I hate the cold. I long for the summer months when I can throw on shorts and flip flops before I go out of the house. Now I have to put on layers and bundle up. Right now I am in between jobs and my parents have some saved up vacation days so we decided to book a spontaneous flight to Florida to soak up the sun. Turns out you can do this too!

Pick A Destination

Every winter I make a trip down South and with some careful planning it ends up being budget friendly. There are so many places you can go down South with a cheap flight and have a nice getaway in some nice weather. Even if it is just a short weekend trip, I encourage you to book a flight and get some sunshine! In the fall I went to Nashville with some girlfriends for a short weekend trip and four days was all we needed to explore the whole city. Luckily, thanks to airplanes it only takes a few hours to get to another state. I have been booking flights with CheapOAir lately and they always seem to have the best offers.

Pack Smart

This may sound stupid, but look up the weather before you go. Not looking at the weather always leaves you over packing in case it rains. When I went to Nashville, I had the smallest suitcases out of my friends. Why? While the other girls packed options to wear, I planned all of my outfits  ahead of time. I planned pajamas, going out outfits, sightseeing outfits and in case we go out to a nice restaurant outfit. Because I planned outfits, I was able to pack light and know what to wear each day.

Plan Meals

Before I went to Nashville, I did some research and picked out a dozen restaurants for us to go to while we were there. One of the hardest parts is trying to decide where to eat, especially if it is a lot of people. While on vacations, you eat out for most of your meals and eat more greasy and salty foods. Your fitness goals don’t have to be put on hold while on vacation. Okay, you may not be able to keep up with the Whole 30 Diet, but you can still plan to eat at restaurants that have salads on the menu. Order a side of vegetable instead of french fries at a meal. I promise your mood and energy will even improve! One of my favorite parts about traveling around the country, is the opportunity to try out different chain restaurants that I may not have up north. When I went to South Carolina to visit a friend, we of course went to Chik-Fil-A and she introduced me to the Southern favorite, Bojangles. In Texas, we ate a lot of bbq and drank sweet tea by the gallon!

Hop of the Plane and Explore

With flying you have to get to an airport a few hours before your flight, so the idea of booking an early flight is terrifying. However, whenever I travel, I try to pick an obnoxiously early flight time because the faster you get to your vacation, the more time you have to explore! When I went to Texas last year, we got to the airport at 5am because we wanted to have as much time to explore as we could. When I am traveling to visit a friend in Georgia this month, I am taking a late night flight on Thursday so I get as much time as I can in Georgia.

 

Order an Uber

When I went to Nashville with a few friends, we did all of the tourist things right away. Then on our last day we realized we didn’t know what else to do. I ordered an Uber at the hotel, and when we got into it I asked the Uber driver to take us to a local place that people liked. He was able to take us to a place we would not have seen otherwise. If you find yourself in a place you have not been before, the best tour guide is someone who lives there. Order an Uber and ask them their suggestions for the best bars, restaurants and coffee shops.

 

Go take off work and and fly somewhere this month!
One of the best parts about your friends moving across the country for jobs, is you have a free hotel to stay at. Get in touch with an old college friend and go visit them for a weekend getaway.