itinerary title. It might not look as pretty without a picture, but the template will still convey all essential information.

Main itinerary body editing (Google Sheets template)

• All cells are set to wrap text and are oriented to align left and at the top of the cell. If this changes or the format structure is lost, select a cell and choose Format from the main menu.  From the drop-down menu, select Wrapping or Alignment to adjust to your preference. 
• To start a new line of text within Google Sheets when using a Mac, press the Command (or Control or Option)+Return buttons on your keyboard. Using a PC, press the Alt (or Control) +Enter buttons. 
• To insert hyperlinks , select the specific text you would like to hyperlink, and from the iconographic menu, just below the main menu, select the three vertical dots at the far right for more editing items. Select the Link icon to insert and link to your preferred URL. Or choose Insert from the main menu, then select Link. 

Lodging contact tab editing (Google Sheets template)

Note a second tab in this Google Sheets template for lodging details—set to print landscape (horizontally). Edit all elements in the same way as the main itinerary.

Canva Template

Click on the image below to access and edit a free version of this trip itinerary template in Canva. 

Although Canva is an excellent and intuitive design software usable by non-professionals, it requires prior knowledge and experience to use it comfortably. I do not recommend downloading and editing this file type unless you are already comfortable creating and editing in Canva.

If you are, have fun! You have full editing capability to change any element of this two-page trip itinerary template, which includes a second page for lodging contact information. 

Tips for duplicating the template: Click the above image, then click the “Create with Canva” button in the upper right-hand corner. When you do this, it should take you to your Canva account and let you copy, and then edit a duplicate version of the template.

2 Recommended Online Itinerary Builders

If you prefer using an app or an online itinerary builder to create your itineraries, TripIt and Wanderlog are the top two options. I have used TripIt before and found it handy—though short on the functionality I prefer. Despite easy integration with travel booking uploads, the program was less flexible than I would have liked, still requiring some manual uploading and editing. 

I have not used Wanderlog, though I have repeatedly seen it recommended highly by frequent travelers and travel professionals. To see which is right for you, scan through this Reddit thread of users comparing notes on each.

4 More Places to Find Travel Itinerary Templates

In addition to the free templates I share, are four more places to find free or affordable trip itinerary templates.

• Microsoft Excel, Word, and Google Sheets free templates

Find multiple travel itinerary templates on Jotform .  Edit them using its web-based a PDF editor. Then, download your edited form after you create an account. You get five complimentary form downloads with a free membership . 

Find multiple trip itinerary templates on Canva .  There are several free options. To edit and download them, create a free account on Canva if you do not already have one. Some templates are restricted to paid Pro Canva users only.

Microsoft Excel, Word, and Google Sheets

Microsoft Excel, Word, and Google Sheets offer free templates. These software programs offer several free travel itinerary templates. To access these complimentary templates, choose File, then select Create New from Template or New from template gallery from the main menus. Search for templates related to trips or travel to find one that fits your needs.

Several shops on Etsy sell downloadable trip itinerary templates for a low price, often $5 or under. Some designs are beautiful. Several come packaged with multiple detailed pages that could be perfect for your needs or be superfluous. Search digital download options here to see what fits your preferences best.

Related Reading

If you are searching for more travel planning assistance to help you save time and money, stay organized, and achieve better results, check out the related articles below.

• How to Plan a Trip Quickly: 9 Best Places to Find Inspiring Trip Itineraries
• 49 Things You Need to Do to Plan Your Best Trip (Free Travel Research & Planning Checklist)
• Google for Travel: Plan Better with These 8 Tools
• Why You Will Love Google Maps for Trip Planning
• How to Save Time & Money with Google Flights Price Tracker
• 5 Proven Ways to Simplify and Organize Your Travel Research
• Pack Faster & Better with This Universal Printable Packing List
• 25 Expert Packing Tips to Help You Travel Better
• Pre-Trip: A Practical Checklist to Close the House & Pack

Additional Trip Planning Resources

To further help you with travel planning, I share my go-to resources for every trip below. 

Google Flights. My first research stop for affordable flights for every trip. Learn why here . 

Google Hotels . Use its “ Where to stay ” button to discover the best neighborhoods to base your visit.

Booking.com. For hotel and rental bookings, I appreciate its flexible cancellation, candid user reviews, discounts, loyalty program, and easy-to-use interface.

Viator , Get Your Guide , & Airbnb Experiences . Quickly find and book highly-rated tours and activities on these sites.

Google Travel Things to Do & Google Maps . Find more things to do in your destination on Google Travel, then record where you want to visit on a custom Google Maps list. 

AllTrails . Love to hike? Me too. I religiously use AllTrails to discover hiking and biking trails and download its offline maps to manage my hikes.

Guide Along . 5-star self-guided audio tours that are GPS-compatible for US road trips and national parks. We loved the Glacier National Park tour .

Insure My Trip. I never travel internationally without trip insurance. Learn why here . My preferred place to shop and compare policies is InsureMyTrip.com . 

Plus, check out the 15 travel apps I use on trips, my preferred guidebooks , and my free customizable travel itinerary template , downloadable in four file formats.

About the author:  Janice Moskoff is a travel writer and blogger who loves hiking, exploring the world, and reading. She writes to inspire travel-loving families, adult friends, and couples on her blog,  Gather and Go Travel . Check out  her bio , learn how she became  a blogger , and discover how to  work with her . Sign up for her monthly  Discovery Newsletter  to get her latest travel recommendations and  how-to’s .

Love to travel? Sign up for m y monthly Gather & Go Travel Discovery Newsletter and get a free trip budget calculator .

Affiliate Disclosure: Some of the links on this page may be affiliate links, and at no additional cost to you, I earn a commission if you make a purchase. I only recommend products and companies I use. And the income goes to keeping the site community-supported and ads minimal.

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2 responses.

Hi Nicole, thanks for messaging about this. Happy to troubleshoot. I am sorry you having issues. Since you would like to use this template I’ll take an educated guess that you are familiar with Canva and already have an account? When you click the “Create with Canva” link in the upper right hand corner it should take you to your account and let you edit a version of this template. I’ll check in with you via email as well to see if this is happening. If not, I’ll email you a direct link and dig in to adjust settings. Or feel free to email me directly at (janice at gatherandgotravel dot com.). Thank you!

Hi! I was hoping to use your Canva template but it linked to a preview that wouldn’t open the template. I also couldn’t find it by searching.. Is it available anywhere?

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Welcome to Gather and Go Travel , a blog inspiring families, adult friends, and couples to explore US and international destinations and to get outdoors. I am Janice, an experienced traveler to over 50 countries and a travel writer, book lover, and blogger. Learn more about me , read our story , and how to work with me .

