When creating a travel checklist, remember to include information about what you’ll need to bring on your trip, what you’ll be doing while you’re away, and who you’ll need to notify about your plans. Other items to include on your travel checklist could include special preparations before you leave as well as tasks to complete after your trip. If your travel plans include multiple destinations or different types of activities, you should consider creating multiple vacation checklists, each addressing a different aspect of your trip.
Your travel checklist should start with the tasks you need to complete before your trip and end with the items you’ll need on the road. If you need to arrange babysitting for your children or board your pets in kennels, for example, you should make these arrangements on your list. If you need to drop off your children or pets somewhere, make sure to include these visits in your travel itinerary. If you’re making an overseas travel checklist, don’t forget to include reminders to get or renew your passport, as well as to keep it in your purse or travel document holder.
Packing for a trip can be difficult, especially if you don’t remember to bring along certain items that are necessary in your daily life but are so commonplace that you don’t even notice them. Taking your packing list from room to room and writing down all of the items you use every day is one helpful way to create a packing checklist. If you go into your bathroom, for example, you might notice your toothbrush, toothpaste, and other toiletries that you should remember to pack. If you plan to do any outdoor activities during your vacation, you should make a sports or camping checklist that includes all of the equipment you’ll need.
If you’ll be traveling for an extended period of time or suspect that others will need or want to know your plans, include them on your travel checklist as well. Immediate family members, your employer, and your landlord or building superintendent are all people you might want to contact with your travel information. If you need to cancel newspaper or mail service while you’re away from home, make a note of it on your travel checklist to contact the post office or newspaper delivery service. Finally, a post-travel checklist may be useful in reminding you to notify others of your return home and to complete tasks that you might otherwise overlook, such as retrieving your pets and restarting necessary services.