How to Pick a Vacation You Don’t Have to Plan
Going on vacation is supposed to be relaxing, but by the time you book a hotel, figure out your flights, and actually travel to your destination, any hopes for a calming week are long gone. That doesn’t mean you should throw in the towel on a laid-back vacation, though. Getting out of town can still be relatively stress-free if you know how to cut corners or delegate when it comes to planning. Here are a few ideas for low-stress vacations that require no or very little planning.
- Go all-inclusive. All-inclusive packages are the basically the frozen lasagnas of the vacation world; they require very little thought on your part, and almost always delight the entire crew. So if you want to get away, but you don’t feel like planning every tiny detail, consider booking an all-inclusive package. Some daily deal websites like com (as well as travel agency websites) even include airfare in that all-inclusive package, so it’s as simple as picking departure and return dates and entering your credit card info. All-inclusive packages usually cover everything from food and drink to nightly activities, so all you have to do is sit back and drink a mojito by the pool. The rest is taken care of.
- Let an expert do the planning. If you’re a seasoned bargain airfare hunter who would prefer to do at least some of the vacation planning yourself, then just leave the daily itinerary to an expert. Many popular tourist destinations have daylong tours that include the area’s unique activities. You just pay a flat fee to join in the fun. They typically include transportation. A tried-and-true tourist go-to is the hop on, hop off double decker bus. They may look a little cheesy, but they’ll get you all over any city (both Stateside and abroad) without you having to navigate the public transportation system. Boom—day planned.
- Be spontaneous. Once you have a locale in mind and lodging arranged, make the rest of your vacation a laid-back affair. Don’t plan anything. Wait until you check into the hotel and ask the staff where the best restaurants are, if there are any popular theaters around, what the locals do on the weekends. Chances are, you’ll end up embarking on adventures that you would have missed if you planned too far in advance.
- Create a loose itinerary. If you can’t get down with walking into your vacation totally carefree (and agenda-free), then do just a little bit of planning. Do some light research about popular activities and attractions in the area, and make a quick list of the ones you’d really like to hit. Then leave the rest up to fate. Don’t book anything; just get to your vacation spot and see the way each day unfolds. Half of the fun of vacation is waking up late and getting going whenever you feel like it—you’ll still be able to accomplish at least one thing on your bucket list each day, so don’t go overboard with planning down to the minute.
Seven tips for a stress-free vacation [Fox News]
10 Sanity Saving Tips for Planning a Stress Free Vacation [Lemon Lime Adventures]
How to Plan an Awesome, Last-Minute Vacation on the Cheap [Lifehacker]