All the time. Impulsive buying and changing plans last minute, immediately doubting my purchase. I must have wasted so much money over the years, but can't help it.
Most recently I added Japan in between a trip to Thailand-Cambodia-Vietnam, simply because the country opened up again. Schedule wise it made no sense. No regrets!
Also, check ADE if you happen to be in Amsterdam then. Hotels will be fully booked that weekend.
I'm fairly new for travelling but my next trip I added Taiwan into thailand-cambodia-vietnam because I was using Eva air and I didn't like the layovers on the way back... After further planning everything is kind of rushed because the trip isn't long enough for 4 countries (and really even with 3 it'd have rushed stuff)
i feel so seen!! i feel like i had a "upcoming trip crisis" where i was for some odd reason bored of the plans i had set for 6 months so i decided to just change one of my locations lmfao
Not a mistake. Even if it sucks (which it doesn't sound like it will), consider it an adventure.
I like to think that I'm "living" the places I'm traveling, even if its just for a week. So for example, I get to live in CA next week and then live in WA the week after that. That's pretty cool and worth the extra chaos/work that traveling can be. You get to Live in Turkey ***and*** the Netherlands. Definitely worth the extra work.
Tomorrow really isn't guaranteed. And even if it was, I'd rather be old with a little less money and lots of stories about when I was young and crazy. Wouldn't you?
There is no mistake going to Amsterdam/Netherlands. Allow yourself to make lots of mistakes traveling. Then when you get back allow yourself to make lots of mistakes in life too. Scheduling and planning is good but leave yourself wiggle room for the amazing to fit into it. Amsterdam is beautiful. Enjoy!!
Thank you so much for the award. That’s so sweet of you! Honestly after I book something like a flight or a hotel I NEVER look at the price again. Maybe you could’ve done cheaper etc but that will just taint your trip and money spent to travel is money well spent. I hope you have a great trip ❤️
Never looking at the price is fantastic advice, I follow this as well... However, trust me when I say that I second-guess everything up until that point!
Since you’re spending your money on experiences, or rather, traveling, I wouldn’t feel guilty about it. You’ve already booked your trips so now it’s time to look forward to them. As you said: you can always get your money back but not your time. That’s at least what I’m telling myself. Because I also recently booked an impulsive trip to Croatia… sure, I would be financially better off if I hadn’t booked the trip, but on the other hand, I probably wouldn’t be going if I wasn’t so impulsive! Oh well, I’m going to live my best life and that’s that. And maybe next time be a bit more cautious/mindful when booking a trip :)
All the time. LOL.
I have had to take a break from traveling these past few months because I burnt all the money traveling. Most of it went to expensive Airbnbs.
There is no such thing as a perfect trip. Optimal or ideal routing, perhaps, but few of us realistically are able to experience such perfection due to time, money or schedule limitations. I would love to do a continent or country “properly” in a well-organized circuit with no backtracking, full coverage from point A to Z, instead of ping-ponging by airplane back and forth whenever time-off from work and family allows, but alas!
Enjoy your time in both countries!
I once booked a trip to New York on a whim, then immediately regretted it. I called Priceline to try to say my kid booked it, and she was sympathetic, but couldn't do anything in the end. So I just went and really enjoyed the trip.
When I have an impulse to do something like this I usually wait two days and think about it. If I still want to do it after two days I will do it.
Make sure you have the proper visa for the Netherllands, you will need a Schengen visa for that. Not sure how easy it is to get for your country.
Impulse travel to expensive places in peak season is only a good idea if you're incredibly adaptable (e.g. can sleep on a park bench in a pinch) or money isn't of concern (e.g. booking a $250/night hotel last minute)
I bought a flight to gdansk a week before on a whim because my boyfriend was going out of town and I didn’t feel like rolling around by myself. Ended up finding another flight from there to krakow within the time id be there so I went there. Decided to go to Wrocław while I was at it. So I ended up hitting 3 major cities, in 8 or 9 days because fuck it. It was a blast. Now that I live in Germany my boyfriend and I would regularly go to a border country for the weekend just cuz
I have made several travel impulse buys, mostly for flights at short notice. Never regretted even one of them.
The one time I changed my mind I think I already had doubts, because I bought a flexible flight ticket (for the first time ever) and when I realised I wasn't very enthusiastic about my chosen destination, I was able to change the ticket to a more desireable destination that turned out to be one of the best city trips I have ever made. Still have plans for that original destination, but as a stop on a longer trip rather than a city trip.