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Free Itinerary Templates

By Kate Eby | February 28, 2018

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An itinerary is essentially a schedule that can aid in organizing travel plans, conferences, meetings, and other events. Itineraries are most commonly used for business trips and personal travel to provide a record of important details, such as transportation and lodging information, business meetings, tourism plans, and emergency contacts. Whether you’re embarking on a business trip or family vacation, an itinerary can help you plan ahead, pack appropriately, and prioritize activities in order to save time while traveling. To make your process even more efficient, below you’ll find free travel itinerary templates, planning checklists, meeting itineraries , and other templates for Microsoft Excel and Word, PDF, and Google Docs. All of the templates are professionally designed and easy to use, and you can print them to provide a hardcopy during travel or to utilize in a meeting.

Business Itinerary Templates

Business travel itinerary template.

Keep track of flight information for both departure and return trips, accommodations, rental car details, and meetings or events with this business travel itinerary. You can plan for multiple travel dates, and the template is designed with alternating colors for an easy-to-read layout.

‌ Download Business Travel Itinerary Template

Business Trip Checklist Template

Customize this checklist template by adding tasks that need to be completed and items to pack on a business trip. Using a checklist can help ensure that important items are taken care of and that nothing is overlooked. It’s a simple planning tool that can have a big impact on the outcome of a business trip.

Download Business Trip Checklist Template

Excel | Smartsheet

Simple Business Trip Itinerary

This blank itinerary template offers a basic format that can easily be customized for a specific trip. Create a multi-day itinerary that covers transportation, lodging, meetings, and any other travel details that you want to keep track of. Consider adding hyperlinks to locations, such as hotels and restaurants, so that you have a record of online resources while traveling.

Download Simple Business Trip Itinerary 

Business Trip Report Template

A business trip report typically follows a memo format and provides a summary of the purpose and results of a business trip, including recommendations or follow-up actions that need to be taken. This is different from a business trip expense report, which is used to keep track of travel expenses for reimbursement. You can save and print the template as a Microsoft Word or PDF file.

Download Business Trip Report Template

Word  |  PDF  | Smartsheet

Travel Agency Planning Form

Travel agents can use this form to collect information from clients and create travel plans. Edit the template to include whatever details are relevant for the client and the type of trip, such as flight preferences, travel insurance options, lodging information, or discounts offered. Create a record of client information for future reference.

Download Travel Agency Planning Form

Word  |  PDF

Flight Itinerary Template

Multi-flight trips can be complicated, but a simple template can help prevent you from feeling overwhelmed. This Excel itinerary template will help you keep track of flight info so that travelers have all the details on a single spreadsheet. Enter your flight numbers, airport locations, and departure and arrival times for each leg of your journey, including layovers.

Download Flight Itinerary Template

Excel  |  Word  |  PDF

Vacation Itinerary Templates

Vacation itinerary template.

Plan a quick three-day trip, a five-day getaway, or a longer vacation with this comprehensive itinerary template. You can make and record plans for each day of your trip, including restaurant reservations, entertainment ideas, transportation, and nightly lodging. This provides a detailed look at your daily itinerary as well as an overview of the entire vacation.

‌ Download Vacation Itinerary Template

Vacation Planner Template

While creating a vacation itinerary requires advance planning, doing so allows you to relax and enjoy your trip without having to make arrangements while traveling. This vacation planner template is designed to help you compile information, compare options, and then create an itinerary based on what you discover. It can be used for planning a variety of trips, from family vacations and reunions to student field trips or travel for sports team competitions.

Download Vacation Planner Template

Excel  |  Word  |  PDF

Travel Day Planner

Use this Microsoft Word itinerary template to create a schedule for outings and events on a single day. Keep track of items to bring, restaurant locations, tourist attractions, and important notes. You can create your own easy-to-carry guide to follow throughout the day, and stick to your travel plan or make adjustments as you see fit.

Download Travel Day Planner

Family Vacation Itinerary Template

This itinerary template is designed with families in mind, and provides sections for listing all of the important trip details, which may include traveler names, medical info and contacts, other emergency contacts, and travel plans. Keep track of activities that your family plans to enjoy along with any corresponding details you want to document, such as cost, location, or advance tickets.

Download Family Vacation Itinerary Template

Excel  |  PDF

Travel Planning Checklist

Create a simple checklist for planning a personal trip or vacation. This template includes sections for adding items to complete at work, arrangements for home and pet care, a packing list, and other tasks. A to-do list can provide organization and accountability before you leave for a vacation.

Download Travel Planning Checklist

Meeting and Event Itinerary Templates

Formal meeting itinerary template.

Keep meetings on track with this organized itinerary that shows topics to be covered, presenter names, and the time allotted for each agenda item. You can also record the names of everyone in attendance, the meeting objective, and the location. This is a Google Docs template that can be modified to suit your particular organization and easily shared with team members.

Download Formal Meeting Itinerary Template

Word | Smartsheet

Meeting Minutes and Itinerary

This meeting itinerary template for Word provides a traditional layout with room to record minutes. Customize the template by adding a business logo or editing the items included in the itinerary. The template also includes a signature line for secretary approval.

Download Meeting Minutes and Itinerary

Weekly Staff Meeting Itinerary Template

Plan your weekly staff meetings and share the itinerary with attendees in advance. The agenda includes an overview of weekly achievements, progress updates, action items to discuss, and scheduling info for the next meeting. This template provides a roadmap to follow during the meeting and can also serve as a record of what was covered.

‌ Download Weekly Staff Meeting Itinerary Template - Word

Event Itinerary Template

Create a simple itinerary for a conference, workshop, fundraiser, or other event with this schedule template. You can show activities that occur in different locations simultaneously, such as different speakers at a conference, and display the starting and ending time for all activities. Use this template to plan a single or multi-day event.

Download Event Itinerary Template

Excel  |  PDF

Tips for Planning a Business Travel Itinerary

Some companies hire a corporate travel planning service to manage trip planning, booking, and emergency services. However, small businesses and independent consultants can simplify their travel planning by keeping a few tips in mind.

• Begin Planning Early: While some trips occur with short notice, you should aim to start planning a month in advance (if possible) to reduce stress and ensure that you get the services you need at the best rates available. Schedule any business meetings before securing transportation, lodging, and other travel details. It can also be helpful to arrive a day or two early to give you time to get organized and recover from jet lag.
• Bring a Backup Itinerary: Mobile devices, cloud-based storage, and the global availability of Wi-Fi make it easy to access documents from anywhere. But technology can fail, and devices can be lost or stolen, so it’s wise to print a hardcopy of your itinerary to bring in your carry-on luggage. If you’re traveling overseas, consider emailing a copy of your itinerary to your local contact as well.
• Check the Weather: This may seem obvious, but in some locations and at certain times of year, you may need more than your typical business attire in order to be prepared and comfortable. Before packing, check the weather forecast for your destination.
• Confirm Arrangements: Verify that a hotel will provide all the services you will need before booking. Once arrangements have been completed — but before setting out on your business trip — confirm lodging and other travel details to ensure that everything is in order and your itinerary is accurate.

