Trip Itineraries & Travel Plans for Adventurers

Travel Plans & Trip Itineraries

Keen to travel abroad but short on time? Buckle up and saddle in: I’ve got a couple ideas you’re going to want to hear.

I get it. You’re probably already sick of getting bombarded with the idea that you need to quit your job to travel the world or live out of a backpack if you want to be a “real” traveller.

Fortunately, we both know it’s a load of *expletive deleted*.

Truth is: Travel is not all-in or nothing—despite what the broke-but-Instagram-happy blogger crowd will peddle. You can see the world without giving up your life, your career, or leaving your loved ones and friends behind.

Below, you’ll sift through an assortment of itineraries & travel plans designed with the time-crunched mid-range luxury traveller in mind.

In the end, though, these itineraries are not about me; they’re about you.

The itineraries below are based on my travels to over 50 countries in the past decade and a half. These are not personal travelogues or detailed play-by-plays.

Instead, I’ve flipped the usual travel blogging paradigm on its head, replacing selfies and self-aggrandizing details with practical information that’ll help you plan your dream trip better.

Enjoy!

City Itineraries

Let’s start with the most time-crunched of all travel plans: city itineraries.

Perhaps it’s because I grew up in Northern Ontario, but I absolutely love visiting cities. (The more urban, the better.) You’ll notice that many of the city itineraries I’ve laid out here focus on an extremely short timeframe: one day.

Skyline from Shanghai World Financial Center in Shanghai, China

Now, don’t get me wrong: It’s hard to see a city in a day. I mean, it’s next to impossible. And I don’t necessarily recommend it unless it’s your only choice.

But with travel being a dynamic crapshoot of layovers and bad transportation connections, spending just 24 hours in a city is a real possibility. (And it probably happens more often than we might want.)

Think of these city itineraries less as a be-all-end-all travel plan and more as a starting point. Even when you only manage to get in a quick run through a city, it’s usually enough to inspire a return visit with a little more substance. (Or otherwise scare you off for good.)

Asia

China

Hong Kong

Japan

Korea

Macau

Malaysia

Singapore

Taiwan

Thailand

Vietnam

Europe

Austria

Bulgaria

Croatia

Czech Republic

Estonia

Finland

Germany

Hungary

Italy

Poland

Russia

Slovakia

Slovenia

Spain

Switzerland

United Kingdom

North America

Canada

United States

Central America

Panama

Oceania

Australia

New Zealand

Country & Region Itineraries

Unless your travels consist only of direct flights and layovers, you’re probably going to want to visit more than one city at a time. These country & region itineraries reflect the whole purpose of Treksplorer as a guide to helping you travel better in less time.

Fall Colours in Slovenia

Most of the country itineraries below cover 10-day trips. The number isn’t just arbitrary but based upon the standard two-week North American vacation. (Europeans: Please save bragging about your long vacations for another day!)

Once you take into account return long-haul flights, time zone changes, a healthy dose of jet lag, and a little rest upon return, most itineraries in that two-week vacation involve just ten nights in your destination.

(And, of course, the more days you can squeeze in, the better.)

Asia

Europe

North America

Canada

United States

Central America

Oceania