What I have in mind – Scotland in Fall 2009

Am I out of my mind?

Yes, it’s 2009…the stock market is in roller coaster mode…businesses are shutting down faster than a speeding bullet…every news show says the world is in a financial collapse… airlines are on the verge of the “B” word…the dollar is worth diddly…

So, why am I planning a trip to Scotland in the fall? Haven’t I heard the news…it’s the 1930s all over again!!!! I should be scared, I should be in panic mode, I should be petrified to travel out of my driveway!

I have my reasons:

My ancestors are Scottish ?

I’ve never been to Scotland ?

I watch a lot of British shows on BBC America and PBS ?

I think the British version of Life On Mars was far superior to the American knock off! ?

All of my kids have been to Scotland except me! ?

The last reason alone is worth the money….

Is it scary that I am going to hop on a plane and leave the country? No!

The scariest thing is that I am planning it all myself!

What? I’m nuts you say?

Haven’t I heard of travel agents, or tour groups? They do it all! Your entire itinerary is all planned out to the umpteenth second. They are experts who take the stress out of your vacation.

And aren’t vacations stressful enough?

The entire time you’re gone you wonder if you are going to have a job when you get back. Your spouse, or traveling companion, is giving you dirty looks whenever you check your phone or that pesky PDA for messages (hey, give me a break you say, you’re just checking to see whether you still have your job because you haven’t checked into the office in the last five minutes!)

And the ultimate stress…Did I leave the stove on?

Who needs that?

So, why am I dumb enough to plan my own overseas vacation?

Actually, it’s not as difficult for me. In one of my other lives I was actually a travel agent and luxury hotel broker’s representative. So, I know some of the tricks. But more importantly…

I’ve got the Internet!—

Yes, that wonderful invention where people give away information for free! Especially the tourist agencies from those countries, regional areas, and cities that you are planning to visit. Wouldn’t it be nice to speak with someone who actually lives in Glasgow instead of one who visited it once several years ago or someone who answers the phone at a tour broker who’s never been out of their own state?

Don’t get me wrong, if you can find a specialist for the area in which you are traveling, then by all means, check them out. Do a little homework, then ask questions, find out if they sound knowledgeable.

Who needs a specialist? Doing the planning on your own

You don’t have to go to Scotland for this to work. But you do need to decide where you are going., Then, it’s time to decide when to travel.

A) Check the weather

The following samples are for UK/Scotland:

Generic Weather Sites

http://uk.weather.com/

http://uk.weather.yahoo.com/Europe/United_Kingdom/Scotland/

Scottish Weather Web sites

BBC Weather Centre (this links to Edinburgh)

http://news.bbc.co.uk/weather/forecast/5

The Met Office (Meteorological Office)

http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/weather/uk/gr/gr_forecast_weather.html

REMEMBER:

You haven’t actually gone anywhere yet, so you might want to check the weather from last year. Most weather sites have historical data.

B) Check for special events that might cause you some grief when trying to book a room.

2009 is Homecoming Scotland celebrating the 250^th anniversary of Robert Burns birth.

www.homecomingscotland2009.com

Within this website is the 2009 What’s On? calendar of events

http://www.homecomingscotland2009.com/whats-on/default.html

Select a month, then any or all types of events, and regions

I decided that even though the slew of August festivals would be fun, booking a hotel room as much as a year in advance didn’t really fit into my plans, especially if they changed. So, we are going in September.

The 2009 What’s On calendar is where I found out that September includes Whiskey Week celebrations!!!!

As Robert Burns would have written ...You can’t beat that with a stick!

So, check the weather and the events calendar and you are on your way to putting together your own trip.

STAYED TUNED

In the upcoming weeks I will be telling you about:

Getting a US passport

Deciding what airlines are available, other than U.S. carriers

Some itinerary possibilities

What to do in London for an obscenely short stop over

How to get from London to Glasgow and back without walking

Looking at UK and European based hotel chains vs. the American chains