I know I'm not the only one addicted to all aspects of travel--including the planning!

We are going to London and Amsterdam this November, and have Italy planned for next September...yet, I am already thinking of 2011...

My partner is Polish, and has never been to her "mother land", so I am thinking five nights in Krakow...then five nights in Barcelona and five nights in Istanbul for a very contrasting trip! I'm already looking at flight options, as to what airline flies where, which should come first, etc...I'm thinking Krakow, Istanbul and then Barcelona. We shall see.

I also, out of boredom, made a list of every trip I would like to take for the next ten years! I know it will change numerous times, but it's still fun. Am I the only one who makes up itineraries all of the time? Whenever I'm bored or have time to kill, I'll start jotting down notes (4 nights in Rome, then the overnight ferry to Barcelona for five nights, etc...)

You are smart! Planning in advance is the smart thing to do!

I went on a grand European tour from May 27-June 27, 2009. I purchased my airline ticket only in April and had only a month to plan a trip. (I have never planned trips before. I have never booked hotels before. My parents and good friends have always been the planners!) I will post pictures/website of the tour shortly!

Though I have enjoyed this trip, in hindsight, had I planned earlier, I could have saved a lot more money. (I made a lot of financial errors plus was duped by dishonest people.) I might have seen a lot more too! But I am satisfied with what I saw and experienced and felt the trip was well justified.

But in order to save money, avoid mistakes (I try to avoid making the same mistake twice!), max experience, I am planning/refining my summer 2010 trip already.

I love your decision to visit 3 contrasting countries! Very smart! I also had contrasting experiences: hiking in Jungfrau one day and Venice the next day, etc.

But for summer 2010, I plan to go to Morocco, Spain, Portugal, Ireland, Belgium and Holland.

I have some towns/hotels/mode of transportation in mind, but if you have additional insights/advice, I would love to hear about them!

Best wishes!

You're far from the only one. I've been planning my "Southern France and Italian Lakes" itinerary for going on 7 years. Somehow, these never fit the itinerary for our trips...for various reasons. But I have extensive files for when we DO go!

Heck, no, the subject of upcoming trips is the stuff of practically every night's dinner conversation. We've got Turkey and Greece, Morocco, Kenya again, Hong Kong, and many more on the back burner. Not to mention when the heck we're going to get back to St-Cirq, and that's probably within the next two months. If we didn't have trips to plan, we'd have no interfamilial conversation around here that didn't involve what our next meal was.

MissZ...

You are not alone!

I've got a couple domestic US trips scheduled for the remainder of this year along with 8 days in Rome in October. Flights and accommodations (except for my Nov. New Orleans trip) are booked. Now it's just the smaller planning details...such as booking airport transfers and any walking tours/museum tickets/day trips to book...which I already have a good idea of what I'll be doing.

THEN...I've made a deposit on an apartment for 8 days in Paris at the end of May 2010. And now I'm starting to think about Bologna, Italy for the autumn of 2010...haven't started actual 2011 planning yet, but I have LOTS of ideas!

Well no, I don't do that myself, but don't think it's a bad thing. I'm a bit more spontaneous (planning trips only 2-6 months in advance). Basically I have no idea where I'd want to go, what I'll be in the mood for, come 2011!

You are definitely not alone - I was pondering posting a tentative itinerary for an Italy trip in July 2010, and thought, oh my word, people will think I'm ridiculous. But it's been in my head for a couple of years now!

You are not alone, for sure.

We have finalized our family reunion beach trip for August

Still finalizing visit venues for our trip to Switzerland and France in September

I talked to a my TA yesterday about a change in my Stockholm to Barcelona trip in November

And next month we have to start thinking about our itinerary around the Passion Play in August 2010

Conceptually, I think about any number of trips, but right now, what is on the front burner is a trip to the South of France in 2011. We're going to go in June (dicated by school schedule), so I'm going to start looking at Orbitz to check the fares on potential flights in 2010 as if I were going to make the trip a year before, and see what the landscape looks like, and if fares go up or down as time passes, so that when the 2011 tickets go on sale in the summer of 2010, I'll know what kind of possibilities there are. I also have done some initial research on lodging, just looking at websites and whatnot, and won't actually contact any property owners until next year.

I can't plan that far ahead, even if I wanted to. Lots of trips I'd like to make, but until I have a rough idea of my husbands work schedule I can't plan anything, ever. That usually means deciding one month that we will go away the next, and where that will be depends on how long for, how rich we're feeling etc etc. The most I can plan ahead is about 4 months usually.
Even if I could plan a year or more ahead I wouldn't - I like the more spontaneous approach to things.

