Trip planner - what do you do?

[Mazzy]

How do you 'set up' your trip planner?

Do you just type it up on an A4 sheet or have something more elaborate?

Just looking for ideas!

 

[Celestine]

I have a Winnie the Pooh exercise book. I've cut the tops of the pages to create an index for each day of the holiday (a bit like a phone book). I've tried the A4 approach, but found you end up seeing how small you can fold the piece of paper & then end up losing it amongst the maps, show times etc. I guess the approach you take very much depends upon the detail in your plan - as you can probably tell, I am a bit of an obsessive planner! What ever you do, enjoy the planning!

 

[Mrs Dazzle]

Hi Mazzy . . . you getting really excited now??

Last year I drew up an elaborate(ish) table on the PC with a couple of pretty pictures

Because we were staying in 6 different hotels throughout our 3 week stay, I really drew this up to remind me where we were going to be going to bed each night - it did help, especially leaving a copy behind for the MIL so she knew where we were.

This year I've discovered a great tool on my Windows XP -a ready made travel log, so all I have to do is decide what colour and then fill in the details.

What a saddo I am

 

[Hilary]

I'm an A4 planner because I don't want to carry any more than an A4 sheet of paper around in addition to everything else I can't manage without!

I've got a basic table set up (in MS Works or Word, can't remember which one) which I just adapt for each trip, changing dates, hotels, etc on the basic table and then filling in details like PS numbers as I get them sorted.

Mazzy - planning how to plan? That's really being organised! I like your style LOL!

 

[vernon]

A4, basic outline ( hotel, themepark restaurant etc) and pencil in confo numbers or changes. Gotta keep it light and manageable LOL.

 

[dixie2000]

could you point me in the direction of the ready made travel log in Windows XP, I can't find it and with 10 days to go I am feverishly planning

 

[rob@rar.org.uk]

I set up a spreadsheet in Excel with two worksheets. The first worksheet is for the cost of the holiday, the second is the planner.

When I'm pricing up different options (eg DIY or package, flydrive or flight only, etc) I find it much easier to lay it all out in a spreadsheet so calculating the total cost is done automatically. Saves lots of work with the calculator.

The planner could just as easily be laid out using tables in a word processor but I find it easier to keep it in the same document with the costs. All I do is to record park opening times, parades and fireworks, any PS reservations and hard tickets such as Discovery Cove. This all gets printed out on one side of A4 and is a useful summary of all the planning info we need. We don't plan our holiday day by day, prefering to 'go with the flow', but it is useful to see at a glance what all the opening times are.

Regards

Rob

 

[Mrs Dazzle]

Dixie - it's in the Microsoft Works folders, Travel Log. If I could remember how I got in there I could tell you, but I guess if you did a search it will come up.

Good luck - it's very easy to use, some great pictures and it's ideal for the little bit on info I need on one.

 

[dixie2000]

Thanks Annie

I could have guessed it was right under my nose. Thanks a lot this will all add to the frenzy, I already have tables laid out with a holiday plan, places to go, places to eat and even a shopping list LOL. The planning is such fun Just 10 days to go now!!

Helen

 

[steve_rob]

Another vote for Excel here. Main reason is that I change my mind so much about what parks we're doing on what days (after all, the first draft of the plan is usually done about 12 months before we go!) that I need something I can move cells around easily without having to retype everything.

Plus it's all colour-coded and looks really snazzy when I print it out if I do say so myself!