It’s a new year! Happy 2016! While everyone is doing their best to stick to their resolutions, I look at New Years as a refresh of my vacation days and when I can begin planning for the year! As a true Millennial, my social media activity spikes more than my usual obsessive need to be online, but this time for more than the purpose of FOMO– to discover where I want to travel.
Two social media channels I religiously use when it comes to planning my travels are Pinterest and Instagram. Both serve different purposes for me: Pinterest for understanding what there is to do and see and what to wear while there and Instagram for photo inspiration (how and what to take a photo of).
For a good chunk of time I’ll find myself on Pinterest with the sole intention of finding what is a must see and where people have taken beautiful photos. Instagram also has the ability to search images taken by other Instagram users of locations you’re looking to travel to, which is also an added bonus in looking at different ways to capture photos shared by others. I love that one scene can be captured with such vast creativity. I love even more using their photos as inspiration for when I’m there.
Before I dive into specifics, I need to be responsible and warn you: Pinterest is a black hole that sucks in your attention and time thoroughly and completely. Allot a specific amount of time to your search and stick to it.
Newbies you have been warned; veterans, godspeed.
Now, to the fun. I start by searching for the destination as a whole, if I’m not sure which cities I want to travel to. Let’s start with Scandinavia as an example since I can kill two birds with one stone.
Create a board for the specific country or region you want to visit.
Where to go from there? I personally like to start by pinning things that appeal to me, purely from a pleasure point. What sites stand out to me, which articles say this is a must see destination, and begin adding to the board until you feel you’ve seen it all. You can even do Google searches and add what you see onto your Pinterest board too – Visit Pinterest’s site to download the “Pin It” Button here
To organize my ideas even more, I create a count sheet. The majority of places to see, things to do that consistently pop up on my board – for example if I add 5 pins to my board about kayaking through the lakes in Norway, that to me means it’s something I really am interested in doing and therefore add it to my list
Once I know where I want to go and what I want to do, I begin building an itinerary for each day. I’ll look at available tours which will take me where I want to go. Most of the time I can find a day tour that will cross off every item on my list leaving the remainder of my vacation to explore. This helps decrease stress for me and ensures I see everything I’ve planned to see. I also find with tours I can get a lay of the land before I explore on my own. Many cities will have free walking tours you can join which helps with saving money. A tour site I love using is www.viator.com; it breaks down free tours, day tours, half day tours and more. It is also a great way to find out if a city has hop-on-hop-off buses.
- Insta. The Gram. No matter the nickname, my love for this app is unreal. I love using Instagram for photo inspiration. So much so, I began taking screenshots to help keep track of all the inspirational photos that I found. With the iPhone I’m able to create a folder in my albums app to help organize my photos and revisit them again when it’s time to plan a new trip.
Instagram takes the 9 top posts for that day and categorizes them at the top. I love seeing what people post about the location. It not only excites me to see what’s to come, but helps me get an idea of what types of photos I want to take.
Another great advantage of Instagram is the opportunity to meet people who live in the area. As any millennial who travels often knows, we love making new friends in different countries and what better way to talk to someone local than via a photo sharing app? Don’t be afraid to reach out and ask what they recommend you see in their area. You’ll be sure to receive great local feedback on where to eat and hang out. Of course, as with any online meet ups, take precautions and keep safety in mind when meeting strangers. Use your best judgement and let people back home know who you’re meeting up with as a backup.
Another pro-tip: take a screenshot of where locations are on a map. If you’re like me and travel without international data, it’s difficult to whip out a phone and open Google Maps. Saving map screenshots will help in finding destinations without blowing out your data plan. Now, almost all coffee shops around the world have WiFi so feel free to stop in, buy an espresso and use Google Maps to find your next stop. I would suggest asking a local or the barista where they would recommend where you should visit.
Bonus* Facebook:
Facebook and Instagram are great resources in talking to locals. Ask friends/followers where you should eat, sleep, and visit as they’re tried and true. Word of mouth is how we as millennials live – we need assurance that we’ll have a great time and a memorable one at that. Don’t be shy in asking friends who live at your destination if you can crash for a day or two. It willsave money on a hotel and they’ll happily show you around their city. It’ll bring an element of spontaneity to your friends’ lives and a taste of local living to yours.
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