I can, and do, plan years in advance.
I know places I have always wanted to see, or places I want to share with DH..

Art, history and food dictate destinations..

Turkey, Greece, and Spain are on my list.
Showing Italy to DH is on my list.
South America is on my list.

Only money is stopping me

yes and no re the long time planning

weve just come back - so we are sated

i tend to plan a local holiday immediately for the holiday period only because you have to book well ahead for the places we go to

as for overseas
OH cant think too far ahead and i know there comes a burn out period after a lot of planning - for us anyway

our next one is a big one- sailing either turkey or alaska
thankfully most of it will be looked after OH -getting the boat for alaska will be far more complicated it seems size wise but i dont even want to think about it for the moment

just nice that we will do something
in the meantime - back to saving and maybe looking at some carryon bags on sale

I like your style MissZ and St Cirq.

When we were on our annual summer beach vacation we were already deciding where to take the next one. I have started my files, lists and such for the beach next year; although we moved it to Spring Break because the older folks can't take all the Southern humidity of June/July. I have the condo we want but have not put the deposit down yet.

I do have a reservation already for 7 nights in Salzburg the end of June 2010. I will start watching flights when they become available but the best prices probably won't pop up until early next year. All the anticipation is killing me.

We have tentatively begun planning our Italian Odyssey and family research trip for summer 2014. A long way off but it's also to celebrate a HS graduation.

Somewhere I want to fit Paris and Germany in there too.

I need a second job.

I started planning for my Egypt and London trip (Dec 09) almost a year in advance. I don't plan any details of future trips, but I keep my eyes out for good information and have a "Someday I want to go to..." list. I will likely only be able to manage a big trip every 2-3 years, but I love the dreaming about it part.

Now, if I could just win the big lotto and travel more often... hmmm.

Hoping to do a 2 week London Paris Bordeaux this fall...also found someone who is interested in doing World Cup in South Africa next year, just need to make commitment...woo, that would be something to chekc off my "Top" list

I'm always thinking about future trips, and like StCirq our upcoming/future travel plans are a major subject between my husband and I. With a little one on the way, this is the first time in years that I do not have at least one upcoming overseas trip planned and to be honest it's driving me crazy.

I have so many great trip itinerary ideas in the back of my brain, but then I will read a fabulous trip report and next thing I know I'm contemplating a new itinerary. It takes ua-s months to settle on an itinerary, or even a particular region to visit, because I get so torn in various directions on where it is I really want to go...and of course that changes day to day. And to be honest that's part of the fun!

Tracy

I'm already planning my first trip to Australia for my 50th Birthday, which is many, many years away. I figure, I already know that's where I wanted celebrate the big 50 why not get started.

I'm also planning on visting two of either Ghana, Greece, Spain, Amsterdam and the South of France plus my annual Xmas vacation in Anguilla for next year. Funny, I don't have time for planning much of the things I really need to do, but will always find time to plan a trip.

jdc

jdc

Planning a grad trip (college) with our son for summer 2010 to London (sight-seeing and hopefully Wimbledon) and Scotland for golf, (hopefully St. Andrew's Old Course). I have used a travel agent in the past and am going to plan this trip myself. I love the planning part! Reading all the travel books, web sites and taking notes from Fodorite's trip reports.

I always have a stack of travel books and magazine/newspaper clippings for future trip ideas. It's fun to dream!

I have to plan way ahead because of the nature of my projects (engineering). Also, my travel plans for 2011 involve travelers attending Grad school, so I DO NOT have the choice BUT to plan way ahead....It is so much fun!!! I already have three villas bookmarked for Sept 2011!!

As you see, you are not alone. Travel is always on my mind. When I get close to the end of one trip I start thinking about the next. I've been trying to decide next year's trip (China? Thailand? Norway?)while trying to focus on researching Turkey, which is coming up soon. Asia is more appealing to me now because of the exchange rates, so Norway is third choice.

From JDC26: "I'm already planning my first trip to Australia for my 50th Birthday, which is many, many years away. I figure, I already know that's where I wanted celebrate the big 50 why not get started."

Would you consider moving Australia ahead of Europe, which is expensive for Americans now. I traveled to Australia, New Zealand and Fiji in April; the exchange rate in all three countries is favorable to us and there have been some good airfares.