Do you Plan your Vacation, or "Wing it?" (rent, hotels)

[Aredhel]

I plan ahead. I find trying to wing it results in too much wasted time during which I'm trying to figure out what to do next instead of actually doing something. But my plans always include some scheduled "down time" during which I'm free to improvise (or just relax and do nothing).

[ElleTea]

If I am going to a place like Vegas that has scheduled shows and things that have specific hours, I plan. I also plan a lot in Vegas specifically because I stay downtown but if there is something I want to see on the strip, I plan all of the strip stuff the same day if I can to make to most of the time.

For my upcoming trip to an all-inclusive in the Caribbean, I am not planning and I like it that way. We will have 8 days there and while there are lots of activities, I want the trip to be as "let's see when we get there as possible." One restaurant on the resort requires a reservation and I do't even like that; I don't want to even have to think about what time it is, or be someplace at a certain time at all, so we may just not eat there.

That being said, I am a big time planner by nature, and getting READY for the trip is a whole 'nother matter. I start planning out dog boarding, what to pack, buying anything I will need for the trip, etc, weeks ahead.

[city living]

Originally Posted by animalcrazy

I will research an area and have a list of things I want to see but it's at our whim when we get there.

This is what my husband and I usually do.

I find when I make schedules, I don't stick to them anyway.

When we are doing an outdoorsy trip, the weather often dictates what I will do from one day to the next.

We will only have definite plans for something that needs a reservation or something we might need to get tickets to in advance.

[StPaulGal]

I'm definitely not the sort of traveler who has an itinerary. That sounds like the polar opposite of a good time to me.

When I visit new cities domestically, the only thing I ever plan out ahead of time is where to stay. Then my partner and I do exactly what we want exactly when we want. If we want coffee, I will google around for the best coffee nearby and that's where we will go. If we see a cool street festival, we may decide to join in the fun. Whenever we get hungry we will pick a cuisine and go there. I always ask the people I interact with what the one thing is that we shouldn't miss, and if their answer seems interesting we will try to weave that in.

International requires a bit more planning, since there tend to be greater logistical and linguistic concerns. If I am visiting multiple locations withing a country/region, I need to figure out when I am going where if I am going to have my lodging figured out in advance. (I don't have a problem showing up and booking a room when I arrive, but I prefer Airbnb or couchsurfing and that sort of thing requires making arrangements ahead of time.)

[Jean-Francois]

We book a pool home, somewhere on Florida's Gulf Coast, usually, between Crystal River and Naples, mostly south of Tampa, then see what flights are best, direct to Tampa then drive, or into Atlanta, switch planes, then to Fort Myers, or Sarasota.
Once that's done, check out Dollar or Alamo for a car.
On arrival I'll drive to the house, drop the cases, either head to a bar, or if it's late, crash out.
From then on it's whatever we want, or let me rephrase, whatever she wants to do.
As a rule it's coffee, juice, toast, maybe eggs Benedict, maybe scrambled, then sit around the pool with more juice until I can put it off no longer, then Google Publix, find the nearest, and spend $160-$180 on groceries and wine, vodka, tonic water, and Crown Royal.
Get enough salad stuff, cold cuts, Ranch and French dressing, so that we can do lunch at the house, at the same time, scope out the good restaurants for dinner every night.
As she who must be obeyed often says, "I didn't fly 10 or 11 hours to slave over a hot stove."
If she wants to go to the Miromar outlets, we'll go there, or Tin City, or 5th. Ave. Naples FL., or St. Armands Circle, Sarasota FL.
Fortunately neither of us are 'beach' people, we'll lounge around the pool, alternating sun with shade, jumping in the pool when we feel like it.
Setting aside time for a game of Scrabble once per week is about as organised as we get.

[Star10101]

I'm definitely a planner type of person - and my husband usually leaves me to get on with the planning and booking of a trip.

I usually see how many days we've got at a place, and then see what the local attractions are. Then I make an itinerary, fitting each day with things to do. I find this much better than waking up each day saying "What are we going to do today?", and wondering what to do.

This way, you can make sure you fit all of the fun things into your trip. Sometimes I plan too much, however, and time restrictions or tiredness makes doing/seeing everything impossible. So I try to make sure we do all the best things at the beginning of the trip.

[bigbear99]

I will research things in advance, to find things we want to see and figure out where and when, for things with limited hours. We use this planning to book lodging. Our vacations have never been "go to one place and explore from there" unless time is short, like when we visited Beijing and Seoul, both extensions of business trips. Instead, we tend to cover some ground, spending a few days exploring a city and surroundings then moving on.

We have a mental plan, but don't follow it slavishly. We learn as we go.

[notnamed]

Wing it. I don't want any structure on vacation. That's the point of a vacation

There are exceptions of course that may require prepurchasing tickets and such for international travel. But the typical and best vacations for us are just where I take a couple weeks off, pack some essentials, then just hop in the car and pick a direction or look to see what airfare is on sale to someplace that sounds interesting.

Not worried about squeezing the most "fun" or whatever out of a place. Will sleep in, chat with locals about their favorite places for ideas, etc. Wouldn't ever find me on a cruise. Way too much structure on those floating masses of humanity.

[SoCalCpl2]

I set up a plan of the things we want to do and where we are going to stay... Of course the hotel reservations are already done.. I map out what new food places we want to try and what activities or sights.. BUT we also wing it as in when something we planned doesn't work our or there are things we spot on our trip that look like we want to do or see them....

Like a few years ago we were coming home from visiting my mother and we were following the Columbia River.. We stopped at a scenic overlook and saw a vessel hauling an old Pirate looking ship on it.. We must have watched them for about 2 1/2 hours while they were trying to dock, re-assess the load, and then start down the river again..... Not part of our plan but what the heck....

[johnd393]

We have some place to sleep every night reserved before we leave. We can make changes along the way if we have to. I don't want to pay last minute prices for motel rooms. Once we arrive some place, activities are pretty flexible.