How to Write a Travel Itinerary for Your Holiday [Free Itinerary Template Included]
Luke Iles – Uploaded 06.05.2023
Write the perfect travel itinerary for your summer trip
Travelling is amazing however if you want to make it that extra bit special and make sure you visit all the amazing destinations and take part in all the best activities whilst you are in a specific place, there is a lot more to it than just booking some plane tickets.
The majority of people often have a limited time at one destination, whether that be due to their work and career or lifestyle and budget. Therefore it is even more important that if you are looking to get the optimum enjoyment and do everything you want to do in a particular destination it is worth planning so that you can ensure you do the most with your time and don’t leave feeling like you’ve missed out.
When it comes to travel there is no better plan than a travel itinerary!
There are plenty of benefits when using a travel itinerary because not only can a travel itinerary help give you a sense of direction of all the things you want to do in a particular city or country, but it also gives you a rough idea and plan of how much you are roughly going to spend and whether you will need to plan for any additional expenses too.
As experienced travellers who have travelled across Europe, Asia, North America and more, we promise you that there is nothing better than ensuring you have a well-structured trip itinerary when travelling the globe, so continue reading our article to get our insider tips on how to make the most of your holiday whilst we provide you with a brief overview on how to write a travel itinerary for your next holiday or business trip.
Throughout this blog, we will also provide you with our custom-built travel itinerary template which you can use no matter what destination or for how long you are staying in a particular travel destination.
Our custom-built free travel itinerary template
First things first, as experienced travellers who have travelled city to city, continent to continent we have come up with the perfect way to plan our trips. This custom-built travel itinerary can be used for any destination you visit and can be extended to as many or as few days as you want.
One thing we will promise with this travel itinerary template is that it has not only helped save us money and time but it has also helped us plan our trip so we could see everything we wanted to in a particular destination without going overboard on everything and feeling overwhelmed.
After all, you are on holiday and there is nothing worse than stressing, rushing around trying to cram everything in. This travel itinerary template will be relaxing, not over the top but will still provide you with the freedom to see and do everything you desire when visiting a particular destination.
If you want to save even more time on planning and writing out your travel itinerary, why not use AI tools to speed up the process even quicker?
Read our blog on the how to use AI tools to write a travel itinerary in less than five minutes for a step-by-step guide.
Our free-to-use travel itinerary template
[Destination]
[Travel Dates]
Day 1 (Customisable to your arrival):
[Arrival time] Arrive at [Airport/Train Station]
[Transportation] Take [taxi, train, bus, taxi, Uber etc.] to [hotel/accommodation]
[Check-in time] Check-in at [hotel/accommodation]
[Unpack] Unpack all your belongings in your hotel
[Lunch] Grab some lunch somewhere
[Activity/ies] Explore [neighbourhood] in the afternoon/evening
[Break] Take a break at [hotel/room/accommodation]
[Meal] Have dinner at [restaurant/hotel/room]
[Night-time activity/ies] [Bar-hopping, Nightclub, stargazing, night tour, etc.]
Day 2:
[Breakfast] Have breakfast at [cafe/restaurant/hotel/room]
[Activity/ies] [Tour/Visit] [landmark/museum/beach/activity] in the morning
[Break] Take a break at [cafe/park/hotel room]
[Meal] Have lunch at [restaurant/hotel/cafe/accommodation]
[Chill Out Afternoon] Take a break at [cafe/park/attraction]
[Break] Take a break at [hotel/room/accommodation]
[Meal] Have dinner at [restaurant/hotel/room]
[Night-time activity/ies] [Night market, concert, theatre, etc.]
Day 3:
[Breakfast] Have breakfast at [cafe/restaurant/hotel/room]
[Chill Out Morning] Take a break at [cafe/park/attraction]
[Meal] Have lunch at [restaurant/hotel/cafe/accommodation]
[Activity/ies] Do [activity] in the afternoon/evening
[Break] Take a break at [hotel/room/accommodation]
[Meal] Have dinner at [restaurant]
[Night-time activity/ies] [Rooftop bar, night cruise, ghost tour, etc.]
Day 4:
[Breakfast] Have breakfast at [cafe/restaurant/hotel/room]
[Activity/ies] [Tour/Visit] [landmark/museum] in the morning
[Meal] Have lunch at [restaurant/hotel/cafe/accommodation]
[Activity/ies] Do [activity] in the afternoon/evening
[Break] Take a break at [hotel/room/accommodation]
[Meal] Have dinner at [restaurant]
[Night-time activity/ies] [Pub crawl, night safari, bonfire, etc.]
