Last-minute Travel

6/8/2009 12:00:00 AM

Life can be hectic and you don't always know weeks in advance when you can take your vacation. That doesn't mean you can't have a great time with little notice.

Life can be hectic and you don’t always know weeks in advance when you can take your vacation. That doesn’t mean you can’t have a great time with little notice.

It’s Wednesday afternoon and you just found out that you can take off work on Friday. You’d like to turn this into a three-day weekend but you haven’t made plans. What should you do?

The first step is to relax. Vacations are about having fun and enjoying yourself. Stressing out about the planning stage really defeats the purpose.

Last-minute airfare can really put a strain on your budget, so you may want to limit your getaway to a drive destination or one that is accessible by train. It is a good idea to have a short list of locations already in mind for when these opportunities arise.

Take a few minutes to check out the tourism website for your destination area and look for hot deals and specials from the hotels and condos. Also visit the websites for some of the accommodation providers. Many offer specials that you can take advantage of. If you don’t see any specials, don’t be afraid to ask when you call.

The next hurdle is packing on short notice. Keep it simple and focus on a basic wardrobe for the destination. Visit the Weather Channel website for the weekend forecast and pack accordingly.

Vacation Planning Staff

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