Friday, July 1, 2011

Stress Reducing Your Travel!


Stress Reducing Your Travel!

It's that time of year again, where anxious travelers all over the world are gearing up for their holiday travel. The air in their houses is thick with the anticipation of a new adventure; beach lounging; hiking; surfing; gallery hopping; browsing, or just plain relaxing. Having done a fair amount of travel in my life, I can say this with great certainty, the way you start your trip is likely an indication of the rest of your trip. NOW, with that being said, I am not saying a trip that starts out a bit whacky can't be improved, or a trip that started out great can't go down hill; however, from my experience, your trip begins before  you even leave your house. If there is a lot of stress prior to your vacation, I can tell you that the probability of you encountering stress throughout your vacation is inevitable. When people are stressed, they are unable to relax, and such, any derailment (no matter how small), is given greater importance; versus if that person were relaxed, and simply took the inconvenience with stride and let it "roll off their back."

Consider this a quick "tune up" for your travels throughout the remainder of this year. None of the tips I am providing are new, nor are they anything you likely haven't heard before, but if I can impart any tiny bit of wisdom and save at least one person from a stressful travel experience - well then, my work is done!

These tips are in no particular order, but I've found that most of my travel experiences are relatively stress free because I do not worry about anything I have no control over, such as flying the plane, the weather...you catch my drift.
  • Pack ONLY what you absolutely need - really! Pull out whatever you THINK you might want to take on your trip and reduce it by almost half.
  • Eat a small breakfast, lunch or dinner (depending on the time of your travel) - this helps to keep you energized, as well as keeping you from eating all of the horrible items posing as "food" that are available at the airports. And with that being said, take along some healthy snacks. A few nutrition bars, dried fruits, nuts and an apple are small, compact, and easy to stuff into little pockets on backpacks and in handbags. 
  • While not always possible, get some rest before your trip - you'll need it.
  • Make sure you have a small first aid kit available that contains band-aids, gauze, antiseptic, pepto bismol (tablets only, not liquid form so you can place it in your carry-on) and any prescription medications you may need, and make sure you keep them in their prescription bottles - just in case.
  • Bring two good books to read. You can buy some from the airport, but if there is a book you have just been hankering to read, bring it with you; trust me, you'll have plenty of time to read.
  • Which leads me to this point. NOTHING kicks off a vacation the wrong way than arriving to the airport late and having to RUN at break neck speed through the airport in HOPES you can make your flight. I know that I am one of those freakish people who arrives creepily early, but truly, it reduces so much stress because you are there, through security, and don't have to worry. Yes, flights are sometimes canceled and/or delayed, but if you are there early and they begin locating flights to redistribute the passengers on, you are there, and will have the highest probability of getting on the next available flight to get  you where you need to go, with the least amount of pain.
  • Finally - SMILE, you're going on vacation!
*photo used from: http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3159/2868884619_932b4362fc.jpg

www.chicksthattrip.com



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