Creating an organized itinerary will give you a map to follow during your trip so that you can focus on business engagements and other work responsibilities.

Create Flawless Travel Itineraries with Work Management in Smartsheet

Empower your people to go above and beyond with a flexible platform designed to match the needs of your team — and adapt as those needs change. 

The Smartsheet platform makes it easy to plan, capture, manage, and report on work from anywhere, helping your team be more effective and get more done. Report on key metrics and get real-time visibility into work as it happens with roll-up reports, dashboards, and automated workflows built to keep your team connected and informed. 

When teams have clarity into the work getting done, there’s no telling how much more they can accomplish in the same amount of time.  Try Smartsheet for free, today.

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How to Create a Trip Planning Spreadsheet [5 Free Templates]

• Last updated April 25, 2023

Travel planning can get exhausting, especially when you have no clear starting point. You can make this (at least) tolerable by creating a trip planning spreadsheet. Here, you can keep your itinerary, transportation details, budget allocation, and similar aspects.

In this article, we’ll discuss how you can create a trip planning spreadsheet using Google Sheets and why it’s so useful. We’ll also provide five different templates you can readily use for your travel planning.

Table of Contents

How to Create a Trip Planning Spreadsheet on Google Sheets

Step 1: make multiple tabs on your spreadsheet.

To keep your travel planner tidy, you should first create several tabs inside your spreadsheet. This allows you to categorize the kinds of information you’re going to deal with. For example, you can separate your flight details from your budget planning.

Follow the instructions below to do this.

• Launch your browser, then go to https://sheets.google.com/ .
• Click “ Blank ” under the “ Start a new spreadsheet ” section.

• Hover over the name of the current worksheet (usually named “ Sheet1 ”), click on the drop-down arrow, then select “Rename.”

• Type your preferred worksheet name, then press  “Enter”  or “Return”  on your keyboard.
• To add another worksheet, click on the  “Add Sheet”  icon (plus + symbol) at the bottom-left corner of your screen.

• Repeat steps 1 to 4 to rename the worksheet.

Common Tabs to Add

You can create many kinds of worksheets depending on your specific requirements. Here are some common tabs you’d typically see in a trip planning spreadsheet:

• Itinerary: Include the basic details of the places you plan to be in, like dinner reservations, conferences you need to attend, tourist attractions, etc.
• Transportation: Keep your flight schedule, the routes you plan to take, your commute options (car rental, bus, etc.), and similar information.
• Accommodation: List the names and locations of your lodgings. You can also include whether or not you’ve made a reservation already, the room prices, and more.
• Food: Plan where you can get your meals, the restaurants you want to visit, and the average costs of eating out.
• Budget: Track your day-to-day expenses and see how much money you’re left with.
• Packing List: Don’t leave anything essential at home before embarking on your trip — passports, IDs, cash, and similar things.
• Activities:  List the things that you can do at your destination, like bar hopping, nightlife activities, concerts, and so on.

Step 2: Add Column Headers

After creating multiple tabs, you can further categorize your details using column headers. These are found at the top of your worksheet, describing what kind of values are present in a column’s cells.

To add column headers, simply follow these steps.

• Click on the first cell (cell A1) in the upper-left corner of your worksheet.
• Enter your preferred column header, such as “Location”  (as used in our example).
• Repeat the previous step for other cells in the same row. (We used the headers “Date,” “Time,” “Transportation,” “Costs,”  and  “Status”  in our example below).

• Once done, select all the column headers you’ve added, then click “Bold”  in the toolbar.

• Alternatively, you can make them bold by pressing “Ctrl” + “B” (or “Cmd” + “B”  for Mac) on your keyboard.

Common Column Headers

The column headers we’ve used in the demonstration above are applicable to the Itinerary tab. Keep in mind that you can virtually use any word or phrase for your column headers, though. Below are some options you can consider.

For the Accommodation tab

• Nearby shops and attractions
• Room prices

For the Transportation tab

• Travel date and times
• Flight details, such as flight schedule and flight number
• Car rental company, including name, address, and contact number

For the Budget tab

• Daily budget
• Total budget
• Total amount spent
• Amount remaining
• Expense description

After adding your column headers, you can start filling out the fields with your information.

Step 3: Personalize Your Travel Planning Spreadsheet

All that’s left for you to do is add a touch of creativity to your vacation spreadsheet. Here are some ways you can do this.

Use Conditional Formatting

The term “conditional formatting” simply refers to a change in a cell’s appearance when certain requirements are met. Below is an example where we change a cell’s color to green when it contains the word  “Done.”

• Right-click on a cell, then select “View more cell actions” > “Conditional formatting.”

• On the side panel that appears, click the drop-down list under the “Format cells if…”  menu.

• Select  “Text is exactly”  from the options.

• Type  “Done”  in the “Value or formula”  field.
• Click on the “Done”  button to save your changes.

• Drag the cell’s contents to copy the conditional formatting rules to other cells.

Use Alternating Colors

If you’re dealing with a lot of details, you can also use alternating colors, making it easier for you to read. Here’s how to enable different cell colors on your spreadsheet.

• Select the cells you want to display in alternating colors.
• On the menu bar, select “Format” > “Alternating colors.”

• Choose your preferred color, then click the  “Done”  button to save your changes.

When to Use a Trip Planner Template

You can use spreadsheets every time you’re planning a trip — there’s no reason you shouldn’t! They are handy regardless of whether you’re traveling to a nearby town or going on an overseas vacation.

How about trip planner templates? Well, if you don’t have the time to create a spreadsheet from scratch, using a template would be excellent. These are some helpful pre-made planners that are ready for you to fill out.

Free Google Sheets Trip Planner Templates

1. daily itinerary planner spreadsheet.

Especially when traveling to faraway places, going into detail about the activities you plan to do daily is a good practice. You can share this daily itinerary with the people you went on a trip with, letting them know where to find you in case of grave situations.

Template Features

• Categorize your itinerary into multiple days (which are color-coded for organization)
• Describe your activities in a separate section and indicate the time and location where you’ll do them
• List the diners or restaurants where you can eat near the location of your activity
• Schedule your day properly by indicating the end time for each activity

Access Template

2. Travel Budget Template

Allocating your travel budget ahead of time lets you set boundaries when it comes to spending. This lets you know what costs you need to put first, too. Such money allocation is rarely followed, though (with impulsive purchases and unplanned expenses), making it important to have an expense planner and tracker throughout your trip.

