Five resources I use to plan a holiday

If I'm honest I think I may actually prefer planning a holiday than actually going on holiday. I spend months planning each little detail from where to eat, drink and what to see. I pride myself on trying to find things that are a little different to the normal 'tourist trail'. I've had a few people ask me where I find all my inspiration so here are the top five resources I look to when I'm planning a trip. Beware - they also help to add 100 more different cities, towns and countries to your travel wish list!

1. Guide books
Every time I book a trip away, I always make sure I buy a guidebook. I swear by Lonely Planet and have a pretty extensive collection now. I've never had a bad meal from one of the restaurants suggested and the sights they recommend have always been spot on. They're so great to always have in your backpack to refer to as you seek out a new city. Other brands I love are Wallpaper and 500 Hidden Secrets of.... I try to buy a book based on the entire country and a more relevant one of the city I'm visiting. I don't really like the pocket guides as I don't think they have enough information in for my liking.

2. The Guardian
I'm obsessed with the Guardian travel section and have picked many of the hotels I've stayed in because of this website. I read it weekly and really enjoy the reader travel tips. They often bring new-to-me cities and countries that I would never have thought of visiting. The Malaysian one has been fantastic for helping me plan my trip to the country next February. It's such a great mix of travel inspiration and interesting travel news. It has a good selection of places to visit in the U.K too, so it's a brilliant source of information if you're planning a staycation.

3. Instagram
Ah I'm a sucker for visiting somewhere that I've seen on Instagram. I usually use this more for restaurant recommendations rather than places. Every now and again I'll have a browse through the travel Instagrammers I follow and save some restaurant recommendations - in case I ever find myself in that city! I also use it to look at restaurants I've found in my guide books. Quite often if you then click on the user, they will have been in other restaurants in the are so you'll then find even more options. I don't always go for ones that make a good picture, I try to look out for ones that look like they sell amazing local food. I'm more likely to save it if it's been snapped by locals rather than just tourists. One giveaway is if the caption is in the language of the country rather than in English.

4. Conde Nast Traveler
Despite being high end, Conde Nast does have some cracking budget hotel articles such as The U.K's best country pubs with rooms and Affordable hotels in Europe. I think I have placed every single hotel on my travel wish list. The website is really good for United States inspiration with so many cool and quirky towns and cities to browse. Quite often places, you would never have thought off but after reading about them you're so desperate to visit. Don't forget to check out the city breaks section either.

5. Blogs
Last but not least are blogs! I've really gone off of the over-styled, luxury travel blogs as I can't afford to live that lifestyle and they just seen all generic. I feel like most of the places they write about could be anywhere in the world, they all look the same. I feel they just wouldn't help me make the most of a country - I go on holiday to take a break from the norm at home. If I'm visiting somewhere new I want to go where the locals go and get out of my comfort zone. One of my pet hates is bumping into English people abroad or being surrounded by Brits. Says the girl who is actually going to Magaluf this year... Anyway I digress. Instead I'm loving the bloggers who visit places out of the ordinary, have down-to-earth writing and often stay in an AirBnB or affordable hotels. A few of my favourites at the moment include Vicky Flip Flop, Lost Without Purpose, Megan Starr and On The Luce.

How do you plan a holiday?