Ok, not really, just yet anyways!!
This past week we made the final reservations for our winter vacation, so I thought I would give out some tips that seemed to work for us. So if you are planning a trip, listen up:)
**Do your homework. This takes alot of time and planning, but well worth it. We have been planning this trip since last winter, so a good year or so before the actual date. I have spent countless hours scouring the internet for the best deals.
**Travel agent or no? I would definitely recommend a travel agent if you are going somewhere in which you are not familiar. The last vacation we took, to Cancun, we used a travel agent. We had never been before and weren't sure what we were getting ourselves into. I think it proved to be worth it to have someone do the scheduling for us, especially since we were not familiar with the options. For this trip it will be our 4th time to the area, and I think we know what we want to see and do.
**Once you know what you want in your lodging, it makes it easier to decide where to stay. We went back and forth with lodging, and weren't sure where exactly we wanted to stay. House/Condo, on the beach, in another city close by? You need to know what you want. We knew we wanted a pool and a gym, possibly a grill/deck area. We looked at renting houses, but they didn't offer a beach view, and weren't exactly close to amenities and shopping/restaurants. After much searching, emails, phone calls, talking, and more research, we were able to find a deal right on the ocean! Score! We used vrbo.com, which we have used in the past to help us find just the right place to stay. Looking forward to watching the sun rise over the horizon of the ocean.....ahhh bliss!
**We knew right away that for this trip we were NOT going to drive it. Something about 24 hours in a minivan with three other people just isn't my cup of tea. We drove the first time we went down, and it was okay. Aside from nearly dying on the way there in downtown Atlanta traffic and on the way back due to an ice storm in the middle of the night, the drive was pretty much uneventful:)
So flying it is! We wanted to fly out somewhere close to us, which in rural Iowa the closest major airport is still about 2 hours away. I probably started watching flights pretty closely (1-2 times per week) about 6 months ago. On every other trip we had our flights booked by the beginning of summer, but this time chose to take a risk. Good thing, cuz I was able to see trends in when prices changed, and know just when to book. And, as a bonus, they added back in the flight time we really wanted at a price that was within budget. So, as prices were going up and down this week, on both airlines we were watching we decided to go ahead and book it.
We will rent a minivan once we get there which has proved to be beneficial. This way we can come and go as we please and aren't dependent on taxis or other public transportation the entire time. We can also choose to go on a day trip to another city if we so choose. I am trying to keep this vaca low key and not filled to the brim with activites every single minute of the day. I am really wanting to soak in the sun, do things on a whim, and chillax!
So with that said I can file my spreadsheets of condos, houses, airlines, etc. for another time. This trip is booked!
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