Not all of us are used to traveling in winter climates, especially ones plagued by heavy snowfall. Winter business trips can be tricky to navigate if you rarely (or never) visit snowy locales. A big part of a successful winter business trip involves good planning and boning up on your knowledge of an area’s weather.
If you’re flying in or out of a snow covered airport, it’s understandable that you may experience anxiety before you fly. It can be frightening to take off from a snow and ice filled airport, but the staff at these airports are experienced and know exactly what they’re doing.
Pack lighter than you normally would. For a short business trip you’re probably only taking a briefcase and a small clothing bag, but condense the number of bags you’re carrying if at all possible. This will save time that you would otherwise spend wrangling your baggage and it could make it easier to squeeze into the last shuttle to your hotel if there is limited space for baggage.
Allow plenty of extra travel time. Head to the airport early to make sure that long security lines don’t cause you to miss your flight. Once you’ve arrived at your destination, plan to leave for meetings substantially earlier than you need to. Icy roads and big snowfalls require you to drive at a much slower pace to drive safely, and you don’t want to miss a meeting because of deep snowfall!
Here are a few tips to help ensure that your driving adventures aren’t waylaid by foul weather:
Check out your destination before you leave… carefully! The National Weather Service is a great place to check for travel advisories, which vary in level of strength and have differing effects on your travel plans. Keep a special eye out for winter storm warnings and blizzard warnings, which both mean that severe winter storms are in your area and you could be facing anywhere from four inches of snow to blinding snow drifts that could make it impossible to drive or navigate the area. If either of these warnings have been issued, you shouldn’t travel, especially if you aren’t a practiced driver in the snow. If the conditions are lighter but still snowy, make sure that you drive at a slower pace than you normally would and keep a lot of space between you and the car in front of you.
Be prepared! This varies widely depending on whether you’re driving your own car or renting a car when you get to your location. If you’re driving your own car, you need to construct a safety kit. It might not be necessary at home, but there are definitely some supplies that you’ll need if you’re going to be driving in snowy weather. Good items to include are: bottled water or jugs of water, flashlights, wool/ high intensity blankets, batteries, a shovel, an ice scraper, high calorie food that doesn’t take up a lot of space, a small first aid kit, and cash in small bills. These are all invaluable items to have on deck if regular weather turns into a big snowfall and you don’t have access to the retail areas you normally would. If you’re flying and then renting a car in the area, you can pick up a compact emergency kit for your car that runs under $50. You can pop it in your suitcase or carry on bag, and it offers some great tools for winter travel.
Have a plan of action. Update and investigate the details of your health and car insurance before you leave so that you know exactly what scenarios are covered by your insurance. Fill your gas tank (and keep it that way) to make sure that your fuel lie doesn’t freeze in the cold weather. That can be a tough situation to deal with while you’re out on the road, so it’s best to try to avoid it altogether. If you do get stuck in a snow bank or encounter particularly high snowfall, don’t leave your car. Call for help and wait to leave your car until you can visibly see the party arriving to help, especially if you’re not wearing strong winter clothing.
The most important thing that you can do to prepare for traveling in winter weather that you’re not accustomed to is to thoroughly research the weather that you’ll be encountering and operate carefully!
Image: GlobalMaritimes