How I Plan Every Trip - My Two-Tool System
One Google Doc. One map app. Everything in one folder, available offline, shareable with one link. This is the exact system I use for every trip.
I used to start every trip with 40 open browser tabs, three different notes apps, and confirmation emails buried somewhere in my inbox. Now everything lives in two places - and I can find anything in under 10 seconds.
The problem with how most people plan trips
Research happens in browser tabs. Accommodation confirmations are in email. The itinerary is in a note somewhere. Tickets are in a different folder. The address of the hotel is in a WhatsApp message you sent yourself three weeks ago.
And then you land. You have no signal. None of it is accessible.
This isn't about being obsessively organized - it's about making the actual travel part easier. Good planning is what lets you be spontaneous, because the non-negotiables (where you're sleeping, how you're getting there, what time check-in closes) are already handled.
The system - two tools, one folder
Everything I do for trip planning runs through two tools:
Wanderlog
The visual planning layer
Used during the research and planning phase. Helps me see the route, check driving times, and figure out if my days are realistic before I commit to them.
Google Drive Folder + Doc
The travel companion
The actual itinerary I use on the trip. Offline, shareable, searchable, and flexible enough to hold everything from hotel addresses to half-formed thoughts about what to eat.
Phase 1: Planning the route in Wanderlog
Before I open a Google Doc, I open Wanderlog. It's free for most of what I need, and it solves a specific problem that no amount of document-writing can solve: seeing everything on a map at the same time.
What I actually use it for
✦ Travel time between stops
Click any two pins and it shows driving time. You can also click through to Google Maps directly for public transport routes, which is exactly what I need when I'm deciding whether to rent a car or use trains.
✦ Day-by-day map view
Each day gets a color. You can immediately see if Day 3 has you driving past somewhere you visited on Day 1, which means you should probably flip the order.
✦ Notes on each place
Every pin has a notes field. I dump my research here - opening hours, price notes, 'locals say avoid weekends', links to AllTrails pages. It keeps everything attached to the place it belongs to.
✦ Budget tracker
I add estimated costs as I plan. By the time I'm done, I have a rough total for accommodation, activities, and transport before I've spent a cent. The actual vs estimated comparison after the trip is genuinely useful.
Phase 2: The Google Drive folder
Once the route is settled in Wanderlog, I open Google Drive and create a folder. The folder name could be country and year, eg: New Zealand 2025.
What goes in the folder
Folder structure
Before I board, I make every file in this folder available offline on my phone. In Google Drive: tap the three-dot menu on each file → toggle Make available offline. Takes two minutes at the gate, saves you from a lot of stress later.
The itinerary doc - how I actually structure it
I generally don't follow any itinerary templates as I find it very rigid.
My doc is a Google Doc with just proper heading hierarchy. Heading 1 for each day. Heading 2 for each section within a day (Accommodation, Things to do, Restaurants). The reason this matters: Google Docs generates a navigation sidebar from your headings automatically. On a 12-day trip, being able to jump directly to "Jan 6 - Wanaka" from a sidebar is the difference between useful and useless.
What each day entry contains
🚗 Transport
How you're getting there, departure time, any bookings. If driving, the route and any scenic stops worth planning around.
🏨 Accommodation
Full address (copy-pasteable into Google Maps), check-in time, any special instructions, confirmation number, and a contact number for the property.
📍 Things to do
Not a rigid schedule - a list with context. What's the backup if it rains? What needs a booking and what doesn't? What's worth the detour and what's a 'skip if tired'?
🍽️ Food
Two or three options per meal, not one - so you're not stranded if something is closed or full. For vegetarian-specific notes, I flag those clearly.
📝 Notes & research
The catch-all. Links to AllTrails pages, pro tips found in blog posts, things like 'the café is only open until 2pm' or 'book the water taxi in advance'.
Sharing - one link, everyone knows where you are
Before every trip, I share the Google Drive folder (view-only) with at least one person who isn't on the trip. Parents, a close friend - someone who would know to check it if they couldn't reach me. They get the full itinerary, accommodation addresses, flight numbers, and contact details for every place I'm staying.
Free template
Get the Google Doc template
I've turned my exact itinerary structure into a Google Doc template you can copy. It includes the heading hierarchy, all the sections I use for each day, a pre-trip checklist, and a folder structure guide. Open it, click "Make a copy", and it's yours to edit.
Google account required · Free forever
The goal isn't a perfect itinerary - plans change the moment you land anyway. The goal is having the non-negotiables sorted so that everything else can be spontaneous.
Safe travels ✈️
- Dee