Planning a Winter Getaway? Shop Early and Save

For many people, it’s hard to think about winter vacations because summer has only just begun, but here are five great reasons why booking a winter getaway should be at the top of the summer “to do” list.

1. Keep Summer Fun Alive

What better time to think about what you’d like to do this winter, than while you’re busy doing it this summer? Does your family love water slides? Do you or your partner like to golf? Are the kids learning how to play tennis? Keep those summer activities alive by planning your winter getaway around your favorite kinds of summer fun. Not only will you get to relive fond summer memories, but in the case of tennis, golf or other sports you and your family are learning, it will give you the ability to practice during the “off season.”

2. The Early Bird Gets the Savings

Isn’t it annoying when you hear about friends who book their vacations for next to nothing? Well, those friends probably know to watch for fare sales and book early! Yes, it’s possible to save if you book at the last minute, but it’s also possible to miss out entirely. Also, booking at the last minute doesn’t work for everyone. If you need babysitters, house-sitters or animal care you can’t wait around until the day before to start making arrangements. Luckily, many airlines have fare sales during the summer and the travel dates extend well into the winter. Booking now will give you the time to plan properly for your trip and save money if necessary. Some companies even offer lower fares to “early birds” if you’re willing to pay in full in advance.

3. Give Yourself an Excuse to Shop

Not that you needed one, but planning a winter getaway in advance gives you the perfect excuse to take advantage of the amazing summer sales happening right now.

Why shop early? Retail has figured out “snow birds” and knows how to take advantage. If you wait to purchase bathing suits, shorts and other warm-weather vacation necessities later on you will be paying a premium for a limited selection. Retail “seasons” are not like calendar seasons, for example “summer” is generally from March through June, so summer sales happen right as “real” summer is picking up.

Speaking of picking up, buy some amazing summer clothes for you and your family and store them away for your winter holiday. Not only will it save you from shopping closer to the travel date, when you have other things to worry about, but it will be a nice surprise to have a fresh bathing suit and unworn shorts and tanks to show off on your trip!

4. Leave Time to Plan Your Itinerary

Buy a guidebook for your upcoming trip and read it at the beach, contact the local Tourist Bureau and have them send you information about your destination or ask friends and family to provide a list of places they’ve visited that they really enjoyed. When you have time to plan and aren’t worrying about getting everything done at the last minute, you might even have time to contact vendors directly and get to know them before showing up on their doorsteps. At the very least, when you arrive at your winter getaway you’ll have knowledge of the area and some general ideas of how you would like to spend your time. If you’re traveling with children, you’ll want to make sure that your destinations are “kid friendly,” and taking the time to visit family travel-related websites (such as Trekaroo) will improve your trip more than you think.

5. Have Something to Look Forward To

Once the dates have been picked and the tickets booked, you can start looking forward to your winter vacation! Write it in your calendar in bold so that you see it every day, or start a “calendar countdown” that begins right as the weather gets nasty, reminding you that there’s a light, real sunlight, at the end of the tunnel! Having travel dates set in advance also helps you to plan your holiday party schedule; knowing when you will and won’t be available allows you to RSVP and not have to feel guilty later when you have to cancel for a last-minute vacation. Also, knowing winter vacation dates early and sharing them with your family can save you from awkward conflicts later, as others will need to plan around you since you were keen enough to do your planning first!

With everything else you have to stress out about this winter, wouldn’t it be nice if a sunny winter getaway wasn’t one of them?