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Plan the trip you actually want to take
Practical cruise advice, destination guides, road trip ideas, and travel planning help from Ellie Simons.
Hi, I’m Ellie. I built Ellie’s Travel Tips for the part of travel planning that happens after the inspiration hits and before you actually leave home. This is where I sort through the details, compare the options, and turn a vague “we should go there someday” into a trip that feels doable.
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Cruises
Choose a cruise line, compare ships, pick the right cabin, understand what is included, plan your days in port, and avoid the little mistakes that can make a sailing harder than it needs to be.
Destinations
Find practical destination guides by region, with ideas for what to see, how to structure your time, what to expect, and which details deserve a little extra research before you go.
Road Trips
Build better driving routes with realistic stops, worthwhile detours, planning advice, and itineraries that leave room to enjoy the trip instead of racing through it.
Travel Planning
Packing, budgeting, travel logistics, gear, family planning, solo travel questions, and all the practical pieces that happen before a trip.
Cruise planning is a big part of what I do
I took my first cruise on the Disney Magic when I was eight, and I never really stopped being fascinated by ships, routes, cabins, and the logistics behind a great cruise. I’m an engineer by background, so I naturally approach trip planning like a puzzle: what matters, what can go wrong, what is worth paying more for, and what can safely be ignored.
If you are planning a sailing, head to the Cruise Planning Guides page. For terminal-level cruise port research, I also run CruisePorts.co, where I focus specifically on getting ashore, transportation, walkability, hotels, and port-day logistics.
Hi, I’m Ellie Simons
I’m the traveler, researcher, writer, and editor behind Ellie’s Travel Tips. I have been creating travel content for years, and I care a lot about making the difference between personal experience and researched guidance clear. When I have personally visited, sailed, stayed, tested, or experienced something, I’ll say so. When a guide is built from research, I treat that research seriously and do not pretend I was there.
You can learn more on my About Ellie page or read the Editorial Policy & Review Standards to see how this site is researched, updated, and corrected.
New here?
Start with the kind of trip you are planning, not with an endless list of blog posts. The Start Here page will point you toward the right section in a few clicks.