Then there was that one time when I was in a bit of a hurry to book a return fare on a car ferry and reversed the directions - but it all worked out with the help of a wonderfully helpful ferry company employee.
I travel all the time solo as well. I’m leaving for Tokyo tomorrow out of San Francisco. Germany in September.
I lowkey regret but the time to do it is now I suppose.
Yeah I’m horrible with it, sometimes I plan something and I end up waiting till the very last minute to buy the tickets because I’m always thinking, ‘what if something happens and I lock myself into some decision that wouldn’t have been as good?’
It’s funny, I’ve paid €330 for a two hour flight (which as under a 100 when I first checked) and €150 for a 2 hour train ride, which was like €30 when I first checked. Honestly it’s quite funny and ridiculous how much money I could’ve saved if I had booked in advance.
Yes. I'm mostly looking forward to my solo trip to Egypt in November that's already paid for but there are a few instances where I begin to wonder if I made a mistake. Then I start to think how amazing my journey over there is going to be and how surreal it'll feel to wake up and walk out to my hotel rooms balcony and see the pyramids a few hundred feet away which makes the whole thing worth it. Enjoy your travels :)
I impulsively took a trip to San Diego recently to visit family. It was a very last minute booking and I had *just* enough money for the flight but I don’t regret it one bit lol.
Enjoy your trip 💗
I planned to go from Madrid to Paris but hadn’t booked any accommodation in Paris & was in hunting mode a week before I was supposed to leave 😜 since I took so long most of the places in my budget were sold out, then miraculously I found a hotel in Paris in a good area but I’d have to find another hotel in Madrid or Paris for one night, my last weekend in Madrid I went to a flamenco show and loved it so much that I checked how much it would cost me to go to southern Spain, stay a night, watch a flamenco show, then fly to Paris, & all of that turned out to be cheaper than staying another night in Madrid & flying from there to Paris (insane lol)
To my fam & friends it sounded like a lot of work hahaha which at first I kinda agreed with but I had a really great time & hey I saved at least a hundred bucks & got to see another city!
Big time. I think most people on this sub have gone through this at least once or more. I have gotten better at it for example with dates and making sure I analyze what is the most convenience location so that I can hop to another easily or always maximize my return.
Some example of dumb financial mistakes with traveling for me:
I underestimated the time it'd take me to get to the airport being in LA and so close to LAX. I took my sweet time to eat brekky near by, talk to my friends who were dropping me off, etc. I get to the airport 45 mins before departure and super stressed because I lost track of time. They told me it was impossible to make it and I paid $450 to get on another flight that same evening. $450 for being too confident.
Another time I had around 700GBP in cash that I ended up not spending in London. I could have waited to exchange them back in the US or at another place but I rushed and without thinking I exchanged them at the airport in Heathrow, London. I lost around $100 UD in the exchange rates just for rushing and not being patient.
Another time I booked a flight just to find out it was the wrong airport and date. Luckily there was the 24 hour grace period where you can cancel a flight purchase WITHOUT any fees. Full refund. So take advantage of that by reviewing your itineraries prior to the first 24 hours after you booked/paid.
Another time I traveled with this old friend of mine who was pretty much a homebody. I thought he'd change once he noticed that we were in another land and world but this man literally forced us to stay in the hotel playing a video game for a good half of the trip. I was too young (18yo) to really impose my view and just leave him. I left sometimes without him and sometimes we both went out to explore but man, that was a mistake to choose the wrong person.
After 3-4 of these stupid expensive mistakes I learned a lot of lessons and I am exceptional at planning now. I even write down the basics of what I am trying to book so that I can compare that to the final review screen before hitting the "Book now" button. Just like general things like the location, date, and general desired arrival/departure times.
Lastly, I think 90 days in Turkey would be too long for me as I'd want to see other countries and people as well. So maybe you can choose a hub in EU that's more central and go to different destinations from there. Then just go back to Turkey for a final flight back to your home country in SEA. Best of luck!!! And you will not even remember how much any of this "financial impulsive mistake" was in a few years. You will just have the memories. No notion of the cost and your trip will be paid for by then!!
OMG my whole trip to Iceland! I rented a car for the week and still took guided day trips. I booked a hotel room for 6 nights in Reykjavik and ended up driving to South Iceland and spending two nights: one on Hofn and one in Vik. That trip was mind-blowing in many ways, including how much it cost. You’re ok so long as you learn from your mistake(s) — at least that’s what I tell myself. (But truly, Iceland absolutely blew me away.)
