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How to Build a Trip

INTRO

The main goal of this guide is to share some tips that I have learned over time. On the other hand, it is not the only way of doing things, and feel free to use your own methods if you prefer.

KEY POINTS

I usually build a proposal with different DMCs to have alternatives and compare prices. However, on this trip, we will work with Intrepid DMC, because it is the only one that can book the flight Scotland-Ireland (or vice versa).

It is important to keep repeating these points as DMC forgets it, intentionally or not:

The trip leader should be someone NATIVE from Scotland or Ireland and of the SAME AGE as our guests (30/40s). So, this person should not be a foreigner living in those countries.

We include an INDIVIDUAL/PRIVATE arrival and departure airport transfer for each guest, so they do not need to rely on a group transfer.

We prefer not to pay DEPOSITS to book hotel rooms, and we usually pay within 60 days before the trip.

IDEA

For The Love of Travel has a trip combining Scotland and Ireland, which can be a good inspiration for you. You can see their

itinerary here⁠

ACITIVITIES

At this initial stage, feel free to ask Intrepid for many suggestions of activities, and also check the ones I have shared with you from the other DMCs.

Parallely, you can use platforms GetYourGuide, Viator, and Airbnb Experiences to find other ideas. AI tools, such as ChatGPT, can be useful too at this moment.

Don’t worry about asking Intrepid to go out of their comfort zone or suggest different suppliers. They tend to use their common partners and standard itineraries - here are some Intrepid trips to

Scotland⁠

and

Ireland⁠

I love watching YouTube videos, reading blogs, and Google Reviews to check if the activities are good in reality, to avoid those places that look good on Instagram, but are not as interesting in real life.

BUDGET

Intrepid may ask for a budget reference, but you can answer that you do not know at the moment, and that we will try to develop a trip with a good cost-benefit.

Since it will be an expensive trip because of the cost of things in these countries, COST will be an important topic, especially at the end, when we fine-tune the pricing.

As in Italy and Scandinavia, we need to be very efficient in all things we include on this trip, thinking about the benefit it would bring. One good idea is to find cheap experiences: for example, walking tours, hikes, food tours, picnics, and alcohol tastings are normally cheap and cool activities. Of course, you can include more expensive ones too, if you feel they will be a highlight.

DATES

Intrepid may ask for dates as well. At this point, you can leave it open, and then we can decide.

I imagine there will be nature activities, so once you decide on the activities, it is important to check if the weather will be good.

As finding availability at hotels will be difficult and the summer prices are higher, we can try to explore the SHOULDER SEASONS, such as spring and fall.

HOTELS

We prefer boutique properties with beautiful decoration, and we avoid international chain brands like Hilton, Marriott, etc. However, if it is the only good hotel available, we can make an exception.

Intrepid has a tendency to offer cheaper, chain, and not boutique hotels. So, probably there will be a lot of back and forth on this topic.

To save your time, I suggest finding one good hotel recommendation and sending it to set the standard.

For example, after a quick look, these are two hotels that could be used in Dublin, Ireland:

Schoolhouse Hotel⁠

NYX Hotel⁠

. So just find your favorite ones and send them, but also ask for their suggestions. Sometimes, they establish a new partnership with a hotel just because it is our preference.

Moreover, it is good to go back to the topic that we prefer not to pay deposits to book hotels. However, we can make exceptions again if it is the only good option.

Google Reviews and

Booking.com⁠

are good tools to check reviews and hotel photos.

ALLOTMENT

We work with the following allotment: 6 twin rooms + 5 single rooms. Additionally, we book +5 twins rooms for 1 night before the trip starts if guests arrive earlier.

ITINERARY

Some tips about defining the flow:

We start and finish in different cities, ideally with good airports. So, for example, you could start in Edinburgh and finish in Dublin. Feel free to choose the order as you prefer.

Day 1 is just: arrival and welcome dinner.

A walking tour on day 2 works well to give people a panorama and an introduction.

When there is a drive of more than 3 hours, I try to find an activity on the way to split it and make it more enjoyable. Moreover, I overestimate the time on Google Maps because buses go more slowly and we stop to use the toilet.

I usually include 1 long activity or 2 short activities per day, and I like leaving some free time for resting or for guests to explore independently.

MEALS

Some notes:

We include all breakfasts.

The welcome dinner and farewell dinners must be in nice places, not necessarily in fancy ones, but in cool restaurants.

We avoid buffet-type restaurants.

For the other meals, I usually include what will be interesting for the convenience of guests. For example, after a walking tour, it is be good to have lunch included because people are often too tired to look for a place. Or if there is a hike, the DMC can take lunch boxes or organize a picnic for us.

It is important to keep the cost in mind: every meal adds a cost, so I would include the essential ones.

A cooking class or food tour can be counted as a meal.

For a 12-day trip, for example, you should include at least 6 lunches or dinners.

PROCESS

This is the normal order of my process:

I list many activity options (from my research or DMC suggestions) and choose my favorite ones.

Like a puzzle, I try to group experiences and choose an initial flow. I always keep in mind the logistics and the hotels available in the region. For example, I imagine there are many amazing isolated places in the Scottish Highlands; on the other hand, it would make logistics more challenging with a long drive, or it would be difficult to find good hotels nearby.

I create a draft itinerary as soon as possible and send it to Intrepid to hear their opinion. If you find it valuable, you can schedule a call with them.

Once it is more mature, I show it to Steve to hear his initial feedback. My suggestion is to try to do it as fast as possible to check if you are on the same page and aligned.

After this, it is a process of patience, back & forth, and fine-tuning: choosing the final itinerary, deciding on hotels, checking pricing and hotel availability/conditions, etc.

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