planning a summer holiday to... Vancouver, Canada!

Last summer, I made the decision to get a British Airways American Express card for which I'd use for my usual spends. Each £1 equated to one Avios point and I accrued enough for me to afford a ticket to Vancouver (with the help of a few Avios points from my mum too)! With this likely to be my last 'big' overseas holiday for a while, I decided that a little bit of overdraft debt would be worth it as I'll be able to pay it back over the course of the first two months of work. 

So how did I plan this holiday? Well, after the destination was decided, I had to think about how long to go for, where to stay, what the budget was for each element of the holiday and what my itinerary would be. For this, my Pantone notebook from aaaaaages ago was put into good use, along with a guidebook borrowed from my sister's trip to Vancouver a little under a year ago. 

After that, my packing list had to be written along with a flight plan. For my outbound flight, I needed to think about food and snacks along with what to bring in my carry on and also what to wear. Comfort is an essential for a long-haul flight, as are entertainment options! 

In order to write my packing list, I categorised everything. Having a list like this means that when I'm packing for my return journey, it means I can check things off again to decrease the chance to leaving something behind. 

With regards to my actual holiday? Sit tight for a full debrief in another blog post (or two, depending on how long it is!).