With the winter holidays coming up sooner than you might think, it’s time to start thinking about how you’ll prepare for holiday travel that won’t absolutely wreck you. Especially if you’re someone who tends to get stressed out by traveling, choosing to travel during the busiest of travel times is bound to bring on some anxiety.
So to help you try to maintain a handle on everything, here are three tips to make holiday travel easier and less stressful.
Get The Timing Right
The first thing you should think about as you get ready for holiday travel is the timing of everything.
If you can swing it, you should try to travel on days where there will be fewer people traveling. Depending on when the holiday falls, the peak travel days will vary. But if you can try to avoid traveling on the weekend or within a day or two of the holiday, you should be able to avoid the busiest of travel days.
Along with this, you should also make sure that you’re giving yourself enough time to get to where you need to be without stressing yourself out too much. If you’re traveling by plane, make sure you get to the airport in time to find parking, get through security, and navigate your way all through a crowded airport. And if you’re traveling by car, try to leave so that you’re not hitting big cities during the busiest times on the road.
Don’t Take Too Much With You
Something else that can make all kinds of travel easier and less stressful is to not take too much with you. Especially if you’re going to be flying, the more stuff you’re trying to drag with you through the airport and the more space you’re needing to take up, the more stress you’re likely to feel. Along with this, your chance of having a bag get lost also increases with the more bags you bring.
To avoid this, try to have presents delivered to your final destination rather than bringing them with you. And for things like basic toiletries, consider just buying some when you get there as opposed to packing everything.
Think Ahead To Holiday Hiccups
Even with the best of planning, there are going to be some things that are outside of your control and that go wrong. But if you’re able to think ahead and plan for some of these contingencies, you may better be able to face them if and when they happen.
For example, if someone in your party gets sick, you may need to find some other way for your loved one in assisted living to participate with your holiday events so that you can keep them safe and healthy. Or if you have a delay in your flight, make sure you stay in constant contact with those getting you from the airport so that they won’t wind up waiting for you for hours.
If you have plans to travel during the upcoming winter holidays, consider using the tips mentioned above to help you find ways to make this experience easier and less stressful for you.
