It’s the Holiday Season and we’re devoted to sharing tips to ease your travels, so you can enjoy your holidays! It’s the #Travel140 Travel Tips – Holiday Edition!
No Reservations about Holiday Travel?
Excuse the weak pun, but having no reservations would be a mistake. We’re not saying you should reconsider traveling during the holidays, but you need to have some reservations beyond your flight or hotel. A few minutes on your smartphone can make holiday travel much less stressful!
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Accommodations & Attractions
Hopefully, you purchased your flight home for the holidays – or away for vacation – quite some time ago. Did you also reserve your hotel room? What about restaurant reservations? In many large cities and popular destinations, you’re not getting in if you didn’t make reservations. We like the freedom of spontaneity too, but we have learned it pays to plan ahead sometimes. Whether it’s a table at the “IT” restaurant of the year, tickets to a Broadway play, or just a Christmas day movie, take care of it in advance so there’s no stress or disappointment later.
Cars and Where to Park Them
If you’re renting a car for your holiday travels, chances are you booked that along with your flight, right? Still, worth remembering that it needs to be checked off your list.
If you’re not renting a car, you consider reserving a ride. Both Uber and Lyft will let you schedule a ride, so you can be fancy and have a car waiting at the airport. There are plenty more car hire companies that will let you reserve anything from a Town Car to a mini-bus, depending on your needs. If cost is a concern, you can even reserve space in a shared van. Either way, you can skip the line at the taxi stand and be on your way.
Reserving a car in advance makes sense at other times, too. Will you be taking the family to dinner on Christmas Eve? How about welcoming the New Year at a downtown party? Ride-share services are in high demand at those times, so locking in a ride now isn’t a bad idea.
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What about getting to the airport? More people flying out means less open parking spaces at the airport. One of the best things we’ve done to reduce departure stress is reserve a parking place at a lot near the airport. It saves us from circling a packed lot hoping for someone to pull out (and from needing to call Uber for a ride back to the shuttle bus from the last parking spot out in the weeds). In many lots, you won’t pay anything extra for that added peace of mind. Totally worth it.
We’d love to hear about your experiences! What are your Go-To “Travel Hacks” to make holiday travel less stressful? Feel free to share your favorite travel tips in a comment. We’ll re-post the best tips, so be sure to include your Twitter handle and a link to your blog, if you have one. Or click for more #Travel140!
It is so easy, especially in the States, to reserve hotel rooms in advance in these days of the internet. I remember the bad old days when you spent a third of the day looking for a hotel vacancy, a third looking for a bank to cash travellers cheques and the other third finding a decent restaurant. It didn’t leave much time for actual sightseeing. I can’t understand why anyone would fail to book things in advance. I would add to your list – figure out how you are going to access the internet and mobile phone coverage while you are away. If you are travelling overseas roaming charges can be a killer so do a little research on buying an overseas sim card before you fly. Secondly, research how you plan to get from the airport to your hotel. Don’t just turn up in a foreign country thinking you can wing it.Twitter handle @thelindfields
Hi Lyn – You’re so right about both phone/internet access, and arranging transport to the hotel in advance. That makes arrival so much less stressful! Great tips – thanks for sharing!