Celebration trips are on the rise, whether it’s for a milestone birthday, reunion, bachelorette, or just because! But if you have ever attempted to plan one, you know it can be quite the headache. Here are some tips to help ease the planning process:

1. Confirm the dates

Before you do anything else, you must find a date that works for everyone. This can be the most difficult part, and the more people you have participating, the more conflicts there are to work around. You don’t want to make any other decisions until you have the dates set. If you get your heart set on going to a certain destination, only to find the dates the group can travel are a bad time for that location, it will only cause disappointment. 

2. Keep it short

Three nights is usually plenty for a group trip, and oftentimes even two nights is enough. It may sound short, but it’s usually a “just right” amount of time for a group to be together. You will have just enough time to catch up, relax, celebrate, and look forward to doing it all again. It’s also easier for everyone to commit to shorter time spans from both a paid-time-off and a budget standpoint. Which leads to the next step…

3. Define a budget

Have everyone agree to a budget for the trip. Group travel can be difficult to plan when dealing with different budgets. Be sensitive to everyone’s financial ability to join, and remember it’s getting together that matters most! Determine how you will be rooming, too. Sharing can save a lot of money, but keep in mind that some hotels have maximum occupancy for different rooms. You can’t always assume that 8 adults can squeeze into two hotel rooms.

4. Check your passports

If your group is open to leaving the country, you will of course need valid passports. Make sure everyone checks their passport expiration date. For most destinations, it is recommended to have six months validity remaining from the dates of travel. 

5. Seek the assistance of a travel advisor

A travel advisor will make all of the next steps much smoother. Most obviously, we can suggest qualified recommendations that work for your group’s dates, desires and budget. But we can also make the planning process much smoother by handling payments and wrangling the attendees. We can then handle the smaller details such as airport transfers, trip insurance, and be there to support the group during travel. We have contacts to request that rooms be near one another, or help arrange dining and excursions as needed. 

6. Decide on your destination

Once you’ve received some options, the group will need to consider which destination they prefer. This seems like the easy part, and hopefully it will be! Depending on the size of the group, you may want to create a poll or vote for the best option. If you are not coming to an agreement, ask the travel advisor to weigh in – we can offer some great insight as to why a group will be better suited at one place over another. 

7. Sit back and relax

If you’ve followed the steps thus far, your travel advisor will take it from here. Usually a planning fee and deposit will be due early on, with final payments due closer to the departure date. 

When the time finally comes, you just need to get packed up and ready to go! Your travel advisor will be checking in to be sure everyone is ready to travel. Let the memory-making begin!