Do Your Research Before You Travel
August 20th, 2007 by Michael KwanThere are a lot of ways that you can spend your money. You might want to buy me a beer and potentially get yourself a free linkback in the process. You might like getting the latest gadget or partaking in some good food, but I think one of the best ways you can spend your money is to go out there and experience the world through travel.
Some people like to take spur of the moment kind of trips, but speaking for myself, I prefer to visit some trip planner websites to see what my destination is all about, if there are any special landmarks that I should be visiting, and where I can go to get the best deals. For example, before going to the San Diego Zoo as part of my cruise a few months ago, Susanne and I found a great coupon online that gave us a significant discount off admission. Money saved for just a few moments spent online.
Obviously, not everyone involved in the trip needs to do a lot of research, but having some knowledge certainly helps. In most groups, you’ll find one person who will be more than happy to be the primary trip planner, helping you guys find the best places to eat, the coolest places to visit, and the hottest deals to take advantage of.
One trip that I’ve been thinking about doing is a mini-tour of Asia. The last time I was in that neck of the woods was more than 15 years ago and I’m sure a lot has changed. I’m not as interested in Hong Kong as I am in seeing places like Tokyo (maybe I can visit Kumiko while I’m there and confirm her identity), Kyoto, and Beijing.
There’s a lot that can be said about spontaneity, but I’d rather know what I’m getting myself into. How about you? Are you the extensive researcher or are you more likely to “wing it” while on vacation?
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I’m curious, about how long does it take you to write 1 post?
Depends on content, length, research needed, etc. A quick and dirty post can be done in about 6-10 minutes, but a thorough ReviewMe (including research time) would be an hour or two.
I don’t normally research before travelling
I am the same way. If I dont research a destination I feel as if I am going to miss out on something…
With just about everything that requires me to spend money, I take my time and do a fair amount of research beforehand.
With travel, we don’t do it a lot but when we do both my wife and I visit a lot of the websites for the local area and try to plan out a list of potential places to visit or activities.
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