With Thanksgiving being tomorrow, a lot of travelers have begun packing the airports trying to get to their destinations to spend the holiday. What’s making things difficult for some is all the delays and cancellations that are already happening that will surely make it harder for those trying to get out. I remember a couple of years back when we took a trip to Cancun for the holidays to get out of the freezing cold winter we were having and how stressful it was. From flights delays to other problems, that was one trip I will always remember. If you’re traveling this holiday season and are looking for some ways you can hopefully make it easier and avoid some of the stress, doing these things can help.
One of the most stressful things that you could possibly deal with is flight delays and cancellations. Just ask the thousands of people that are currently stranded at airports on the East Coast. With flight delays and cancellations, it can throw off your whole trip as you will be getting to your destination later and there’s also being the possibility that you don’t even get to the destination. While you can’t control the weather, one thing you should try to do is check on the status of your flight so you don’t have to be at the airport longer than you have to be. One of the best solutions for this is booking with a travel agent. A travel agent can give you updates on your flights and let you know if there are any delays or cancellations. Travel agents can also see if there is a way to get you on a different flight so you can get to your destination and enjoy it.
Once you figure out if there are no delays with your flight or cancellations, the next thing you should do is try to get to the airport a couple of hours before your flight. If you have ever tried to check-in during the holidays, you know that airports are a lot more crowded than usual. With this there will be delays especially with the security check-in. About 5 years ago my family and I were flying out of San Francisco during the holiday season and we stood in line for two hours to get through security. As you can imagine this was a very stressful time as I was worried that we wouldn’t make our flight and it was very frustrating standing in line for so long especially with two kids who wanted to leave. To avoid the stresses of missing your flight, try to get to the airport early so you give yourself time to deal with checking in.
A third tip to help you avoid the stresses of traveling during the holidays is to create a checklist of things you need for your trip so you don’t forget anything. Having a checklist can help making packing a lot easier as you can easily check off things that you need as you add it to your suitcase. For me packing is one of the more difficult things as I not only have to pack for myself but also for my kids. There is nothing worse than getting to the destination you’re visiting and realizing you forgot to pack something you need like any medication and than having to stress out trying to buy it while on your trip.
Traveling during the holidays can be a stressful time but there are certainly things you can do to hopefully make it less stressful for you. If you are interested, here are some more travel tips to help you with the stresses of traveling during the holidays.