When you’re planning your 2024 trips, you obviously focus on places you want to go. But the flip side to that question is also important: places to avoid. For one reason or another, some places are not inviting for either a relaxing or an exciting visit. These days, civil strife of one sort or another has ruled several key destinations out for many people, Israel (the “Holy Land”) being the most important. Nobody can predict when any of today’s hot spots will cool down or currently cool ones will heat up. But we can identify two events/periods when too many visitors try to fit into too few accommodations.
Spring Break
High schools and colleges typically give students a week off near or after Easter. This year, that’s March 17, so most folks expect the last half of March and first half of April will be peak times. Why avoid spring break? In addition to the obvious reasons of jacked-up prices and lines for just about everything, spring break has become a rallying point for high schoolers and college students who want to get drunk, get high, party all night, and generally act rowdy. Unless you want to join ‘em, you want to avoid ’em at all costs. Where does that mean? A review of various postings reveals a consistent and logical list of places where spring break can get rowdiest:- Swimmable beach centers on the eastern US mainland in an arc extending from the New Jersey Coast through Virginia
- Beach, Myrtle Beach, Daytona, Ft. Lauderdale, Miami, Key West, Ft. Myers, Destin, Gulf Shores, and Galveston to South Padre Island.
- Nearby island destinations Nassau and Punta Cana.
- Non-beach resort centers Lake Havasu City, Las Vegas, Orlando, New Orleans (Mardi Gras is Feb. 13), and Scottsdale.
- Mexican mega-resorts Cabo and Cancun.
- Ski centers Breckenridge Killington
- Short-term cruises on mass-market lines.
Summer Olympics
Most of the action will be in Paris and environs, July 26 through Aug. 11, but a few games will be spread out around France in Bordeaux, Chateauroux (south of Orleans), Lille, Lyon, Marseille, Nantes, Nice, St. Etienne (Loire), and even Tahiti (surfing). You never know which Olympics will attract big crowds and which will be ignored by international travelers, but the safe bet is to avoid France or at least the Olympic cities during the game dates: The price gouge is already in full force.Overtourism
Local officials in some extremely popular visitor destinations are saying “enough, already,” and actively trying to discourage some tourists. The most widely hyped of these is Venice, which is implementing a day-trip fee for short-term visitors who aren’t staying. Other over-busy spots range from Hawaii to Barcelona to Bali. I can’t say “stay away” from these and other important visitor centers—they’re unique—but I can say (1) visit during off season and (2) stay in a local hotel a night or more. Destinations see the worst over-tourism offenders as those who crowd the key centers gawking during the day but don’t leave much money.Overall
Clearly, staying home is the best way to avoid spring break travel hassles entirely, but that may not be feasible: Many of you are locked into spring break dates by school schedules. In that case, you need to think about alternate destinations, staying in more upscale accommodations or taking a more upscale cruise. If you aren’t sure, this might be a good time to enlist the help of a good travel agent/adviser who can help steer you to the right destination and accommodation. Whatever you do, just be aware of the spring break environment and adjust accordingly.Dear Readers: We would love to hear from you. What topics would you like to read about? Please send your feedback and tips to [email protected].