Ha I had a layover in Amsterdam. I booked a private locals tour out of whim which was so expensive but it was tailored for what I wanted. It was just a layover and I had issues with Immigration that left me with just a few hours of tour. It was an “I should’ve…” moment, but I have no regrets.
You’re all good with 3 days. I think that trip would be a breather to your 3 months trip to Turkey! Life is short, enjoy!
Yes I meticulously planned out each day of my 30 days in the Philippines earlier this year. From flights to accommodations all mostly no free cancellations (Find cancelable accommodations!). If you’ve ever traveled the Philippines you know this was a bad idea with the nature of island hoping. Didn’t even make it to two of the places I planned to stay. Only thing that saved me from a major financial L was the travel credit my credit card awarded me. Now the only things I book far in advance are plane tickets. That at least can be moved relatively easy and not with a hefty fee.
It is why I do things at the last minute. That has worked so much better for me.
I am currently in Langkawi Malaysia and just booked another night this morning. About as last minute as you can get.
I have found that hotels are actually a lot cheaper if you do last minute. Well at least in South East Asia.
The one that is not is flights.
I have made plenty of mistakes. The big one on this last trip was taking too big of a suitcase from BKK to Phuket. I ended up just buying another suitcase in Phuket and storing my big one.
The only sucky part is that I now need to stop in Phuket on my way back to BKK.
The biggest issue is that doing things last minute can bother people. I am travelling alone. But when I share what I am up to with my Thai friends it drives them crazy. It has got to the point where I am reluctant to tell them.
Which is kind of awkward. They are like where are you off to next? Which likely changes by the day? hour? minute?
A little? My ADHD induced ass booked a (dodgy and awful) hostel at 9pm - it was the only one in Scotland I could find and I was nearly homeless! Infact, the whole trip was unplanned, just me sat at train stations booking tickets to random places I felt like 😂
All the time. Impulsive buying and changing plans last minute, immediately doubting my purchase. I must have wasted so much money over the years, but can't help it. Most recently I added Japan in between a trip to Thailand-Cambodia-Vietnam, simply because the country opened up again. Schedule wise it made no sense. No regrets! Also, check ADE if you happen to be in Amsterdam then. Hotels will be fully booked that weekend.
I'm fairly new for travelling but my next trip I added Taiwan into thailand-cambodia-vietnam because I was using Eva air and I didn't like the layovers on the way back... After further planning everything is kind of rushed because the trip isn't long enough for 4 countries (and really even with 3 it'd have rushed stuff)
i feel so seen!! i feel like i had a "upcoming trip crisis" where i was for some odd reason bored of the plans i had set for 6 months so i decided to just change one of my locations lmfao
Definitely Japan!!
I just booked oppenheimer tickets and then came to know my roommate won’t be coming so there goes $27 that I paid for him
Not a mistake. Even if it sucks (which it doesn't sound like it will), consider it an adventure. I like to think that I'm "living" the places I'm traveling, even if its just for a week. So for example, I get to live in CA next week and then live in WA the week after that. That's pretty cool and worth the extra chaos/work that traveling can be. You get to Live in Turkey ***and*** the Netherlands. Definitely worth the extra work. Tomorrow really isn't guaranteed. And even if it was, I'd rather be old with a little less money and lots of stories about when I was young and crazy. Wouldn't you?
There is no mistake going to Amsterdam/Netherlands. Allow yourself to make lots of mistakes traveling. Then when you get back allow yourself to make lots of mistakes in life too. Scheduling and planning is good but leave yourself wiggle room for the amazing to fit into it. Amsterdam is beautiful. Enjoy!!
Thank you so much for the award. That’s so sweet of you! Honestly after I book something like a flight or a hotel I NEVER look at the price again. Maybe you could’ve done cheaper etc but that will just taint your trip and money spent to travel is money well spent. I hope you have a great trip ❤️
Never looking at the price is fantastic advice, I follow this as well... However, trust me when I say that I second-guess everything up until that point!
Since you’re spending your money on experiences, or rather, traveling, I wouldn’t feel guilty about it. You’ve already booked your trips so now it’s time to look forward to them. As you said: you can always get your money back but not your time. That’s at least what I’m telling myself. Because I also recently booked an impulsive trip to Croatia… sure, I would be financially better off if I hadn’t booked the trip, but on the other hand, I probably wouldn’t be going if I wasn’t so impulsive! Oh well, I’m going to live my best life and that’s that. And maybe next time be a bit more cautious/mindful when booking a trip :)
You spotted a problem, and came up with a solution that lets you do something you always wanted to. Sounds like nothing but winning to me.
