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Let’s Vacation! Sounds great, but what is a vacation? The word ‘Vacation’ conjures up different images for different people. What comes to your mind when you hear ‘vacation’? To have a great vacation, you have to know what a great vacation is for you.
A great vacation can be so many different things. A variety of vacation experiences will enhance your timeshare ownership, so I suggest that you start by determining what a great vacation is for you . So, start designing your desired vacations. To D E S I G N your vacations, start with D – Decide who, what, where, when, why, and how
Who is going on this vacation - family, kids, friends, multi-generational, just the two of us or just me? Plan a vacation for every type of who. Vacation variety is the spice of life!
What do we want to do on this vacation - take kids or grandkids on a great vacation, spend quality time with family, see new places, go back to a favorite vacation spot, or just get away?
When would we like to go on vacation? Shall we go during summer vacation? How about Spring Break? Maybe on a holiday or special occasion. When it's less crowded? First snow? Ideal weather? Soon?
Canada, Mexico,
Central America and South America
Why do we want to take this vacation - adventure, romance, fun, relaxation
Australia, South Pacific, Aruba, Bahama, Caribbean, and Bermuda,
After you DECIDE who, what, where, when, why, and how you will need to E – Establish a Budget. Nothing tarnishes a great vacations faster than tons of debt to pay off from your vacation. If you establish a budget you can plan ahead and save for your ‘epic vacation’ and decide where you want to spend your vacation dollars.
Start with the ‘musts’ – transportation and meals. Next, set a budget for the extras like entrance fees, snacks, discretionary spending.
After you Establish a Budget to work with, you’re ready to S – Start Planning the specifics. Are you going someplace you can drive to or do you need to fly or take a train or bus? Start comparing your options. The more you can consider and plan ahead of time, the smoother your vacation will go.
If you plan to drive which routes are you considering? What are the road conditions? Do the gas prices vary a lot so that you need to decide where to gas up? I use to check gas prices
Is your destination near or in a city or is it in a very rural area? So if you fly, will you need a rental car?
If you fly, are some airports a better value than other.
Are you going to eat most meals in your resort? Where are the closest store and restaurants
Now the fun but challenging part, I – Include Everyone. Vacations are enjoyed by everyone more if they have input on what you do, where you eat, how much can we spend. Have everyone write down the top 5 things they would like to do on the vacation.
The preparation will be much easier on you if everyone takes on part of the responsibility. Small kids can pack their own backpacks of items they want on the trip and at the destination. Others can either pack their own suitcases or at least make a list of what they will want and need.
Make it fun maybe even a game for the young ones. If you could . . .
A great way to Include Everyone is to let them G – Gather information on what there is to do and see at the vacation destination.
After you Gather the useful information on what there is to do and see on this vacation you will have a long list of want to do’s, so you will need to N – Narrow It Down. What seems like great idea to do will often take more time than expected, tire you out, and lose some of its awesomeness if you try to do too much
A few great experiences beats a bunch of hurried and stressful gotta get this in’s. It is better to go back again someday than try to cram everything into your vacation. Most people would say that the biggest detriment to having a relaxing and enjoyable vacation is trying to do too much. Schedule downtime into your vacation for the best outcome, especially if you have small children.