Day 5:
[Breakfast] Have breakfast at [cafe/restaurant/hotel/room]
[Chill Out Morning] Take a break at [cafe/park/attraction]
[Meal] Have lunch at [restaurant/hotel/cafe/accommodation]
[Activity/ies] Do [activity] in the afternoon/evening
[Break] Take a break at [hotel/room/accommodation]
[Meal] Have dinner at [restaurant]
[Night-time activity/ies] [Concert, clubbing, night market, etc.]
Day 6:
[Breakfast] Have breakfast at [cafe/restaurant/hotel/room]
[Activity/ies] [Tour/Visit] [landmark/museum] in the morning
[Meal] Have lunch at [restaurant/hotel/cafe/accommodation]
[Activity/ies] Do [activity] in the afternoon/evening
[Break] Take a break at [hotel/room/accommodation]
[Meal] Have dinner at [restaurant]
[Night-time activity/ies] Pack belongings into a suitcase
Day 7 (Customisable to your departure):
[Breakfast] Have breakfast at [hotel/room]
[Check-out time] Check-out from [hotel/accommodation]
[Transportation] Take [taxi, train, bus, etc.] to [Airport/Train Station]
[Departure time] Depart from [Airport/Train Station]
This brief summary of the travel itinerary template will provide you with a solid foundation to customise to your own personal preferences. For example, if you want the trip to be more intense or relaxed, you can adjust accordingly. Furthermore, if you are going for a longer or shorter amount of time than this seven-day travel itinerary then you can also remove and add columns where accordingly.
Planning your trip
Now that you have your travel itinerary template, you can look to make it a more detailed itinerary by adding all the attractions and places you want to visit for your upcoming trip. Not only this but you can also look to add any important aspects such as hotel reservations, lodging details, car rentals, plane tickets and more to the travel itinerary.
1. Sit down and gather all your important travel documents
The first thing you must do before even deciding to fill in the custom travel itinerary is to gather all your important travel documents and ensure they are all in one place. From here confirm you have all the relevant details such as your plane tickets and airport information as well as your hotel or accommodation details including the check-in and check-out details.
You want to assure that you have the flight times correct including if it is a long-haul flight and there is going to be a rather large time difference. If so account for your jet lag and make sure you give yourself enough rest on the first day of your travel itinerary.
Some other information that is always handy to have on you is the time of your airport transfer from the airport to the hotel or accommodation. Not only this but it is wise to know how far your accommodation is from the airport so you can plan for the time it takes for you to travel from destination A to B.
Not only this but make sure you know when the check-in desk of your hotel is open and if booking an accommodation with a third party such as Air BnB make sure you have contacted and spoken with the rep to ensure everything goes as planned when checking in.
When sitting down to plan the itinerary, also make sure you have an internet-connected device at the ready to research any other details you may need that are not currently on.
2. Do your research on the destination and pre-book tickets
When it comes to planning the ideal travel itinerary for your holiday or business trip it can be hard to do anything, if you don’t have a basic understanding of the destination you are visiting itself.
If you haven’t done your research then you won’t know what attractions and things to do are available within the place you are going on holiday. On top of this, if you do have a clear idea of what attractions you want to visit, it may be a good idea to understand where these landmarks and activities are located so that you can account for the time it takes to travel to the destination and if some things are better done as a pair or one thing after the other and they are located next to each other.
Not only this but it is important to research and understand how long these activities or destinations are going to take. Will it be a day trip? An hour activity? Or a half a day experience? These are all things you need to know to plan accordingly.
Furthermore, you should also be aware of if there is a necessity to pre-book tickets or purchase them in a different location before you visit. There may be long lines of queues to buy tickets at the destination, especially if you are visiting at peak times to a famous landmark.
In addition to this, the same can be said for famous restaurants you may want to visit and add to the travel itinerary. It is important to account for all aspects as not booking a restaurant may leave you going off the schedule of the trip itinerary.
A great place to get a good knowledge and understanding of the place you are visiting is by watching Youtube videos, visiting travel forums and browsing communities on Reddit. Not only this but you could read our recommendations on a specific place and read travel blogs like ours!