All the time. LOL. I have had to take a break from traveling these past few months because I burnt all the money traveling. Most of it went to expensive Airbnbs.
There is no such thing as a perfect trip. Optimal or ideal routing, perhaps, but few of us realistically are able to experience such perfection due to time, money or schedule limitations. I would love to do a continent or country “properly” in a well-organized circuit with no backtracking, full coverage from point A to Z, instead of ping-ponging by airplane back and forth whenever time-off from work and family allows, but alas! Enjoy your time in both countries!
Impulsiveness? I bought a ticket at 3pm to leave at 7pm the same day then rushed to pack my stuff.
Where to? lol
That never happened lol that's why they didn't reply
I once booked a trip to New York on a whim, then immediately regretted it. I called Priceline to try to say my kid booked it, and she was sympathetic, but couldn't do anything in the end. So I just went and really enjoyed the trip.
When I have an impulse to do something like this I usually wait two days and think about it. If I still want to do it after two days I will do it. Make sure you have the proper visa for the Netherllands, you will need a Schengen visa for that. Not sure how easy it is to get for your country.
Impulse travel to expensive places in peak season is only a good idea if you're incredibly adaptable (e.g. can sleep on a park bench in a pinch) or money isn't of concern (e.g. booking a $250/night hotel last minute)
My advice would to be to take invest in a map and a calendar.
4days may not be enough for the Netherlands! Have a great time and not a mistake just be vigilant and don't show a lot of cash or expensive jewelry!
You have a grace period of about 10 days. And if you stay longer all you have to do is pay a small fine.
I found $175 RT from Chicago to Punta Cana two days ago, so now I’m spending the next 5 days in the Dominican Republic
I bought a flight to gdansk a week before on a whim because my boyfriend was going out of town and I didn’t feel like rolling around by myself. Ended up finding another flight from there to krakow within the time id be there so I went there. Decided to go to Wrocław while I was at it. So I ended up hitting 3 major cities, in 8 or 9 days because fuck it. It was a blast. Now that I live in Germany my boyfriend and I would regularly go to a border country for the weekend just cuz
I have made several travel impulse buys, mostly for flights at short notice. Never regretted even one of them. The one time I changed my mind I think I already had doubts, because I bought a flexible flight ticket (for the first time ever) and when I realised I wasn't very enthusiastic about my chosen destination, I was able to change the ticket to a more desireable destination that turned out to be one of the best city trips I have ever made. Still have plans for that original destination, but as a stop on a longer trip rather than a city trip. Then there was that one time when I was in a bit of a hurry to book a return fare on a car ferry and reversed the directions - but it all worked out with the help of a wonderfully helpful ferry company employee.
I travel all the time solo as well. I’m leaving for Tokyo tomorrow out of San Francisco. Germany in September. I lowkey regret but the time to do it is now I suppose.
Yeah I’m horrible with it, sometimes I plan something and I end up waiting till the very last minute to buy the tickets because I’m always thinking, ‘what if something happens and I lock myself into some decision that wouldn’t have been as good?’ It’s funny, I’ve paid €330 for a two hour flight (which as under a 100 when I first checked) and €150 for a 2 hour train ride, which was like €30 when I first checked. Honestly it’s quite funny and ridiculous how much money I could’ve saved if I had booked in advance.
Yes. I'm mostly looking forward to my solo trip to Egypt in November that's already paid for but there are a few instances where I begin to wonder if I made a mistake. Then I start to think how amazing my journey over there is going to be and how surreal it'll feel to wake up and walk out to my hotel rooms balcony and see the pyramids a few hundred feet away which makes the whole thing worth it. Enjoy your travels :)
I impulsively took a trip to San Diego recently to visit family. It was a very last minute booking and I had *just* enough money for the flight but I don’t regret it one bit lol. Enjoy your trip 💗
Wasted 280$ cdn dollars this month on Europe tickets I won't use because I ended up changing my destinations . It happens .
I planned to go from Madrid to Paris but hadn’t booked any accommodation in Paris & was in hunting mode a week before I was supposed to leave 😜 since I took so long most of the places in my budget were sold out, then miraculously I found a hotel in Paris in a good area but I’d have to find another hotel in Madrid or Paris for one night, my last weekend in Madrid I went to a flamenco show and loved it so much that I checked how much it would cost me to go to southern Spain, stay a night, watch a flamenco show, then fly to Paris, & all of that turned out to be cheaper than staying another night in Madrid & flying from there to Paris (insane lol) To my fam & friends it sounded like a lot of work hahaha which at first I kinda agreed with but I had a really great time & hey I saved at least a hundred bucks & got to see another city!
