r/travel • u/AutoModerator • Dec 13 '18
Discussion r/travel Topic of the Week: Winging it
Hey travellers!
In this week's community discussion topic we'd love to hear your experiences with very little planning: 'going by ear', 'following the waves', 'seeing where the wind will take me', you know the lyrics of the free spirits going places without much travel planning ahead.
Please share all your thoughts, ideas, and experiences with this on your travels!
This post will be archived on our wiki community topics page for future reference.
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u/bettierides Dec 15 '18
Hi! New to Reddit and avid traveler. The best trip I ever took was last minute with no planning. It started with finding crazy cheap airfare from nyc to Hilo Hawaii for $350 rt. I found it on a Friday at work but I had to leave Sunday. I asked my boss if I could move my vacation that was previously scheduled months from then. She agreed and was excited for my adventure.
I bought a tent, put a post on CS that I would be in Hilo and needed a place to stay, and packed my bag. I lived in pgh so I had to megabus to nyc to catch the flight. By the time my flight left someone hit me up that I could stay with them and they’d pick me up from the airport. Another person who was sailing around the world reached out to me to see if I wanted to stay on his boat.
I ended up meeting the most amazing people, going to a legit luau, sailing around the island from Hilo to kona, and getting to watch the lava flow into the ocean on my birthday. The trip cost me $500 total.
Best trip I ever took.
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u/kimchispatzle Dec 13 '18
Depends on the country. I regret winging Japan. Japan is really touristy in the Fall and it meant missing out on stuff I should have gotten passes for early. Also, not doing proper research on the transportation system and some customs gave me a huge headache.
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u/VelveteenMoogle Dec 13 '18
I find that this eventuates in you actually spending more money (not having researched the little tips and tricks and follies), not having done enough with your time there (as you did not know what all there was), and ultimately feeling as though it could've gone better. But that's just me.
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u/CheeseWheels38 CAN --> FRA/KAZ Dec 13 '18
I've done a couple trips that went well with minimal planning, the best one being a road trip camping around Corisca. In that case, I tried to plan but realized that most campsites don't take reservations and that June is still mid-low season so we'd have no worries about finding places to stay. So we knew that planning in advance there wasn't going to be very useful and in the end it worked out great. Finding a place to stay around Issyk-Kul in Kyrgystan was also pretty easy to do on-the-ground.
On the other hand I had far more experiences where a lack of planning has lead to some frustrating circumstances. Often involving me driving while my wife tries to use a shitty internet connection to book us a place to stay. Some crappy experiences were:
Driving around the outskirts of Metz at midnight while looking for a place to stay on a road trip, paying like 60 EUR for a hotel in a suburban parking lot
Reserving hotels from the car in Bruges and Antwerp was also a bit of a pain-in-the-ass, on the same road-trip
Arriving at Plitvice Lakes in Croatia at noon ish on a Saturday in August, dealing with clusterfuck-level crowds and then driving towards the coast in the afternoon while looking for an AirBNB. We reserved three nights but left after one because the place sucked
I want to go where the wind blows me
Look around the next time its windy, ever notice how the wind piles up snow/sand in the corner? The wind will blow you towards the places that the planners did not choose, so maybe it's not such a great idea ;)
In the end, I think the main point to consider is your budget. If a 500 EUR hotel room is "more than normal, but meh I'm on vacation" then you're not screwed if the only place left in town is 300 EUR a night. If you've budgeted 100 EUR per day... then that can really dampen your spirits or totally break the bank. Same with trains, if you want the cheap tickets, you need to be on the ball and reserve in advance. If you've got the cash, then you can pretty much do whatever you want... hell you can even skip the reservation completely. Just walk onto a TGV without a ticket, you'll just pay extra to buy it onboard.
Obviously this is highly location and time dependent. It's easier to find a cheap hotel in Thailand on a random Tuesday than in NYC on December 31st or Paris on Bastille Day.
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u/RogueD0nut Dec 13 '18
In my experience, wingin’ it always makes for a better travel experience! The last two trips I’ve taken (and one I’m taking next in a few days) have been decided on a whim.
I live in California, and I’d have to say the best impromptu trip was one Tuesday night I decided I wanted to take a train for the first time... so I booked a ticket to Michigan for that Thursday.
I packed up some books, my laptop for writing, and a few clothes into a carry on and was off! When I got there, I ubered to a little country-style inn in Dearborn. I got there and saw a grip of teenagers hanging outside a room, looked like they were having a small party, and offered to buy them pizza (since I was ordering some anyways)... needless to say they disappeared by the time pizza came and I had an extra box. Poorly planned but delicious. I spent the next day and a half exploring Ann Arbor, trying local coffee shops, visiting the Arboretum, and meeting an online friend for lunch. Less that 56 hours and I flew back to make it in time for classes myself. All in all the best experience.
