What You Really Need to Prepare for During Holiday Travel

Holiday travel sounds adorable in theory, and yeah, by all means here, it actually is. You’ve got the cute outfits, twinkling lights, the whole “happy family reunion” thing. And you can’t forget all those decorations that make you feel like you’re in a Hallmark-like town during the holiday season. It’s all magic, well, it’s supposed to be at least. 

But yeah, real-life holiday travel loves to throw in a little chaos just to keep everyone humble. Have you ever watched that King of the Hill episode where Hank, his family, and his neighbors waste away their Thanksgiving due to being stuck at the airport with a canceled flight? Well, that’s real life; that’s what you could potentially look forward to. 

It’s crowded, it’s loud, and things are way more unpredictable than any travel planner ever admits (and that includes Google Maps). So planning for the magical stuff is great, but preparing for the stressful stuff is what actually keeps the trip on track. Basically, you have to go through the awful in hopes of getting that cute holiday Hallmark-esque fantasy. 

The Airports are a Nightmare to Deal With

If you’re actually able to catch your flight on time, no cancellations, no mishaps, nothing bad whatsoever, well, good for you, really, congratulations, because not many people get to have that during the holiday season/ holiday travel time. But really, every line is long. Every seat at the gate is taken. Every announcement sounds like bad news. And flight delays pretty much come with the season. Sure, if you have Generali travel insurance, you’ll be fine, well, financially speaking at least (because a lot of people basically have their money stolen and never given back after delays and cancellations). Don’t forget about your luggage, because it feels like a massive gamble on it getting lost. 

Road Trips aren’t Exactly Peaceful Either

Driving around the holidays feels like the entire country agreed to go to the same place at the same time, well, to a degree, that’s kind of the truth, though. Leaving early helps, sure, but there’s always that moment where everyone in the car starts questioning life choices, but who wouldn’t? 

There’s the traffic, there’s the detours, everyone else in the road has road rage, police are hiding waiting to give people tickets, and it’s a little uncomfortable, well, very uncomfortable. Also, good luck getting a pump at the gas station; there might be a long wait (and again, people are in a bad mood).

Hotels aren’t Always that Magical

When you think of hotels during the holidays, you probably immediately think about Home Alone and the Plaza during Christmas, right? It’s fun, it’s magical, it’s how the holidays should be when traveling. But no, it’s not always like that (though sometimes it is). The hotel might be overbooked, it might be really loud, you might have to wake up extra early for a chance at breakfast, not all that relaxing, right? But it might help to look into another lodging plan in case the hotel is overbooked; that’s an important one.