The case for travelling without a plan

We build itineraries for a living, and we're telling you to tear yours up on day three. Here's why the best trips always start with a loose premise.

The itinerary exists so that you have something to deviate from. This is not a joke. A good plan is a structure that allows for productive abandonment — it tells you what the default is, so that when something better appears, you know exactly what you're giving up and can make the trade consciously.

The guests who never deviate from the itinerary come back having done the trip. The guests who deviate correctly — who miss the afternoon at the museum because a stranger invited them to a rooftop dinner — come back having had the trip.

The difference is intention. A plan gives you intention. The plan itself is almost beside the point.