12 Stress-Free Planning Tips for Summer Travel

1 – Plan ahead and do your research

You’re clearly in the right place if you’ve stumbled upon this blog post! Starting your summer travel preparations early will help you avoid last-minute stress. If you can, I recommend starting your summer travel planning as soon as possible. 

People are back to what I like to call ‘revenge travel’, and I no longer am finding that spontaneity is working as well as it used to. So, if you can plan and book things in advance for this summer, you might be in a much better place. 

That being said, I’m a big fan of not planning too much because you will want to leave room for spontaneous activities and rest that might come up!

As for planning, I recommend starting by researching: 

• What activities do you want to do while you’re in your destination (I love using Pinterest to look up the best activities and then love booking with GetYourGuide or Viator)
• What the weather might be like so you can plan on what to pack
• What’s the currency
• What will you be doing for transportation, and do you need to book a car rental
• When are check-in and check-out of each accommodation so you can plan your days
• Is there anything you need to know about visas or your passport?
• Are there specific cultural traditions and dress you need to think about? 

If you don’t know where you’re traveling, research potential destinations, list must-visit places, and decide on suitable travel dates that align with your schedule.

2 – Book flights ahead

Sometimes summer travel is a bit more spontaneous, but booking your flights and hotels ahead of time can save you a lot of money. Unfortunately, in the summer, due to the rise of tourism, prices for travel rise exponentially and quickly, so booking in advance in this case (not all cases) will be best.

If you’re already pretty sure when you want to take your summer vacation, and it’s fall, winter, or spring, I recommend seeing if there are any summer airline deals. Typically in the winter, you can get some pretty great deals for the summer, offering early-bird discounts or a % off your fare. 

If not, my favorite places to look for flights are Google Flights, Skyscanner, and Kayak. If you don’t have a hard date of when to leave or come home, this can help a ton, as Google Flights especially will show you the cheapest days to fly. Always remember to clear your search history when looking for flights, as cookies will track your moves and bump prices up based on flights you search for. You can also use an incognito browser. Check my other flight tips here. 

I also recommend that you set up alerts for flight deals, hotel discounts, and travel packages. This way, you’ll be notified of any cost-saving opportunities to make your summer vacation more affordable.

3 – Book accommodations ahead

Maybe you’re road-tripping or planning on visiting a National Park or a big city during an event. Booking accommodations ahead of time will save you big bucks—especially if you can get in before they hike up the prices due to large quantities of people booking for specific dates.

If you want to go camping just about anywhere in the USA now, you’ll need to book well in advance—especially if you’re planning to do so in a National or State Park. 

I book most of my accommodations on Airbnb, VRBO, Hostelworld, Hotels.com, or Booking.com. That being said, be sure to compare prices on the actual accommodation website as well. Sometimes they will give you a discount for booking directly with them!

4 – Prepare your travel documents

Another big thing I recommend is to make sure you have your travel documents sorted well before your trip. 

Be sure to check your passport to make sure it doesn’t expire in the next 6 months. If so, some countries won’t let you in. You’ll also want to make sure your ID card is up to date if traveling at home. I also recommend making copies of these if you’re going on a longer trip so you have extra verification if you ever get into a pickle. 

Also, make sure you have the right VISA for entry, and if you can set up TSA Precheck or Global Entry, that will help you get past TSA and customs a lot quicker. In some instances, you might also want to look into the Mobile Passport Control App, which has allowed me to skip the customs line speeding everything up.

Lastly, print or screenshot your accommodation addresses and confirmations in case you get somewhere and don’t have wifi or can’t pull it up. Trust me on this one!

5 – Get travel insurance

Now, I might be of the unpopular opinion that I don’t think you need travel insurance for probably the majority of the trips you’re going on. However, I really do think in the summertime it’s such a smart move. Especially when you’re traveling internationally, just in case you lose your luggage, your flights get canceled, or you injure yourself—so many things are covered by travel insurance, and it will give you peace of mind. I recommend using World Nomads. I’ve used them for years and love them.

6 – Create your itinerary

If you’re someone like me and like to pack a lot in, it will probably be helpful to start creating a summer travel itinerary where you can stay organized with all of the accommodations, flights, and activities you don’t want to miss. 

I’m a big fan of doing an activity or two a day but leaving room for rest and relaxation. This helps me avoid burnout and still enjoy my vacation!

I usually do my research and put everything I’m interested in doing in my notes app, and then I go through to decide what might fit on each day of the trip and what times my check-in and check-outs are for each accommodation. Then I’ll occasionally transfer that to a Google doc or write it down!

7 – Set a budget

Summer travel can get expensive, so setting a budget will help you manage your expenses effectively. Consider using a travel credit card with rewards to earn points on your bookings and save money on future trips—this is one of my favorite things to do!

I also recommend saving early, seeing what you can buy with credit card points (accommodation, travel gear, flights), and looking for free activities and hole-in-the-wall restaurants! Sometimes I’ll even bring my own food if I know I’ll have a little kitchenette to make a quick breakfast before adventuring out.

8 – Make a packing list

Ahhh, my favorite thing in the world! Packing! Just kidding, packing is my arch nemesis, but I have to do it so often that I think I’ve got it pretty down. 

First, I will write out my itinerary and decide what I’ll be doing each day, listing my activities. Then next to each activity, I will write down a few things I think would be good to pack.

For example, if I am going scuba diving one day and hiking another, I would write that I need my dive mask, wet suit, swimsuit, outfit to wear to the dive boat, reef-friendly detangler, and any other dive gear. For hiking, I would write down hiking boots, a shirt and shorts for hiking, a hat, maybe a zip-up long-sleeve, my hiking pack, and a water bottle. 

I also write down if I have a fancier dinner planned, a night out, a wedding, a work event, etc. so I know what to bring. 

From there, I would create a comprehensive packing list with all of my activities accounted for and then fill it in with anything miscellaneous I need to bring. 

Oh, and never forget the packing cubes. These are great tools to keep your belongings organized and save space in your luggage. Check out my current favorites.

9 – Stock up on summer staples and essentials

If you have specific sunscreen you love, need walking shoes (I love my Allbirds) for your trip, or need a new hat or hiking boots, definitely get those things ahead of time. Sometimes you may be able to get things on the go, but having everything you need beforehand will feel that much better!

10 – Track your luggage

Flying somewhere this summer? Be sure to get a Tile or Airtag to put in your luggage. With the amount of luggage that was lost in the summer of the past few years with travel picking up, this is a great way to ensure if your luggage gets lost, you’ll at least get it back!

11 – Be Flexible

While I believe it’s essential to plan ahead, I also am a strong believer in leaving room for spontaneity. Being flexible allows you to seize unexpected opportunities and make your journey even more exciting!

12 – Prepare your home before you go

This is something I think that may be so obvious that some people forget about it! If you have pets, you’ll want to make sure to book a sitter ahead of time, you may also want to get someone to come over to water your flowers or bring your packages in as well. Make sure your Ring Doorbell is set up or your Nest so you can see what’s going on and control the temp of your house from afar!