• Categorize your expenses per location according to the transportation you used, your accommodation, food you ate, and activities you did
• Pick from a drop-down list of common transportation methods (e.g., bus, car rental, ferry, etc.)
• Enter your total and daily budget allocation, as well as their converted counterparts in your destination’s local currency
• Automatically calculate your daily expenses, including the total amount spent and your remaining budget for the day
• Calculate your total expenses throughout the trip, as well as the amount remaining from your budget

3. Travel Checklist Template

Successful and non-stressful trips can’t go without good preparation. For example, you’d want to ensure that your passport hasn’t expired yet before strutting over to your flight. A travel checklist spreadsheet would be handy in this case.

• Set a completion status for each of your to-dos
• Categorize your to-do list into  “Travel prep,” “Home prep,” “Transportation,”  and “Money/documents”
• Add notes to each item on the list
• Set a due date for your to-dos
• Determine the number of days remaining for you to accomplish the things listed with an automatic counter included
• Automatically count the number of tasks that are not yet done and those already finished

4. Destination Planner Spreadsheet

Researching your destination should always be part of your planning. For example, you want to know the available hotels and accommodations that you can opt for in your target location. This lets you find the ones with the lowest prices, the most convenient in terms of route, and more.

Knowing the current climate and the community there would be essential too. This allows you to anticipate what things to bring, what activities you can possibly do, and similar aspects.

• Enter your destination’s information, such as its current season, whether it’s rural or urban, and more
• List the tourist spots that you can visit in your destination, including their name, specific location, and transportation route
• Detail the activities that you want to do, together with their category, description, duration, and estimated expenses
• Find and compile a list of all available accommodations in your target location, as well as their name, address, price range, and pros/cons

5. Packing List Template

Before your trip, it is helpful to make a packing list of everything you’ll need — bathing essentials, clothing, money, documents, and more. Then, right before leaving your home, you can do a quick check to see if you’ve already placed every item on your list inside your luggage. You can do both with a packing list spreadsheet.

• Enter the details of your target destination, such as its usual weather, temperature, clothing restrictions, and more
• Add notes about your packing list
• Categorize your items by location, like the beach, conference, office, and other places
• Classify your things by type, such as clothing, money, documents, electronics, etc.
• Mark the items “Ready” once you have prepared them inside your luggage

Why Use Our Templates?

Below are some reasons you’d want to use the travel spreadsheet templates we have here at Spreadsheet Point :

Formulas and Drop-down Lists

We added several drop-down lists for common topics to make things easier for you. For instance, we included a drop-down where you can select common transportation types like buses, ferries, airplanes, car rentals, and more.

Easy Sharing and Collaboration

All of our templates are built on Google Sheets — you can easily collaborate with your friends in planning your trip with the  “Share”  button.

Color-Coded Categories

We displayed each category in unique colors and shades to keep them tidy.

Other Trips on Planning Your Travel

In addition to the travel planning templates we’ve discussed, here are a few bonus tips you can apply to prepare for your trip:

• Pick a location that your current finances can accommodate.
• Don’t bring things that won’t fit inside your backpack to avoid paying for extra luggage costs.
• When selecting a hotel or apartment, choose one that’s near major transportation lines.
• Weigh whether taking a bus would be more cost-effective than taking a flight.
• Always get travel insurance before embarking on your trip — it won’t shield you from accidents, but it will keep you from having an empty bank account.

Enjoy Your Trip with Everything Prepared

A lot of unknowns await you at your destination — unexpected expenses, spontaneous activities, booking problems, and more. With a trip planning spreadsheet, you can minimize these by anticipating the things on your journey. Feel free to use the templates we’ve included here to plan a successful trip today.

You can also access more of these useful templates on our Gumroad  profile. Don’t forget to use the code “ SSP ” to get 50% off all templates!

• 4 Free Google Sheets Itinerary Templates To Plan Your Trip
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The Travel Quandary

The Ultimate Trip Planner Template – Easy To Use Excel Format!

You’re about to embark on your next adventure – hooray! 

Travel planning comes naturally to some who thrive on the challenge to find the best deal on a tour, stay at the coolest hotel or dine at the hottest new restaurant. These travellers are always at the airport on time, check opening hours of attractions before leaving home and have packing down to a fine art form. On the other end of the scale, there are travellers who prefer to go with the flow, do things spontaneously and are happy to rock up to a new destination and “wing it”.

According to the World Tourism Organization (UNTWO), 1.4 billion people travelled internationally in 2018. And apparently, there are over 750 million users of Microsoft Excel worldwide. There’s a high chance that you’ll fall into both of these categories (we don’t know the exact number but it would make for a pretty neat Venn diagram). And if you also classify yourself as an “unprepared” and/or “unorganised” traveller, our trip planner template is designed to help YOU.

Microsoft Excel is not only used by accountants and finance people. Microsoft Excel has become the ultimate planning and analysis tool, recognised and used worldwide which is why we’ve chosen it to create our trip planner template. We hope you find it useful and welcome your feedback and recommendations!

FREE TRIP PLANNER TEMPLATE! MICROSOFT EXCEL & GOOGLE DOCS

Why use a spreadsheet to plan your trip.

• Identify gaps in your itinerary (closures, public holidays, mandatory reservations)
• Save money (better budget decisions, better choices on trip)
• To get you excited! You’re going on a holiday! Hooray!

Download your free trip planner template here

Note: For Google Docs template, download the .zip file and upload the spreadsheet to your Google Drive. Once uploaded, open with Google Sheets.

Using this spreadsheet

The Ultimate Trip Planner Template is built into a spreadsheet which is divided into six sections. We’ve built this trip planner to include 16 days of travel but you can adjust the length of the trip by adding or removing columns in the spreadsheet.

Once you’ve confirmed your travel plans, add them here. This is where you can record all your reservations – flight details, accommodation, car rental, equipment rental, tour reservations etc. Listing them on one tab means you can quickly jump in and find those important details when you need them.

2. Planning

Researching airlines, hotels, Airbnbs, car hire, tour operators and travel insurance policies can be exhausting. You’ll probably go through a phase where you’ll have so many tabs open on your browser, it’ll make you want to pull your hair out! If you also need to compare prices and dates with your travel companions, it can become downright overwhelming.

When you find a potential option you like, add it to the “Planning” tab. When your research is condensed into a neat summary, it will be a simple exercise of reviewing all possible suppliers, key dates and prices and then after a process of elimination, you will be left with the most suitable option.

A budget is by no means set in stone. Our budget tab is designed to help with your travel planning decisions. We feel that it is important to understand the costs of a holiday before making any hasty decisions. And we consider it even more important that you don’t spend beyond your means!

We don’t want to sound like party-poopers but the last thing you want is to get ripped off and/or find yourself stuck abroad without any money. By understanding where you plan to spend the bulk of your hard-earned money on your holiday, you can plan where you’ll allow yourself to splurge and other areas where you may need to tighten the purse strings.

