"Get to where you need to be early," said Trish Gastineau, an affiliate of Travel Experts in Naples, Florida. "Being just on time doesn't cut it anymore. It's much better to arrive early and have a plan to occupy your time while you wait.
She suggests buying a day pass to a lounge at the airport where you can wait with complimentary Wi-Fi and snacks. "It's a small price to pay to relax and not be rushing through the airport worried if you'll make your flight because of an unexpected delay," she said. "It's better to be bored than stressed."
Of course, sitting around an airport all day or being stuck in some delay somewhere means that your electronic devices could lose their charge. "Bring a charger and a portable charged battery pack so you can charge your electronic devices," said Gastineau. "Delays happen and you can't always rely on having a free electrical outlet available when you need one. Taking responsibility to have your own back-up won't make an unexpected delay perfect, but it will allow you the opportunity to communicate or be entertained."
One of the best ways to remove the stress of travel is to purchase travel insurance. "You can be confident that the financial portion of your trip is covered for those expenses," said Margie Lenau, travel consultant and owner of Wonderland Family Vacations.
It gives you the security that if the trip must be canceled or is interrupted you will not lose you money.
"When possible, buy 'cancel for any reason' insurance," said Jeannine Bottorff, an affiliate of Travel Experts, Classic Family Journeys, based in Raleigh, North Carolina. "I recently had a family very excited about their first trip abroad to an all-inclusive in Mexico. They had to cancel suddenly when the father lost his job. I was so sad that their dream trip was not going to happen, but I was relieved that they would not be losing money especially under those circumstances."
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Traveling can also take a toll on a traveler's body, especially when it comes to jet lag, a temporary sleep disorder caused by traveling through multiple time zones.
"For me, I find that if I go by the time zone that I am in, eat at a normal time and sleep at the normal time, I can handle the adjustment better," said Lenau. "For the first night in a different time zone, I will go to bed a little earlier if possible. Then the next day, I can be on schedule again."
Comforts from home are also a great way to destress while you are traveling, so Bottorff suggests packing a few in your carry-on. "My husband bought me the Bose Cordless Noise Cancelling Headset, which helps to create a quiet environment so I can better sleep on the flight," she said. "I always bring a j-pillow, a wool wrap or small blanket and Janska Mocsocks to keep me warm and comfortable, because being cold for 10-12 hours takes its toll on you."
She also has both paper copies of her itinerary, all tours and other confirmations with her, and everything on her iPhone.
"I use this same system for all my clients," she said. "Many are tech savvy, but it is always good to have a backup plan in case you lose your phone or it won't work for some unknown reason."
Before you travel read all of your travel documents and look for mistakes or typos. "Finding a problem after you're sitting on the plane and the boarding doors close is a very stressful way to spend a long flight," said Gastineau.
Working with a travel agent can also help to reduce your travel stress levels. "Most are happy that they know they can contact me if there is a problem even if they can handle it on their own," said Gastineau. "Many of my clients will email or text me to change a reservation or help with an issue that comes up. Knowing that they don't have to be responsible takes the edge off."
Bottorff recently had a client in Edinburgh who couldn't tour the castle because there were winds of 70 miles an hour and she didn't know what to do, so she called me. "I was able to tell her to just go the next day and use the same ticket," she said. "That one was easy to solve, but it was highly stressful for her until she got her answer."
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