Well hello to you my reader chums! I'm excited to announce, I'll be fulfilling my dream of heading back to South East Asia in January for 3 months of backpacking. I couldn't be more excited to get back to the backpacking way of life, discover new places, eat delicious foods and meet new people.

Whether you're new to backpacking or planning a trip, here is how to prepare for 3 months of backpacking.

This article contains paid content placements.

Figure out who you're going with

Deciding you're planning to go backpacking is a big decision, whether it's for one month, three months or a whole year. When you've made the decision to go, you need to choose who you want to go with as it's a big thing to plan. It could be your partner, friends, or sibling or you can go solo. Each decision means a slightly different style of planning.

Decide on the route and timeframe

You can go backpacking for as long as you want but making the decision on how long you have in mind, can help you save, budget and decide on the itinerary you'd like to follow. I've decided to travel for three months and visit seven different countries: Sri Lanka, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, Phillippines and Indonesia. You may decide to spend three months in one place or do as many destinations as me.

Research each place and decide on a rough itinerary

If you're spending longer in a place, there's more wiggle room to be spontaneous and travel slower, however, if you're spending less time in each place, it'll be best to do some research and decide if there are any must-have places you want to visit or specific landmarks to see. I've made a rough itinerary of the different places I want to go to and include the must-see things and do.

Book travel vaccinations

I cannot stress this point more because your health is the most important thing. It's not worth catching anything and being unwell in a place where healthcare isn't as accessible as back home. Check with your doctors and book an appointment in with the travel clinic and see what vaccinations they recommend for you to get. I had to get quite a few including Hepatitis A, Typhoid, Rabies, Japanese Encephalitis and Tetanus. I will say vaccinations can be quite expensive and you will need to budget for them, mine came to around £400. Some may be available on the NHS, it depends on your doctors.

Check with countries that need visas

Visas are another essential thing you need to do. Some countries allow you to enter in with no visa, some require a form for you to fill out whilst others may need a visa to apply for. Do this with plenty of time as sometimes they can take a while to approve it.

Book flights and accommodation

Once you have everything mapped out, it's time to begin booking flights and accommodation. I would highly recommend booking flights in advance because it makes things easier and cheaper in the long run. With accommodation, you can book it whilst you're travelling around, however, to feel more prepared, book the accommodation in advance. I've gone through and booked all the accommodation for the whole stay, saving me time and worry when arriving at each destination.

Book any other transport

Getting from one place to the other isn't always by flying, it could be through buses, trains or boats. You can easily buy tickets for these when you've arrived, however, booking in advance can make your trip a little bit smoother and sets more of a permanent agenda. I find 12Go as the best place to book this type of transport.

Buy travel insurance

Travel insurance is essential for any type of trip, especially when you're away for a long period of time as there's more time for potential things to go wrong. Purchasing the right policy is key; ensure you list all of your medical conditions, and cover the right countries and any activities you're looking to choose.

Organise a sim card

Phoning and texting when on a different continent can be very expensive and why purchasing the appropriate sim card can help with communicating whilst you're away. You can get sim cards at the airport or anywhere locally in the country you're visiting. 

Decide what your budget will be for the trip

When you've decided on where you're going and for how long, it's ideal to set a budget for the ideal amount you'd like to spend on the trip. Then, ensure you bring extra than the budget in case something happens or things are more expensive than you expect.

Download e-books, shows, films and podcasts

Months of backpacking mean you'll be experiencing many flights, bus journeys, trains and boats and you'll want to keep yourself occupied during them. Download as much entertainment as you can including e-books, tv shows, films and podcasts to help long travel journeys a lot more fun.

Download travel apps

Travel apps will come in handy when you're travelling around such as Grab for tuk tuks and taxi rides across Asia, and your accommodation apps including Booking.com, Hostel World and Airbnb. Also, if you've to go the travel card from the post office, their app, ensures you can top it up and see your balance.

Photocopy documents

Your passport, visas and any useful documentation are vital when travelling. Unfortunately, accidents happen and you may lose important documents and why I'd recommend photocopying them so you have evidence of the documents. 

Create a packing list and decide what you need to buy

You never know when you may have an emergency and by noting down the emergency numbers in each country, there at hand should you need them.

I hope you enjoyed this post. What other tips would you add?

Thank you for reading <3