What Should I Include on a Travel Checklist?

When you prepare a travel checklist, you should include information about what you need to bring on your trip, what you plan to do during your travels as well as who you need to inform about your plans. Other items for a travel checklist might include special preparations before you begin traveling as well as things that you need to do after your trip. If your travel plans include multiple destinations or you are planning several types of activities, you might consider putting together multiple vacation checklists, with each one addressing a particular aspect of your trip.

Your travel checklist should begin with the tasks that you need to accomplish before your trip as well as the items that you will need during your journey. For example, if you need to make babysitting arrangements for your children or board your pets in kennels, you should include making these arrangements on your list. If you will need to drop off your children or pets somewhere, your travel checklist should include these visits as well. If you are preparing an overseas travel checklist, you might need to include reminders to either obtain or renew your passport, as well as to pack your passport in your purse or travel document holder.

Packing for trips can be a challenge, particularly because you might not think to bring along certain items that are necessary to your day-to-day life but that are so mundane that you don't even think of them. One helpful way of composing a packing checklist is to take your list with you from room to room and write down all of the items in each room that you use every day. For example, if you go into your bathroom, you might see your toothbrush, toothpaste and other toiletries that you should include on your packing list. If you are planning to engage in outdoor activities during your vacation, you might consider composing a sports or camping checklist in which you list all of the gear that you need to take with you.

If you'll be traveling for a long period of time or suspect that there are people who might need or want to know your plans, you should list them as well on your travel checklist. People whom you might want to contact with your travel information include immediate family members, your employer and your landlord or building superintendent. If you need to cancel newspaper or mail service while you are out of town, you should include contacting the post office or newspaper delivery service on your travel checklist. Finally, you might consider a post-travel checklist that reminds you to notify others of your return home and perform tasks that you might otherwise forget, such as retrieving your pets and restarting necessary services.