Another trip I took was I had a lucky stretch of 5 days off from work (thanks to a gruesome schedule before and after those days) so I packed up some things last minute and decided to drive from Southern California to Vancouver, BC. I made it there only to stay for a night before my drive home.. but all in all it was nice seeing the western NA coast and stopping in iconic cities like San Francisco, Seattle, and Portland! I’d have to say the funniest thing was the reaction I got at the US-Canada border... it went something like this: Officer: So what makes you come this way? Me: Well, I had a few days off from work so I just decided to drive up.” Officer: from Southern California? Me: yeah. Officer: how long are you staying? Me: just tonight. I have work in two days so I need to head back starting tomorrow. Officer: ..... you drove up here just to spend the night in another country? Me: Pretty Much.
Needless to say the conversation went on and he was slightly suspicious... but I enjoyed it nonetheless! Switched my car to km and was on my way! Tried this cool little vegan bar place in Portland that was pretty good, too. No one tried to talk to me so that was nice!
I leave in T-1 days for NZ.. should be a fun little trip. Will edit the post with stories after!
Might I just say that the impromptu trips are ALWAYS better! No schedule to keep, no expectations to meet. Just you and your in-the-moment desires and a little wanderlust ;)
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u/FamilyOnStandby United States Dec 13 '18
That's amazing. We get that question a ton at passport control. Normally we just make a joke like "Pregnant wife NEEDED some lobster mac from this place" or "Toddler had to see the Christmas Market" and it becomes just another interesting story and nothing nefarious.
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u/daKav91 Dec 13 '18
Certain parts of the world you just have to wing it. For example, Bolivia. Only a few buses from La Paz to Uyuni take online booking and you'd end up paying more than twice the price than if you were to book in person in the bus station.
Best winging I've done was 2 weeks ago. I got to Ushuaia. I was supposed to be there for 2 days. But g20 happened and flights to Buenos Aires were cancelled for 3 days. I took a boat ride to a small Chilean town called Puerto Navarino and from there to Puerto Williams. Its the southernmost permanently inhabited town in the world and did the Dientes DeNavrino trek, which is the southernmost hike in the world. They are beginning to catch up to Tourism there and there is no park entry fee or camping fee unlike Torres Del Paine! (Yay)
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u/FamilyOnStandby United States Dec 13 '18
This is literally what we do for every trip. Flying standby has its perks, but I think the biggest benefit (and downfall) is never really knowing if we're going where we plan or if we'll end up elsewhere. More times than not, we're booking a hotel from the plane before the door closes.
"Winging it" has taught us so much about ourselves and informed how we raise our daughter. Being able to go with the flow and adapt to any situation has been so beneficial. Our toddler daughter is about as chill as a kid can get.
If you ever have the opportunity to go to Google Flights and just pick somewhere that's cheap and leaves tomorrow, I highly recommend it. No over planning, no over-inflated expectations, and no disappointment that you didn't accomplish everything. Just exploring as it comes at you.
That's what makes travel beautiful.
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u/soonerguy11 Los Angeles - 74 countries Dec 14 '18
Completely agree. It used to be that I had a process where I would plan and strategize the essentials. Now I travel frequently with people who despise winging it and it honestly cramps my style. Trips just feel more like tours than actual experiences. With that said, I feel I've rubbed off on them as much as they have on my. While growing to appreciate the benefits of structured travel, they've slowly come to appreciate the more vertite style of a trip.
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u/Johnny-Porno Dec 13 '18
When it's a i) safe country, ii) you have enough time and iii) enough money and iv) it's low season or you are off the beaten path, then it's always better to wing it. Less stress and better experience.
If only one of these four conditions is not met, you are better off not winging it, because it can be dangerous, you will waste your precious time on booking and organizing and less on exploring, or pay ridiculous amounts of money for anything or not even find anything (touristy place in high season). Exception is legal requirements (Visa, IDP, etc.).
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u/swollencornholio Airplane! Dec 14 '18
I've had some of my favorite experiences winging it. The best part about winging it is discovering as you go. There are no expectations to how your trip should unfold so it's nearly impossible to be disappointed unless you really do no research and end up in a city with no places to stay because of an event.
One of my winging it trips almost went terribly wrong. This was before booking shit on your phone was as easy and I just randomly showed up to a hostel 20 minutes from Malaga bus station. It ended up being full except for a bunk in the all girls room. The owner ended up talking to the girls and they let me stay there. The girls asked to see me before and the owner refused lol. They ended up letting me stay there that night and I moved the next night.
