How I Plan: The Research

Planning a trip in the near future? If so, then you’re probably overwhelmed with the amount of information out there – from guide books to travel agents to endless sites on the Internet. There’s a lot to learn, and, if you’re like me, you probably want to go into travel planning as informed as possible.

So where do you start?

If possible, I always like to start with word-of-mouth. Usually, wherever you’re planning to go, SOMEONE you know has probably been there, or knows of someone else who’s been there. It’s never a bad idea to hear about some first-hand experiences, no matter how biased (good or bad) they may be.

For example, my family is going on an Alaskan cruise in June, which requires us to fly to Seattle to board our ship. I’m not so concerned about the Alaskan cruise part of the trip, because there’s only so much personal planning you can do on a cruise that’s already basically planned out for you. Sure, I spent days perusing the 40+ pages of potential shore excursions offered, but since I don’t plan on signing up for $500 heli-fishing, shore excursions can wait to be booked until we’re already on the ship. However, we’re going to spend a day and a half before the cruise, and a day after the cruise in Seattle.

I don’t know much about Seattle, except that it has the Space Needle, it rains a lot there, and it’s the setting for fictional Seattle Grace Hospital in “Grey’s Anatomy.” And, since I can’t spend the whole time stalking McDreamy (since “Grey’s” doesn’t even film in Seattle), filling three days will take some planning.

I started out by contacting an old high school friend of mine who I knew had interned for two summers during college in Seattle. College students are good sources when it comes to travel information, because, most of the time, they’re poor and thrifty. Meaning they know all the things to do and places to see that won’t burn a hole in your wallet. After receiving a very long list of free and cheap must-dos in Seattle and information on getting around affordably from my friend, I began the next step – Internet research.

When you’re headed to a place that you know nothing or very little about, the Internet can be rather daunting. A good place to always start is the city/area’s official tourism website. Seattle’s, for example, is run by the city’s convention and visitor’s bureau, and includes practical information on things like lodging and transportation, and also includes sections on sightseeing and tours. There’s also a great article titled “10 things you MUST see & do in Seattle.” Lists like these are great if you can find them. They’re usually short and to the point, and include the most popular “touristy” things people seek out. While I don’t always necessarily want to go the touristy route when I travel, when presented with only a couple of days to explore a big city, I don’t want to miss the good stuff.

I took Seattle CVB’s Top 10 list, and compared it to the list of must-dos my friend sent me. A lot of things – like the Space Needle, Pike Place Market, and the waterfront – appeared on both lists, and so I decided those would definitely make it onto my list of places to visit. After poking some more around the CVB site, I began branching out to websites of attractions in Seattle that caught my eye. The Museum of Flight would be perfect for my dad. Pioneer Square should satisfy our desire for some Seattle history. And the Seattle Aquarium could be shortlisted in case of rain.

To supplement all of this information, I also went to my local AAA and got a travel book on Washington/Oregon. Most of the information included in the Seattle section here was a repeat of what I found on various websites, but it helped me affirm which things really seemed worth seeing, and which could probably be skipped. You can also visit your local library to see if they have any travel books on your intended destination if you need further inspiration.

Once you have an idea of what you’d like to see, the next order of business is considering things like getting around and finding the best deals. Seattle, I’m told, has a fairly good public transportation system with free fares within the main downtown area, and affordable bus and light rail fares elsewhere. Meaning my dad’s idea of renting a car, and my mom’s idea of paying $21 for tickets on the hop-on-hop-off bus would probably be unnecessary expenses. And, as for deals, Seattle has a “City Pass,” which for $60 gets you admission to several of Seattle’s top attractions within a nine-day period.

Many large cities in the U.S. (and abroad) will offer similar transportation and admission package options (for example, my mom and I DID utilize the hop-on-hop-off sightseeing buses in New York City). So you just have to seek them out to discover if they will work for you and your travel style.

With the Seattle part of the trip less than a month and a half away, I think I’m well on my way to having a good idea of what should make it onto my family’s itinerary. But, since said itinerary depends on input from the rest of my family members, and could be impacted by the weather, a finalized itinerary is unlikely to be formed.

But, watching videos like this make me pretty sure that, whatever we end up seeing, I’m probably going to fall in love with Seattle.