Don’t Make a Plan For Your Next Trip
5 days from now I don’t know:
- Where I will be
- What I will be doing
- Who I will be with
This is my new normal. At no point in five months of travel have I known all three of those more than a week in advance. This isn’t stressful, it is liberating. Instead of worrying about cramming in plans or going on prepaid excursions — I can just relax. I can do things on a moment’s notice. For example, I didn’t plan to volunteer with elephants until the day before I left. And that was life changing. I didn’t plan to do a silent Buddhist meditation retreat until 2 days before.
This intentional lack of preparation makes for a more fun, flexible, & cheap trip.
Many struggle with this type of travel, because they are fixated on the idea of what travel is supposed to be. Many people only travel during vacation. And those precious few days off work must be used to their maximum, because there are so few of them. That typically leads people into the trap of overplanning their travels. From the the hotel to every single restaurant they are going to eat at, each hour has something filling it before they even step on the plane! While this planning has its place, I argue that we suffer from too much planning, not too little.
Planning Less & Doing More
Let’s say you are going to Vietnam and want to see the islands of HaLong Bay. You may be tempted to book a boat tour ahead of time. After all you’re only spending 2 days on the coast and don’t want to miss out! This is where you should take a deep breath. For however many online services you can book this tour through, you will find countless more services once you are on the ground in Vietnam. There will be plenty of options to choose from.
In fact booking a trip like this ahead of time will only constrain you and waste your money. Think about it. Maybe you want to spend an extra day in Hanoi before you go to HaLong Bay. Too late if you’ve already booked a tour! And on the price side, these online services often just connect you with local vendors anyway. So you end up paying a massive premium just for a little peace of mind to have it booked in advance. Trust me it’s not worth it considering you can get an amazing all-day boat tour for under $20 just the night before.
Good deals are almost always available at the last minute. And more often than not, your money goes the farthest when you don’t plan, but instead wait until you’re actually at your destination.
I’ve written about the benefits of not planning before: why you should get lost & disciplined spontaneity
“Not planning” won’t work for every occasion. Family holidays, vacations with big groups, or concert tickets all take some prior thought. But for many kinds of vacations, experiences, & travel, not planning does work. This type of spontaneity is what gives life its flavor.
“Life is what happens to you while you’re busy making other plans.” — John Lennon
Those moments of uncertainty, sweaty palms, joyful surprises. Those are the moments life is made of. So shake it up on your next trip. Plan as little as possible beforehand and see what happens. I bet you’ll be pleasantly surprised.
