[The following post is from the archives of my In Search Of Incredible blog, originally published on 22 July 2012. Minor edits have since been made from the original post to update some links and info.]

After all the essentials were done (booking the flights, buying travel insurance and backpack, getting vaccinations and visas), it was time to get down to all the nitty gritty stuff.

PLANNING & RESEARCH
To determine how much time to spend in each country and to plan the route, I first had to do my research on what I wanted to see and do at each place. For example, I knew virtually nothing about Sri Lanka when I first planned the trip, except that it is an island south of India and its capital is Colombo.

Lonely Planet & Rough Guides
The starting point for my research is a trip to the library. I borrowed travel guide books, sometimes a Lonely Planet and a Rough Guide for the same country, so that I could get two different perspectives of the same place. Travel guide books are expensive, so it’s really much better to borrow them from the library for free. These days, depending on the library location and luck, you can even find the most updated edition, sometimes they’re almost brand new and in great condition. And you can borrow for three weeks each time, more than sufficient to do your preliminary research.

You can also visit Lonely Planet’s website and its Thorn Tree forum to find out more information from fellow travellers.

The downside about relying too much on guide books is the “Lonely Planet effect” – almost everyone ends up visiting the same places and eating at the same restaurants. It’s really true, because when I was travelling, 90% of the Westerners I met had a copy of Lonely Planet with them.

There are a lot more other eateries or accommodation choices that are just as good, if not better. And those that are listed on Lonely Planet already have good business by virtue of being listed, so they might get complacent and their standards might fall. So it’s good to use Lonely Planet as just a guide or reference, but don’t follow it reverently. That’s also why I sometimes refer to Rough Guides travel books for other recommendations.

Tripadvisor
A lot of research is also done online, and with a proliferation of travel websites, you really have a lot of choices. One of the more established sites is TripAdvisor, which is great for checking out accommodation options.

TripAdvisor lists out all the accommodation in a certain area via a ranking system based on user reviews, so it’s supposed to be democratic and unbiased. But as with every system, there are people who abuse it and there have been cases of people sabotaging their competitors by giving bad ratings and leaving bad reviews. So likewise, take everything you read with a pinch of salt.

But the best thing about TripAdvisor is its photo section. Although photos can lie, the photos submitted by users are often a more accurate representation of the actual thing than the glossy and professionally-taken ones you see on the hostel’s official website.

My advice is, use TripAdvisor as a guide and cross reference with other websites.

Hostelbookers
Hostelbookers is great if you’re a backpacker looking for cheap hostel accommodations. It’s like TripAdvisor but it focuses on hostels only, whereas TripAdvisor has higher-end hotel and flight options. It’s often cheaper to book your accommodation via Hostelbookers compared to booking via the hostel’s official website.

You’ll need a credit card to make a 10% deposit. The rest of the amount is payable when you check in at the hostel.

Hostel’s official website
After visiting TripAdvisor and Hostelbookers, it’s good to also visit the official website of the hostel you’ve shortlisted to find out more information and see if they have any special promotions going on.

If the hostel you’ve shortlisted does not have a website, then it might not be so reliable after all. It’s 2012, and all decent hostels or businesses should at least have an official website by now.

For my trip, I began researching and borrowing travel guide books in December 2011, and the process continued all the way till the week before my departure in March. Planning the itinerary and route was easy because I know what I like and what I wanted to do.

More difficult to settle was the accommodation, because there are a thousand and one options available in each place, and a lot of it is subjective, based on reviews. So I actually didn’t complete all my hostel bookings before I started my trip. I only booked the accommodation for Cambodia while I was in India, simply because I had not enough time.

Sometimes, it’s also good to not plan everything in advance, because only when you’ve arrived at a certain place can you get a better feel and see for yourself what it’s like. For Kathmandu, I only booked the first night but decided to make the booking for the second night only after arriving there. Turned out to be a good choice because the hostel I originally booked was a little far away from Thamel, and it was a little pricey too. So I found a better place when I scouted around.

THINGS TO BUY
Some people can just book a plane and go, but I’m not one of those. I like to be prepared and have everything I need with me rather than to risk not having it and paying a premium price for it when I’m overseas.

I drew up a list of things to buy, and here they are:

– Money belt (S$10)
One of the most important things to have when backpacking. As I was going to be away for one month and had to carry large amounts of money of various currencies, I needed a secure place to store my money. And there’s no safer place than to hold it with you in a money belt.

