4 days when you’re better off staying home

Christopher Elliott Travel columnist • Profile • E-mail

You probably already know about Spring Break, Memorial Day, the Fourth of July and Thanksgiving.

That is, you know enough not to travel around those days. Scoring a frequent flier award ticket is pretty much impossible, hotels aren’t discounting their rooms, and you’ll probably pay full price for your rental car. Plus, it’s usually a tragic mess out there — long lines at the airport, dense traffic and frayed tempers.

But this isn’t another story about blackout dates.

This is a story about the other days you should stay home. Call it the ‘B’-list of blackouts.

For example, say you’re planning a Disney World vacation, but you’re not sure when to visit. If you’re an annual passholder (full disclosure: I am) you know that “blockout” dates are Dec. 22 to Jan. 4, March 15 to 28, and June 7 to Aug. 14. (Those dates are off limits to some seasonal passholders because the theme parks are so busy.)

So when’s the best time to see Mickey? Well, that’s a topic for another column, but I won’t make you wait until then. “Value season” runs from early January to mid-February, from mid-August to the end of September and the first three weeks in December. That’s when the crowds are thinner and the deals are more generous.

What other times should you stay off the road? Here are four other blackout days that aren’t as well known:

Conventional wisdom: steer clear of the party.
This year there are two places you absolutely don’t want to be unless you have to. Denver from Aug. 25 to 28 and Minneapolis/St. Paul from Sept. 1 to 4. Those cities are hosting the Democratic and Republic conventions, respectively. I’ve been in a host city during a political convention, and it’s absolutely insane. Tight security, throngs of delegates and protesters, and no way to find a table at a decent restaurant. Stay away — and avoid the airports too, even for a stopover.

But those aren’t the only blackout dates related to a special event. The 50^th running of the Daytona 500 takes place Feb. 17^th. I don’t even live in Daytona Beach, Fla. (I’m in Orlando) and I’m thinking of getting out of town. Don’t even think about renting a car — they’re taken that weekend. And stay away from the Orlando theme parks, unless your idea of family fun is to stand in a long line with a lot of rowdy NASCAR fans.

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Mother nature knows best.
Hurricane season may run from June through November, but late summer and early fall is the peak of storm season. Mark those as blackout dates if you’re considering a trip to Florida, Louisiana, the Caribbean, or anywhere along the Atlantic coast of the United States, for that matter. Fall is wildfire season in parts of California. It’s a beautiful time of the year to visit the Golden State, but one spark and a strong Santa Ana wind can smoke out your vacation. The Midwest has tornadoes during the summer, and there can be intense thunderstorms just about anywhere in the United States. Winter blizzards can affect travel anytime between November and March unless you’re in parts of Florida or Texas.

In other words, you know when Mother Nature is likely to be in one of her moods. She could find you on Valentine’s Day, as she did to the passengers on scores of JetBlue Airways flights last year. Or at some random date — like, Dec. 29^th, which is the day passenger rights activist Kate Hanni was trapped on an American Airlines flight at Austin International Airport for nine hours. The point is, you don’t know exactly when the weather will stop your trip cold, but nothing is stopping you from making an educated guess.

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