How to Deal With Pre-Trip Anxiety

Feeling jittery before a trip? Here’s how to deal with pre-trip anxiety. 

It happens every. single. time. My flight is tomorrow, my bags are packed, and I should be excited… buuut I’m not. There is nothing I’d rather do than call off the entire trip and stay at home. It’s like some Gollum-like creature is under my bed, whispering to me that it is safer here. The pre-trip anxiety has hit: I’m exhausted, I feel sick to my stomach, and the general sentiment is: I don’t want to go. 

Hello, travel anxiety. 

If you’re anything like me, these thoughts creep in a few days before a trip. When I first started travelling, I thought there was something wrong with me. Shouldn’t I be more excited about something I’ve been planning for weeks or months? But eventually, I started to realize: 

Pre-trip anxiety is so normal.

How can I be 100% excited? Travelling is uncomfortable. Flying is unpleasant. Jet lag sucks. And I get sick almost every time I’m on a trip. Of course it sounds nice to stay at home. But life is not very exciting from the safety of my living room, and that’s why I always step on that plane. 

How do I deal with pre-trip anxiety?

If you’ve ever had the same struggle, here are the tools I use to combat my pre-trip anxiety. 

The first (and most important) thing:

1) Recognize pre-travel anxiety as a normal feeling.

Some people feel nothing but excitement before a trip. Good for them. But you’re googling travel anxiety tips because you’re team “pre-travel existential dread”, and that’s fine too. 

Years of therapy has taught me that the only way to deal with an anxious feeling is to accept it. Anxiety is closely related to excitement, so it makes sense that we feel the two emotions in tandem. Anxiety stems from a fear of the unknown, which is a huge part of travel. You are stepping out of your comfort zone after all, and no one ever said that would be easy.

2) Prepare, prepare, prepare.

Feeling prepared won’t get rid of all the pre-travel anxiety, but it gives you a little more control. I try to prepare for as many unknowns as I can (within reason, of course).

Having basic safety covered, such as travel vaccines and sleeping arrangements, is a crucial first step. I love the idea of spontaneity, but in reality, safety and comfort are a must if you’re an anxious traveller. For me, this means making sure I am in good health and have a place to rest my head (at least for the first few nights).

It helps to go a step further and plan your first 24 hours on the ground at your destination. Stepping off the plane and into a brand new country is disorienting. Arrive with a plan in hand, which includes a way to get from the airport to your hotel, enough cash in hand, and an idea of where to get a SIM card (one of my personal must-haves as a solo woman traveller). 

Reminding myself that I have those important steps covered is a stress reliever for me. Knowing that my health, a place to sleep, money to buy food, and safe transit to my hotel are taken care of means I’m off to a safe start. I know once I get to my hotel, I can get over the travel anxiety hump. 

3) Set up an emergency plan.

I create a document with emergency and embassy numbers for each country I’m visiting. I also write down my hotel address in both English and the country’s language. Since I always travel with a SIM card with data, I make sure to have Skype or Viber calling credits. I back up this document on my phone and somewhere online. This means that if something goes wrong, I know who I can call, I have the means to do so (god forbid, as long as I don’t lose my phone), and if all else fails, I can at least get someone to help me get back to my hotel. 

One major source of my pre-travel anxiety is the destination itself—mainly, how to stay safe. No one wants to get scammed, robbed, or sick in a foreign country. Researching the safety of my destination helps to quell some of my pre-travel anxiety. The CDC website has concise information regarding health and safety. Good ol’ Google can warn you of scams, areas to avoid, and safest means of transportation in each city. 

I’m a budget solo traveller, but I always invest in my safety. This means spending a little extra money where it matters. I don’t cut costs when it comes to staying in a safe hostel, making sure I have travel insurance, and maintaining an emergency fund. Cheaping out on these aspects of my trip would probably triple my pre-trip anxiety, so I take this into account in my budget from the very beginning. 

4) Deal with the pre-flight jitters

Okay, now it’s crunch time. Your planning is done (I hope!), and your flight is coming up. Honestly, I’ve learned to accept that no matter how prepared I am, pre-travel anxiety at this point is inevitable. And the pre-flight jitters are pretty intense as well.

It’s time to have a self-care moment. Whatever helps you relax. Journal, watch some movies, go to the gym, take a bath. I try to nourish myself and get enough sleep. Travel always does a number on my stomach (and the rest of my body, to be honest) so I give myself a good starting baseline. Travelling is mentally and physically taxing, so it feels good to combat that leading up to the trip.

5) Pack smart

When packing, I make a detailed checklist that I can physically tick off. That way, when I’m having my last-minute panic, I can check my list.

A well-packed carry-on is also important; keep it well organized so you don’t need to scramble for your passport or phone.

Besides the essentials, I make sure to pack my carry-on with items that comfort me. For me, that means a copious amounts of snacks and a handful of ginger candies for motion sickness. Everyone has their thing, it could be a travel blanket, a good luck charm, a good book, or favourite hand cream or lip balm.  

6) Leave early

It’s a no-brainer, but honestly, when I’ve got the pre-flight jitters I just need the reminder to get to the airport early. There’s no point in adding the stress of doing everything last-minute.

I get a major burst of pre-travel anxiety on the travel day, mainly worrying about missing my flight. The earlier I get to my gate, even if it means sitting at the airport for an extra hour, the earlier I can put that worry to rest.

Last, but definitely not least: remind yourself—holy sh*t, you’ve been planning this for so long and now you finally get to go. Lean into the feeling and focus on the excitement.

I’ve learned that every adventure starts with this feeling.

If it wasn’t worth it, I wouldn’t keep going back for more. This feeling signals the start of something worthwhile and fulfilling, which is pretty amazing. So I’ve learned to embrace the pre-travel anxiety and just go! 

Looking for more travel tips? Here’s how to survive a long haul flight.