Since nothing is planned, then everything is possible!
Not everyone agrees with this philosophy, but it is mine and I wouldn’t change it for anything in the world. I hardly plan anything in advance when I travel and everything goes very well. Is that good, is that bad? You have to find the right balance.
Be well prepared. Plan your trip a little bit… but not too much!
Let’s take a little distance from the caricature of the psycho-rigid traveller with a timed journey and the traveller who has been wandering around for a decade. There is a middle ground: people like you and me who have taken a break in their lives and may change deeply.
Going far and long requires a bit of organisation and being a bit farsighted doesn’t hurt. You must have a passport that is valid for at least another year. On the financial side too, it’s best to plan your expenses a little: enough money for the entire trip and a sum set aside to cover any eventualities. In your luggage, you will have a well-stocked first aid kit and a solid, practical and comfortable wardrobe.
You’ve also made copies of all your official documents and will know how to react in case of a problem. These items are important: refer to the article about theft: Your belongings have been stolen, how to deal with it? It contains a section on “before the disaster”. The important vaccinations without which you risk being turned back at the border are up to date and you have made a digital copy of the vaccination booklet.
All in all, you are more or less ready. You’ll find what you might be missing on the spot. It won’t cost you more than if you had to buy it in your country.
Okay, now you have everything you need, don’t make any plan and leave!
If you have no plan, you can stay where you want, leave when you want
Apart from these material, practical and useful considerations, I never plan my trip in advance. I arrive somewhere and I go a bit according to my desires. The important thing is not to visit as many countries as possible and collect stamps in my passport. What I want most of all is to feed myself from the country. Stay where I like and leave when I feel like it. 3 weeks here or 3 months there, it only depends on how I feel.
Freedom is the most expensive thing in the world: it’s a luxury
Apart from the ever-present pleasure of discovering a new decor every day, true luxury, absolute richness is freedom. The almost magical power to decide for yourself, without compromise and without regret, where you will go tomorrow.
The journey is made up of chance, unexpected encounters, surprises and sometimes also disappointments. Planning nothing in advance allows you to be flexible. When you will meet nice people, people with whom to share a part of the trip, it will be possible because you have no appointments, no imperatives, no plane to take.
Of course, other parameters may oblige you to leave, such as the duration of the visa, but this remains anecdotal.
Many travellers want to see everything, very quickly: what for?
We meet a lot of travellers, especially the “around-the-world-backpacker” on the roads of the world. They have often planned their itinerary in advance. They know exactly where they are going and what they will visit in these destinations. They also know what transport they will be using and it is not uncommon for the car to be rented 2 months before their arrival. Everything is booked in advance: visas, plane or train tickets, hostels, etc.
And that’s exactly what happens: they see everything that is recommended in tourist guides, websites or advertising adds.
This type of hyper-planned travel is neither good nor bad. But are you so far away from home that all you do is run? Have you saved every penny during all this time to turn this trip into a busy diary?
3 days to discover Sri Lanka, is that reasonable? Frankly, compared to the carbon footprint of a plane flight, it’s just criminal. What if it was time to tackle another notion of time?
To be a traveller, not a voyeur, to be an altruistic not a tourist
I respect this way of travelling, everyone has their own way and it surely suits them. But you are going on a long journey! This trip does not meet these criteria. You don’t have to see the “must-see” of a particular country. You are not a tourist, you are a traveller. If you wish, you can stay in Cape Town for two months without climbing the Table Montain… You won’t be bored for a second. Will you have regrets for not having done all this? No, not at all! Your most beautiful memories will not be in front of monument X or Y. They will often be somewhere else, behind laughter, warm exchanges and moments of grace.
What counts in this journey is the path, not the destination
Doing what you want to do, at least once in your life! Doing what you want to do, just driven by your curiosity, your desire to explore, your appetite for discovery, sometimes, but not always, leads you off the beaten track. Planning your whole trip in advance will leave you much less freedom. Think about it.
So, how can you travel without planning everything in advance?
Listen to the comments and do your survey live
Ask locals and other travellers what they recommend, what they liked, and above all, follow your instincts and desires! Ask them whether or not they needed to plan their activities in advance, the answer is often negative!
Listen to the stories of other travellers, but keep things in perspective
You will quickly gain experience and you will quickly learn to differentiate between the “it was too magiiiiic, really amaziiiing” of those who want to impress their audience and the feelings of those who are sincere.
Who goes slowly, goes far
Move forward slowly. Don’t rush to book your tour or trek upon arrival. Take the time to think about it and above all talk about it to those around you. At least when you meet other travellers heading in the same direction, you can accept their offer to join them. Not planning your trip means being available for the unexpected.
Ask travellers for their home country plans
Use your network. As you travel, you will meet and keep in touch with this Lebanese engineer or Czech violinist. Ask them for advice when you go to visit their country.
Ask the locals, they will help you!
Trust the others! There is always a way. Without a guide, without a driver and without a map, you will find locals to help you, just as you do for foreigners who visit our beautiful country and ask for advice.
Don’t worry too much about paperwork
Apply for visas in neighbouring countries and don’t worry about having to make a diversion via Hong Kong to get your Chinese visa. At the very least, you’ll be able to visit the city and perhaps meet some extraordinary people. Some visas, it’s true, need to be planned in advance and be applied from home. For type of complicated destination like China, which are fortunately few in number, check before you leave. It’s true that the administration and its tortuous ways may upset your plans, but that’s not the end of the trip for all that.
You never miss anything, you just discover something else
Stop with the “I should have, I should have known, I wouldn’t have come”! If it’s not done, it’s because it wasn’t meant to be done and basta! Life is full of surprises. Did you “miss” the bay of Along? But you may have spent a wonderful week in Hoi An! You will get over it, for sure!