For example, we give ourselves extra budget for food and coffee experiences as this is an aspect we love about travelling. We tend to book budget/basic accommodation on the road depending on the destination and available options, as all we need is a bed, access to a (preferably) hot shower in a secure room.

A good chunk of your budget will already be paid or known in advance before you’ve even left home (i.e. flights, some ground transport, accommodation, tours (if applicable) etc), so this should also help when allocating your budget to food, shopping and extras. There will also be times where you need to be strict and say “no” if your gut feeling and bank account tell you that you cannot afford a certain something. Be conservative but also be kind to yourself – you are treating yourself to a holiday after all and you’ll have to spend money to fully enjoy the experience!

4. Itinerary

We spend a lot of time planning our travel itineraries on a day by day basis and even breaking it down to each hour of each day. Some people call us crazy but when we are short on time and have an extensive list of things to see/do/eat/shop etc, we prefer to be organised.

Laying out our trip day by day also helps us to block out periods of time for travel or to take note of when restaurants and attractions are closed. Of course, plans can and will change. Rain may force you indoors (museums, galleries, shopping) or an unknown public holiday may disrupt your planned travel day.

We recommend using this tab to roughly outline your plans and drop in the activities and places you simply cannot miss. You can move activities to different days if your original plan doesn’t work out. If you want, record your daily expenses at the bottom and you can track how your actual spending goes against your budget.

5. Packing List

For those who begrudge packing, it tends to be the case that you will end up wearing 20% of your packed belongings during 80% of your trip. Or if you’ve left packing until the last minute and thrown items higgledy-piggledy into your suitcase, you’ll arrive at your accommodation to realise you’ve forgotten your favourite undies or packed the wrong shoes.

Packing lists work. Once you’ve considered the weather and climate at your destination, your baggage allowance plus the duration of your trip, you can plan what you need and limit unnecessary purchases on the other side.

We’ve compiled a pretty epic packing list covering practically every type of adventure and possibly everything that you may need. Feel free to adjust accordingly to your requirements.

6. Checklist

This is the final step before you walk out your front door to embark on a brand new adventure. Before you go, use this tab to ensure you’ve dotted all the i’s and crossed all the t’s. And then you’re off!

Bon voyage!

WHERE WILL YOU TRAVEL NEXT?

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Give us your feedback of the Trip Planner Template below!

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CONTINUE PLANNING YOUR TRAVELS

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28 thoughts on “the ultimate trip planner template – easy to use excel format”.

HOLY COW I cannot believe I found EVERYTHING I needed all in one for FREE. I feel like I have ROBBED someone! My partner and I never grew up in households where family vacations were had, so we have no idea what were doing. Thank you kindly to The Travel Quandary. If I can donate, share your page, volunteer, etc. let me know how I can repay <3

SO HELPFUL ! THANK YOU SO MUCH !

How you extend the dates! I am going for a month

This template is so great! Planning a trip to New Zealand and will be traveling around a lot – this is super helpful!

NICE!! MUCHAS GRACIAS VERY COOL!!! Alina

Thank you so much for sharing your knowledge and your files!

Thanks so much for the template. This is a very good start for a traveller like me. Easy to use!

Amazing template! Exactly what I needed. Thank you!

Thank you for the great tool! I was wondering if theres a way to enter an end date as well to the itenerary?

Hi there! I was wrapped to see that the template is created by some Aussies! and local ones as well. I’m from Melbourne! Template is a charm! Just what I’ve been looking for ages! Planning our Europe trip for 2023 that got cancelled in 2020! (We all know why!!) Will let you know how it goes and will definitely check out your website! Thanks,

Hi Rosanna, we’re so glad to hear that you’ve found this template useful! Very jealous that you’re planning an escapade to Europe. No doubt it will be amazing! Safe travels 🙂

Thankyou for your post on THE ULTIMATE TRIP PLANNER TEMPLATE on excel. It is very usefull. I have been using this template to plan my trips for a while now and it has saved me a lot of time. I highly recommend it to anyone who is looking for a travel planner.

Didn’t work. At least, not on my version of excel.

something about “delimited” something or another.

Hi Piotr, We’re sorry to hear this. What version of excel are you using? Are you on a Mac or PC? If you wish, we can email you an Excel copy of the template.

So so sooo helpful! I’m happy to find this great itinerary template! Thank you so much.

Thanks Tahira! We’re so glad that you found it helpful. Enjoy your travels! 🙂

Hi Tahira, we’re thrilled you found this template helpful. Enjoy your travels!

I needed this so much, easy and simply. Thank you for a great spreadsheet.

Thanks Nga! Happy travel planning!

Hi Nga, we’re so glad you loved this spreadsheet. Hope you had an amazing travel adventure!

Thank you , soooo much ! I appreciate you putting this together and sharing it

Hi Priscilla! So glad that you found this planning template useful! We hope you enjoy your trip!

I am so excited to find this. (Thank you, Pinterest!) I will be leaving in a month on an eight day train trip and this is exactly what I needed to get all my ducks in a row. Thank you so much!

HiTeresa! We’re so glad to hear this and so exciting for you. Enjoy your trip!

This is great! Found this as i was looking for a newer travel planner and this is very helpful and user friendly!

We’re so glad to hear this! Happy travel planning!

great tool. never used a planner before and it has most every item to consider… add a route sheet for those who driving to, during and back from their vacations…

Glad you like it and thanks for the feedback. We’ll look into adding a new tab for routes.

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Plan a trip to perfection with a vacation itinerary template

Whether you’re planning a weekend city break, or organizing a year-long, around-the-world journey, planning a trip requires organizing dozens of details. A vacation itinerary template helps you manage the schedule, budget, and logistical information of your trip. In this article, we’ll explain what a vacation itinerary template is, why you need one, and share examples and templates to help you plan your perfect vacation.

Get the template

What is a vacation itinerary template?

A vacation itinerary template is a document you can use to create a travel plan and centralize all the details of your trip — it’s basically a travel schedule with space for other useful travel information such as:

• Flight departure and arrival times
• Accommodation name and address
• Contact details
• Any excursions or events planned for the trip
• Trip essentials, such as sunscreen or protective clothing
• Information about the destination and how to respect the local people and culture
• Useful phrases in the local language

The itinerary format depends on your needs — you might create a travel spreadsheet template in Excel if you’re focused on costs or try a Google Docs itinerary template for more general planning. If you want a simpler visual of your schedule, a Gantt chart view might be a good choice, as you can see in the example below. However, a capable Work OS is a more flexible option than Word or Excel because it allows you to do both — but more on this later. First, let’s cover why you should use a vacation itinerary template in the first place.

Download Excel template

Why use a vacation itinerary template?

