(Did you get my Devo reference? )
So, what about my really long travel itinerary that I created? How did I put that together?
Well, I made that in a very cool app called TripIt . It is a travel itinerary app that organizes all of our travel plans. Yes, I did actually print it out and it was 32 pages.
Of course, being that I like to read reviews, I first read reviews of several other travel apps before I decided to go with TripIt.
TripIt didn’t have perfect reviews, but overall they were quite positive. I can use it on my laptop, iPad or iPhone although I have the most control over my itinerary from my laptop. I’m really not very technically savvy either (luckily, I have my awesome hubby to help me!) so I liked that it is very simple to use!
TripIt easily imported our flight information, train tickets, hotel and Airbnb reservations from my Gmail account and put it all into a nice, tidy format. It has room for me to type in my own notes too.
But, there have been things that I have manually put into this huge itinerary because I could not get them to import into TripIt automatically. That has been very time consuming. For example, I manually input all of our tours that we are taking as well as random things like ground transportation details from hotels. I also looked over each entry (multiple times) and made sure it had all of the details that I wanted, like I said…travel planning is very time consuming!
I also downloaded the Google Trips app on my iPhone. Although I’m not using it for my itinerary, it magically and automatically pulled most of my trip information from my Gmail so I can use the “Things to Do” part of the app if I need it. I’m still playing around with it so I may or may not keep the app….I haven’t quite decided yet.
Bottom line is that I used to type our travel itineraries in Word so this is a HUGE improvement and overall, I am very happy!
We also like to use some low tech planning in our house-obviously the travel books-but we also have a big world map on the wall. There are push pins stuck in our travel destinations and a string running between our destinations. It’s fun to have something on the wall to look at and to show our curious friends and family.
I know that many people travel the world very differently and without a lot of plans. They might be the “fly by the seat of your pants” type. I’m sure they are very content with their way of travel. Good for them! To each his own! Live and let live!
Not me though! I am definitely Type A, I hate surprises and I like to be in control. Thus, the very detailed and anal retentive planning!
I do know that things will go wrong when traveling, in fact, I expect it. So, as long as it’s not catastrophic, we can deal with it. I don’t have to like it though…
Update May 2021-Still using TripIt Pro and still loving it! It sometimes notifies us of gate changes and flight changes before we get notifications from the airlines. It’s worth every penny!
Update May 22, 2018-we’ve been using TripIt Pro throughout our travels -numerous flights and 6 countries so far. The airline updates are well worth the money!
Laurie Travels Sometimes 