'ATL Up and Away: Travel Tips with Rick Steves' touches on how to masterfully plan an itinerary

Each month, public television and radio host Rick Steves joins "City Lights" as our travel contributor and shares tips on making the most out of travel abroad. (Courtesy of Rick Steves)

Atlanta is home to the world’s busiest airport offering abundant domestic and international flights. Although some of us have put travel on hold during the past few years, industry experts predict a considerable increase in leisure travel over the months ahead. If you are among those eager to travel, we can help you prepare for your next adventure with our recurring series: “ATL Up and Away: Travel Tips with Rick Steves.”

Rick Steves is the very popular public television and radio host, bestselling guidebook author and activist who encourages people to broaden their perspectives through travel. Each month, Steves joins “City Lights” as our travel contributor and shares his advice on making the most out of your time away from Atlanta.

On today’s Rick Steves’ segment, he spoke on the subject that trips up many travelers: how to plan an itinerary. Steves suggests that Americans think carefully about balance and assume that they will return to do more.

“You will go back if you have a good time,” says Steves. “So just do Britain first, and then the next trip you can just do France. And then you can do Iberia, Spain and Portugal, and then you can do Italy.”

Steves suggests that travelers start in the more mild countries, moving one’s way up into the more challenging countries in order to recognize and appreciate “culture shock.” Culture shock, as Steves explains it, is part of the growing pains of a broadening perspective. 

“ATL Up and Away: Travel Tips with Rick Steves” recurs monthly, with stories, advice and pearls of wisdom gleaned from Rick Steves’ decades of adventures across the globe. 

Find out more info on Rick Steves’ travel guides and tips here.