I Stopped Planning My Own Vacation, and It Changed the Way I Travel

A new survey of 2,000 U.S. women, conducted by Talker Research on behalf of Discover Puerto Rico, found that 76% of group trips never actually happen. Just 24% make it out of the group chat and into real life. It takes an average of 83 messages and nearly 19 hours spread across 11 days just to get a trip to the finish line, if it gets there at all. I know this cycle personally. I lead women’s group trips for a living, and I’ve watched excitement turn into exhaustion more times than I can count. Somebody suggests a trip, everyone loves the idea, and then the logistics start. Dates get floated and shot down. Someone finds a flight deal that’s gone by the time anyone responds. The fun drains out of it fast, and most of the time, the trip just quietly dies. So when I booked a trip to Costa Rica with my daughter earlier this year, I did something I never do. I didn’t research a single hotel myself. I called Delta Vacations, and I let someone else carry it. Letting Go of the Reins Our Trip to Costa Rica (Chantelle Kincy) I am, by nature, a planner. I comb through every review, every itinerary option, every possible version of a trip before I book anything. It’s part of why I do this for ...