Getting ready for a vacation…

We typically travel for months at a time in our RV so I have a list of things to prep inside the house like giving the house a good deep cleaning, empty the fridge of anything that will expire or go bad like produce, cheese, eggs, etc....(I bring those in the RV with us)...condiments can stay in the fridge, strip the bed and wash the sheets in addition to any laundry including towels. I keep all the blinds closed and put some slow release self watering bottles in a couple of houseplants. I also fill a container with water, set in the freezer several days before we leave then put a coin on top of the ice .... just in case we lost power while away. My husband has some outside chores like putting our everyday drivers' car battery on a tender, securing all outside items in the shed or in our basement. Does one final cleanup on our property, turns the water off at the main valve. He also puts a couple of lamps on timers. We have a PO Box in town so we don't have to worry about the mail.

As for the actual trip planning....I do all of it using a day planner and Google My Maps (of course we've consulted and agreed to everything) but I do the actual reservations, pre-purchasing of tickets to any museums, zoos, etc...I also pin all locations on My Maps things like Laundry mats, Walmarts, Cracker Barrels (IYKYK), Planet Fitnesses, etc....along the route.

Getting excited as we leave in 2 weeks for our summer trip to Ohio, Michigan both lower and the UP, Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, then back home to western NC. We plan on being out about 2.5 to 3 months.

I love vacation planning and prepping!

I use my One Note app to make lists. Packing lists, travel itineraries, etc. I also like to put in pictures outfits that I plan on wearing. I update this when needed and it helps to keep track of everything all in one place. I also use the Trip It app for planning. I have also started to use Wanderlog app.

1 month before:
-Review travel plans and backup plans. 
-Determine if we need anything new for the trip. I don't buy new wardrobes and travel gear every trip, but sometimes you do realize that something needs to be replaced. I don't like finding out the night before the trip.
-Make a detailed packing list.

2 weeks before the trip:
-Bring up our travel bins and start figuring out what supplies we need to bring. Set them aside and put the bins back.
-1 week before, we bring up suitcases and start figuring out what clothes we will bring
Days before:
-Confirm reservations
-Review our travel plans on the TripIt app (if you don't use it, definitely consider it! And it's free!)
-Cancel mail
-Let at least 1 neighbor know we will be gone
-Print out travel documents, make fresh copies of passports
-Buy flight snacks
-Charge up electronics, download movies and books for entertainment

Day before flight:
-Check in for flight
-Pack clothes, electronics, and everything else on my checklist. 
-Set a/c at a good temp while we're away
-Freeze a cup filled with water. Once frozen, place a quarter on top. This will tell you if you lose power during your trip and whether or not it's safe to eat what is in the fridge.
-
That last day is usually a frenzy of activities. I would pack sooner, but then clothes will get so wrinkled.

I keep a 4 compartment ‘toiletry’ rolling case that I use when we will be gone over 1 week.

Top layer is the makeup case that folds out. I put my facial products in it along with the makeup.

2nd layer has 4 rectangle bins (from the dollar store)
One is for shower stuff
One is for dressing (deodorant, lotion, perfume, wrinkle relief, lint roller)
One is for hair (gel, hairspray, hair ties, hair clips)
One is for oral care
I pull these out and place accordingly in the bathroom or dressing area.

3rd layer is for medicine. Weekly pill containers for dh and I.
I have an Erin Condren multi pouch that holds otc pain relievers, anti nausea, Imodium, Benadryl, first aid kit, my chemo injection supplies (RA)

4th layer is about half the size of a carry on.
I put my clothes steamer, scrapbook supplies, portable games, sunscreen, aloe and lotion for my tan.

We try to have as much as possible on wheels!
This is of course when driving

Great thread! We just got back from Europe. A few additional things I would add. I have started reviewing prior similar trip pack lists to assess what worked well to bring on prior trips and figuring out what I might want to purchase again or do differently. I also try to make notes after a trip is over to capture what worked well and what I would do differently since it is fresh in my mind and I can review prior to next trip and avoid the same mistake/issue.

I do like having check lists and I think after reading this thread, I want to create a few more prep lists to help me for future trips.

I create a notebook with printouts of our general agenda (we keep a loose itinerary), all of the hotel/VRBO, restaurant reservations, excursions reservations, maps, etc so that we have analog version in case our phones lose battery. I used a disc notebook system so it is easy to just add what we need into the notebook. My DH started doing this for trips he planned and it is just reassuring to have a physical copy of the entire trip key docs in one place. This time I also printed out some pages to capture things we did each day for scrapbooking post trip and I absolutely LOVED having these pages in my notebook. They were just daily check lists I could mark off things we did, but a great way to quickly recap each day for future reference.

Like others, I like coming home to a clean and tidy house. I do love the idea of a heat and serve meal in the freezer so going to note that for the future.