Don’t let FOMO keep you from planning a family vacation

You’ve dreamed of lying on the beach all year, your kids playing in the waves and as you go to book your vacation, it hits! FOMO: Fear of Missing Out. What if there’s a better hotel deal? What if you can save money by flying a different day? If you find yourself fretting over getting the very best deal for your plane tickets or anxious you’ve missed a good deal after you book your hotel room, you might have trip planning FOMO. But don’t let fear be the reason you don’t take that much needed family vacation!

Tips for Planning without Fear

Set a budget, stick to it, let it go

The number one rule of avoiding trip planning FOMO is to set your budget. Once you know how much you want to spend on your vacation, it really doesn’t matter if you get the best deal, you just need to stay within your budget. Yes, you always want to stretch your dollars but if it keeps you from booking your tickets or causes you stress, then it’s probably not worth the extra few bucks you save. Give yourself permission to spend within your budget. After all, this is a hard-earned vacation and it shouldn’t feel like extra work just to enjoy it!

Set a timer for how long you’ll look

You can easily end up down the rabbit hole when it comes to finding travel deals on the internet. If you know you’re prone to the temptation to keep looking “just in case”, go ahead and set a timer for yourself. Whether it’s a physical timer to limit your research or a deadline of when you need to have the trip booked, it’s good to give yourself some boundaries. Again, you might miss a great deal but you’ll keep your sanity and your free time. I like to use the timer feature on my phone but there are online timers you can use too. Put deadlines on your calendar to help yourself stick with your vacation booking goals.

Book low risk options

If your FOMO is really big and you want to give yourself options, look for places you can book with a low risk. Things like hotels and car rentals may have fairly generous cancellation policies but you need to make sure you read carefully. Read each policy thoroughly before you book and make notes on your calendar of any cancellation deadlines you need to watch out for. These low-risk booking options give you a little bit of leeway when it comes to missing out on a great deal so use them if it helps you feel better about planning your trip.

Set up alerts to help you find the deals

There are several search tools that let you set up alerts for low prices on things like airline tickets or hotels so that you don’t spend your time constantly checking. You’ll create your alert and then receive an email if the price drops. Here’s a few options but there are many out there to chose from.

• Google Flights
• Kayak

When you’re pinching your pennies to make travel happen, I know it’s so easy to want to make sure you get the BEST deal but don’t let it take over the enjoyment of planning and taking a vacation with your kids. Set your budget and your timer and get to work planning a fantastic trip without FOMO. After all, your fear of missing out should only apply to whether or not your kids will save you any space on the beach towels. 

What’s the hardest part of your trip to book? Do you have FOMO when it comes time to plan a vacation?

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