Practical strategies for Navigating Holiday Travel, Avoiding Overwhelming Crowds, and Making the Most of Your Journey
Written by Kaelie Piscitello
The holiday season is a magical time to travel. Snow falls, and everyone feels buoyant with the holiday spirit and yearns for the upcoming break. However, it often comes with one major challenge: crowds. Navigating the rush can sometimes feel like a race instead of a vacation. But here’s the good news—you can avoid the holiday chaos with planning.
Whether you dream of a serene snowy getaway or a peaceful escape to warmer climates, knowing how to sidestep the busiest spots can transform your trip into a stress-free adventure. In this guide, we’ll share insider tips and innovative strategies to help you enjoy the holidays your way—without the overwhelming crowds.
Choose Less Common Holiday Destinations
You can easily plan a trip to see traditional holiday season destinations like New York City and London. While they still make for a great trip, the holiday feels crowded there and may not provide the most relaxing vacation. Instead, consider less popular destinations during the holiday season that will still make a great trip.
For example, many love to travel to Paris; however, a trip to Colmar makes more sense during the holiday season. You still get a chance to experience the flavor of European Christmas markets but from the perspective of a homey town instead of a large city.
You could also jet off to Sedona, Arizona, to experience the red rocks during the most magical time of year. The scenery matches the holiday colors, and the locals light it up festively.
Some other non-traditional Christmas vacation destinations include the Azores in Portugal, Estonia, Hallstatt, Austria, and Japan.
Use Technology to Find Optimal Travel Times
Many apps exist today to help you avoid the crowds during the holiday season. Are you jetting off to Disney World for their holiday celebrations? Make sure to download My Disney Experience to see the wait times for each ride and get a digital map that will help you get around the park.
Outside of Disney vacations, City Mapper provides real-time transit information. It curates routes to each destination and offers suggestions for avoiding congestion. Furthermore, another app, Spotangels, shows less-crowded parking spots where you can park your car. This app helps its customers on vacation and off!
Wait Time can also help monitor crowd levels and wait times at popular attractions, such as amusement parks. It can also provide crowd date about stadiums, making concert and game experiences more accessible.
Choose Outdoor Activities
Most people don’t want to go outside during the cold winter months, so going somewhere to participate in outdoor activities will provide you with lots of space to breathe. Furthermore, you can enjoy the peacefulness of nature without crowds.
For example, hike in the Smokey Mountains or take a helicopter ride over the Grand Canyon. These destinations have fewer crowds at this time of year, and you will experience them without the heat of summer and the hordes of travelers that come with them.
Travel Early or Later in the Season
The prices and crowds peak around Christmas and New Year’s, making for an expensive and chaotic trip filled with many other people. If you want a quieter vacation, go away the week before Christmas or a week or two after New Year’s Eve to experience optimal prices and less congestion in the airport and at your destination.
Furthermore, if you can, hold out and wait until February, No one travels at that time of year. If you can get the time off work, take it then and have a cheap and peaceful trip.
Explore Smaller, Local Attractions at Your Destination
If you go to a popular destination, you will want to hit the more famous attractions. However, try doing those at the beginning of your trip and then researching some quieter, less popular activities towards the end to wind down away from the crowds.
For example, if you visit New York City, you could explore quieter neighborhoods and hit recommended restaurants on Google. In Boston, you could get out of the city and hike at the Blue Hills or stop by Patriots Place in Foxborough to experience a fun local activity without many holiday tourists.
Book Accommodations in Quieter Areas
Booking your hotel in a quieter part of town always benefits the traveler. You can relax at the end of each evening and avoid listening to the swarms of cars honking at pedestrians and drunk people yelling. Besides the peace of staying in a quiet neighborhood, the accommodations cost less than those in popular spaces.
Remember, you can stay close to tourist attractions if you have a hotel in a calmer city section. Just search the map and travel recommendations for your destination, and you’ll find the perfect location for you.
Book Skip the Line Tickets When Possible
Purchase TSA Precheck to skip through airport security lines and enjoy other preclearance benefits year-round. Outside of the airport, many amusement parks, including Disney and Universal, have “fast pass” tickets. These allow you to skip through the longer line and enjoy the rides sooner.
Many museums, including the Louvre in Paris and the British Museum in London, also have skip-the-line passes to get you into them faster and help you experience them at a more reasonable pace. Other popular attractions, like the Empire State Building and the Eiffel Tower, also have special passes that give you a designated time to enter so you don’t have to wait around all day to do one activity. No matter where you go, always research the attractions you want to experience ahead of time to maximize the experience.
