Holiday Travel Without The Headaches

Traveling between Thanksgiving and New Year’s Day can often mean dealing with packed terminals, full flights, and winter weather delays. While the crowds are unavoidable, smart planning helps keep trips on schedule. Here are three ways to avoid common holiday travel headaches:1. Pick early morning flights. Early morning flights have the best on-time record and are the least likely to get canceled. That is because the plane is parked at the gate overnight, fueled, and ready to go with a fresh crew. Later departures depend on planes arriving from other cities, and when weather or mechanical issues delay an incoming flight, it triggers a domino effect that ruins afternoon and evening schedules. As an added bonus, early departures are often cheaper since fewer people want to wake up before dawn.2. Get complete travel insurance coverage. Holiday travel is expensive, and most bookings are nonrefundable. If a blizzard grounds your plane, airlines will not pay for your hotel room or food, an