Several years ago, I was so caught up in LIFE that I forgot how to actually live. Anyone else get so focused on working and ‘getting ahead’ that you forget that life is freaking short and it should be enjoyed, too? Yeah, me too. But one day it changed for me – & I swear I talk about travel in just a second, just bear with me – I randomly told a co-worker that I missed going to concerts. Her reply? “Then start going to concerts again!”

Simple and obvious advice, I know. But it really did give me the kick in the ass to start integrating things that I love doing back into my life. For me, it included seeing live music & TRAVELING.

With this post I hope to inspire you to travel outside your comfort zone more and give you some tips on the easiest and cheapest ways to GET AWAY, because even lazy girls need some adventure in their lives. 😉

[sidenote: can you tell I wrote the intro to this post BEFORE March 2020?]

Easy & Cheap Airline Tickets:

Scott’s Cheap Flights

Sign up for free to get notified of great flight deals from the departure airport of your choosing. They e-mail you whenever the deals pop up, to wherever they may be. It is great for someone who doesn’t have a specific date or destination in mind – you just want to get a great deal to travel somewhere. Perfect for lazy girls too, since you don’t have to do any searching, you just decide if you want to go somewhere or not!

SkyScanner

Let the search begin! If you know where you want to go & approximately when you want to go, this is a great search tool. It shows you what days have the best & worst prices so if your schedule is flexible, you can get the best deal easily.

Hopper

Another good choice for lazy girls. This phone app allows you to put in where your want to go & when, then predicts future prices so you know when to book. It also has a feature where you can watch a flight to somewhere and it will notify you when the price drops so you can book that flight!

Easy Packing Hacks:

A good rule for lazy girls is pack light. When I fly, I almost always do carry-on only. It keeps me from having to wait at the baggage claim and I don’t have to worry about it being lost mid-flight – the less headaches on a trip, the better!

First step: get yourself some vacuum seal bags. These are a necessity for us when we travel now. It allows you to take enough clothing for your trip while saving space. This is how I am able to have a carry-on only for a week long trip (seriously!). I use a soft-sided carry-on sized bag (like this one) and fill it with my vacuum sealed clothes, shoes, makeup. Then in my personal item, I have my normal stuff (phone, wallet) along with my toiletries for easy access at security.

Lazy Girl Tip: For plane-wear, I opt for leggings or loose pants, tank top, long sleeve top, & scarf. Wear shoes that can be easily slipped on & off to make the security line more efficient.

Easy Travel Itinerary:

When I decide to visit somewhere new, I don’t like a fully planned itinerary. I leave room for exploring, downtime, & mishaps so I don’t get stressed out or run myself ragged trying to do & see it all. My secret to getting the most out of a vacation (whether it’s a weekend or a week), is to figure out what I DO NOT want to miss out on and then enjoying myself.

For example, the hubs & I love to eat at local restaurants, visit breweries, and explore local landmarks or nature sights everywhere we go. I find which restaurants, food trucks, breweries, or parks that intrigue me or I feel like we can’t miss out on, then we ‘lightly’ schedule when we will go to them. Usually it goes like this: “Oh, let’s try that place for lunch on Saturday, then walk around and explore the area to see if we find something cool”.

The hubs is a talkative guy, so another thing that tends to happen is we find out about unique places to go and see from locals. So, if you’re an extrovert or something akin to it, getting the local perspective can be a great way to enjoy your trip.

Easy Hotel Stay:

For where to stay, I don’t have any sites that I recommend (I usually use Hotels.com to search and try to book directly with the hotel). Here I want to focus on choosing the right one, in the right area, for you.

Things to consider when choosing a hotel: Would a unique stay in a boutique hotel make your soul happier than a chain hotel? Do you want to be in the middle of the city? Or do you want to be closer to the airport for easier drop-off/pick-up? Do you want beachfront or something with a lot of amenities? Consider thoughtfully where you really want to stay is all I’m saying here.

We’ve always told ourselves, “Well, we’re only going to sleep there, so who cares”. But, in my experience, the hotel we stay in does have an impact on the vacation. For example: If you want to do all the things in the middle of a downtown area/city, but your hotel is miles away, you have a couple of options:

• You can rent a car (money), then worry about parking (few, far between, expensive), & deal with local traffic (ugh).
• You can pay for a car driving service for every time you go back & forth (time & monies!).

Lots of time, money, & energy can be wasted when not picking the right place to stay. So, If you know that you want to be in the middle of the city exploring, then book a hotel in the middle of the city!

The Travel Takeaway:

The hardest part of being a lazy girl trying to travel is actually doing it. It takes a bit of planning, but it does not have to be a stressful process!

I hope some of these tips and tricks help you out on your next adventure. If you have some travel hacks of your own, let me know in the comments below because I am always looking for ways to make traveling easier!

See previous Lazy Girl Guides (LGG): Makeup & Skincare. See previous travel guides here.