Top Tips for Traveling in 2023: Avoid the Avoidable

Top tips for traveling are always of value and, for 2023, consumer advocate Christopher Elliott identifies seven mistakes that are easy to avoid and could save a trip. 

In 2023, Nancy Aronson has already begun planning her travels. In order to experience the spring blossoms, she and her husband, Jules, plan to take a Danube River cruise at April that will make stops in Passau, Germany, Vienna, and Budapest. 

We might run into family,” adds Aronson, a retired charity manager from Bethesda, Maryland. Therefore, we’ll also rent a car. 

Plan a Trip: Top Tips for Traveling

Although it might seem a little early, 2023 will still be a good year to plan a trip. Flights are rapidly filling up. Travel experts claim that certain hotels are almost completely booked. After three pandemic years, the travel sector is expected to return to normal the next year, and demand is high despite economic concerns. 

People who are considering traveling overseas face a labyrinth of potential blunders. Take Aronson’s springtime excursion. The demand for river cruises is high, hence prices will be high. Additionally, even though there are fewer available rentals, prices are still high, especially in Europe. Almost usually, taking the train is preferable. 

What information do you require in order make the right decisions? Here are our top tips for traveling in 2023 — a year in which everything is supposed to return to “normal,” and, according to the majority of analysts, will resemble 2019. Most importantly, don’t count on getting a last-minute deal—or even any deal—for your trip the following year. 

Internova Travel Group

Pam Young, executive vice president at Internova Travel Group, claims that demand is still high. “I don’t anticipate a decrease in prices in 2023.” 

Never presume that epidemic travel trends still hold true. According to experts, typical travel trends will finally return in 2019, with more travelers choosing to take vacations during the traditional seasons of spring break, summer, and the holidays. 

According to Limor Decter of Embark Beyond, there will be a benefit from the “huge shift” in travel patterns that occurred during the pandemic. That means fewer off-season excursions to escape crowds and an end to last-minute travel arrangements. 

Travelers won’t have the luxury they did in 2021 and early 2022, when hotels were still only about half full, of finding a suitable vacation on short notice. 

Minute Travel Arrangements: Top Tips for Traveling

In late 2022, according to Darryl Newby, co-founder of the Australian travel agency Welcome to Travel, the plan isn’t working and most likely won’t work at all the following year. 

He continues, “We’ve already had to turn folks away. 

Likewise, don’t believe pre-pandemic thinking. The awards will go to intrepid visitors in 2023. The secret to a better journey may lie in thinking differently. 

While everyone may be talking about travel in 2023 returning to normal, it won’t be exactly how it was in 2019. Anything might happen given the Ukrainian conflict, inflation, and economic uncertainty. Or, as Travel Iowa’s Jessica O’Riley advises in her top tips for traveling in 2023, “expect the unexpected.” 

Even the Aronsons are using a contrarian tactic by skipping the busiest travel period during the summer. It carries risk. Spring is still active (for best results, try mid- to late-fall). It might be nice and tranquil sailing for the couple, or it might snow.

However, Nancy Aronson claims she doesn’t want to hold out. She has previously postponed two river cruises in Europe because to the pandemic. 

East Asia Travel

Some places, especially in East Asia, have taken longer to reopen, which presents a chance for astute travelers. 

Early 2023 presents a unique opportunity to visit Japan before the tourists return, claims Jeff Krevitt, vice president of marketing for the Americas at travel operator InsideJapan. In fact, travel is already picking up in Japan. Although there are not many tourists, life is generally normal and everything is open. 

Avoid following the crowd. According to travel insurance providers, many of their clients are returning to well-traveled areas to make up for missed time. This means that you can anticipate high costs and a lot of people. 

According to Stan Sandberg, co-founder of TravelInsurance.com, early reservations for spring and summer 2023 travel indicate a rush to popular locations. In 2023, “spring breakers will primarily travel to the Caribbean and Mexico, with Italy, the United Kingdom, and France following closely behind.” 

The top vacation spots of his subscribers are carried over from 2019, according to Tim Dodge, vice president of marketing at the insurance business Arch RoamRight. Mexico, Italy, and the Caribbean are a few of the most well-liked international locations, he claims. 

Pre Pandemic Book: Top Tips for Traveling

The same pre-pandemic booking trends have returned, according to tour companies. Customers of Ker & Downey Africa are still going at the same times as they did previously, according to Marcelo Novais, general manager of North America. 

The majority of requests for 2023 reservations, according to him, are shifting back to the typical busy season times. 

Bottom line: Booking the same old vacation in 2023 just because everyone else is would be a mistake. 

Avoid procrastinating while making reservations. 

Experts report that hotels and flights are selling out quickly. 

According to Daniel Jones, a representative for Haversham & Baker Expeditions, which specializes in golf excursions to Europe, “If you’re visiting next year, it’s more crucial than ever to plan and book ahead for all elements of your trip.” “Reserving your airfare and hotel just, then figuring out the rest when you get there, is no longer sufficient. In this situation, waiting until the last minute to make bookings for restaurants, sightseeing, and other arrangements could result in disappointment.

Strong Dollar Deceive

Don’t let the strong dollar deceive you. Lower pricing abroad will result from the dollar’s strength. However, it doesn’t follow that you’ll always pay less. 

According to Mercedes Zach, a travel specialist at ASAP Ticket, “the recent U.S. dollar increase versus other currencies suggests more Americans may desire to travel abroad next year.” She does, however, issue a warning that inflation may cancel out price decreases, which means that increased costs at home may cancel out the money you save on a more favorable exchange rate. 

Don’t think that you must always fly. Tracey McGoughy, a travel advisor at Carib Compass Travel and Wellness, advises travelers against automatically purchasing plane tickets. 

Conclusion

The best approach to ensure that your travel runs successfully, she advises, is to exert as much control over your route as you can. Airlines “have the majority of control over when you get there once you buy a flight.” She suggests using a car or the train, which is the anti-conventional way to get there in 2023. 

Don’t ignore 2024. According to some tour providers, demand is so great that it extends past the following year. 

According to James Newcombe, co-founder of the river cruise booking website French Waterways, “we’re seeing bookings as far out as 2024.” Therefore, if your preferred holiday destination is already taken, set your sights on 2024. Making sure you go where you actually want to is never too early.

Christopher Elliott is an author, consumer advocate, and journalist. He founded Elliott Advocacy, a nonprofit organization that helps solve consumer problems. He publishes Elliott Confidential, a travel newsletter, and the Elliott Report, a news site about customer service.