From that experience the ideal 'winging' it vacation is planning your next destination accomodations a day or two or week before you get there.
My ideal winging it trip is having a 2 month global rail pass through Europe in countries you don't need seat reservations and discovering my own journey through people I meet or places I find out about.
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u/caveman512 Dec 15 '18
I'm going on a solo trip to Italy (and possibly other parts of Europe) next summer and I've been meticulously planning not to plan. I'm totally new to this sort of thing, so I've been researching like crazy the things I can and, more importantly, need to do for my trip.
Besides attending a wedding, which is the reason I decided to make this journey in the first place, I don't want to be tied down to any single event or activity. Instead, I've been studying numerous different possibilities of things I can do when I get there and then deciding in the moment whatever it is that I want to do. If I go in with a mindest of "have fun and enjoy yourself" rather than "see X, Y and Z" I think it'll be an overall better experience.
For most of my trip I plan to stay in hostels, and I hope I can gain some insight of things to do from people there as well
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u/llangstooo Dec 16 '18
This is kind of weird, but I like the aspect of traveling that is problem solving. For instance, figuring out how to get from one city to the next, how to cross a border, finding the bus stop... it’s all weirdly fun to me. Certainly there’s a chance of things not working out as you’d like, but I love the experience of figuring out a totally new and unfamiliar system. When you have everything planned ahead, you miss out on the fun that comes with making calls as you go.
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u/jakemhs Dec 17 '18
Me too...difference is I solve the problems in advance before my precious vacation time starts ticking away.
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u/tonytavy Dec 16 '18
Traveling with no plans all on my own thru Australia was the best thing i could have done for myself and the excitement of my trip.
I'm from Victoria, BC Canada but grew up in Winnipeg Manitoba most of my life. Winnipeg is one of the coldest cities in Canada, so you understand why one would love to leave the cold and adventure in Australia. I have always wanted to travel and see the world. (Since as a kid i grew up on a low income, and didn't experience any travel outside of Canada.)
I got out of a 2 year long relationship and my partner had not interest in traveling. (Crazy i know) So i took that as a sign i could go on a trip. But rather than going for a few weeks, i did my research online. (YouTube was a big help) I landed on Australia, so i started saving while working 2 jobs. Was not easy but keeping in mind that i was working towards something and nothing would get in the way. No boys, no friends and no family (Sorry haha!)
I booked my flight after work one day while sitting in my room freaking out. Once i put my card details down and i pressed submit it hit me that i was leaving! Only thing about this trip i had planned was Melbourne was my first stop, with a 3 day lay over in Hawaii! While in Hawaii i stayed in a hostel on Waikiki beach, where i spent those 3 days drinking and laying by the beach. Great little vacation before i was in Melbourne's winter time. (September) While in the airport from Hawaii to Melbourne i was talking to a couple in line and they were asking me questions about my travels and where i was going to stay when i got into Australia. I told them i was just going to find a hostel while there and i was not to worried, But they brought up a great point in that i would need to fill out the customs form with the address i was staying at. They then looked up a hostel that was in the CBD of Melbourne called "Urban Central" (Amazing place, recommend for sure). The really amazing thing is that they recommended this place for me and i ended up living there for 2 months and meeting all my friends which grew into my travel family.
While in Aus i got to go on a great tour with a company called "The Magic Bus" and for one month we drove and camped from Melbourne to Perth. (http://www.themagicbusaustralia.com.au/)
Snorkeling thru the great barrier reef (https://greenisland.com.au/)
Spent Christmas drinking and partying on the beach (https://stkildamelbourne.com.au/)
All in all, you get the freedom of meeting people with the same JUST DO IT attitude, you make life long friends who are eventually going back to their countries which means you get a free tour guide when you travel over seas!
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u/ThatDudeFromPlaces Dec 17 '18 edited Dec 17 '18
I've always found winging it to be the most interesting and entertaining way to go about a trip. Every time I've done it I've had some crazy experiences and made some super cool new friends. That said, the only time that I wouldn't wing one is if you're going with friends or have a set goal. The only things I'd recommend to make life a bit easier while winging it are:
- Have a rough budget
- Have a general idea on the region you want to stay in/what you want to do
- Give yourself plenty of time so you don't get carried away and miss your flight back home (trust me it sucks) or any obligations you have coming up
- Make sure you've got a place to sleep lined up
- Check out the internet, ask other travelers what their favourite spot was, ask locals what/where you should go
- If you're going somewhere that you need a visa/vaccinations 100% do that a good bit before
I actually just got back from a month and a half long trip that wasn't planned past the first two days (I booked the flight there three days before my departure, but no return ticket). Every single decision on that trip was made either on the spot or the night before leaving. I also lost my camera on this trip :( Luckily it was analogue so I only lost a roll that I'd just started on, but that camera had sentimental value to it.
