DIY Travel Planning Guide for Your Next Dream Trip

Every hardworking Filipino deserves a break from their respective jobs to travel to a tourist destination for a quick vacation. Whether it's island hopping, scuba diving on white sand beaches in the country, or overseas travel to a neighboring nation in Southeast Asia, there is a perfect destination for Filipinos to unwind for a week or two.

However, before the excitement starts comes the necessity to first carefully plan the trip ahead. Resorting to a travel agency to book flight and hotel accommodations would be quite expensive, so you might be thinking of doing a DIY travel plan for your next trip to save money instead.

Not sure where to start, or still in doubt whether such a setup is suitable for you and your travel companions? Lumina Homes, an affordable house and lot developer, will help you objectively weigh the pros and cons of DIY travel planning, as well as best practices should you decide to DIY your next well-deserved travel this 2023.

Advantages of DIY Travel Planning

Here are all the right, compelling reasons you'd want to push through your DIY travel planning for your dream trip to a local destination:

1. Total control of your itineraries

You have all the liberty for your itineraries, set of activities, and even the time you'd start touring. If you slept late at night, you have the choice to wake up later than usual and not be bothered about setting up an alarm clock for an early call time. In addition, you can make adjustments as needed and not worry about overstaying (or understaying) at a place.

2. No pressure from a tour guide

Having a tour guide in your midst makes for an organized trip, but this is often restrictive. It will discourage you from having a spontaneous destination and more time to visit an itinerary you like the ambiance of. Without a tour guide, you can travel at your own pace, and decide to stay longer at an itinerary without pressure.

3. Save more money

This is arguably the greatest benefit that DIY travel planning will bring vacationers like you. Travel bundles usually cost too much, which is not worth it if it can only cover a few itineraries and days. You can use what you'll save up for your other travel expenses and keep it entirely in your savings account.

Disadvantages of DIY Travel Planning

After learning about the good things you'd push for independent travel planning, here are all the wrong reasons you'd refuse to be tied to a travel agency for your Philippines travel itinerary.

1. Consumes so much time

Since you will be in charge of practically everything, this is time-consuming and labor-intensive. You'll need to research the place, make computations for the total travel costs, and more. This is while doing other important matters such as your work and family life. You may end up using your rest time into doing this DIY travel planning instead.

2. You are accountable when things go wrong

If your preparation is not foolproof, you will be accountable when things don't go according to plan. If you have a travel agency, you can have somebody to turn to when unforeseen circumstances and emergencies arise.

3. The planning itself is just stressful

If you were assigned to lead the planning, it is nothing short of stressful. You'd need to gather everyone's opinions, preferences, and grievances. You'd be in charge of creating a middle ground for everyone to meet. With poor communication, your travel planning may end up in bad blood. That is to say, disagreements can lead to actual arguments. Or worse, your friends backing out and the trip itself canceled.

Best Practices for Your DIY Travel Planning

Critical to the success and fun of your vacation are preparation and planning. Therefore, you must carefully plan out your future trip with your friends or family long before you could avail of cheap flights and set foot at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA). Below are a quick rundown of best practices for your next travel.

• Decide on which destination(s) you'd go to that is ideal for your budget.

• If you have fewer leave credits than what you intend your vacation to last, talk to your supervisor and consider opting for nonpayment for the extra days you spend for your vacation.

• Decide who's coming with you or if you're traveling solo. This could dictate your destination choice, budgeting, and even whether or not you'd enjoy the travel.

• Your travel companions should ideally have similar interests. You may enjoy a trip to an art museum, but it could spoil your trip if one of your companions do a side comment expressing he's not a fan of this travel itinerary.

• Make your research on your tourist destination, especially if this is overseas. Learn about their culture, weather, basic courtesy gestures, a few words in their language, etc.

• Create a checklist of itineraries you'd go to, their schedules, modes of transportation, and estimated expenses.

• Pack your bags ahead, and learn to bring only the bare minimum. Don't include toiletries, wear your jacket instead of packing them, and roll your clothes in lieu of folding them to maximize luggage space.

• Download useful applications that will help you to have hassle-free travel. This ranges from Google Maps for directions, GCash for local payments, and Viber, WhatsApp, and Telegram for communication tools when traveling abroad.

The Philippines, known to be the only Christian nation in Asia, is ripe with a wealth of tourist spots. In the north, you can visit the historic and classic-looking city of Vigan, a UNESCO World Heritage site. You may also bear witness to nature's beauty in the Banaue Rice Terraces, or experience world-class diving and more in Puerto Princesa in Palawan.

What is more, you can opt for beach resorts in Batangas, art museums and historical sites in Cebu City, the magnificent Chocolate Hills in Bohol, spoil your palate and try Filipino cuisine in Pampanga, or schedule a day trip to Corregidor Island in Manila Bay. You can push through your DIY travel so you can save more money without compromising your enjoyment.

If you have plans to purchase your own house and lot in the Philippines and bid goodbye to renting, you can allocate your savings from your DIY travel to fund your future property down payment. The math is simple: the higher your down payment, the lower your monthly amortization, and the less you would need to pay in the long run.

Lumina Homes, the 10-year housing arm of Vista Land, is known in the real estate industry as a trusted developer of affordable housing for Filipino families. For a quality yet affordable house and lot for sale that does not sacrifice convenience, Lumina Homes is the perfect real estate investment choice for you.

Feel free to visit our website and go on a virtual tour of available properties from Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao. During your DIY travel, you can also schedule and add a site tripping to a Lumina community near your travel destination. Get in touch with one of our sales representatives today and reserve your future Lumina home!