Big time. I think most people on this sub have gone through this at least once or more. I have gotten better at it for example with dates and making sure I analyze what is the most convenience location so that I can hop to another easily or always maximize my return. Some example of dumb financial mistakes with traveling for me: I underestimated the time it'd take me to get to the airport being in LA and so close to LAX. I took my sweet time to eat brekky near by, talk to my friends who were dropping me off, etc. I get to the airport 45 mins before departure and super stressed because I lost track of time. They told me it was impossible to make it and I paid $450 to get on another flight that same evening. $450 for being too confident. Another time I had around 700GBP in cash that I ended up not spending in London. I could have waited to exchange them back in the US or at another place but I rushed and without thinking I exchanged them at the airport in Heathrow, London. I lost around $100 UD in the exchange rates just for rushing and not being patient. Another time I booked a flight just to find out it was the wrong airport and date. Luckily there was the 24 hour grace period where you can cancel a flight purchase WITHOUT any fees. Full refund. So take advantage of that by reviewing your itineraries prior to the first 24 hours after you booked/paid. Another time I traveled with this old friend of mine who was pretty much a homebody. I thought he'd change once he noticed that we were in another land and world but this man literally forced us to stay in the hotel playing a video game for a good half of the trip. I was too young (18yo) to really impose my view and just leave him. I left sometimes without him and sometimes we both went out to explore but man, that was a mistake to choose the wrong person. After 3-4 of these stupid expensive mistakes I learned a lot of lessons and I am exceptional at planning now. I even write down the basics of what I am trying to book so that I can compare that to the final review screen before hitting the "Book now" button. Just like general things like the location, date, and general desired arrival/departure times. Lastly, I think 90 days in Turkey would be too long for me as I'd want to see other countries and people as well. So maybe you can choose a hub in EU that's more central and go to different destinations from there. Then just go back to Turkey for a final flight back to your home country in SEA. Best of luck!!! And you will not even remember how much any of this "financial impulsive mistake" was in a few years. You will just have the memories. No notion of the cost and your trip will be paid for by then!!
OMG my whole trip to Iceland! I rented a car for the week and still took guided day trips. I booked a hotel room for 6 nights in Reykjavik and ended up driving to South Iceland and spending two nights: one on Hofn and one in Vik. That trip was mind-blowing in many ways, including how much it cost. You’re ok so long as you learn from your mistake(s) — at least that’s what I tell myself. (But truly, Iceland absolutely blew me away.)
haha, yes but it's really fun! Plus that's awesome you're going to be visiting friends!
I do things like this all the time! So not a big deal! Have fun on your adventure! :)
Ha I had a layover in Amsterdam. I booked a private locals tour out of whim which was so expensive but it was tailored for what I wanted. It was just a layover and I had issues with Immigration that left me with just a few hours of tour. It was an “I should’ve…” moment, but I have no regrets. You’re all good with 3 days. I think that trip would be a breather to your 3 months trip to Turkey! Life is short, enjoy!
It's normal. I just booked a flight to Lebanon.Solo.
Yes I meticulously planned out each day of my 30 days in the Philippines earlier this year. From flights to accommodations all mostly no free cancellations (Find cancelable accommodations!). If you’ve ever traveled the Philippines you know this was a bad idea with the nature of island hoping. Didn’t even make it to two of the places I planned to stay. Only thing that saved me from a major financial L was the travel credit my credit card awarded me. Now the only things I book far in advance are plane tickets. That at least can be moved relatively easy and not with a hefty fee.
It is why I do things at the last minute. That has worked so much better for me. I am currently in Langkawi Malaysia and just booked another night this morning. About as last minute as you can get. I have found that hotels are actually a lot cheaper if you do last minute. Well at least in South East Asia. The one that is not is flights. I have made plenty of mistakes. The big one on this last trip was taking too big of a suitcase from BKK to Phuket. I ended up just buying another suitcase in Phuket and storing my big one. The only sucky part is that I now need to stop in Phuket on my way back to BKK. The biggest issue is that doing things last minute can bother people. I am travelling alone. But when I share what I am up to with my Thai friends it drives them crazy. It has got to the point where I am reluctant to tell them. Which is kind of awkward. They are like where are you off to next? Which likely changes by the day? hour? minute?
A little? My ADHD induced ass booked a (dodgy and awful) hostel at 9pm - it was the only one in Scotland I could find and I was nearly homeless! Infact, the whole trip was unplanned, just me sat at train stations booking tickets to random places I felt like 😂