Traveling over the holidays is wonderful. It makes for a stress-free, relaxing and all around good time. Whether it’s during Thanksgiving, Christmas, or any other long holiday, traveling is always a good idea.

I can’t tell you the last time I stayed home during Thanksgiving break. Each year my entire family gets on a cruise ship the weekend before Thanksgiving, and we spend the week in paradise.  I have to say, at first I wasn’t on board with traveling during the holidays, but I’m now thankful we do it.

One perk of traveling during the breaks is that it takes the stress off of having to worry about cooking and hosting people at your house. On Thanksgiving day, we spend the whole day touring around a cruise port. The port gives us a sense of relaxation because we get to go to the beach, rather than worrying about setting up for dinner.  After we’re done at the port, we get to go back to our rooms, get dressed and go to a nice dinner. We don’t have to worry about cooking the food, which is great, especially when you know how stressful preparing a Thanksgiving meal can be, and it makes it easier to enjoy each other’s company.

Another plus to traveling during the holidays is that in most countries outside of the United States,  cell phone service is limited. It’s nice to just have family time without the distraction of a phone and social media. It allows us to bond as a family. It’s like a getaway from the world and it really enforces the true spirit of the holidays because it makes us communicate with each other instead of sitting on our phones.

The downfall of traveling during the holidays? Nothing. I wouldn’t trade the experiences that I have encountered during these trips for anything. I have become more educated about different cultures and societies that I wouldn’t have been exposed to if I stayed at home.  I love being able to see different parts of the Caribbean, Mexico and Central America. I get to experience different food, music, landscapes, dances and so much more.

Some might disagree with me because of the expenses related to traveling and issues on the road. But I think these are issues whenever you travel, holiday or not. To me, the memories you create during these vacations make everything worth it because they will last a lifetime.

I haven’t lost out on family time that you would normally have during the holidays because my family is always with me. If you’re considering traveling during holidays I’d highly recommend it.