Travel planning Germany tour: step by step

You want to make a Germany tour (or vacation in Germany), but don't really know how to approach the travel planning? How to go about it and what to look out for, you can read in this article. We show you step by step our method to plan your trip using our Germany tour as an example.

After we unfortunately had to postpone our world trip in April, we have now decided on a plan B. We are doing a Germany tour! For the planning of this Germany tour we go through the steps of our world trip planning to show that this can also be used for general trip planning.

In the first step of the travel planning we set the key dates of our Germany tour. The duration and time of the trip are defined, the route is mapped out and the type and purpose of the trip are considered.

Duration and timing

When do you want to travel? Pay attention to notice periods and other obligations.

In our case, a starting time was found quickly, because we were already well advanced with our preparations due to the postponed trip around the world at short notice. We had already cancelled our jobs and all contracts, so we are currently both unemployed and have no other far-reaching obligations.

Due to the Corona relaxations towards the end of May and beginning of June, it is again possible to travel within Germany and also the EU for tourist purposes and to rent accommodation. However, we would like to remain cautious and considerate, despite the further loosening of the rules. We decided to wait a little, to continue to observe the situation and to use the time to plan our trip to Germany. This resulted in the following start date.

Start of the Germany tour on 01.07.2020

For the duration of the Germany tour, we initially set a time frame of 2 months for the travel planning. We think that this is a reasonable period of time in which you can travel through Germany in a relaxed way. In addition, we hope that by September then perhaps other Corona relaxations, including at the international level, have already taken place or are foreseeable. Our goal is then to fly directly to Australia, since our working holiday visa expires at the end of October. If international travel or entry to Australia should not be possible after the Germany tour, we would like to continue traveling within the EU.

Route planning

Where do you want to go? And in which order? Pay attention to entry regulations, travel warnings and cost of living. Use your bucket list or friends and acquaintances.

On our bucket list are also some destinations in Germany. So far we have paid little attention to these and treated them more like "oh maybe someday". We have always been attracted by the great distance. The further away and more exotic the better.

How exactly we have determined the route for the Germany tour during the travel planning, we explain in you in our tips for route planning and give you also immediately a tip for a useful tool for route planning. Here is our planned route:

How and with what do you want to travel?

The first thing we thought about was to travel by train, because this can be much more relaxed than by car. You don't get stuck in traffic and don't have to concentrate on driving.
If you only want to visit big cities and can plan well in advance, the train is certainly a good alternative.
However, it is not easy to get everywhere and especially spontaneous trips can be expensive. Accordingly for us no optimal solution.

In the past we have hitchhiked many times and had positive experiences here. However, hitchhiking is currently no alternative for us under the given circumstances with Corona.

So we thought about getting a campervan. But we don't have the time to do it ourselves. Also we don't want to invest so much money for it, because it is "only" plan B. After our tour in Germany we would sell the van again, because we want to go to Australia in October. Therefore this possibility is out of question.

So finally we had our own car left. We drive a station wagon and want to take an additional tent for emergencies. So we could stay overnight in the car or on a camping site. Also we are much more flexible with the car and can reach remote places well. But you have to keep in mind that you have to pay for gas and, at least in bigger cities, for parking.

Purpose

At the first moment we couldn't think of a better reason for the Germany tour than "We finally want to be on the road". Even after thinking about it for a long time, we really only came to the conclusion that this is the only purpose of it. We finally want to be on the road! Want to have the feeling to be on a world trip. Don't want to just sit at home and wait. Like parked on the siding..

Step #2: Procedure

Now that we have decided on the key dates for our trip, the next step is to think about how we can best proceed with the rest of the planning. For us, the system of to-do lists has proven itself and so we will use it again here.

Step #3: Financing

During the planning of our trip it became clear that we would live on our savings during our tour of Germany, as we had already saved quite a bit for our trip around the world. How we managed to save for our world trip, we have summarized for you in these 13 tips. Theoretically, we could also work in Germany without any problems, but we are practically never in one place long enough for that. But during the Germany tour we will continue to work on our big plan to generate location-independent online income.

