The average American gets 2-4 weeks of paid vacation time. Trying to travel with limited vacation time can be a bit overwhelming when considering how to utilize your time efficiently. Here are my five tips on how to get the most out of your vacation time.
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- Plan in Advance
Setting time aside to plan and use your vacation time is huge. I recommend planning in advance. Plan when you will take your trip, where you want to go and how to use each day of your vacation time for the things you want to do.
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2. Take Advantage of Holidays
Take advantage of Federal Holidays or any days you get off of work. Planning your travel time around holidays is great especially if you are traveling with kids. What is great about traveling on holidays is that they do not count in your vacation time, so it’s like getting an extra day for travel!
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3. Consider the Length of your Trip
Are you wanting to use all your vacation time at once, or break it up to use throughout the year? If you are planning an international trip to explore a foreign country, you may need to use all your vacation time for this escapade…but, if you are planning to take small 3 day trips to explore California or neighboring states, then you can break up your vacation time and enjoy smaller trips throughout the year.
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4. Be Cautious of Commute Time
When traveling, you want to use your time as efficiently as possible. Plan and prepare to avoid as much commute time as possible, this way you can spend your time doing things you want and not have to waste it on commuting in between destinations. Decide where you want to go, and what you want to see. Try to find accommodations nearby too, so you can eliminate commute time in between activities.
If you are flying, consider the time you are spending commuting to your destination. If there is a specific destination you want to see, then try to avoid long layovers. If you are planning to see multiple destinations in one trip, then plan for longer layovers so you can enjoy each stop!
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5. Take Advantage of Unused Vacation Time
Some companies and businesses allow their workers to be able to roll over their unused vacation time to the following year. So, let’s say for example one year you used 8 days of vacation time when you have 14 days out of the year you can use. This means that you have 6 days of unused vacation time that you can roll over and add to your next year’s vacation time.
Not all companies and businesses allow this in their policy. If you are unsure if your company will allow this, ask your manager. This is a trip definitely worth looking into!
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Have any travel tips to share? Comment them down below, I’d love to check them out!