Travel offers some of the most fantastic opportunities and experiences in life. However, so many decisions need to be made regarding when to travel. Initially the "when to travel" question made me think about the best time of year to travel, however, consider some other factors; the best time in "life" to travel, and the options during the week or even during the day. If you stop to think about all the choices you have, the decision of when to travel becomes a complex one.

In life
The decision of when to travel is usually dictated by your parents until you are old enough to pay your own costs. After that, throughout life, travel will become only possible when you can afford it, or are willing to work & travel. There are so many decisions to be made throughout life as to when you can or should travel. Do you travel Pre College or University in a gap year, for your honeymoon, and do you utilize breaks from work to travel. For some, having children becomes a barrier to travel, and here the decision to be made is whether to try traveling with kids or to wait until they have flown the nest. Many people put off traveling extensively until they reach retirement; at this point they have the time to travel at their convenience and are aware of their financial situation with regards to paying for the trips.

I myself traveled from the minute I left home, working as I went. Once I had the travel bug I found a way to travel regardless of the funds available. My parents, just retired are now seeing the world and traveling permanently. Travel increases knowledge, skills, and understanding of the world, as such I believe it should be embraced whenever possible throughout life.

In the year
Deciding when to travel during the year may be affected by weather, costs, school holiday limitations or time off from work. When a destination has been chosen for a vacation, the weather and its affect on the type of holiday you are interested in should be an important consideration. In some countries, hurricane or monsoon season will preclude travel at that time of year. If you are booking a ski holiday you are limited to when snow is on the ground! Beach holidays should ideally be taken when the weather is warm. Of course there is always the opportunity to decide when you want to travel and then find somewhere that meets your weather requirements. This is often the need for those in employment that is of a seasonal nature and time cannot be taken away from work except at certain times of the year. For families traveling with children, the decision of when to travel is restricted to pre determined dates, with high expectations from the education system that children are not removed from term time for the purposes of a vacation.

If weather, time off or children are not factors involved in the decision of when to travel, then the costs associated with traveling in high and low season during the year are bound to affect the travel plans. Of course high season will normally coincide with good weather and school holidays at a destination. Give consideration to the shoulder seasons at any destination you are interested in; lower costs and a less touristy' experience are the bonus, whilst most of the facilities and activities will still be available. For some destinations the season may not be of major importance when deciding when to travel, and you can take advantage of traveling in low season and the associated cost benefits. For many, a trip to New Zealand is a lifetime ambition realized and a trip will be rewarding any time, all year round.

In the week
Being flexible in your decisions regarding the day of week to start and return from travel can help you miss the Friday evening rush away at the end of the week. It can also help you attain better accommodation prices if you can be flexible with your start day. Be aware that the type of accommodation you choose may offer different rates for weekend and mid week breaks. Hotels catering to the business travel will often offer their best prices on the weekend, whilst tourist orientated accommodation will hike the price up over the weekend and even determine a minimum night stay requirement. It pays to consider the demand for accommodation at your destination and try to make your decision on day of arrival to match the lowest cost and highest availability of choice to maximize your choice of room and associated facilities.

Time of day
The final consideration when deciding when to travel is the time of day. Parents of young children will be aware of the importance of synchronizing travel with sleep patterns, but this should also be a consideration for adults. When booking a flight with a time difference between destination and arrival locations, consider the best time to travel to minimize the effect of this time change. Red eye flights from the USA landing in the UK early morning are great as you minimize the difference in the time at each location, you sleep during your night time, and arrive ready to start the day with everyone else. When traveling through a time zone that incurs a day change (i.e. to New Zealand from USA or UK) make sure you take this into account if you need to be somewhere at a specific time on arrival, otherwise you may find yourself a day late!

It is possible to get flights nearly 24 hours a day now from many destinations, just give some consideration as to how early you need to set out from home to arrive at the airport for check in before booking a flight at 6.30am, requiring a 2 hrs pre flight check in and an hour's drive to the airport. OK, you may arrive at your destination to enjoy an additional few hours, but will you be in any fit state to make the most of it. Arrival time at destination should also be a consideration. If you have accommodation booked on arrival, an 11.pm arrival at the destination airport may be fine, otherwise consider booking an earlier flight. Also, if you have a hotel booked, check in is usually well into the afternoon, consider what you will do with your baggage if your flight arrives at destination at 6.30am, until you can check in.

The decision on when to travel is a complex matter! It is never too late in life to start traveling, and parents with young children should not be too quick to make the decision that traveling with a young family is not for them. If you have the ability to be flexible with the dates of your travel you will be rewarded with more than just cost benefits. However, if you are stuck with specific dates, consider the option of choosing destinations that meet your trip requirements and you may find yourself traveling to places you had never considered. One last tip; if you must travel away from your family for business purposes, try and limit it to during the working week, I can guarantee from experience that this will be appreciated.