Travel

How to Plan the Best Summer Vacation

Are you wondering how you can be sure you’re planning the best summer vacation? Are you not sure how to go about preparing for your vacation this summer? Depending on your circumstances and experience, planning a vacation can seem daunting. And a poorly-planned trip can be more of a headache than a relaxing vacation. Here are some tips to help you prepare and get the most out of your summer vacation this year.

Flexibility

It may seem contradictory, but part of great planning is flexibility. If you expect every detail of your plan to play out exactly as it is on paper, you’re likely to end up frustrated. Some things are just not in your control. For instance, heavy traffic, flight delays, and weather can all affect your travel time. So, it’s a good idea to allow some extra time for these unpredictable things and to have a back-up plan (more on that below).

Flexibility also allows for sight-seeing and other diversions. Unplanned stops can make for great memories and experiences.

Back-up Plans

It’s not a bad idea to have a back-up plan in case of unforeseen events. For instance, even if you leave early and allow time for a traffic jam, circumstances could come together in such a way that you must spend the night somewhere before reaching your destination. Before leaving, scope out hotels that are along your route, and bring their information with you.

Food

It can cost valuable time if you must hunt down a restaurant for every meal on travel day. Like the hotels, look ahead to find out where restaurants are in route. Plan your travel time so that restaurant stops will hit close to meal times.

Also, on the topic of food, it’s a good idea to bring snacks, drinks, and non-perishables (like granola bars and trail mix). It gives you an option if you run out of time and can’t stop for a meal, or it prevents having to find a place to pull off and buy a snack.

Pack Light, but be Prepared

It can be a little tricky to be prepared while keeping your packing light. The key is knowing what to expect. For instance, you can’t be ready for absolutely everything (or else you’ll end up taking the entire contents of your home along with you!); but you can prepare for some basic things. For instance, make for various weather events by packing outfits that can be layered (you can add or remove layers according to the weather). It saves space by not packing different outfits for each possible weather scenario, but it keeps you covered.

A basic first-aid kit is also a good use of your packing space. It doesn’t have to be big, but it can make all the difference.

We hope this information was beneficial. You can have anything you want if you are enthusiastic about putting in the time, effort and plans to get to your goals. Discover the secrets why the rich stay rich and the poor stay poor. Click Here to view a video with more life tips!

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Pet Care Tips for Travelers

Pets can sometimes make travel difficult, or at least challenging. Do you leave them at home and have someone come in and take care of them? Or do you board them at a kennel? Should you take them with you? It can be quite a dilemma. Here are some pet care tips for travelers that may help you decide what’s best for your pet.

1. Leaving Your Pet at Home

Some experts point out that this is often the least traumatic way of leaving your pet when you go on vacation. While your pet’s routine will be somewhat different, it won’t be the massive change that boarding would be. If you go this route, see if you can hire a neighbor, friend, or family member that your pet is familiar with. If your pet has not interacted with the caretaker before, take some time before your vacation to let your new caretaker get to know your pet(s). Then take your caretaker through the routine. Writing it down to help them remember all the steps is essential but do make them through the method in person at least once.

There are some cons to leaving your pet in your home. For example, some people are uncertain about having another person in their home when they are gone. Also, if there’s an emergency or problem, a pet staying in your home may not be discovered right away and would have to be transported to the vet.

2. Boarding

Boarding’s biggest asset is probably the availability of vet care. At a professional boarding kennel, your pet will have access to veterinary care close by if necessary. You can also schedule a bath or flea treatment while you’re gone, so your pet is clean and ready to go when you pick him/her up.

Some of the cons to boarding are the expense and the possible trauma to your pet. If your pet gets anxious quickly or is very attached to you and your routine, then boarding can be anxiety-producing for your pet.

3. Taking Your Pet With You

If you decide to take your pet with you and you are sure that all destinations (hotels, your final vacation spot, etc.) accept pets, then you will have a different type of preparation to do. For one thing, getting your pet groomed very well before travel is a good idea. He or she will be more comfortable for a trip that way (especially if the grooming involves clipping to keep him/her cooler), and your pet will be less likely to leave hair in the car and where you’re staying.

If your pet is coming with you, he/she will need a carrier of sorts. A travel crate or carrier is ideal and keeps your pet safer that if he/she is bouncing around loose in the car. Also, some hotels require or prefer that your animal is crated or in a carrier.

Hopefully, these tips will help you decide what will work best for your pet as you travel.

We hope this information was beneficial. You can have anything you want if you are enthusiastic about putting in the time, effort, and plans to get to your goals. Most people know that the wealthy have a secret. Everyone knows that bills take up a lot of the budget. Discover the secrets why the rich stay rich and the poor stay poor. Click Here to view a video with more life tips!

Packing Tips for Summer Travel

One of the potential summer vacation headaches is packing. If it’s a family vacation, trying to coordinate everyone’s luggage can be challenging, and it’s often hard to find things you need on the road and once you get to your destination.

To help make packing a little easier, here are some tips that may help.

Categorize Items

Some sources recommend divvying up everyone’s luggage into categories. Each person can have his or her group, and within those categories, there can be sub-categories. Then there can be a category for shared items. For example, your teen’s list might include toiletries, entertainment (such as an iPod), casual clothes, dress clothes, night clothes, shoes. Dad’s roster might look a little different, and might include dress clothes, casual clothes, night clothes, maps and GPS, books, and toiletries. For combined items, choose one big duffle bag or suitcase in which you can put your common things.

Lists for Frequent Travelers

If you often travel, having a stand-by list can make a big difference. Consider making a list of items you will always take with you, no matter what the nature of the vacation is.

Also, for frequent travelers, it helps to have specific travel items set aside for travel only. Consider a toiletry case with travel-sized items that includes everything, so you can grab that case and know you have the main things covered. The same would go for first aid and other medical supplies.

