New Year’s Eve is ‘National Plan for Vacation Day’

JACKSON, Tenn. —  With a new year on the horizon, there’s a national push for people to plan their time off on New Year’s Eve, a day that’s been coined “National Plan for Vacation Day.”

Agents at Ronda’s Travel Corner in Jackson are already busy helping people who are planning their 2017 vacations early. But statistics show 55 percent of Americans aren’t planning in advance, leaving paid vacation days unused at the end of the year.

“A lot of people try to say, ‘oh, I can get a better deal if I wait till the last minute,'” Ronda Richards, owner of Ronda’s Travel Corner, said. “Well sometimes, occasionally, but there are times when where you want to go is booked.”

Richards says the first step to planning is determining where you want to go, when you want to go and for how long. The final step is to figure out how much you’re willing to spend and book early.

“Take those vacation days,” Richards said. “Take your family. Do something special with them.”

For those who want to get away but aren’t the best at planning their time off, hiring a travel agent is always an option. From family vacations, cruises, honeymoons and international travel, travel agents say the first of the year is a good time to book because of better sales and promotions.

“If you’re not a planner, that’s all the more reason to call a travel agent,” Richards said. “And if you are a planner, plan what you want to do, and then call us and see if we can beat your price.”

According to planyourvacation.com, Americans leave 658 million days unused each year, which averages out to about a week’s worth of paid vacation lost per person surveyed.