What will the Germany tour cost us approximately?

Germany is a rather expensive travel destination and in addition we will travel in the middle of the summer vacations and therefore in the high season. Also, through Corona at the moment, many Germans are spending their summer vacation in the country. Because of this, it is not only more crowded everywhere, but also the prices for the accommodations increase.

As a rule of thumb for the average travel budget of a world trip we had 1.000 € per month, per person estimated. However, this figure is an average over a whole year assuming that you combine cheap and expensive countries. Since Germany, as already mentioned, is an expensive country, we calculate for our tour of Germany with costs of 2.000 € per month and person. As soon as we are back from our tour, we will list in detail what the trip actually cost us. Here are a few formulas to calculate the costs:

How do we save money during the Germany tour?

Of course, during the planning of the trip we also thought about how we can keep the costs as low as possible on the road during the Germany tour. To do this, we will try to implement these 20 tips to save as much money as possible.

One way are the accommodations. We try to combine something useful with something pleasant and want to stay with friends as often as possible. This is also a good way to get to know places from a very special side and to get insider tips. Normally we are also fans of cochsurfing, but we don't want to do that in the current Corona situation. In case of emergency we also have a tent and air mattresses with us to sleep on a campsite if we can't find an affordable apartment or hotel.

Very important: Saving money is not everything. You also need to have fun and enjoy life!

First of all, it is helpful to plan your budget. For this we use the app "Monefy" (unpaid advertising) and document all income and expenses to keep track of them.

Step #4: Documents

Which documents you need on a trip around the world, how to best handle these documents and what happens to your mail on a trip around the world we have summarized for you in this post. There you will find some useful tips and tricks that you can also apply to the documents on your Germany tour.

However, you don't need all the documents you need for a world trip also for a Germany tour. We will take the following documents with us in the original and as a copy: Passport, ID card, vaccination card, driver's license and power of attorney with living will. You don't really need a passport within Germany (and the EU), but here we play it safe according to the motto "better have than need".

Step #5: Visa

In the next step we would think about the visa. Since we are staying in Germany, this step is omitted.

Step #6: Travel insurances

The topic of insurances is much simpler compared to planning a trip around the world. Since we do not leave Germany and do not deregister, we do not need to pay attention to any residency or other special clauses. Therefore, when planning a trip to Germany, you don't need any special travel insurance and can keep all your insurances as usual.

An insurance you probably won't need at the beginning of your world trip, but you will need for a Germany tour with your own car (or a rental car, etc).) you need is the car insurance. This insurance is like a liability insurance, but it covers everything around the car. In Germany there is compulsory insurance for third party car liability, so you will have car insurance for your own car. However, before the Germany tour, check once again whether all possible drivers are actually insured on the car. Even if you rent a car or a camper, you have to make sure that all drivers are insured.

Step #7: Vaccinations

For a world trip absolutely necessary are, depending on the country of destination, certain travel vaccinations. Travel vaccinations seem to be uninteresting for a trip to Germany, but there are some necessary vaccinations for Germany, too. Here it depends on the planned activities and areas of your tour. For example, if you travel a lot in the woods in the summer, a vaccination against FMSE may be useful. For medical precautions you should definitely talk to your family doctor about possible vaccinations before your trip.

Step #8: Bank and credit card

Also all topics around money, banks and credit cards will be much easier in Germany. You can continue everything here as usual. Withdraw money from your bank, pay almost everywhere with your giro card and you don't really need a credit card. Nevertheless, a credit card is useful, because you can withdraw money for free at any bank. In addition, it is easier for accommodations and other landlords to leave a possible deposit and to release again. Later we will make a contribution to the topic bank and money on world trip and then also betray, which credit cards we got ourselves for the world trip.

Step # 9: The current job/ employment office

Since we are already unemployed, we do not need to pay attention to this step. But we will explain this step later.

Step #10: Deregister from Germany?

