Canada has always been a fan favorite tourist destination, with its tranquil natural settings and modern cities. Boasting large waterfalls, historic districts and a whooping 48 national parks and counting, there truly is no better destination for the eager pilgrim. While choosing a destination is the first and arguably most important step, there remains the small issue of planning a trip and being able to foot the bill. But rest assured, your Canadian getaway doesn’t have to be meticulously micromanaged or break the bank to be fun.
Here’s a quick guide on how to plan a Canadian vacation on a budget.
Guide to Trip Planning
Whether you are trying to plan a trip to Canada or looking for places to visit in Australia, the tips below will help you.
Outline Your Trip
While picking a destination is important, so is getting the specifics down as well. All too often tourists find that they have too little time and too many experiences waiting to be had. This is because of a lack of proper planning.
Outlining your trip beforehand not only ensures that you see and experience the most things possible within your time frame, but it also allows you to properly carry out the next stage in your preparation.
Because there is an inexhaustible list of national parks in Canada, not to mention a million and one other interesting places, this step is particularly important. Some destinations and experiences are going to have to be opportunity cost on your trip. That is unless you happen to have a few months to spare.
Budget in Advance
The secret to cheap yet enjoyable travel is deceptively simple; all you must do is plan your finances ahead. After outlining your trip, you’ll have an idea of where you’ll need to be and for what period you’ll need to be there. That’s really all you need to start budgeting smart.
Things like accommodation, transportation and even feeding can all be sorted out and budgeted for ahead of time. The advantage of this (apart from the peace of mind during the trip itself) is that planning allows you to shop around for the cheapest options that still give you the experience you’re looking for. This is significantly harder to do when you’re out in the cold with your bags, hungry and with nowhere to stow your stuff.
Making an informed choice between hotels, motels and Airbnb’s for accommodation, rental cars, public transit and tour groups for transportation, and traditional restaurants or local hotspots can really make or break your budget. Reserving these in advance can also save you some money in addition to taking some more worry out of the equation during your stay.
Prepare for Local Differences
Next comes the research into how you’ll need to adjust. Depending on where you’re coming from, you might have to investigate the difference in language, cuisine, customs and even payment methods for your stay. These can be a hassle to keep track of but are a necessary part of your preparations. Canada is very easy to adjust to on a trip, but you’ll want to know ahead of time if your host is going to be speaking very quick and fluent French.
Conclusion
With these three broad guidelines, you should be able to plan out the perfect trip to Canada soon. But we all know that it’s easier said than done, and that’s why people often opt to take the hassle out of their travel plans by letting the pros do the worrying for them.