What to do at Home Before Leaving for Vacation

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We have all been there… you’re super excited about your vacation coming up, but you can’t think of everything you should do before you leave! As my husband and I were getting ready for a trip out of the country, my mind was racing and I wanted to make sure I did all the important things before we left for our trip. I also wanted to leave our house in good shape for when we got back!

Here is a list of everything I thought was important to do before we left for an out of the country trip for about ten days.

1. Make sure all bills are paid

This one is very important! If you forget to pay your bills before you leave, you may come home to no power or water. Nobody wants to come home to a cold, dark house!

2. Hold your mail at the post office

If you are going on a long trip, you can get the post office to hold your mail. If you don’t have someone staying at your house, or checking on things for you, I suggest you do this. You don’t want someone to steal anything important from your mailbox, or realize you aren’t home because the mail is piling up.

3. Empty the fridge and cabinets of anything that will expire or go bad

If you have milk, fruit, or anything that will expire while you are gone, make sure to get rid of it! You don’t want to come home to a bunch of nasty food in the fridge!

4. Unplug Appliances

Unplugging appliances will keep the unexpected from happening. It will also keep you from coming home to an unnecessarily high power bill.

5. Turn off heater/air conditioning

There is no need to have your heater or air conditioning running while you are gone. This will keep you from coming home to sky high bills! If you don’t want to turn the thermostat completely off, turn it up if traveling in the summer and turn it down in the winter.

6. Put valuables in a safe place

Make sure to lock up all valuables and anything you wouldn’t want to lose if something were to happen to your home while you were away.

7. Give someone a spare key

If there is someone that lives near you that you trust, give them a spare key. Even if you don’t expect them to come to check on your house every day, at least someone will be able to get into your house if you need them too.

8. Give your flight and hotel information to someone

Let someone, besides those going on the trip, know where you will be staying during your trip, and when you are supposed to land. If something were to happen while you were gone, other people need to know where you will be!

9. Do laundry, dishes, and clean the house

So, if you are like me, the thought of coming home to a dirty house and chores is nerve-racking! I like to have the laundry done so that I only have to clean the clothes we take. Having the dishes done is great because leaving dirty dishes can cause bugs, and, having to come home to dirty dishes makes me never want to come home. Overall, a clean house means I can relax when I get back from vacation! This includes taking out the trash before you leave!

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10. Let the bank and credit card companies know you will be out of town

Letting the proper people and companies know you will be out of town will assure that your card will not get declined. You don’t want your card getting declined and the bank put a hold on it because they think your card has been stolen!

11. Re-confirm bookings and check in online with airline

If you are flying, you can check-in early for your flight online. It is also always a good idea to confirm your reservations for hotels!

12. Print out flight and hotel information

I love my phone, but I also love having paper (“hard” copies) of all important information! My phone my contain this information, but things can happen, it never hurts to have a backup paper copy of all your important documents!

13. Make arrangements for pets

If you are leaving your pet at home, make arrangements for them to stay with someone or to be boarded. If you are traveling with your pet, make a list of everything you will need to take care of your pet while you are gone.

14. Contact list

This one is very important to me. I know we have cell phones now that can do just about anything, but I can’t imagine being stranded in a foreign country without wifi with no way to look up a contact number! Make sure to have the number of your bank and credit card company in case they put a hold on your cards! It is much better to be safe than sorry!

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15. Exchange money

Exchanging money at your local bank can be cheaper than doing it at an airport ATM. Although you can always exchange money when you get to the country you are visiting, I prefer to do it at my bank at home. Why not save a little money when you can?

16. Make copies

Make copies of your passport and photo ID. In case you lose your passport or ID, you will have a backup.

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17. Hire someone to house sit

If you are going to be out of town for a while, you can hire someone to house sit to make sure your home is taken care of. Having someone to house sit will ensure that your home is protected and running like normal. If the unexpected happens, someone will be there to take care of it for you!

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I hope all these tips help! Be sure to share them with your friends and connect with me on social media!

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Until next time,

Catherine