Research...Too much of a "good" thing?

Ok, so I'm relatively still starting out in the research dept. Like so many travelers I want to see it all!! LOL. I bought a general Europe guidebook, and realized that there are so many things to do in each country that I got overwhelmed. (I get overwhelmed VERY easily). So I decided to do one country at a time. That seems to be much less stressful. So my question is...is there such a thing as too much research? I know some more or less pack up and board the plane, but I guess I'm afraid of missing something. I know I will have a general itinerary, but me being easily distracted as well, I probably won't stick to it completely.
How do you research??? How do you organize your information? ANY help would be appreciated. THANK YOU!!

I think you can definitely do too much research. To me, part of the excitement of traveling is getting up each morning and not know exactly what you are going to see or who you are going to meet.

It is however a good idea to do some general research, because you just can't see everything in every country, so you have to prioritize. Make a list of absolute must sees for you, then look at the map and see how you can connect those places in a logical way. Then find out about costs in each place so you can do your budget. That's all I would do pre-trip.

Hostels, places to eat, secondary sites etc, those things you can always research once you are there. I think the important thing is to relax and enjoy the whole experience (planning & trip) and not get too stressed out and worry too much. Don't let it become a chore or something that gives you a headache.

Hi there, and welcome!

First of all, especially for someone just starting out, research is pretty important. And responsible. ALL of us make mistakes on the road, of course, but sometimes the mistakes that new travelers make are exceptionally avoidable, and with just a little bit of researching things could have gone smoother. Like knowing visa regulations BEFORE you buy a deceptively cheap ticket (You mean I can't get a visa on arrival in China?!). Or being prepared for climates that aren't so common sense (Oh, it's HURRICANE season now? Hmmm). Things like that.

Sure some people are going to argue that too much research takes a lot of the "adventure" out of travel, and I guess that's a personal call. For me, though, I think it has added to the adventure. I find that I'm MORE flexible when I over-research. For example, I'm in the middle of over-researching for a trip to Europe and North Africa late this fall. I already have Ryan Air's, Easy Jet's, and Sky Europe's routes pretty much committed to memory. I know the visa regulations for most countries over there. I already have been looking into weather trends. I have all sorts of lists of things to do and see listed in not just the countries that I want to go to, but other countries as well... just in case. When I land, if I decide to totally change my itinerary and do something drastically different, it will be very little work, and I feel like that makes it more flexible. And on this trip I'm also using information that I learned from over-researching for a previous trip to Europe that I never actually used last time. I think any education is never wasted!

People who research a lot more also tend to know more about a place, be more efficient when they arrive, and have less troubles with visas and other bureaucratic niceties. I say research away! Plus, it's a GREAT way to kill a lot of time and put your travel bug to work while you wait for a trip to start...

Happy researching!

Ah, sorry, I missed a couple of your questions.

I do most of my research online. I know I'm biased, but I've found BootsnAll to be an EXCELLENT resource. Also, you can just do general google searches like "Odd interesting travel Italy" and you'll get a whole list of information (of varying quality, of course) to sift through at your leisure. I've found guide books to be somewhat helpful, and I do generally carry ONE with me when I travel - usually one of the "Every country in a ridiculously large area on a shoestring" sort of guidebook. I use the maps and bus connection information most. They are also a nice overview tool, but I wouldn't rely on them at all.

One great way to organize things is to make a bunch of lists, organized in whatever way makes sense to you, and type them all up on a Word document. Then email it to yourself. Then you can access the information from any internet connection anywhere in the world without having to drag paper around with you. Scanned maps would work too, or links to important websites.

Good luck!

Thank you for your advice. All advice is more than welcome. You listed things that I hadn't even thought of researching, ie weather patterns. Obviously a good idea. Thanks a lot!!

I don't know how long you are travelling for but you should decide first off how many countries you wish to travel too and allow so many days for that country. Put it all down in a spreadsheet with the dates running down the column. Then choose the cities within those countries you wish to visit. Give yourself time when travelling to have maintenance days and don't try and fit in too much. REMEMBER you can't see everything!!

The MUSTS are VISAs this is very important, if you think you can always get a Visa on entry think again. Make a list of the countries and the regulations/requirements for your nationality.The cities within those coutries where you can get the Visa you need for your next country.The cost can be high if you are visiting many countries.
Send yourself an email with all this information on for future reference.
Jabs and innoculations, see your doctor or health professional about this. Can be expensive.
Take more money than you think you'll need, and less clothes,everyone takes too many clothes
I always take earplugs, immodium and safe hands, prescription if you where specs.
Get yourself a website for keeping in touch with family we used www.getjealous.com
Best of luck and keep safe.
Jean

I don't think it's possible to do "too much" research. I see it this way: you can learn a little bit about a place in a three hour layover, get a general feel for a place in three days, a nice familiarity with a place in three weeks, and maybe actually make sense of a place in three years.

The adventure never stops, and there is no way you can do so much research so as to end it. Research will help you get a little head start into going deeper into a culture.

Yes, there is definitely too much research. What I find with too many tourists is, that they end up traveling to a country to have their picture of that country confirmed. That is usually based on all the information they collected before the trip. But to me, that's not what traveling is about. We should go to a foreign place as open minded as possible. And that's done easier with as little information about the country as absolutely needed.

