When you are going on a big getaway trip, you might want to prepare. My family and I flew to Hawaii last summer. It was the greatest adventure of my life. However, we were not all so prepared. Throughout the trip, we ran into many obstacles. I am about to share you some of my family mistakes and issues, as well as my own, we had while being in paradise and how to prevent some of our mistakes from them happening to you!
1. Bring your back ups
While we were traveling up the road to Huana, we stopped and decided to go on a trail down to some waterfalls. On this road, everyone parks their cars on the side of the road, so we did as well. We were on the trail for about 15 minutes, and when we returned to the car, we found the window broken by a rock is thrown into it and had most of our belongings stolen, including my mom's purse that had her IDs and a plane ticket.
The worst part was that we were planning to fly to a different island that day. My mom had to go through airport security for a while, leading to us missing our flight. When we did get to the next island, we had a family friend overnight ship my mom's other use of identification in order for us to get back home. Nonetheless, my mom still had to go through airport security. This is one example as to why you should always pack other methods of identification when you are traveling, especially with airlines.
2. Pack LIGHT
Imagine this: you are in Hawaii and you see all these cool, beautiful items that you want to buy and bring back home with you. But, then you remember. You do not have enough space to bring all of this back home unless you want to buy another suitcase or carry-on. Now, imagine this: You are in Hawaii and you actually purchase all those cool, beautiful items that you wanted to buy because you packed light. Packing light is very simple, even when you think you can never pack lightly when going on such a huge trip. Packing lightly is easy in three simple steps:
1. Count how many days you will be on vacation.
2. Create outfits for each of those days. Make sure you plan out all events and night outs for nicer outfits.
3. Lastly, pack toiletries and vacay NECESSITIES, meaning travel-sized shampoos and beach towels.
While being in Hawaii, it was hard to resist buying some really amazing souvenirs. However, I had to avoid the purchases because I knew I would not have enough space in my luggage for them. When you do not pack lightly, you can just tell your friends that you won't be able to get them a dancing hula girl for their dashboard before you even leave.
3. Leave the fights at home
It is understandable that, sometimes, it is hard for families to not fight and bicker while being together in a hotel room for a certain amount of time. It can lead to siblings fighting, spouses arguing, or just awkward silence while sitting at dinner together with your family. My tip for you is to attempt to leave the fights back at home and spend a great vacation with your family. Leaving the fights back at home was the best decision my family ever made back while being in Hawaii. Even when our car got broken into while being on the island, we all had a big laugh about it. It was an unspoken rule that we made, not fighting, but I know it was thought of among my family. And ever since that trip, my family has never been better.
Whether it is Hawaii or a small trip to the next state over, chaos and problems can happen any road you travel down. These were only a few tips and advice from my own personal experience.
Overall, it is important to know that every trip is a new experience and a time to relax and enjoy yourself. If problems erupt, laugh about them and overcome every issue. If fights evolve, let the storms calm down. Vacations are not everlasting, so make them feel like a journey of a lifetime by hanging loose.
