Before You Book That Holiday Trip: The Safety Questions Parents Should Ask First

Book by Melissa Hull

A grief expert offers the holiday travel safety checklist most parents forget.

Before we know it,

the holiday events and activities will be in full swing. Right now, families are busy making their holiday travel plans. While most people focus on the cost of where they are staying and the proximity to the activities they want to do, it’s crucial that they take a few moments during the planning stage to ask critical safety questions to help protect their family.

“Nobody wants to think that something tragic will or can happen while they are on a trip, but it happens more often than people realize,” said Melissa Hull, certified heart-centered grief and bereavement specialist, speaker, and author of “Dear Drew: Creating a Life Bigger Than Grief. “The good news is that there are some things we can do to help reduce our risks and keep our family safer.”

According to AAA,

there are nearly 82 million people who will do some traveling during the holiday season, going at least 50 miles from their home. Many people stay in rented homes, condos, and hotels, which puts them in unfamiliar settings. Each year, there are people who are hurt or killed in accidents while they are traveling. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that the top causes of deaths from non-natural causes while traveling are motor vehicle crashes, homicide, suicide, and water-related deaths (e.g., drowning, boating-related, etc.).

Before reserving a place to stay, it’s crucial to ensure that the family will be safe there. It’s critical to go beyond only looking at the enhanced photos online and making a decision based on them. There are some questions that should be asked before choosing where to stay, especially for those who have children.