10 Tips on How to Travel More

One question I get asked all the time is: Do you have any tips on how to travel more often? I completely understand the struggle. You want to see the world and have adventures, but you also need to be present for your career and other responsibilities at home. I have the same dilemma.

I’m living proof that it’s possible. I’ve never used all my PTO in a given year, yet I manage to take 10+ trips annually—most of them short weekend getaways. You don’t need weeks off or an unlimited budget to make travel a regular part of your life.

Here are my ten practical and strategic tips for traveling more often.

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1. Plan Around the Holidays

Use official holidays and long weekends as anchor points for your travel plans. When you front-load or trail off time around national holidays, you can create multi-day trips while using minimal PTO. One of the easiest ways to do this is to take the day before a holiday off, allowing for a three- to four-night stay at your destination.

MLK Day, Presidents Day, Memorial Day, Juneteenth, Independence Day, Labor Day, and Veterans Day are all options to plan around, with half of these holidays falling on a Monday. Try taking the Friday before the holiday off, and you’ll have an extended weekend trip, using only one day of PTO.

2. Extend Business Trips

If you travel for work, add personal days before or after your business commitments. Doing so is a cost-effective way to explore a destination without taking extra time off. You’re already going to be there! This tip obviously depends on where your business trip takes place, but if it’s a dreamy destination you’ve always hoped to visit anyway, then why not extend it?

Todd and I did this recently, this past March. I had to be in Southern California for a work conference, and the events ended on Thursday morning. Todd flew in on one of the first flights out on Thursday, and I didn’t work on Friday. We were able to spend the weekend adventuring around SoCal, and we only had to pay for one airfare. Win-win!

3. Extend Your Weekends

It sounds crazy, but short getaways can be just as fulfilling as extended vacations. Weekend travel literally changed the way I think about travel. A Friday flight with a Sunday evening return can give you a refreshing break without disrupting your workweek.

I’ve spent 24 hours in Palm Springs, 36 hours in Carmel-by-the-Sea, and a weekend in Washington, D.C. Sometimes, an extended weekend is all you need! This blog was started thanks to weekend trips, so I feel extremely passionate about short getaways and know you will love them too.

4. Take Non-Ideal Flight Times

Maximize your time at your destination by traveling the day before you initially planned to arrive. For example, instead of flying out on Friday morning and cutting into your vacation time, try flying out on Thursday night after work instead. This way, you wake up there and have more time at your destination.

If you do choose to fly out on Friday for your weekend trip, take the first flight out in the morning. It’s not fun waking up at 4:00 am for those early morning flights, but you’ll maximize your vacation time. Most of the time, you’ll arrive at your destination before lunch!

Pro tip: I purchased a fancy alarm clock to help with my sleep routine, and it makes waking up for early flights a million times easier.

5. Take Shorter, More Frequent Trips

In my opinion, domestic travel is easier to schedule, recover from, and afford. You may be sensing a pattern here with all these tips pointing towards shorter trips as often as humanly possible. Small adventures add up to so many memorable experiences over time, allowing you to see more of the USA (and the world).

Sure, maybe you won’t get to spend three consecutive weeks at the destination you’ve always dreamed of visiting, but you may be able to finally see all 50 US States or visit a place you might not have otherwise, because you didn’t let time stop you. When I finally gave up waiting around for my one “big vacation” each year and started traveling on weekends and holidays, I was able to see so many more places than I ever thought possible. Sometimes I still have to pinch myself to believe this is real, and sometimes I want to slap myself for not thinking of shorter trips sooner.

6. Go At Off-Peak Times

Traveling during off-peak seasons reduces crowds and costs, making trips more enjoyable and accessible. You can also use Google Flights to learn when the least expensive times to travel are.

Traveling during the cold is what makes my adventures to Seattle, Washington, possible. I’ve traveled during the freezing cold and rainy season, and while the weather isn’t ideal, I was able to find inexpensive airfares. There are fewer tourists, which allows you to see more places than you would during the prime time season with lots of crowds, lines, and waits. Traveling during off-peak times can be such a gift!

7. Prioritize Travel in Your Budget

Be sure that you set aside a dedicated portion of your budget each month for travel—treat it like a recurring expense, not a luxury. This changed the game for me, and I know it will for you, too. Instead of seeing travel as a future goal, when I finally found the time and resources, I started prioritizing travel in the same way I prioritize budgeting for groceries or new work clothes.

Having a line item in your monthly budget normalizes the financial commitment and helps you plan trips consistently while keeping travel a top priority in your life. While there is nothing wrong with splurging on luxury items for your closet (if that’s your thing), I would completely slash my beauty or clothing budget if it meant I could buy more airfares and have more adventures in my life.

8. Maximize Travel Rewards

Sign up for airline, hotel, and credit card programs to accumulate points and miles. Smart reward redemption can subsidize or even fully fund your trips. One year, Todd and I had the Southwest Companion Pass, and it made traveling all over the USA possible that summer. I wanted to cry once it expired.

Think of cards you have that you could leverage more efficiently, like maybe putting gasoline purchases on the card that has the most rewards. Also, if you aren’t signed up for the free rewards programs offered by airlines and hotels, be sure to do so, as this will allow you to earn credit for your stays and start accumulating more points.

9. Leverage Remote Work Flexibility

If your job allows it, work from a different location. “Workcations” let you explore new places without sacrificing your professional responsibilities. I’ve never done this before because my trips are typically a million miles a minute, and I fear I wouldn’t be present; however, I have a coworker who swears by this approach.

Many people I work with will travel on a Sunday and then spend the week working from their new destination. They still have before-work, lunchtime, and after-work hours to explore without using any PTO days. Be sure to triple-check the type of flexibility your workplace offers before pursuing this option.

10. Streamline Packing and Preparation

Keep a ready-to-go travel kit and checklist. I leave my suitcase out at all times (manifesting trips, even when I’m home, LOL), so I stay ready! Anything that reduces friction makes spontaneous trips much easier.

One of my best hacks is keeping my skincare packed at all times. I keep travel sizes stocked in my favorite Lancer bag and always leave packing cubes in my suitcase. Then, once I know I have a trip coming up, I simply add clothes to the packing cubes, include a hair tool, and my toiletries are already packed. It reduces packing time from about an hour to just 20 minutes, if that. Streamlining your packing will make traveling feel less like a burden and more like a breeze.

I used to think travel only happened when I could take a whole week off once or twice a year. But at that pace, I know I would never see all the places I wanted. Weekend trips changed everything, and short trips are the reason this blog was born in the first place!

Working full-time doesn’t have to hold you back—it makes travel even sweeter. Coming home refreshed from a mini-adventure gives you energy and perspective to crush new work goals, which in turn fuels future travel.

Implementing these strategies requires some financial and logistical planning, but collectively, they will create a sustainable framework for traveling more often—without disrupting your professional or personal life. The more you start implementing these tips, the easier each trip will feel in the future because you will establish a system that you can rinse and repeat.

What about you? Do you have any tips or strategies that help you travel more often? I’d love to hear them!