By doing your research you will be able to get a solid understanding of what is doable in a certain amount of time and what is not. Therefore, it can stop you from trying to squeeze a lot of activities into one day when it is not possible or not planning destinations that are close together on the same day.
3. Fill in the gaps and adjust your travel itinerary accordingly
Once you have established a good understanding of the place you are visiting and have a list of everything you want to do and see. Furthermore, you may have also booked tickets, tours and transportation for specific days and trips you may have to wanted to do whilst on holiday.
Well, now it is time to put it all together in one. Simply use the travel itinerary template that we have created above in the blog and fill in the gaps.
Of course, if you are staying at a destination for longer or a shorter time than the 7-day travel itinerary we have provided, you can adjust it accordingly. In addition to this, if you would prefer to do a more intense trip and have a more jam-packed travel itinerary then you can adjust it accordingly. On the other hand, you can also adjust the travel itinerary so it is more chilled out with more breaks and relaxing activities.
Furthermore, you can also adjust the travel itinerary so it is custom-built to your exact budget whether you want to do it cheaper or more expensive. You can also adjust it to your travel requirements if you are touring a country or hoping to move around a little bit, you can also plan for that.
On top of this, the travel itinerary can be adjusted for people who are hoping to do half-board or all-inclusive packages with a hotel or resort and do not need to account for their daily food and meals as it will all take place within the hotel or accommodation.
At the end of the day, it is your holiday and you have the power and ability to plan it exactly the way you want to. Just remember the trip itinerary template is just a rough guide to follow.
4. Don't be afraid to change things when you are there
A common theme you will find when you have arrived at your destination is that you may not need to follow your travel itinerary as religiously as you may have planned to. When we travel to destinations we like to have a list of all things we like to do and as we go through the trip we may feel like doing a certain activity on a different day than originally planned.
In addition to this, you may realise when you are there that you have tried to cram too much into one day or that other things you have planned to do on different days work out better to do on certain days. For example, if you have a bad spell of weather or something is closed on a certain day, the plan is always subject to change.
Make sure that your itinerary is not the be-all and end-all and that it is simply a guide, not a strict set of rules. Have fun and enjoy yourself on your holiday or trip away and don’t get too strung up if you don’t manage to do everything on the list. Simply use it as a guide and deviate when you need to. That is the whole fun of travelling. To explore after all!
Don’t be afraid to change things when you are at the destination and don’t be afraid to not follow it at all either.
Conclusion
In conclusion, this article should have provided you with a fully comprehensive plan on how to write a travel itinerary as well as equip you with a travel itinerary template that is free to use and customize to your wants and needs.
Hopefully, you have learned how necessary it is to have all the relevant information at hand when planning a travel itinerary and have a good understanding of what you want to do in that destination and some local knowledge of the place you are visiting before writing it out.
On top of this, it is also important to factor in rests and breaks as well as not being too strict on the following the plan of action at hand. When it comes to planning and actually doing there are lots of different parameters and circumstances that can change everything when you are travelling so don’t be disappointed if things don’t go strictly to plan and just enjoy your break away. As always, you can always return to that destination if you run out of time and don’t manage to do everything you originally planned to do and see. If that is the case, just prioritise what you all want to see and do and compromise accordingly.
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Disclosure: Some links in this article may be affiliate links, which can provide compensation to HandL Blogs at no cost to you if you decide to purchase through these links. These are products we have personally used and stand behind. This site is not intended to provide financial advice and is for entertainment only. You can read our affiliate disclosure in our privacy policy.
Luke Iles
Luke is a leading travel writer within the travel niche and is also a co-founder of HandL Blogs one of the UK’s leading travel blogging websites. Luke has a love of all things travel.
Initially becoming friends with his other co-founder, Harry, at the age of four years old, they let their love for travel evolve, making it their mission to visit every country in the world!
Today they want to share their passion and experiences of travelling across the globe with written blogs on topics that are most important to them. From travel, cooking, fitness and tech blogs!
Whether that be trying new food in a new country and sharing it in a cooking blog; visiting a new gym in a certain city and reviewing it in a fitness blog or learning about the newest tech within the travel industry.
Disclosure: Some links in this article may be affiliate links, which can provide compensation to HandL Blogs at no cost to you if you decide to purchase through these links. These are products we have personally used and stand behind. This site is not intended to provide financial advice and is for entertainment only. You can read our affiliate disclosure in our privacy policy.
