After summer travel turned out to be a chaotic mess, experts are warning of a tough travel season for the holidays. But instead of breaking the bank just to arrive at their destination on time, being forced to leave a checked bag at home, spending their savings on gas money, or missing all the good hotel bookings, Americans can take a few simple steps to ensure their holiday travel goes smoothly and works with their budget.
Plan ahead
While you might not be able to think a year in advance, a few weeks or a few months is enough. The sooner you plan your trip, the sooner you can begin booking hotels, plane tickets, and give yourself more time to hunt for their cheapest prices and best deals. Planning in advance can allow you to compare hotel and flight prices or map out the best road trip plan with plenty of sights to see and gas stations along the way for refueling.
Set a budget
While this might seem like a no brainer, it can be easier to underestimate the cost of every single part of a trip. Setting a travel budget is crucial to staying within your means, from plane tickets and gas to hotels (if you aren’t staying with family) and even meals you eat at restaurants. This still allows you and your family freedom to enjoy your trip without feeling restricted by money. It can also help set expectations and even let you discover that you have more wiggle room than you imagined for other experiences.
Insure your trip
Now that you’ve set a budget, it’s important to stay in it, and nothing is worse than an unexpected illness or accident that sends someone to the doctor or ER. Not to mention, traveling out of state or internationally often means you won't be in your healthcare network, leaving a trip to the doctor or ER to come completely out of pocket. Getting travel medical insurance can help protect your pockets.
Travel insurance is also useful if your trip is canceled (which many have been lately). During the holiday season especially, it’s important to insure your travel so an interruption or cancellation to your trip doesn’t mean you lose your vacation money. Goose Insurance offers both out of state and out of country travel insurance that can help cover emergency room or medical costs and save the money you spent on a trip if it's canceled.
Check for price drops
If you book a hotel or flight and notice a week later the price has dropped, it’s worth calling the airline or hotel to see if you can get a refund for the extra money you spent. Whether you set price drop alerts on your phone using different apps, or set a day throughout the week to check, this can give you more room in your budget or just end up saving you more in the end.
There are several different apps and websites that can make looking for a price drop easy and send all the information you need to your phone or email. This can even be useful months in advance of your trip to keep you updated about the best times to buy tickets/hotel rooms so you can be sure you’re getting the best price possible.
Choose to travel before or after the crowd
We’re all familiar with the most common days to travel throughout the holiday season. While it might be more convenient to travel with millions of others, if you’re able to travel earlier or later than the busy season, you’re likely to have a smoother trip. Christmas Eve night, the night before Thanksgiving, or early Thanksgiving morning are the best times and days to travel.
Embrace chaos
Your trip likely isn’t going to go 100% as you planned it, whether that be a delayed flight, the presents got lost in the mail, or your family can’t stop bickering the entire trip. Embracing the chaos of the holiday season and traveling during it can make your trip go much more smoothly. Accepting the uncertainty of travel can help you have a positive outlook on problems as they occur, and by keeping your cool, you’re much more likely to find a quick solution than if you were to have a meltdown.