Super super long story below
TL;DR: Met cool people, said screw it and changed plans on the spot, made some lifelong friends, hitchhiked 1.000mi (1.600km), met a girl, wore drag, acid bike ride through the German countryside, almost got bedbugs, slept on a bench, ate truffles, got into a fight, almost missed my flight home.
The only planning I did was my departure flight from home and one night's hostel stay in Berlin. That night I befriended a group headed to Krakow, they told me to go too. We all went out partying until 7am and took a two hour power nap before going out sightseeing. Later that night I was on the flight with them. We all took an uber to their hostel and I walked from theirs down the street to mine. On my walk I ended up meeting an American guy that was living there. He showed me around after I dropped my pack off at my hostel, we ended up drinking and hanging out with a pair of local girls and having a great time while they tried to teach me some basic Polish. The night ended up with us going to the kebab shop he worked at and making a ton of food. I ended up meeting another cool group of people at my hostel and hung out with them and going out every night. Every night was an interesting new experience that always ended with me leaving and hanging out with locals, all though one night I ended up getting sucker punched for talking to the wrong girl. But after the scuffle I ended up meeting a group of local girls and going to a disco club with them and then after they took me to a house party. The person I was tightest with lived in Prague and told me Czechia's 100yr Anniversary was coming up and to come visit so I said sure. On my last night at the hostel I checked google maps (and this sub) and decided on a place to go, I also decided I wanted to hitchhike there.
In the morning I found a piece of cardboard and wrote "Czechia" on one side and "Cesky Krumlov" on the other, then I headed off to the motorway. I waited for 30mins then got picked up by a family man that told me about his times hitchhiking and dropped me off near the border with Czech, then I got a ride from an angry polish truck driver that spoke no English which ended up with a hilarious game of charades. After he dropped me off I got a picked up by an amazing couple that took me to their town, showed me around, and took me out for dinner! Later on in the hitchhiking journey was the only time I did screw myself over due to a lack of planning which led to me sleeping on a bus station bench in Brno. Once I made it to Cesky I hung out and took a bunch of pictures then hitchhiked up to Prague.
In Prague I met this super chill girl and spent the whole night and next day just hanging out and getting lost in the city. I changed hostels (to the Madhouse) once she left and ended up making some great new friends there, played tons of cider-pong and went out tons. Went to the Lennon wall, checked out the museum of communism, as well as aimlessly riding a bird scooter around the city with a friend on it with me. I stayed there until 5am, I booked a flight to Rome on the 30th, on the first of Nov, and ended up going to the airport with a full face of make up after dressing up in drag and staying out until an hour and a half before my flight departed.
I visited with some family friends outside of Rome, in Castel Gandolfo, and ate heaps of food and went to a dinner party with them. From there I decided to say fuck it again and go to Florence to see the another friend I made in Prague, while there I ended up getting pretty sick and just eating tons of food while loafing around. After a few days there I decided to go up and stay at a family home in Müllheim. While there I ended up taking some acid and going on a 20mi(30km) bike ride through the countryside and took tons of pictures. After a few days of relaxing I decided to hitchhike out to Amsterdam for a bit, ended up randomly bumping into a friend I made on Xbox live but had never met irl. Partied with them for a night and then decided to go down to Bussum for a week and use it as home base while visiting Universities to see their law programmes. I brought my pack with me to the last visit and was about to hitchhike to Eindhoven but while I was taking a bus to the motorway I changed my mind and hitched to Antwerp. I got a ride pretty much all the way to my hostel (like .6mi/1km away). That dude was super nice and we talked about body building, him coming to visit Manhattan and DC, and his life growing up and immigrating to Belgium.
I got to Antwerp and immediately hit it off with a girl in my hostel room, we then went on an adventure that consisted of traveling the city without using GPS, eating fries, and doing karaoke. We got back to our hostel and started to watch a movie, then headed back up to the dorm where we found bedbugs and decided to GTFO. We ended up splitting a hotel room and going on a chocolate and coffee driven adventure in the morning until she had to catch her train. I ended up staying another night and started to hitchhike to Amsterdam so I could catch my flight back home (booked it that morning) in a few days.