Whether you’re a solo traveler or the official trip planner for a 20-person European tour, an event itinerary template helps ensure you don’t skip over any important details. It’s especially helpful when traveling in groups as it’s a way to make sure everyone has all the information they need. Ultimately, an itinerary planner template can improve the quality of your trips by allowing you to:

1. Centralize your travel information in one place

Travel often involves using more than one form of transport or catching a connecting flight. A travel itinerary enables you to keep your travel information all in one place, including departure and arrival times, flight numbers, and public transport information. So it’s much easier for you to reach your destination on time without getting lost.

2. Make the most of your time

With limited time in an amazing location, you want to make the most of it and ensure you don’t miss any once-in-a-lifetime experiences. A vacation itinerary template helps you plan out your vacation — to the day or even to the hour — just like a business travel itinerary helps you schedule your work trips.

3. Manage your budget

Even when you’re traveling for leisure, it’s always a good idea to have a cost management system in place. When you’re dealing with foreign currency, expenditures can quickly get out of hand. Some robust itinerary templates provide space to estimate the costs and track the expenses of your trip.

4. Pack everything you need

Once you’ve planned where you’re jetting off to, you need to know exactly what you’ll need when you get there. A vacation itinerary template is the perfect place to list your travel essentials, especially if your trip involves several destinations or different types of activities. You can also make a note of any medicines you’ll need as well as local emergency numbers.

What are some examples of a vacation itinerary template?

Ready to start bringing your trip ideas to life with a travel schedule template? Take a look at these four examples of vacation itinerary templates to get your inspiration flowing.

Flight itinerary template example

This classic example of a flight itinerary contains all the details a traveler needs for a smooth and carefree flight, including:

• Information about passports and visas
• Departure airport
• Travel destination
• Departure time
• Flight number
• Connecting flight and layover details
• Booking reference
• Airline rules and regulations

Juggling all of that information without an organization system could quickly become overwhelming. A flight itinerary template ensures that all of your important flight information is contained in one place and is clear and easy to understand.

( Image Source )

Daily itinerary template example

There are almost unlimited ways to create a daily itinerary — which is best for you will depend on the type of activities you planned. One way to do it is to lay it out like the example below. It has a schedule column on the left and a checklist of must-see sights on the right.

This enables you to plan your route in the way that makes the most sense and make sure you don’t miss anything important. It also has space for meal planning , so no one gets hangry, and the weather forecast, so everyone dresses appropriately.

Family holiday itinerary template example

Traveling with kids can be chaotic, but a family holiday itinerary template like the one below can take the stress out of it. It has space for:

• Personal information
• Flights and car rental details
• Accommodation
• Travel insurance

It can help make sure everyone gets to the right place at the right time and has all the information they need in case they get separated from the group.

Road trip itinerary template example

If you’re planning a road trip, and want a quick way to jot down some basic details, the trip itinerary example below may help make sure everyone has the information they need. This includes:

• Name of the group
• Daily schedule
• Contact information
• Other information such as restaurants, accommodation, and meeting points

This ensures that everyone has the same information and minimizes the risk of the group getting separated.

But if you organize a lot of trips, you might want to consider a Work OS like monday.com as an alternative to creating several single travel itinerary templates like the ones above.

monday.com’s vacation itinerary template

The team at monday.com has created a trip itinerary template that you can download and start using as an itinerary planner right away.

monday.com’s Work OS allows you to build and organize projects using customizable columns, statuses, automations, and more. Since each trip is unique, this makes it the perfect solution for planning and managing tailor-made travel itineraries.

For example, you can use monday.com’s project management features to manage each vacation, creating a workflow of tasks that span from the pre-departure preparations — such as visas or vaccinations — to the post-trip vacation feedback form.

Suppose you’re planning several trips at once. In that case, you can use the Board and Dashboard views to visualize the data of one or all your trips simultaneously, allowing you to track the expenses against the budget and reallocate resources where necessary.

Another way to visualize your trip would be to use the Location Column to plot your itinerary:

Once plotted, you can then view it on the Map view, so it’s easy to reach all your destinations on time:

Now that you’re familiar with the monday.com vacation itinerary template, let’s look at how you can maximize its abilities.

3 tips for making the most out of your vacation itinerary template

By now, you’re probably excited to create your perfect vacation itinerary. Use these three tips to plan the vacation of your dreams.

1. Don’t try to cram too much in

It can be tempting to try to see as many sights — or even countries — in as little time as possible. But sometimes, it can be more rewarding to take it slow and savor your time in each destination. The same goes for activities — if you try to do too many, you might end up burning out. This is your vacation, so build in some time to rest, too.

2. Take advantage of your layover

Long airport layovers can be a drag, so why not head out to explore a new city for a few hours? Use your itinerary to make a note of local sights or restaurants to visit, as well as transport information. Just remember to write down your flight departure time, too!

3. Be flexible

While it’s great to be prepared, it’s just as important to be flexible and allow your travels to surprise you. Perhaps a local family invites you to their home on the day you were planning to visit a Mayan temple. No problem! Just switch your plans around and go another day.

If you’re still unsure about vacation itinerary templates, here are the answers to a few of the most common questions about them to clarify.

FAQs about vacation itinerary templates

How do i make a vacation itinerary.

Follow these steps to create your vacation itinerary:

• Decide on your destination and dates
• Set your budget
• Search for and book flights
• Ensure your documentation and vaccines are up-to-date
• Decide on your travel schedule and activities
• Book hotels
• Research how to get from one destination to another
• Buy travel insurance
• Get familiar with local customs
• Write a packing list
• Include all this information in your vacation itinerary

A highly-customizable vacation itinerary template, such as the one by monday.com, makes remembering and organizing all this information much more simple.

How do I create a vacation itinerary in Excel?

To create a comprehensive trip itinerary template in Excel, open a new Excel spreadsheet. Use the tabs to create a separate sheet for each aspect of your trip, such as:

• Useful information
• Sights and attractions to visit
• Flight details
• Accommodation details
• Itinerary by day, week, or month

You can also accomplish all of this in a more streamlined way on monday.com. Our Work OS allows for real-time collaboration and cloud-based documentation of your vacation itinerary, making it easy to work on it together or share it with the group when you’re finished.

What is a travel itinerary format?

A travel itinerary format is a document that includes all the necessary information for a vacation or business trip. This may be as simple as departure and return dates with flight information, or it may contain extra details such as hotel contact details, scheduled activities, and essential items to pack.

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Ai generator.

Careful planning is crucial to effective business or personal trip. To make sure that you have a successful travel, use a travel planner that captures the minutest details of the travel. A travel planner lets you write down all the important information regarding the upcoming vacation or trip. It includes details about both rounds of the trip, car rentals or connecting flights, accommodation, arrival and departure times and activities to do.

This article contains 10+ travel planner examples and templates to get you started quickly. Also, check these vacation checklist examples .