I do most of my research online and maybe with a guide book - depending on where I'm going to. Generally, what I want to know about a destination is limited on crucial traveling logistics:

a) will I need to bring enough cash for the whole trip or will it be possible to get money out from ATMs?
b) Where and how is it possible to cross from one country into another?
c) Where and how can I apply for visas for certain countries?
d) Are there certain cultural no-no's that I'll have to observe?

Per example, for our upcoming trip through Asia, I needed to figure out how we're going to stay in the general Indonesia area for six months, considering that Indonesia only does 60 days visas. There are also some question marks about roads that we want to cycle, especially in Western Kalimantan. Later, we'll have to research if it is possible again to cycle through Tibet.

But if you look at the questions a) to d) - none of them apply to you when you go to Europe. So, I would not worry at all. Just go. Enjoy.

My counter argument is this: I did part of my thesis on Bernini's Rome. When I go to Italy now I have a far deeper understanding of what I see than someone who just gets off the plane "open minded." My first time in Rome I saw lots of cool statues and temples and ruins, but I didn't have much context to put them in. Now I do.

The photo-collectors will be the same whether they research or not. I don't even think they can change. I just came back from BsAs with someone who did no research. The result: he ended up wanting to see (and get his photo next to) everything he saw in the post-card section. It was rough traveling.

I mean, you're going to Indonesia. Don't you want to know about the politics, culture, history, language, architecture, art, etc. of the place?

Yes and no as already said. Make sure you know the visas, money quirks and innoculations and weather. Dont fuss too much about hotels but read up on the background of the country- I will never forget a travel agent warning me against spending a whole week on Easter Island - she had read there weren't any beaches she didn't understand when I said I wasn't going for the beaches - so background understanding of culture and history is useful and makes it much more meaningful

As long as you always realise that research is just research, and the reality may be different, or you may end up going to places you hadn't researched and not to others that you had, I don't think you can really do too much research.

I used to make a word document listing all the places I might go to (knowing full well that I didn't have time to see them all), with places to stay (about 3 options), how to get from a to b, sights to see, daytrips etc. The info I got from guidebooks from the library, but mostly from the internet.

Now that I'm a more experienced traveller (and have a bigger budget), I don't do so much research. I do read up on the places I want to go to, but don't usually feel the need to organise it all as neatly as described above. Though I did make a list of places to stay and train/bus schedules for my trip to the Czech republic last year.

My next trip, I'm not researching at all. My boyfriend will organise it all, I just need to look into visas etc. (things that don't apply to him as he is a local). To be honest, that's a bit unnerving, though of course it's also easy.

Also, I must admit I've researched a lot more trips than I've taken

I think research is part of the fun and can help you get excited about the trip. It's up to you if you then disregard it or use it later. I also agree with others that knowing more about a destination's history, culture and politics can help you get more from your trip.

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I mean, you're going to Indonesia. Don't you want to know about the politics, culture, history, language, architecture, art, etc. of the place?

Politics --> No. Whatever I can pick up outside of Indonesia is slanted anyway. (And working for a national Indonesian newspaper as a freelancer at the moment, I also know that the national media is not exactly 'unbiased'.) Learning about politics can only be done when you converse with locals.

Culture --> Again. Not so much, because what I can learn out here are mostly about the major sites. I can still do that from LP once I'm there. It would be silly to believe that I can actually 'learn about and understand' a culture as diverse as Indonesia's with a bit of research.

History --> see politics - it's all slanted

Language --> Not research in my book, except if you start going into Lingusitics and I'm frankly not interested in that.

Architecture, art, etc. --> Not interested. I have a very emotional connection with art - especially the traditional arts. We can have a 'art for art's sake' discussion about modern art - but traditional art either creates an emotional reaction in me - or it doesn't. No knowledge can influence that.

I know, this sounds all a bit harsh. The reason for this is mainly, because I very rarely travel for sights. I usually travel for people. The best memories I have from all my travels (5 continents, 40+ countries) involves people. I've seen many 'sights' but I have to say, very few left a lasting impression. That's why I try to go to a new country as unbiased as possible to meet locals on their terms. Too muh research can spoil that. (And I have very real examples for that.)

When I talk about research, I don't necessarily mean that I learn who the last three presidents were or when the Romans invaded the country. What I mostly do is read novels or other books set in the country to get a feel for what the country is like and also the perspective of people who live in a place. Sometimes I find it can be really enlightening, such as when you read about an unusual custom or religious practice, and you then know what you are looking at when you see it. Other times I might read a book that suggests an itinery when I am in a particular location, because I want to experience the things I have read about. Of course you can also talk to people when you are in the country to find out more, but I find people appreciate it if you know a little bit about their country to start with.

I also find reading novels set in a country a great way to keep the experience fresh in my mind after I have returned home.

Of course stuff you read can be biased, but if you didn't read anything with a bias, you would never pick up a newspaper or watch the news on TV - just take it all with a pinch of salt.

Personally, I don't think you can over research a place. Over plan, certainly, but not over research. That said, I normally end up in places long before I have any time to research them

As far as whether you let your research bias you, well that's really up to you.