In the morning I took the train to an on-ramp and posted up with my thumb out and a sign that said "Tokyo". My first ride was this laidback Belgian girl that smoked me out and took me to the grocery store, second ride was a younger guy who I spoke with about immigration and work, my third ride was from a Dutch police officer who informed me that standing on the side of the motorway was illegal but dropped me off at a good spot (without a ticket and with a water bottle and candy bar), my last ride was with a couple in a nice car that spoke to me about immigrating to the Netherlands and their story growing up. I got dropped off at a service station outside of the Hague, didn't get a ride after an hour and it had gotten dark so I started a three hour trek to the Hague. Got there and ended up instantly becoming best friends with a guy in my dorm. Traded life stories, shared music, and bs'ed about life for the entire night. The next morning we walked around and explored the city and randomly decided to eat some truffles that we got from a guy that could've been a vendor in a Zelda game. Had a blast until we tried going into Albert Heijn to get some snacks where things got weird. The morning after I walked with my new friend to the bus station so he could catch his bus and then I decided to get risky and hitchhike (again flying the Tokyo sign) to the airport, made it 30 minutes before my flight started boarding.
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u/jakemhs Dec 17 '18
I can't do it. I won't begin a travel day without at least knowing where I'm sleeping that night. I'm a planner through and through. I don't plan every minute of every day but I do plan accommodations and travel far in advance.
I'd rather risk missing out on something than spend part of a vacation figuring out where I'm going to sleep.
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u/nosefingers Dec 17 '18
This, but I LOVE planning trips and then executing the plan. And when it all goes well, it's sooooo satisfying to look back at the end of the trip and say "wow, I just orchestrated that whole amazing thing!". I think planning is definitely an underrated aspect of traveling as far as how much it contributes to enjoyment of the trip.
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u/jakemhs Dec 17 '18
Absolutely! We just did 2 weeks in New Zealand and it was so gratifying to see our planning pay off with a smooth ride.
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u/adventurepaul Dec 18 '18
I like a combination of both. My business is based around traveling, and I have a rigorous production schedule while I travel, so I enjoy leaving the option to "wing it" in my life. This particular thread caught my eye because as of writing this, I have no place to stay in Buenos Aires tomorrow and no plans. Most likely I'll be Skyscanning "Buenos Aires to Everywhere" again later today and doing something random, fun, and exciting for the new year. I like the balance of having plans that I adhere to in my professional life and keeping it free flow in my personal life - both which are centered around travel.
A few people mentioned that winging it prevents planning and sometimes you miss out. That's very true on things that require advance tickets (ie: climbing Huayna Picchu which the tickets must be purchased weeks in advance). However, what I've found precludes more adventures than "winging it" is "rushing it". For example, I spent a week in Santa Marta, Colombia and put out a couple videos. The trip was totally unplanned, as are many of the destinations I show up at, but I was able to do plenty of research about the area even in one day. Between bloggers, vloggers, and Facebook groups -- the info is out there. But then I left after a week. And that's when I started getting messages from people I met and folks who had seen my videos, "Hey you should do a video about _____! Tourists don't know about it. I can take you there!" So running out the door a week later instead of spending more time is what made me miss out in that scenario because research wouldn't have gotten me those personal invites anyway.
That's been my experience. I love the comments on this thread because it looks like I'm not alone in enjoying a combination of both types of travel in my life! Ask any hang glider and they'll tell you -- a tight grip can be deadly. I think it's nice to be in control but keep a loose grip on the specifics so that you can allow the wind to take you.
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u/[deleted] Dec 13 '18
I think the best way to "wing" a trip and really enjoy it is to do it on a trip that's fairly easy to "wing" in the first place.
I think trips where you need to focus on a lot of details (say, trekking through Central Asia, or driving across China) probably aren't the kinds of trips you will want to wing. On the other hand, backpacking through SEA is fairly easy to do as long as you have a valid passport that allows you easy entrance into most of the countries, and some sufficient funds to cover the trip.
A good winger will also know when it's okay to go with the flow and take things as they come, and when you do indeed need to do some planning.
Important things like visas, understanding some cultural nuances, basic phrases in the local language as well as having a rough budget will really help in being able to have a bit more freedom with how your trip ends up. Doing research beforehand on what you may want to see or do (but not planning it out in a rigid way) allows you to have the ability to make choices based on what you're experiencing right in front of you. You may end up hating a place you thought you would love, meet people you want to spend more time with, or learn about a new activity that you want to turn into a hobby on the road. Things rarely go as planned anyway, so having some built in flexibility is key.
Speaking from experience, it's also much, much easier to have this kind of trip if you travel solo. Winging it means you need to be comfortable not knowing what kind of experience you're going to have, and for some people that's just not reasonable.
Overall, I find the less planning I do, the more I enjoy a trip.