– start off with the basics and build up from there -

i do quite a bit of research for a lot of the lifestyle and travelogue shows i’ve scripted, produced and directed over the years and one of the key things i always keep in mind is to start with the basics and then build that research up with more diverse and complex info. it helps me see more creative ways of presenting a story and keeps me focused on what matters for that episode/project.

same thing happened here when i was doing my research for this iceland trip. i started with the basics online. i don’t do very well with guide books because they contain too much information which is hard to distill into a proper itinerary. sure, you get tonnes of options but i believe keeping things simple is the way to go.

to get my general basics covered on iceland, i downloaded this fantastic brochure from icelandair’s us site which helped me get a grasp of what iceland was like, in general. you can download the brochure below to get you started.

icelandair brochure 2012-travel planner

in it, you will find info on the airline, travel ideas by season and some basic information on hotels in reykjavik, akureyri and other significant towns in iceland.

for my research in reykjavik, i started with a fantastic mobile app called guide pal. you can download it from the iTunes or Google Play store for free.search any city of your choice around the world to get all the 101s you need to build your research. it is also available online but it doesn’t give you as much access to the info as it does on your mobile devices. what can i say except that i loved it!

to set up your itinerary, tripit.com has an online version you can add information to as you come across new info during your research. you can also download tripit for your smartphones and tablets.

if, however, you prefer things the old-fashioned way, you can download a free printable template here, courtesy of samplewords.com

good luck!