I live in a beach community in Maine, just two miles from the beach. Even the local ice cream stand can have some very long lines. We’ve learned to enjoy the beach during the week, pick up ice cream early in the day and keep it in the freezer to eat later. The problem we have here is when the cruise ships dock. Towns like Freeport and Kennebunkport are overrun with cruise ship passengers. I wish they would limit the number of ships docked at one time, and I don’t buy the argument that businesses need these passengers to survive. Maine is nicknamed “Vacationland,” and has never lacked for tourists willing to spend in local shops.
Prepay the entrance fee online or at places like Notre Dame, which allots 10,000 or so free slots reserved for ahead for free. You also avoid missing a venue entirely.
This will help repeat and business travellers more than tourists in general but here’s a few tips that can help.
Know your airports. Many airports have multiple ways in to a connected post security hub. If your flight is at terminal 4 and there’s no departures at terminal 1 you can breeze in 30 minutes before flight at the wrong terminal and walk to the right one with time to spare.
Not all airports allow this but the ones that do make lines a thing of the past.
If your destination has a local payment practice get a local eSIM and download the app. WeChat, Gcash, Mayi, Wise… etc. the app ties to the phone number, add a burner credit card or a travel card and all you do is scan qr codes!
I’m hesitant to post this last tip because I use it almost solely. Fly at bizarre hours. I try to fly (again using international companies I trust) overnight. Flights after 9 pm until about 6 am tend to be the easiest to deal with. I have landed in Seattle and LAX with a 30 to 45 minute layover and had enough time to walk outside. Have a cigarette walk back inside clear security again and still make the connection flight.
An absolute necessity when the second leg is 18 hours.
Join a trusted traveller option AND get clear. Add that to the first and third tips and you no longer find yourself waiting at all for flights.
As a tour operator, we try to avoid peak season crowds. Yes, shoulder season is the way to go. Problem is, so many people are moving to the edge of the season, is becoming harder to get space and prices are going up (hotel sin particular are just expanding the high season dates and prices). So the non-peak times are moving further out. Does that make sense?
You could get non-peak rates in late May many places, now, to get those same rates, you have to go in early May. Same thing on the back side of the season. Weather is more iffy, other seasonal attractions in the aea may not be open, etc.
Be kind to the people who serve you in these busy places. In many cases, they work very hard for not a lot of money. A little kindness will go a long way, in my experience.
My advice is to book a tour. I’m not talking about “if it’s Tuesday it must be Belgium” type tours, but a guided tour of the “Famous sites of Paris” (for instance) will let you “skip the lines” at the Louvre and guide you through Montmarte. I’m a cruiser, and always book tours on port days. There are lots of sites out there to find good tours or guides.
I can vouch for southern hemisphere travel. We went to Australia last June. Easy, no crowds, cheaper places to stay. Yeah it gets darker earlier, but go to bed earlier and get up at sunrise and you can tire yourself out, but not over do it.
How to avoid crowds? In most tourist sites, those lines aren't to get in. They're to buy tickets. Buy your tickets online before. We were at Trinity College in Dublin to see the Book of Kells, and there was a huge line. But there were also signs with QR codes to buy tickets. We did, and breezed right in. A little planning goes a long way.
We go to all sites only on weekdays. On holidays and weekends we do something relaxing like walk around parks or beaches. We go to all sites before they open. We are first at the door and get out of there before 11 am, when tourists start piling in by the hundreds.
I live in a beach community in Maine, just two miles from the beach. Even the local ice cream stand can have some very long lines. We’ve learned to enjoy the beach during the week, pick up ice cream early in the day and keep it in the freezer to eat later. The problem we have here is when the cruise ships dock. Towns like Freeport and Kennebunkport are overrun with cruise ship passengers. I wish they would limit the number of ships docked at one time, and I don’t buy the argument that businesses need these passengers to survive. Maine is nicknamed “Vacationland,” and has never lacked for tourists willing to spend in local shops.
WOW. Cruise ships in Maine. Sacrílego
Prepay the entrance fee online or at places like Notre Dame, which allots 10,000 or so free slots reserved for ahead for free. You also avoid missing a venue entirely.
Good tip! Thanks.
This will help repeat and business travellers more than tourists in general but here’s a few tips that can help.
Know your airports. Many airports have multiple ways in to a connected post security hub. If your flight is at terminal 4 and there’s no departures at terminal 1 you can breeze in 30 minutes before flight at the wrong terminal and walk to the right one with time to spare.
Not all airports allow this but the ones that do make lines a thing of the past.
If your destination has a local payment practice get a local eSIM and download the app. WeChat, Gcash, Mayi, Wise… etc. the app ties to the phone number, add a burner credit card or a travel card and all you do is scan qr codes!
I’m hesitant to post this last tip because I use it almost solely. Fly at bizarre hours. I try to fly (again using international companies I trust) overnight. Flights after 9 pm until about 6 am tend to be the easiest to deal with. I have landed in Seattle and LAX with a 30 to 45 minute layover and had enough time to walk outside. Have a cigarette walk back inside clear security again and still make the connection flight.
An absolute necessity when the second leg is 18 hours.
Join a trusted traveller option AND get clear. Add that to the first and third tips and you no longer find yourself waiting at all for flights.
Great tips! Thank you.
As a tour operator, we try to avoid peak season crowds. Yes, shoulder season is the way to go. Problem is, so many people are moving to the edge of the season, is becoming harder to get space and prices are going up (hotel sin particular are just expanding the high season dates and prices). So the non-peak times are moving further out. Does that make sense?
You could get non-peak rates in late May many places, now, to get those same rates, you have to go in early May. Same thing on the back side of the season. Weather is more iffy, other seasonal attractions in the aea may not be open, etc.
Be kind to the people who serve you in these busy places. In many cases, they work very hard for not a lot of money. A little kindness will go a long way, in my experience.
My advice is to book a tour. I’m not talking about “if it’s Tuesday it must be Belgium” type tours, but a guided tour of the “Famous sites of Paris” (for instance) will let you “skip the lines” at the Louvre and guide you through Montmarte. I’m a cruiser, and always book tours on port days. There are lots of sites out there to find good tours or guides.
I can vouch for southern hemisphere travel. We went to Australia last June. Easy, no crowds, cheaper places to stay. Yeah it gets darker earlier, but go to bed earlier and get up at sunrise and you can tire yourself out, but not over do it.
It's a very contrarian move.
😇
Travel off-season or explore off the beaten path locations that would love to welcome you because they are not suffering from over tourism!
Yep, absolutely!
How to avoid crowds? In most tourist sites, those lines aren't to get in. They're to buy tickets. Buy your tickets online before. We were at Trinity College in Dublin to see the Book of Kells, and there was a huge line. But there were also signs with QR codes to buy tickets. We did, and breezed right in. A little planning goes a long way.
We go to all sites only on weekdays. On holidays and weekends we do something relaxing like walk around parks or beaches. We go to all sites before they open. We are first at the door and get out of there before 11 am, when tourists start piling in by the hundreds.
Yes, avoid weekends. Good advice.
Great tips on making summer travel more tolerable. Having access to lounges like Amex lounges helps to create calm, being away from the crowds too.