Do you plan non-Disney vacations well in advance too?

[OctMtnWoods]

I have a vacation place I would like to go to next year. About 1 year away. We'll fly there and do it road trip style visiting many places. In my spare time, I like to explore on Google Earth to see what else we might be able to add in.

Nothing has been booked yet. Its just all in the "picking areas" stage. The trip will include crossing the US / Canadian border, but not sure yet if we are flying home from Canada or returning to US to fly home.

So in my planning, I thought I better find out if I could rent a car in US & drop it off in Canada. Glad I looked into it. Some companies don't allow, and others charge a fortune.

Well, I made a comment about that on my Facebook page, and a friend replied "its a year away".

Is it because we normally plan Disney vacations that I'm so used to looking into things early? I'm not booking anything yet but I've learned that if I want to use airline rewards for flights, you need to do it early. Last time I did it 9 months early, we couldn't get days we wanted & ended up with red-eye flights off by a few days because its all that was left. When I book them, I'm going to need to know everywhere I'm visiting, so I know where to fly in & out from. They will be different cities.

The person who made the comment does travel, but I think its more like traveling to see friends & family so no real planning is needed.

Surely I can't be the only one who looks into a non-Disney vacation a year in advance, escpecially when border issues are involved and could really mess with my plans.

 

[mjantz]

Yes. We're going to Europe next summer & I'm already planning the trip. I've got the dates pretty much set & now I'm trying to figure out how much time we can spend in each place we want to go. I know its a little under a year away but we're spending a lot of money on this trip & I can't imagine not doing a lot of research & getting the most for our dollars.

 

[Fintastic]

Yep! I like to have something to look forward to.

 

[Philagoofy]

I love to research my vacation destinations to see what all there is that we'd like to do and I start thinking about the next year's vacation shortly after returning from the current. As you mentioned, there are some things you need to know far in advance. Some hotels may be booked up to 2 years or more in advance, I believe Yellowstone Lodge was like that. And yes, it's something to look forward to, to me, it's a part of the enjoyment of vacations.

 

[JessicaR]

I don't plan ahead for any of our trips. Usually its a great deal that makes me book and many times we travel within a few months of that, sometimes less.

 

[ringaswan]

We always plan our long distance trips well in advance ... just makes things easier for us.

Most of our long distance trips involve travel to and from Alaska, and driving around the state. Planning in advance gives us more flexibility with our trip. There are certain airports that we try to avoid having connections in.

We don't necessarily make reservations for accommodations way in advance, simply because we kinda "wing it" once we're there (we know where we want to go, but weather & other factors influence the timing of our travels within the state). We also have an inside connection for reservations within Denali, so we can go there whenever we're up there.

But since we are camping/backpacking much of the time, we do plan quite a bit around that (food, permits if necessary, proper clothing, etc.).

 

[mbw12]

Always!!!! I always have a vacation (or 2) booked before I return home from a current vacation.....gives us something to look forward to!!!!

 

[mom2travel]

I plan far in advance too for most trips (about a year). Right now we haven't decided where to go next year yet, so I'm exploring options. For me it is part of the fun! I don't necessarily book a year out unless needed for some things, but I like to price shop and look into all of the fun details. I just need to make sure I don't talk about it too much or I'll drive DH crazy

That said, we have also been known to do some spontaneous trips, booking from a few weeks to a couple months out. In those cases I just need to research and plan faster! Although all my "off trip planning/dreaming" comes in handy for those types of trips

 

[mrsdon]

I like to plan our vacations in advance also.
Its nice with DVC because we can swap out a long time in advance

 

[rowbear]

It usually takes us twice as long (or longer) to plan a non disney trip because with disney we know what to expect. When you go somewhere else you have to do massive amounts of research on lodging, restaurants, entertainment, etc. We have been working on a non disney 2011 trip since last year.

 

[richmo]

Yes! We are doing a Disney vacation next month. At this point, there isn't a whole lot left to do except pack and reconfirm everything.

I find I'm starting to poke around for next year's trip, which won't be Disney. Not booking anything, but looking at dates, locations, etc.

 

[NMAmy]

I don't even plan far in advance for a Disney trip. Last time, I booked maybe 2 months in advance of our trip.

I have a hard time planning anything more than a couple of months in advance--otherwise I feel like it just takes forever for our trip to arrive.

 

[Disney Doll]

Depends on the type of vacation.

Going for a long weekend to Maine or something like that...no.

Going to Europe or to a bigger trip within the USA, yes.

 

[WriteDisney]

Yep! I like to have something to look forward to.

Me, too! I already have next years vaca's all planned out, and I have some ideas for 2011

 

[rowbear]

"Planning" can mean a few different things. With Disney the only thing we plan is lodging and type of trip.

Everything else is in a spreadsheet that has everything from pre-travel check list, day-of-travel check list, generic grocery list, and non-clothing pack list. This spreadsheet covers everything and we have used it for years.

Before travel you have things like arranging for pet care and mail, running a test on the security system, spraying house for bugs (prevents false alarms), getting cash for tips, verifying reservations and travel arrangements, and many other things.

Day-of-travel you have things like checking windows and doors, unplugging any new electrical item or heat producing item (ie. blowdryers, toaster ovens), flushing a box of ridx among many others.

On a pack list you have things that are really easy to overlook like phone chargers, extra batteries, nail clippers, etc.

Grocery list has all the things we always get (so something important is not overlooked) and we add anything special to it for that particular trip.

The spreadsheet also has an info section for any website or phone numbers for any service that we have used for Disney or while at Disney. It also has a note section for mistakes we have made in the past or tidbits like "Basin - tubes and balls are not good - refrigerated milk bath is excellent!".


A Disney vacation is super easy to plan because we have been so many times it goes like clockwork.

 

[Pakey]

My husband and I pack the hour before we leave for the airport. Well, if we are going to Europe, we start packing the night before just because we have additional items we must remember to throw in.

So no, not much of a planner. However, I do some research in advance as I'm always on the lookout for places we might want to try.

 

[PaulaSue]

I go form one trip to plan another 2-3 year away. I need something fun to do and keeps a little Disney magic on my mind.


BTW, OP, when I read your user name fast I think I am reading Octomom.

 

[ecuagoddess]

Yes, I am a way-ahead planner. I'm always figuring things out for the next 2-3 yrs. I love to plan.