Travel Planner Examples & Templates

1. free business travel itinerary planner template.

Size: A4 & US

Need to have a perfect vacation? Then you need to plan well beforehand. This free business travel itinerary planner template enables you to organize your upcoming travel schedule so you have a hitch-free vacation. The template can be downloaded freely and is also printable. Compatible with Excel, Numbers, Pages and Word document formats, this template features designs and layouts that are very easy to use. Just download the template, customize, edit and print out your itinerary. You can even share it with colleagues. Also have a look at these travel journal writing examples .

2. Assistant Travel Planner Sample

Size: 100 KB

To get ready for that upcoming road trip, use this template to make your own itinerary . With a proper travel plan, you will not only have a hassle-free time but also you will be sure to take care of all the details. The template is well formatted and is populated with items with your only work being to provide the right information. It makes your work easier and enables you to generate a professional-looking travel plan in just minutes. Download today to start planning your travel

3. Travel Planner Example

Size: 294 KB

This travel planner example may be used by travel agents and individuals to create their own travel plans fast and conveniently. Available on instant download on the internet, the template can be edited to include all the relevant client details and type of trip for instance travel insurance options, flight preferences, discounts offered or lodging information. This printable PDF-based form can be edited easily without the use of a special program. Just download the template and customize it to fit your own needs.

4. Group Travel Planner Sample

Size: 96 KB

Have you been tasked with organizing a group travel? Use this professionally designed template to plan a quick 3-day trip, 5-day excursion or even a longer vacation. The template allows you to make as well as record plans for every single day of your upcoming trip. This includes entertainment ideas, restaurant reservations, nightly lodging, and transportation. The template gives you a comprehensive look at your itinerary and also an outline of the whole vacation. The template is easily accessible via instant download and can be edited and customized.

5. Travel Basics for Travel Planner

Size: 44 KB

Although you need to plan in advance to create an effective vacation itinerary, doing so lets you relax and even enjoy a stress-free trip without need to make any arrangements while traveling. Use this travel planner template to compile information and create a travel plan according to what you find out. You can use this travel planner to plan various types of trips, whether it is student field trips, reunions or family vacations. The PDF-based template is easily accessible anywhere and anytime via instant download, and can be edited and customized quickly. Get your copy now by downloading it.

6. Sample Travel Planner

Size: 16 KB

With this sample travel planner, you can create your trip schedule and all the events you plan to do in one day. The template lets you track items that you should bring tourist attractions to visit, restaurant locations and important notes. Also, you can create a guide to help you throughout the day. You can adjust your travel plans as you see fit or just stick to the travel plan. Download the template today and start planning your road trip or vacation.

7. Homestead Travel Planner

This homestead travel planner template has been designed specifically for use by families. It contains sections where you get to list all the crucial details of the trip such as medical information and contacts, traveler names and travel plans. Track activities your family has planned and enjoy your journey. The template is available in an easy-to-download PDF document file. You can edit it, customize and even print or share electronically with other members.

8. Travel Planner Appreciation Showcase

Size: 475 KB

You can use this template to create your travel planner easily and fast. This template let you plan your trip to the last detail, so that nothing can go wrong during the vacation. Easy to edit and highly customizable, the template lets you plan in advance where you will stay, which activities you will be doing and the transportation details. It makes your work of creating a travel planner easy as it already captures the essential aspects. Download your copy today.

9. Annual Professional Travel Planner

Size: 184 KB

This is a properly-formatted itinerary template that has been designed for organizing and planning business trips. The template lets you organize your important details of the trip like flight schedule, arrangements for rental cars and hotel reservations. Having captured all this information in one spreadsheet, you can refer to it easily anytime you need to. This professional travel planner template will suit your fine if you are organizing a trip for your colleagues. The template can even be made to include the purpose of the trip.

10. Travel Planner Forum

Size: 13 KB

This travel planner form is fully customizable according to your requirements. After you’ve made the template, just fill in your details of the trip and you can refer to them later easily. The template is available instantly upon download, and you can edit it without requiring help. Get it today.

11. Travel Planner Rate Card

This travel planner rate card is what you need to plan a hitch-free vacation or trip. The pre-formatted template makes your work easier as it helps you organize information and details of your travel like flight schedule, restaurant details and car rentals. It is customizable and fully editable so there is no need for a special program. Just plug in your details into this ready-made template.

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Traveling in 2023? Here’s the vacation planner template to help you pack, prioritize, and play

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Planning a vacation is exciting: researching what you’ll see, where you’ll stay, what you’ll eat. The entire process can overwhelm you with the feeling of boundless potential. A cheap airfare quote pops up in your inbox and suddenly the world is your oyster—where eating oysters in another part of the world is no longer a fantasy.

But before you fashion yourself a modern day Magellan, don’t forget there’s a lot of pesky logistics to handle that can make or break a stress-free vacation. Check out this video to see how Trello can help. 

Create your checklist in the Trello app or on desktop

Planning a vacay with Trello is so easy. Open up this sample board to get started. Hit “Copy board” in the upper-right hand corner to overwrite this trip plan with your own info. 

The first step to planning the best vacation ever begins with a Trello board. Set up your vacation board with two distinct halves: there are lists for the tasks you need to accomplish while planning your vacation, and the lists for everything you want to do once you’ve arrived at your destination.

Start by adding “To Do,” “Doing,” and “Done” lists to your boards, and on the “To Do” list add cards for everything you need to do to get ready for the trip, such as:

• Book flights
• Book lodging (hotels, Airbnbs, etc.)
• Renew passports
• Buy guidebooks
• …etc, etc.

As you tackle a task, move it to “Doing” and attach any relevant links, confirmations, or other attachments. Once the task is complete, drag it to the “Done” list.

The most important thing is to get everything out of your head and onto your Trello board. The last thing you want is a modern-day version of Home Alone, or worse yet, arriving in paradise without a place to stay because you thought Kevin booked it.

On the second half of the board, add a list to plan out all of the activities you want to do on your trip. If you and your group are a bunch of foodies, add a separate list of places to eat and drink. On both the “Activities” and “Eat and Drink” lists everyone you’re traveling with can add cards to keep your bellies full and days packed with fun.

Invite your group to help with planning

Before you can hop on that flight and prepare for take-off, there’s a ton of things to get done. Some of these items are time sensitive, like making sure passports are up to date, and arranging pet care for Sparky.

If you are traveling with family or friends, invite them to the board and delegate tasks by adding them to cards. Everyone can drag their cards from the “To Do” to “Doing” and finally to “Done” as they complete their tasks (way to score an upgrade with those bonus points, mom) and your dream vacation starts to take shape.

Add due dates to cards to make sure these things get done with enough time. Whoever is assigned the card will get a friendly notification nudge 24-hours before the card is due. When it’s taken care of, check off that due date to mark the card as done. It will let your vacation collaborators know that travel to-do is taken care of!