Roll, Don’t Fold

An interesting thing happens when you tightly roll clothes instead of folding them. If you smooth the garments while you roll them tightly, they are not nearly as prone to wrinkling. You may also find that you can fit a lot more clothing into your luggage this way.

Little Things

It’s so easy to forget the little things. Here are some suggestions for small items that are often overlooked, but can make or break a vacation.

-Camera

-Antibiotic ointment

-Band-Aids

-All prescription medications (also, make sure you have enough to carry you through your vacation and find out if/where you can refill at your destination)

-Sunglasses

-Insect repellent

-After-bite treatment (such as Cortisone ointment)

-Feminine products

What Is Available at Your Destination?

Before you start packing, find out and consider what items provided at your destination. There may be soap, toothpaste, and towels, for instance. There may also be shampoo and conditioner. It can save a lot of space if you don’t pack what you don’t need!

In closing, we invite you to share your comments on this and our other posts. If you find the information useful, please Like & Share us and subscribe to this channel for an update as we reveal new strategies. Remember to keep an open mind and Shift 4 Freedom.

Travel Nurse Employment: Tax Advantages of Per Diem Deductions

Savvy travel nurses know that they are eligible to save hundreds, if not thousands of dollars by understanding that they can take per diem deductions for every day that they are on temporary assignment away from their tax home.

When you are a travel nurse, then you need to have a pretty good understanding of per diem rates and how they might lower your taxes. Many travel nurses believe that per diem is only a tax benefit that staffing agencies offer and yet, surprisingly, others do not. This misunderstanding about what per diem is and how it may affect your taxes is an essential financial issue that you need to understand. How you report, your per diem earnings could mean the difference in thousands of dollars in tax savings.

Whether you are looking to maximize deductions, reduce taxes, or increase your returns, travel nurses should take the time to learn as much as possible about the IRS per diem tax rules. Indeed, one way to learn is to go to the IRS home page, download publication 463 and read the rules so that you have a working idea of what to expect by tax time next year. Another great resource, especially, nowadays is to do your taxes yourself if you have a personal computer or laptop. Turbo Tax is a great software program. Not only is it inexpensive and tax-deductible itself, but it is straightforward to work when you use the step-by-step wizard. You can walk through your entire tax return, and file it electronically. You can get your refund deposited directly into your checking account in a matter of days.

A couple of travel expenses to have a heads up about include:

The travel nurse has a permanent tax home.
The travel nurse takes a temporary (less than 12 months) assignment away from their tax home.

Any travel nurse meeting the requirements outlined by the IRS can claim deductions for certain travel expenses or receive tax-free reimbursements and tax-free per diem allowance payments. These tax benefits are one of the great perks of being a travel nurse.

Unfortunately, one of the most common tax mistakes that a travel nurse makes is not being educated or even aware of the tax advantages to per diem deductions. Now that you are aware that savvy travel nurses are eligible for per diem deductions for every day that they are on temporary assignment away from their tax home, pass on the work to your co-workers, or email them this article so that they can bookmark this overview and take advantage of these tax benefits themselves.

It is essential to be aware that some companies don’t pay per diem allowance, pay too little per diem, or only pay per diem as a function of hourly pay. You can learn what these scenarios mean for your tax situation by consulting with a tax advisor or researching the IRS rules. You deserve to get every dollar of per diem related deductions that you are entitled to, and we hope that this article has helped you.

Note: while much care has been taken to make this article accurate, tax rules do change. Please be sure that you are up-to-date on the latest IRS rules. This article is meant for informational purposes only and is not intended to replace the advice of a skilled tax advisor.

Gas-Saving Trips for Vacation Season

Given the trending of gas prices toward ever-higher dollar amounts, many people are using more and more of their vacation budget on gas. While no one seems to be able to make gas cheap again, there are still some things you can do to help save on gas this vacation season. Here are some tips.

Slow Up, Speed Down

When you are on the road, going slowly up hills and more quickly downhill is said to save fuel. This is because your car must work much harder going uphill (especially if you are using air conditioning and have luggage and multiple passengers), whereas gravity is your friend going downhill and speaking of speed, observing the speed limit and not speeding also saves gas. It’s safer, too.

Know When to Turn Off the AC

While traveling in the heat without air conditioning can be downright dangerous, there are times when you can turn it off to save fuel. For example, turning off the AC when driving uphill can reduce the power pull on your engine by quite a bit, sources say. Of course, you can leave the fans going and the residual cooling effect lasts for a few minutes. When you’re on the level or going downhill, turn the AC back on.

Tires

If your tires are worn, get them rotated before your trip or, if they are very worn, get them replaced. Proper air pressure is said to be very important, too – look at the inside of the driver’s side door if you are unsure as to your tires’ PSI (pounds per square inch). Adding too much or too little air can both be a problem, so if you are in doubt, have your mechanic do it.

A Vehicle Check-up

Before your vacation, get your car thoroughly looked over. Make sure everything is running as efficiently as possible. Efficiency in your engine means greater efficiency on fuel usage. Have the oil changed, get a “tune-up” if needed, and have all the fluids checked in addition to any necessary work on the tires.

Travel Light

As mentioned above, a lot of excess cargo can really draw on the engine’s power. It’s said that every 100 pounds added to your car’s weight will decrease the gas mileage by 1 percent. So, try to be careful to use lightweight baggage carriers (such as duffle bags rather than heavy suitcases), and only pack necessities.

How You Drive

When you hit the accelerator pedal, that’s when your car is using the most gas. So, try to avoid the speed up, brake fast pattern that so many drivers fall into. Instead, try to coast at a continuous speed. Keep the ride as smooth as possible to save on fuel.