Last time MilitaryFares.com talked about travel packing. This time we discuss Quick Getaways–how to plan for them and how to maximize your vacation time. In today’s economy, long vacations may not always be in the budget. So, getting away as quick as you can–as often as you can, might be the best way to unwind and rejuvenate. Considering the four simple tips below may save you time, money and effort; plus help you have the most enjoyable time while you are on your mini-vacation. Let’s begin.
Table of Contents
1. Plan Events so they work independently of one another (Create Plan B’s)
This is important on short or long vacations. You will want to plan your events so that you can still have fun even if things get off track. For instance, let’s say your destination is Washington, D.C. While you are there, you plan to take a few guided tours, catch a show at the Theatre and eat at your favorite restaurants. Not necessarily in that order.
If you run into bad weather on the way, or some type of mechanical issue happens with the plane, this could throw off your schedule and you could miss your guided tour(s). By planning for contingencies in advance, you can still make the short vacation work without being disappointed. When you schedule your guided tour(s), check to see if you can also just tour the facility/museum on your own in case you are delayed. Collect information about Exhibits and Operating Hours and whether or not you can take pictures or video.
With your trip research done, and your information in hand, you can work out issues as they occur. NOTE: As you may recall, in the last article, we spoke highly of having a packing checklist to help identify what things to pack. This time, I highly recommend that you make an Events Checklist (Bucket list) to keep you on track with what you intend to do while vacationing. The Order of the events is not as important as having the list. As a matter of fact, I recommend that you NOT create an order for the events because this will help give you the most flexibility in the use of your time.
Is your hotel room not ready yet? No worries. What on the list can you do to fill that time? Maybe you can go to one of the restaurants you planned to go to or catch a matinée. Anything you can do to make good use of the time will only make the vacation greater.
2. Consider a Rental rather than Driving Your Own Car
If it’s new, keep it new by driving a rental car! Driving in unknown places can be daunting sometimes. You don’t want to add to your concerns by risking breakdowns or accidents that could set you back after the quick getaway. Rental cars are a good alternative because they often can be equipped with the extras that make the trip pleasurable. GPS, satellite radio, good gas mileage and Air Conditioning!!! are all the things that can be acquired at reasonable rental rates. (Check MilitaryFares.com for great deals).
3. See What You Can Do Along the Route to Your Main Destination
If you do decide to drive, see what activities you can plan along your travel route to make it part of your quick getaway adventure. Maybe there is a famous park or botanical garden you’ve heard about that you can visit along the way or on your return trip back home. Or maybe there is a zoo, theme or amusement park you can take the family to that’s not too far out of the way. Whatever you decide, as mentioned earlier, it’s always best to have it on the travel itinerary/ bucket list initially to avoid the hiccups associated with last minute, or impromptu planning. (You DO NOT want to end up as a plot for a bad episode of a SyFy movie where there is no cell phone reception, no gas station, and no bank or teller machine available… Not Cool.
4. Know what is going on at Your Travel Destination
The last thing we’ll mention here is that you should know what else is going on at your travel destination other than what you are planning to do on your quick getaway. While you may only plan to the events mentioned earlier on your ‘D.C. getaway, there may be other things happening in Washington as well—like basketball or football games, or maybe some type of festival that could become an issue if you are unaware of them happening during the time you plan to be in the area.
Hopefully we have shared something that will help you plan your next getaway. Now, as always, check MilitarFares.com to see what we might offer to add to your next enjoyable vacation!
