Six Helpful Tips for Making the Most of Your Trip: Planning Your Time and Budget [Guest Travel Blogger]

Photo Credit: MattMcWilliams.com

Take A Leap Travel Tuesday is pleased to welcome once again Joe Laing. He was a previous guest blogger in December 2013. 

When you prepare to go on vacation, you want to do everything you can to maximize your time away and minimize unnecessary expense. To that end, we offer six suggestions to help you plan your trip. We include some of the newest smart phone apps to aid you in your journey.

1) Take your “loaded” smart phone along

You want to take your smart phone with you and be sure to load it with some of the best apps for traveling. I would include Google Maps, Four Square, Face Time (or Skype, for non-Mac or IPhone users), Yelp and Gas Buddy. In addition, remember to take your phone chargers along as well. Once you have pre-loaded your phone, you are ready to launch! A special note about Yelp: if you plug in a certain type of restaurant or shop, it will sort by price, by features, or by highest ratings. You can find out a lot about places before you even go to that town just by reading the reviews you find in Yelp. This is a good resource and you can get to it by just typing in their web address: www.yelp.com.

2) Plan your itinerary

The second thing is to plan and even print out an actual

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itinerary and route ahead of time. For this, Google Maps on your home computer is invaluable. Here, you can see all the sites you may want to visit before you leave the comfort of home. You can estimate how many miles you would like to drive in a day and how far you want to go in total. If you are renting a mobile home for your journey, be sure to estimate how much gas you will be using. Use Gas Buddy to see the best gas prices where you are going. Plan an efficient route.

3) Sightseeing on a Budget

What sights do you like to visit? Of course, you want to see some of the best sights while you are traveling. Which ones you choose to visit is really up to you. Are you traveling with children? You can plan appropriate sightseeing ahead with the help of Google Maps. You can access state parks and county parks if you like to be out in nature. You can look at the best shopping around any area before you arrive. You also may want to dine out a few times while you are on the road, so plan and time your sightseeing to stop at some local dining establishments. Use Yelp.com to help you figure out which stores or restaurants are rated highly by the locals and to stay within your budget.

4) Clip Coupons

When it comes to planning and saving, nothing helps save you time and money like clipping coupons in advance. If you wish, you can go to a site like Groupon or Amazon Local Deals and see what they offer in the area you are planning to visit. You can sometimes get online coupons for some staples like a stop at an Einstein Bagels store for your morning coffee and bagel or a dinner at a favorite chain. Research who has the best coupons and print them out or download them to your smart phone before you leave home.

5) Be sure to leave your home safe and sound

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Make sure you leave your home well secured. Stop your mail and newspaper or ask a neighbor to collect it for you so it isn’t obvious that no one is at home. Empty houses can attract burglars! Do not leave your house dark all the time. Set a timer to put inside lights on and off at various times of the evening so it looks like someone is there. Make sure you make adequate arrangements in the event of any emergency. Leave a key and your phone numbers with a neighbor. Make sure your pets are taken care of as well. If you will be gone a while, consider taking your pet to a nice pet spa or place they can get lots of exercise. If you are traveling in an RV, you may have the opportunity to take your pet along. Check with your RV rental company and any prospective campsites ahead of time to see about their pet policies.

6) Check the Weather

Check the weather forecast at your destination ahead of time and pack appropriately. Make sure that you have done all the necessary car maintenance if you will be driving your own car. If you are renting an RV, the company will take care of the maintenance for you.

About the Author
Joe Laing is the Marketing Director for El Monte RV, a nationwide RV rental company.

Guest Blogger: The Ideal Pre-Travel Preparation Checklist

Photo Credit: www.publicdomainpictures.net

                                                                           By Joe Laing

It is great to be prepared for any eventuality, particularly when going on vacation. You can use this checklist to ensure your vacation can be the best it can be, without last minute panic setting in. Plan ahead and have a smooth, worry-free getaway time with your family.

Research Your Route and Destination
First things first! You need to determine where you are going and the route you will take to get there. Work out how long it will take you to get from place to place, including stops for meals, gas and breaks. In this way you can find attractions, parks or historical sites to see along the way, determine where you will be by nightfall and thus be able to make reservations at a motel, hotel or RV camping spot.
With the Internet and Google maps you can find nearby amenities, like restaurants, grocery stores, local pools or fitness centers. You can search for special deals on lodging or camping while you're at it. If you are going to pass through larger cities, you might research their public transit, as this gives you the opportunity to beat traffic but get to area attractions easily and quickly. Want to find out what kinds of entertainment you can enjoy while in one area? Local entertainment listings can be found by searching that town or city to see exactly what you can enjoy for an evening.

Set Up Care for the Pets and Your Home
When you have pets that must be cared for, you should contact the kennel or the pet-sitter to ensure they will be available for the time you are away. Your regular house-sitters should be scheduled in advance, and if they have other plans, so you need time to look around and book an available service.

