Wandering Around the Globe

  Like a printed travel guide? Is it worth it? Will you use it? What is the point? Do you need more than one? Don’t they all contain the same information? Yes, I am talking about a printed, book form travel guide and I do feel it is absolutely worth it.   I actually tend to buy three or four of them, depending on the type of trip I am going on and the amount of money I am going to spend. For instance, for a recent trip to Italy, I purchased a Rick Steves' Italy (Amazon link) and Fodor’s Travel Essential Italy (Amazon Link) . The prices are similar, and they both provide great information. Most people would probably be happy with just one. I find Fodor’s to have better maps and they have local writers that contribute to the books. I’ve read many of Steves’ books and there is a lot detail that is really useful – often including the hours of operation and the website. Both include recommended itineraries, and their websites have additional planning guides. Fodor’s has pullo...

  Taking a dream vacation that you plan yourself can either be a dream or a nightmare and it all depends on how you plan it. I have planned a few dream vacations for myself, and I have also planned group trips for varying budgets from the tightest to full luxury. The first thing to do in travel planning is simple.   Decide on where you want to go.   In fact, it is deceptively simple. There are 7 continents, undisputed. There are between 195 to 215 countries. This list varies depending on whether you recognize Vatican City or Taiwan or Macau or Scotland, even as countries. As a kid, my family didn’t have much and we camped – a lot. I spent a lot of time in state parks, and I grew to appreciate a simple vacation. It also meant I grew up reading of far-off lands and dreaming of visiting them at some point in my lifetime. I had created a short list of the top 10 places that I wanted to visit before I turned 50. I won’t be able to make it to all of them because life interven...