Put all the details in one place

The great thing about Trello is that it allows you to keep your itinerary and all of the important information organized in one place, which means you can take a break from repeatedly digging through your inbox and set your sails to Relaxationville.

As you book your flights, hotels, rentals, and activities, add important information like addresses, confirmation numbers, and websites to each respective card’s description. You can even attach confirmation emails directly to Trello cards right from your inbox with either the Trello for Gmail Add-on or by forwarding the email to a card’s unique email address .

Now, instead of fumbling through your inbox for your itinerary, you can open your Trello board on your phone and easily access your tickets, tracking numbers, and confirmation details in one location.

Create and share checklists for packing and prep

The unwritten rules of vacation prep are as follows:

• Don’t forget to pack your cell phone charger!
• There’s a reason a hotel’s rates are low.
• Most importantly, you can never have enough checklists.

Expand on a task by adding a checklist to a card. A good example of this is making a packing list card for each person, then adding a checklist to the card with all the items they will need to pack. It’s a great way to never forget your cellphone charger again, so you can stay connected and post all those selfies by the pool to Instagram.

Stay on track with Trello’s Map

As you and your group start planning out excursions, add the location of each adventure to the card. Then, toggle to Trello Map view to see them in all in reference to one another.

You might discover that amazing restaurant recommendation is all the way across town from your Wednesday activities, but a mere blocks from your Thursday jaunts. Easy fix: just swap the dates for each dinner and you suddenly look like a regular old Rick Steves . The most efficient and optimized trip is in sight!

Gotta go mobile

If you haven’t already, make sure to grab the Trello mobile apps for Android and iOS. Not only does this mean that you will have your itinerary and important information always available in the palm of your hands, but Trello’s mobile apps work offline as well.

So when you are flying high in the sky and your chatty aisle buddy has a million must-do’s to tell you about, you can add them right to your board without dropping a dime on inflight wifi. Most importantly, it means that wherever you are in the world you’ll have access to the travel info you need, even without a cell signal.

Finally, there’s no need for you to try out all these tips from scratch. Plan your vacation in a snap using our sample board. It’s free to copy! Grab it here:

Check out the sample board!   Copy and customize it for your own trip.

Trello can’t predict the weather or guarantee your flight won’t be delayed, but it can keep you sane before your trip, or during any unplanned travel disruptions. With your Trello board handy and your trip details organized, you’ll be flying high like a Boeing 777 in no time. Safe travels, and remember: Getting there starts with Trello!

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How to Get the Best Car Insurance

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For a lot of people, buying car insurance is like buying sliced bread. It’s not the most exciting purchase, and the options all seem similar. So thrifty shoppers might simply reach for the cheapest thing on the shelf. But like cheap bread, cheap car insurance may leave you wishing you spent a little more on quality.

“The cheapest is not always the best,” warns Jessica McNally, an agency owner with Goosehead Insurance in Dallas. That’s because there are lots of factors that make up a car insurance company. And while price is one of them, it’s best to look at the bigger picture.

Here’s what to look for when picking the best car insurance company.

1. Choose a financially stable company

The best car insurance companies have plenty of money on hand to pay for customers’ claims. It’s important to check an insurer’s financial stability before buying a policy, especially if it’s a smaller insurer you’ve never heard of.

There are several independent agencies that evaluate the financial strength of insurance companies. One example is A.M. Best. You can use its online search tool to find an insurer’s financial strength rating. Companies with a rating of A or higher are considered to have an excellent ability to pay out customer claims.

2. Check customer satisfaction ratings and reviews

Not every insurer is customer-first. That’s why it’s important to research the customer satisfaction of insurers you’re considering.

You can turn to surveys from companies like J.D. Power to find insurers with the best customer satisfaction scores [0] J.D. Power . Auto Insurance Customer Satisfaction Plummets as Rates Continue to Surge, J.D. Power Finds . Accessed May 21, 2024. View all sources . Or, if you don’t mind doing a little detective work, you can compare customer complaints against insurers by using the National Association of Insurance Commissioners’ website . But take other people’s emotionally charged comments about companies or agents you might read online with a grain of salt, McNally advises.

3. Look for convenience

A great auto insurer should offer multiple ways to manage a policy. For example, some insurers allow customers to use a mobile app to file and track claims. But it’s hard to tell how simple it’ll be to file a claim or perform other essential tasks, like paying your premium, before becoming a customer.

Some telltale signs that an insurer will be easy to work with are high mobile app ratings, flexible customer service hours and an easy-to-use website with helpful content. Consider asking a company representative to walk you through the claims process to learn what you’ll need to do if you have to file a claim. And pay attention to how the company communicates with you. "If they don't properly communicate, well, that's a warning sign," says Michael DeLong, a research and advocacy associate for the nonprofit Consumer Federation of America.

4. Pick an affordable company

Car insurance premiums are stretching to record-breaking heights [0] U.S. BUREAU OF LABOR STATISTICS . Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) . Accessed May 21, 2024. View all sources , and almost half of U.S. consumers shopped for a new car insurance policy in the past year, according to an April 2024 report by J.D. Power [0] J.D. Power . Half of Auto Insurance Customers Currently Shopping for New Policies, J.D. Power Finds . Accessed May 21, 2024. View all sources . The best car insurance companies offer competitive rates and a variety of potential discounts.

It’s not hard to get car insurance quotes online from many companies. Make sure you compare the same coverage options throughout the quote-gathering process. And don’t forget to look for car insurance discounts, like breaks for being a good driver, paying your premium in full or driving a new car.

More tips to find the best car insurance

When shopping for the best car insurance, keep the following tips in mind.

Assess your needs. Before buying car insurance, take a moment to reflect on what’s important to you and your family. For example, maybe you prioritize affordability and a well-polished mobile app, but don’t need accident forgiveness .  

Consider small insurers. There are lots of small insurance companies you’ve probably never heard of. These regional insurers may provide lower rates and better customer service than the big companies you see advertised on TV.

Work with an independent agent. While it may be easy to get quotes yourself, independent car insurance agents and brokers can streamline the process. These experts vet companies and compile quotes from small and large insurers on your behalf. Independent agents and brokers can especially come in handy if you have a less-than-perfect driving record and can’t find insurance on your own.

Do your research. Search online for recent mentions of a company in the news before buying a policy, recommends DeLong. If you find a company has lots of recent lawsuits against it, you may want to think twice about signing on the dotted line. “And if they've had to pay out settlements, that's an even bigger red flag,” DeLong says.

Shop around once a year. Make a practice of shopping for car insurance every year — especially if price is important to you. Insurers adjust car insurance rates regularly, so what might have been the most affordable option last year may no longer be a bargain.

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