Timing is important for just about all aspects of your journey. It’s good to research what’s happening where you’re headed. In the planning stages, you’ll be looking at a number of questions such as:
1) Is there an unrelated event at my intended destination during the time I’m headed there?
2) What’s the weather going to be like when I want to go?
3) Am I planning my journey during the peak tourist season of my destination?
4) Has some event recently occurred that I need to be concerned about or plan around?
After you’ve considered those questions (along with others you may think of) and their respective answers, you’ll have a better indication as to locking in the timing of your journey. You’ll also want to examine events local to your destination to consider, evaluate the risk and decide the plans for your journey accordingly.
Something like the Superbowl, World Cup, Oktoberfest, concerts, festivals, whole country celebrations can drive up the prices. So if you’re not planning on attending the event, consider altering your plan for that location to a different time. Either that or realize that because there’s a Taylor Swift concert in the same direction as your destination, it may take an extra 2-3 hours each way in driving time.
Speaking of Oktoberfest, it’s good to know that it actually starts in September and runs through the first week of October, because if you plan to go the end of October, you’ll still get great beer in Bavaria, you just won’t be able to experience Oktoberfest.
Brazil in 2014 was a delightful madhouse due to the FIFA World Cup. Then again in 2016 for the Olympics. Of course anyone intending to travel to Brazil for either of those events was richly rewarded. However, they also could’ve paid higher prices for flights, hotels, food, transportation, and so on. And if you weren’t there to participate in the event and were in the main tourist areas, it certainly presented challenges of traveling, from both a budgetary perspective and booking accommodations (hotels and restaurants).
While seemingly obvious, it’s important to think about natural event occurrences like volcanos, hurricanes, thunderstorms with power outages, last minute ice/snow storms, tornado season, as well as earthquake prone regions. Normally it’s good to avoid these events, however, sometimes great deals are available if you deem the risk is worth the cost savings. For instance, we once went to Cancun during hurricane season. Risky? You bet, but the weather turned out fabulous and we only spent $1,100 for 8 days/7 nights in an all-inclusive resort.
Other unplanned events should be considered as well – personal illness, something unexpected happens back home, riots, strikes, and unfortunately even terrorist attacks can affect a journey. While we can’t necessarily plan for the unknown, we should be aware of the possibilities so we can make the best decisions available.
Different unplanned events can yield different results. Most things unplanned will unfortunately cost money. This is where if available, purchasing the travel insurance can assist. It’s always good to have some sort of contingency funding built into your budget. That way if something comes up, you’ll be minimally prepared.
Combining personal travel with work can have pluses and minuses. Airfare and part of the hotel can be covered, but care has to be taken to avoid conflicts between work and the journey, along with an understanding of the various complexities therein. Depending on your employer, that may actually require approval ahead of time, so you may want to check before booking anything.