Make your next group vacation easier by preparing the members for the lengthiest pre-trip chores. These travel preparations are important to get done ASAP.
One of the most difficult parts of leading a travel group is making sure that everyone completes the necessary preparations. The hardest preparations are those that take weeks or even months to complete. Since traveling this year is difficult, getting the travel preparations you need to make weeks in advance out of the way now will save you and your traveling group the hassle for future vacations.
Renew Your Passport
Whenever you plan on leaving the country, make sure that your passport is good for the entirety of your trip. Passport renewal can take six to eight weeks, assuming there aren’t any hang-ups. Frequently check that your group has passports that are up to date. Don’t be afraid to keep bothering any stragglers until their part of the passport process gets mailed in. If necessary, look over their passports to make sure that they will be valid or guide them through the process. Passport issues are disastrous for group international travel and should be given heavy consideration.
Prepare Your Home and Pets
If you or your group members intend to have a house or pet sitter, scheduling them weeks in advance allows the sitter to put it on their calendar, so they can shift their schedule around it. Walk everyone through how to get a mail hold. Make sure your group has a plan in place for their home, children, or pets. It isn’t your job as a leader to keep tabs on your group members’ responsibilities, but a simple reminder will earn respect from others.
Group travel may result in usual vacation pet care routines getting interrupted, since someone’s usual pet sitter may be on the trip with them. If they don’t have a backup plan, you can suggest pet boarding or a dog hotel. Know how boarding a pet works and the process the dog care facility takes to take in animals—it may take a couple of weeks to get them registered.
Inform Your Bank About Your Trip
Banks are typically always on the lookout for fraud or identity theft, meaning they might register any vacation purchases or ATM withdrawals as an abnormal transaction. Your group should inform the bank of the trip ahead of time to prevent unfortunate situations like credit card shutoffs—especially while abroad. The party may not be well prepared to handle a member relying on others to pay for them during a false fraud flag.
Keep Your Reservations in Check
There are plenty of places that require strict reservations for your group. Reservations for popular attractions are often important travel preparations you need to make weeks in advance. Make sure to keep an eye on the reservations for hotels, restaurants, or tours that you’ve made already and add any extra that your group is interested in before it’s too late. Finding a place to sleep for a large group without a reservation is a lot harder than as an individual.
