Every time I travel, I make a super detailed travel itinerary that serves as my bible throughout the whole trip. From flight information to restaurant reservations and everything in between, my travel itinerary is the only document I have to carry with me when I travel.

Over the years, I’ve gotten pretty good at banging these itineraries out–so good that my friends request them even if they have no travel plans–and have developed somewhat of a strategy. So, like I always do, I thought I’d share my tips and tricks with you!

I like to divide my travel itinerary by day (ex: Tuesday, March 28th) and then subdivide by time of day (ex: morning, afternoon, evening). That way, I can distinguish between something to see in the morning v. the evening. Plus, it’s a great way to make sure I don’t overbook myself for any one time of the day.

From there, I go about filling in the different portions of the day. I like to do a ton of research before I go anywhere. Depending on the scale of the trip (international or national), I’ll read travel books, scope travel blogs, and even stalk my favorite influencers’ Instagram feeds. All of these sources help me figure out the key places to visit, delicious restaurants to eat at, and other notable things I shouldn’t miss out on.

Then it really comes down to scheduling. As I mentioned, you don’t want to overbook yourself with breakfast plans on one end of town, lunch on the other, and finally dinner plans back where you had breakfast. That would be crazy! Instead, I try to stick to one or two neighborhoods per day and ensure that they’re somewhat close by. I’ll also do extensive research on the best modes of transit around the city to figure out how exactly to reach my destinations.

Hope this inspires you to get organized before your next big trip!