Travel Tuesday - Avoiding the Holidays

Under the best of circumstances traveling at Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Years is unpleasant and expensive. When my parents were still alive I would generally go to Florida for Thanksgiving, sometimes I drove, sometimes I flew. We tried to avoid flying at Christmas, it was always crowded and expensive. We did it a few times. For a few years we drove to Cleveland to see Jay's mother.

My general advice for holiday travel is simple, DON'T DO IT. Go earlier, go later. Stay home and enjoy a quiet stress free holiday. Call, video call, don't feel guilty about not being there. Quality time in late January, beats rushed crowded, stressed time at the holidays. Last year I wrote about stressful holidays and weird family dynamics. I don't think I am alone, likely I am one of the few that is willing to admit that holidays home with just the two of us, are much more pleasant and fun. And shouldn't this time of the year be about happiness and fun?

My holiday travel adventures included, Thanksgiving at Chicago O'Hare a burger and fries in a sports bar. A weather related overnight stay in Atlanta. A plane delayed due to a collision with a baggage conveyor, the plane flew with a dent in the side (and I was glad to get home.) A check-in melt down at CDG in Paris that resulted in being almost the last one to board.

There is no place like home for the holidays. And that is were I suggest you spend the holidays, wherever you call home. If you travel over the holidays, don't say you weren't warned that it might be miserable.

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