Now that Memorial Day weekend has come and gone, summer is unofficially-officially here. This usually means it’s time for vacations, however, it's not so easy with the price of travel rising astronomically.
I don’t need to tell you about how much gas costs. It is worth noting, though, that I just today put over EIGHTY dollars of fuel into my 2011 Nissan Altima. I’d never done that before. Now, I’m not saying that’s *exactly* how much the vehicle is worth, but it’s not crazy far off, either.
Trying to fly somewhere? Things aren’t much better there. Airline fares in the U.S. are averaging more than $400 round trip this summer, which is 24% higher than the same time in 2019 and 45% higher than last year, the AP reported, citing travel-data firm Hopper.
So how does a person who’s trying to get away this summer navigate these wild travel prices? It’s not easy. As someone who has multiple trips coming up, I’ve had to take some extreme measures to make it happen. Not only am I donating plasma, but I also took a part-time weekend job at a golf course.
Ok, that was mostly for the free golf but making a few extra bucks doesn’t hurt, either. After all, I have to play shows with my band Low Standards on back-to-back weekends in June. One is in the middle of South Dakota, and one in Minneapolis, so I’ll need the cash to cover the flights. (I know you’re probably shocked to find out that Low Standards doesn’t make enough to cover its members’ travel)
So is it worth buying tickets now or should you wait for prices to drop? As is with the housing market, there’s no guarantee when or if that will happen at all. My suggestion would be to book your tickets as soon as possible. The general rule of thumb for flights is “the earlier the better.” Or as a cheaper alternative, plan a staycation. Luckily, Orlando is probably the best city in the world for staycations. There’s a lot of very cheap, if not free, things to do here for the whole family. Find one and enjoy!