The below editor’s note is an excerpt from Issue #124 of the Girls’ Night In Friday Newsletter, published on Friday, June 14, 2019. Not getting GNI in your inbox once a week? Get all our favorite reads and recommendations for a night in by subscribing to our weekly newsletter here.

Katrina here! As our team calendar begins to flood with travel dates and work-from-home requests, I wanted to be the first to officially welcome you to OOO (out of office) season! From family trips to long weekend getaways with friends (and hopefully squeezing in a little time to actually relax), there’s a lot going on this time of year. As a Virgo, type-A, and resident house mother, I’m feeling ready to PLAN.

At this point, I’ve gone on enough group trips to know that just “figuring it out when you get there” does not work for me, and creating a minute-by-minute itinerary will stress some people out. My annual group trip is the highlight of my year, so I’m putting my spreadsheets hat on (literally!) to ensure it’s a success.

I present to you: THE GNI group trip-planning spreadsheet. ✨

If you too are feeling the pressure of an upcoming trip, we built this for you. Take a look at it (and don’t forget to check out all the tabs at the bottom!) – then put on your fanny packs, get out your clipboards, try it out, and let us know what you think by replying to today’s newsletter.

Here’s how I use it:

1. Rule #1 is that I never impose it on anyone else.
I usually dissect the group chat to fill it out myself so my friends can use it as a reference without feeling pressure to keep up with the doc. Not everyone’s a spreadsheet person and that’s okay.

2. Instead of expecting everybody to fill it out, I use it as a way to share addresses, directions, contacts, and room assignments so it’s easy for everyone to find.
It’s also a good place to remind friends to bring board games, a speaker, pool toys, their puppy, and other fun things that you don’t want to forget (or be forced to try and pick up on the way).

3. Even with your closest friends, talking about money can get awkward.
Spreadsheets can help ease some of that by laying it all out and giving people the chance to opt into more costly activities.

4. For a bigger group, I recommend using the spreadsheet to assign out food and drink purchases in advance.
This way, everyone feels like they’re contributing an equal amount. For our trips, we plan out basic meals or note the days we want to go out to the local restaurant or order pizza.

Overall, I’ve found that spending a little extra time planning upfront leaves you more time for catching up on your actual lives and less time stressing and logistics-planning once you’re actually in the moment.

Minor edits have been made to adapt this piece for your enjoyment. Lede image by @nikkirap.