I‘m currently in the process of prepping for my upcoming trip to London and Iceland. I land in London on Friday where I’ll spend a few days with family. Then on Monday, my Russian and I will head to Reykjavik where  we’ll spend 6 days exploring!

I’m so excited for this trip, but I still have a ton to do before I leave! As I write this, I’m staring at my suitcase that I still need to pack. In addition to packing, I have yet to finish my little routine that I go through before every trip to a new destination. I like to research as much as I can ahead of time so that when I land I have a basic idea of what I want to see, do and photograph while I’m there.

For this post, I’m walking you through this pre-departure routine. I’m hoping it will not only help you plan your future travels, but also help me get focused and organized in the remaining hours I have before my flight! Below are the 8 things I do before visiting a new destination.

 

1. REVIEW TRIP ADVISOR

Before visiting a new place, I like to do a quick search on Trip Advisor to get an idea of the main attractions there. Even if I don’t visit all of them, I like to know what the destination is known for. There is a usually a top 10 list of the major landmarks as well as helpful info such as hours and prices for visiting various sites.

 

2. READ OTHER BLOGS

Next, I’ll do a quick read of other travel blogs. Sometimes I’ll go back to a relevant post from a blog I read regularly. If I can’t find what I’m looking for, I’ll do a Google search for “Must Do’s When Visiting X.” I usually find 3-4 posts that are helpful. For this trip, I’m referencing Julia Engel’s tips from her week long excursion in Iceland as well as Nikki Vargas’ post about her recent road trip around the country.

 

3. DO A QUICK RESTAURANT SEARCH

I also like to do a quick search in Google maps of restaurants near my hotel and the areas I’ll be visiting. When I’m there, I usually end up just popping into places that catch my eye in the moment, but I still like to have an idea of the options ahead of time.

 

4. DOWNLOAD GOOGLE MAPS

Speaking of Google Maps, I have also started downloading maps of my destinations so that I have offline access to them while I’m out and about. This is IMMENSELY helpful especially if you don’t have an international plan and are operating in airplane mode and dependent on WiFi!

 

5. SEARCH INSTAGRAM

One thing I love doing before any trip is a quick search of my destination on Instagram. It not only gives me an idea of places to visit, it also provides inspiration for how I want to photograph various locations. Not so that I can copy a shot, but so that I can think about creative ways to capture it differently.

Another thing I do that fellow bloggers may find helpful is to get my hashtags ready in advance. It saves so much time to have my hashtags ready to go and saved in my notes so that I don’t have to waste time researching them before posting photos while I’m out trying to enjoy my experience!

 

6. RESEARCH TRANSPORTATION OPTIONS

Once I have my basic itinerary jotted down in my notes, I like to research the transportation options. It helps me plan out whether I can take a bus or train or if I’ll need to grab a cab or rent a car to reach various attractions. This also helps me organize my days so that I spend as little time in transit as possible and more time out exploring!

This will be handy for the London portion of our trip. We’ll probably only have one day to explore on our own, so maximizing our time will be crucial!

In Iceland, We’ll able to take things a bit slower. We’re planning to rent a car with another couple and explore as much of the country as we can. We haven’t even booked our rooms yet to allow for as much flexibility as possible!

 

7. LOOK UP FACEBOOK EVENTS

Something I’ve done on occasion is check the events section on Facebook to see if there is anything fun going on while I’ll be in town. This allows you to discover local holidays or festivals you’re not familiar with as well as fun meet ups you may want to take part in.

 

8. CHECK THE WEATHER

This one may seem obvious, but I’ve actually forgotten this step before! I didn’t check the weather when packing for Peru and found myself in Cusco in 38 degree weather with nothing warmer than a wind breaker. I ended up having to use my blanket as a shawl when we would go out for dinner at night!

Once I’m done with this research, I add all of it into a new note in my phone so that I can easily access it while I’m abroad. I also jot down daily notes throughout my trip as well as ideas for blog posts so that when I get back home, all the info I need is stored in one place.

 

I hope you found some of these tips helpful. Time for me to finish up my research and get back to packing! What are some ways you prepare for visiting a new destination? Share your comments below!

 

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