If you have a strong desire to explore the world but have limited vacation days, you may be tempted to quit your job, sell your belongings, and live as a nomad. However, there's no need to go to such extreme measures to satisfy your wanderlust.
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So how can PTO assist in increasing your travel opportunities?
Organize vacations during paid holidays
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One way to significantly extend your time off is by taking advantage of paid holidays. By planning your days off around long weekends, where you have a Friday or Monday off due to a holiday, you can make the most out of your paid time off (PTO). For instance, if you take just four PTO days, you can have a full week off to relax or travel. This allows you the opportunity to escape for a longer period, such as leaving on a Friday afternoon and not needing to return until nine or 10 days later, providing sufficient time for international trips. Some holidays even offer more time off. For example, the Thanksgiving holiday can be a valuable asset in your efforts to travel more frequently each year.
However, it's important to be aware that travel during these holiday periods can be quite popular, resulting in higher ticket prices and crowded airports. To mitigate these downsides, it's advisable to book your flights well in advance to secure lower fares. In addition, consider exploring destinations outside of your country to avoid crowded domestic locations.
Divide your paid time off for multiple getaways
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Using a majority or all of your PTO for a single extensive vacation, such as going to New Zealand or Australia, can be worthwhile. However, in general, the most effective approach to traveling more is to divide your PTO among multiple trips. By doing so, not only will you have the opportunity to visit more places on your travel wishlist, but you'll also always have something to anticipate throughout the year with these shorter trips.
Strategize your desired destinations
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If you divide your PTO among multiple trips, you may want to prioritize destinations that are easily accessible to maximize your time. For instance, if you reside on the East Coast, traveling to Europe is quite feasible. Reykjavik, Iceland is only a 5.5-hour flight from Boston, while Belize is less than five hours away from New York City. Alternatively, you can head north and explore Quebec City, Canada, which is just over three hours from Boston or four hours from New York.
For those on the West Coast, there are plenty of options too. Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, is a mere 2.5-hour flight from Los Angeles or just over three hours from San Francisco. If you're interested in visiting San Jose, Costa Rica, it's a flight of less than six hours from Los Angeles, shorter than the time it takes to reach Honolulu. Admittedly, if you don't live close to either coast, traveling internationally may pose a slightly greater challenge, but it's still possible. Montreal, a beautiful Canadian city, is easily accessible from many Midwest cities, with a flight time of less than two hours from Chicago. And if you're looking for a tropical getaway, you can reach the Bahamas in under 3.5 hours or Grand Cayman in approximately four hours.
Thoughtfully assess flight timings and opt for nonstop whenever feasible
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Although red-eye flights may not be your favorite, if you have the tolerance for them, they can maximize your PTO days. Choose to take an overnight flight that leaves immediately after your work day ends. This way, you'll arrive at your destination in the morning of your first full day off, without wasting valuable time on travel. It's also advisable to avoid booking flights with layovers. When you have limited PTO, spending time at airports is not ideal. Although nonstop flights can be pricier, the time saved is often worth the additional cost.
Avoid overwhelming itineraries in a single trip
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Many tourists desire to fully experience a new place but with limited time, they tend to make a jam-packed itinerary. While it may seem like a good idea to stay in a different city every night, this plan overlooks the travel time between cities and other small factors that can quickly add up.
A more effective approach is to spend at least two to three nights in each city. By doing so, you can make the most out of a week by focusing on just two cities, rather than attempting to visit three or four. In addition, consider taking day trips to nearby destinations to make the most of your schedule.
Explore travel opportunities in the off-peak season
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One clever technique for getting the most out of your time off is to plan your travels during the less crowded periods to well-known places. This strategy helps you steer clear of potential airport delays that frequently occur during peak travel seasons and saves you from long queues at popular attractions. Consequently, this gives you more opportunities to truly relish the destination. Consider spending your winter in Prague – even though it may not be a peak tourist season, it still holds a special enchantment.
ParkingNearAirports.io: your ultimate guide to affordable and convenient airport parking!
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It's pretty clear that everyone wants to save as much money as possible and get excellent services at the same time, especially while traveling. Prefer to get to the airport by your own car? If so, please draw special attention to this part of the article.
We suppose you have used to choose on-site parking if you prefer to get to the airport by your own vehicle. Most people think that it's much more convenient and faster, as it's the nearest area to the place a plane is flying from. However, they probably forget that this type of parking is too costly. Besides, you will have to face the following unpleasant moments:
- You will need to find a spot in a crowded lot,
- You will need to carry the luggage all the way down the parking lot,
- You must pay expensive fees with no service.
Sounds terrible, right? Is there any solution in such a situation, you may ask? We're happy to say – of course, there is one! If you choose to use the services provided by off-site parking, you won't definitely regret it. So let's take a closer look at this parking type.
What is actually off-site parking?
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Obviously, no one wants to face all of such difficulties we described above, and you can easily avoid them if you choose an off-site parking option. So let's take a look at how it works.
When you come to the entrance, the staff member pulls your baggage out of your car and loads it to the shuttle, which will take your bags and you later to the airport you're flying from. Then they will find a parking spot and park your car there for you.
Please don't worry about the few miles, which usually separate the parking lot and the airport. Off-site parking usually provides free shuttles to and from the airport for its customers. Thanks to this, you have no worries about getting stuck in traffic on the way to the airport during the peak times. So all you need to do is choose the best time for you and inform the parking lot staff.
In addition, this type of parking is much cheaper, and this is good news, as nobody wants to waste money. Therefore, off-site parking is the perfect option to receive excellent service and save money at the same time.
You can find the best deals right here!
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If you're looking for the best deals for airports, you're in the right place.
We are glad to inform you that our booking platform, ParkingNearAirports.io, offers the best prices on airport car parking and bundles hotel and parking packages. Besides, we provide the services for top cruise ports in Florida, Louisiana, Maryland, New Jersey, and Texas.
Our partners are the most reliable parking providers outside the major airports in the United States. We offer their services for passengers who are looking for safe and secure parking for their vehicles.
In addition, we can arrange valet parking, self-parking, or a vehicle to pick you up from the hotel to the terminal and vice versa. Just let us know the dates, choose your preferred services, and we'll get it done for you.
It only takes a few minutes to make a reservation. Get the most affordable rates and experience hassle-free off-site parking.
To understand it better, we would like to give you an example. If your trip starts in New York City, New York, USA, you can use the services of cheap JFK Airport parking with shuttle. If you're flying from Montreal, Quebec, Canada, you can choose affordable Trudeau Airport parking. So it just depends on the place you're leaving from.
Also, ParkingNearAirports.io offers its customers special airport parking coupons. With the help of these coupons, you can make the price for parking even two times less. So don't forget to use them to save as much money as possible.
You can find all the necessary and helpful information connected with the off-site airport parking on our official website. Enjoy traveling!