Find out the Weather Forecast so You can Pack Right
Checking the weather is an important factor in knowing what to expect on your trip. Normally you'll find the climate very nice in Southern California, for example, but they do have intervals of rainy weather. Know what to pack for the weather you may experience at your destination. It could prevent you from getting very soggy as you visit a famous theme park or take a walking tour of a famous historic downtown area.

Prepare all Your Gadgets for Travel

As you prepare your vacation, download
free or inexpensive apps.
Photo Credit: http://travelfashiongirl.com

Your smartphone and laptop can keep you connected to home when necessary, but they can also provide you with entertainment on those down times you may experience. Another great feature for your smartphone is the ability to run multiple apps. Download free or very inexpensive apps that can do all sorts of great things for you on vacation, like identify animal tracks, find inexpensive gas stations wherever you are or list the best attractions to visit in a city or town.
For your use of a laptop, once you have mapped your trip, you can find places along the way that provide free WiFi. This makes it easy to log on and access your email or search Google. Google maps can prevent you from getting lost. Maybe you'll even start a little travel blog so you can keep your friends updated on your adventures. Oh, and don't forget your hands-free device and your charging cables.

Preparation in the Last Few Days
If you prepare properly, you won't come home to a disaster, whether at your own home or at work. Ensure your duties at work are covered by a co-worker or your boss; the essentials cared for so you don't come home to an in-box stuffed with emergencies. Get those incomplete matters handled as thoroughly as possible so you won't be "deserting" anyone or anything. At home, ensure the laundry is done and save some clothes for your return so you won't have a lot of washing to do. Make sure your house is clean and tidy. You don't want to walk in after time away to a space in complete disorder.

Pack Wisely for Your Trip

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With everything else taken care of for your trip, now you can begin to pack. You can determine what you wish to take by making a complete and detailed list, like "toothbrush, toothpaste, brush, hairdryer, shaver, shaving cream, etc." Then when the time comes to put everything into your suitcases or into your RV, you can just mark off the items as you pack them. With a suitcase, roll your clothes instead of folding as this means fewer wrinkles. If you will be leaving the country, do not forget your passport.

When prepared for your journey, you can travel stress-free and enjoy some real relaxation, which you so deserve!

About the Author: Joe Laing is the Marketing Director for El Monte RV, your nationwide source for RV rentals. El Monte RV also sells used motorhomes through eight different locations across the United States.

Two More Days!!

So after last week's fiasco with the broken camera which turned into a blessing in the skies, we were like what's next? Little did we know what mother nature had up it's sleeves.  The good news is that we're pretty safe from the perspective of not being in the midst of the storm. And pending the weather, there should be no delays on Thursday in Washington, DC where our connection would take us to our international destination.   What's further on mind is the the massive amount of people we're expected to see!! There are bound to have been persons who have either camped out at the airport or missed their flight from days before, and want to go HOME.

In the past we would give up our seat and take a later flight. Especially if it involves someone trying to get home with their loved one.  Often times it'll come with a perk like a $300 travel voucher and meal ticket for the "bump".  My sister and I even stayed a night or two in a hotel paid for by the airline.  But we're set to fly to Italy.  We just can't bear to miss our flights.  They'll have to offer a significant voucher amount and other perk to have either of us give up our seat.  Is that crass??

Have you ever faced a situation where you had to make a decision with flying between going forward to your destination or taking the "bump" to help someone? 

Beijing on the Mind

We're heading to Beijing, China in December 2012. It's going to be in the midst of Winter, and as this picture alludes to, most likely snowing as we trek The Great Wall of China. I'm super excited about this because my sister and I are from the South. We don't get this type of weather often, and being prone to cold weather isn't in our DNA. But neither is the hot, scorching weather we've been experiencing as of late. Yet, we have to adjust to the environment at hand by being prepared. Somehow, in the time between now and then, we're going to have to strategize how in the world we're going to pack "light" in two small carry-on bags. We've limited our shopping for the rest of year to necessities related towards our trips. And apparently a must have will be a pair of hiking boots.

Another reason Beijing is on my mind is because of the Birmingham to Beijing project. This is a project associated with Teach America, whereas 7 students from Birmingham, Alabama have the opportunity to explore Beijing and learn Mandarin language, over a period of a month.  They also had an Indiegogo campaign, and raised over $40,000. Rhonda and I each made small contributions, and just the other day we each received a personal letter of thanks from one of the students.  I follow their blog every morning, wondering what they did the day before because of the twelve hour difference. And then today, we had an even more special surprise in that we were able to view a video of their first few days in Beijing. I have never been so proud of such young persons. To leave the comforts of their family and home to go to an unfamiliar environment took a leap of faith. I'm just in awe at their tenacity to soak it all in, and enjoy the moment.

That's another reason we want to experience the international countries in the very environment that our interviewees live. That moment can't be understood just by words. Pictures, video, and the sights and sounds, must be captured alongside the words.  I'm so happy we made a difference by giving a few dollars. Please consider making a similar difference today for Take A Leap.

Peace & Blessings,
Sharee