Tuck it inside your pants and make it as flat and non-protruding as possible. You should carry small change in your wallet or pocket. Never openly take out money from the moneybelt in public. It should be a “secret” storage place. You should also keep your passport in the money belt.

I bought mine at the Army Market at Beach Road. The brand is Hayrer and it costs only S$10 – cheap and good. You can find a lot of backpacking utilities at Army Market, like backpacks, camping equipment, sleeping bags, torchlights etc. Worth making a trip down just to see see, but don’t go crazy and end up buying loads of unnecessary stuff.

– Daily disposable contact lenses (S$100)
One of the more costly things I had to buy, but inevitable because otherwise I would be wearing spectacles, and cannot wear shades to protect my eyes from the glaring sun.

– Contact lens eyedrops (S$12.10)
Ended up not using them at all! Lesson learnt: not everything you think you need will be useful, so be selective in what you buy.

– Cargo pants from Uniqlo ($69.90)
I needed a pair of cargo pants with additional side pockets for storing my passport and wallet, especially when I had to take flights. I prefer to keep my wallet in the front or side pocket, rather than the back pocket, where it is more susceptible to pickpocketing.

– 2 x trekking pants (S$38)
I bought two pairs of trekking pants from Sports Connection. One of them had a zipper at the knee so I could wear it as pair of long pants or bermudas when I unzip the leg sleeves. They’re also lightweight and thin, so it’s easier to pack and also quick drying. You can’t really find many cheap trekking pants in Singapore. The Columbia or North Face ones are easily S$100 a pair.

– Microfibre towel (S$9)
I bought this via a Groupon offer. It wasn’t very good because I didn’t season it enough yet so it didn’t absorb water very well, like it was supposed to. It’s good to get a microfibre towel because it’s lighter, more compact and dries quicker. Useful if you’re frequently on the move.

– 1-litre Nalgene water bottle (S$5)
I bought this at Sports Connection together with my backpack, as it was on offer. I ended up using another 1-litre water bottle and not this one though, but you do need a water bottle.

– Sandals ($23.69)
As I was going river rafting in Nepal, I needed a pair of strap-on sandals so that my footwear won’t go missing in the river. It’s also good to wear sandals sometimes as opposed to shoes because you can save on wearing and washing socks!

– LED torchlight (S$10)
I bought a mini LED torchlight from Mustafa Shopping Centre in Little India. It wasn’t such a good buy because it wasn’t that bright, and I ended up bringing another torchlight along, oops. But it’s good to have a torchlight with you, and it did come in handy when we went camping in Nepal.

– Toiletries: 2 x Body Shop 3-in-1 bodywash & shampoo (S$39.93), facial wash (S$2.90), Colgate Plax mouthwash (S$1)
I was lazy to carry separate bottles of shampoo and bodywash, so I bought two tubes of Body Shop 3-in-1 ones, which were more convenient and cut down on luggage space.

The mouthwash came in handy when we went camping in Nepal, where there were practically no lights and we were a little lazy to brush our teeth. Otherwise, it wasn’t that essential.

– Camera Bag (S$9.90)
My mum bought me a Canon 550D DSLR camera for my birthday, and needless to say, it was the most expensive thing I brought along for my trip. I didn’t want to parade my DSLR around unnecessarily, with the big Canon logo on the camera bag, so I decided to buy a smaller, nondescript camera bag instead. I got mine at Mustafa Shopping Centre, cheap and good – only S$9.90.

– Universal Travel Adapter (S$19.90)
As I was going to be visiting many different countries, I needed a universal travel adapter that could comply with all the different types of electrical sockets. You can easily get one at an electronics stores these days. I chose one that comes with different pinheads that slide in and out easily, and it also came with two USB charge slots, very useful since I had my iPhone and iPad with me.

– 8GB SD Card (S$12)
With DSLRs, each file takes up about 6MB easily, so you’ll need spare SD cards with you. I already had a couple but decided to buy one more just in case. And they’re so cheap in Singapore anyway, really not worth stressing about not having enough storage space when you’re overseas and struggling to buy one when you really need it.

– Face Masks (pack of 10) (S$1)
These are useful when taking long tuk tuk rides, where you’ll be exposed to the dust and traffic exhaust. Essential when travelling in India!

With all these items bought, I was finally ready to set off! The adventure begins…