This step is also irrelevant when planning the trip to Germany, because we are still in Germany. For a world trip, a deregistration from Germany is a very important issue, because you may be liable to prosecution if you do not deregister. But how this works exactly and what you have to consider, we will explain later in more detail.

Step #11: Packing list

Do you know? The list of things you want to pack is endless? And whenever you think "but now I really have everything!!"If you can think of something you have forgotten, please include the following items! And how all this stuff is supposed to fit into the small suitcase is something only the man on the moon would know

We have divided our packing list into hand luggage, main luggage and special activities. The main luggage is also divided into 6 sections:

• Identity card / passport
• Driver's license
• vaccination certificate
• Identity cards (ISIC, DJH, …)
• Tickets, booking confirmation
• Money, credit cards, EC cards
• Sunglasses, eyeglasses, contact lenses and liquid
• Daypack/ Citybag/ Fanny pack
• Water bottle, snacks
• Notebook and pens
• travel guide, map

• Copies of all important documents (digital and paper)
• Numbers and addresses of insurance, banks, emergency calls, ..
• Powers of attorney
• Sturdy case for important documents

• Backpack/ suitcase
• Long and short pants
• T-shirts and sweatshirts
• Sweaters
• A chic outfit
• Fleece jacket, cardigan
• Dresses / skirts
• Rainwear
• Functional clothing (quick drying, UV and mosquito protection, breathable, odorless, …)
• Leggings / jogging pants
• Sleeping clothes
• Sports clothes
• Laundry bag
• (microfiber) towels
• Swimming / beach clothes
• Work clothes
• Shoes, hiking boots, sandals / flip flops
• Underwear, socks
• Cap/ hat or cap
• belt
• Neckerchief, scarf, gloves

• USB stick, external hard drive (encrypted)
• Power adapter
• Laptop with charging cable and accessories
• Cell phone (without SIM lock) with charging cable and accessories
• Powerbank
• Camera with charging cable/battery, tripod and accessories
• USB cable
• Flashlight with batteries
• 3/ extension socket

• Toilet bag
• Toothbrush and toothpaste
• Razor and accessories
• comb/ brush
• Hair elastics, hair clips
• Cotton swabs, cotton pads
• pocket mirror
• Body lotion, hand cream
• hairspray, hair gel
• Cosmetics
• Deodorant, perfume
• Period articles
• Shampoo, shower gel, soap
• Handkerchiefs
• Contraceptives
• Earplugs
• Nail set
• Travel hair dryer

• Individual medication
• Painkillers
• Cold medicine
• Remedy against diarrhea/ constipation
• Means against travel nausea
• Wound and healing ointment
• Pavement
• First aid kit
• Disinfectant spray and wipes
• Anti-allergics
• Tick spray, tick pliers
• mosquito spray, ointment against mosquito bites, electr. Stitch healer
• (environmentally friendly) sunscreen, AfterSun
• Lip care with SPF

• Padlocks (4 digits; possibly. without TSA)
• sewing kit, safety pins
• Pocketknife
• travel cutlery, plates and cups
• Foldable freshness boxes
• playing cards and dice
• Drinking bottle/ thermo mug
• Travel safe and accessories
• Lighter
• Address lists
• clothesline, detergent
• Snap hooks, tension cords, adhesive tape
• (plastic) bags/ fruit nets/ jute bags
• Packing cubes/ Compression bags and DryBag
• Toilet paper and kitchen roll
• Thin sleeping bag inlay

Here you actually know best yourself what you need to take for camping, diving, snorkeling, climbing, …

This is our packing list for our Germany tour. We will explain in detail what you should pack for your trip around the world.

Fortunately we can already fall back on some years of travel experience. In the meantime we have a pretty detailed packing list as a template. From this we only have to cross out everything that is not needed for the upcoming trip. Sounds easy, doesn't it? Nevertheless, too many and superfluous parts creep in again and again also with us. How is it with you?

We also have a great surprise for you! If you like our packing list, you can download our packing list in "Jetzt wird gereist" – design here for free!