Traveling during the fall and winter months can be fun. It’s generally seen as an off peak time overall, not counting the holidays. However, just because there are plenty of holiday and off season deals to be found doesn’t mean that everything is going to be safe. The truth is that you need to keep your guard up to make sure that you don’t have a really messy accident that takes away all of your fun. Here are a few winter tips to keep you going.

1. Travel Insurance!

Travel insurance is perfect for everyone, and it’s one of the top things that we feel should be required as part of the travel experience. No matter where we go, we take out travel insurance. We study the fine print and make adjustments as we go along. It’s important to cover yourself because you just never know when things will spiral out of control. There are just some things in life you can’t necessarily plan for. Does that mean that everything is over? Not at all. You just need to ensure that you’re keeping your eyes open and looking at the bigger picture.

If you want quality travel insurance at a good price, it is worth your time to shop around. Even though you might find that obvious, you might be surprised at the choices you can make when you feel like time is not on your side. Indeed, the closer you get to taking a trip, the more likely it is that you’ll make impulse decisions that end up holding you back.

2. Weather Advisories!

Weather is no joke. One minute, everything can be fine — and the next minute, there can be ice storms, hurricanes, tornados, and more. You can’t just assume that everything is going to be fine. This is even more the case if you have family members counting on you to get things handled. You want to always check the weather upon arrival, upon takeoff, and even from day to day while you’re at your destination. Just assuming that everything is going to be fine is really not enough. You need to make sure that you will be able to handle the weather no matter what. This might mean taking along extra clothes and even getting blankets in case it gets too cold. There are serious effects to be found when you end up getting too warm for an area. You will need to keep that in mind as you travel — it really does make all of the difference in the world.

If you have travel insurance that covers weather changes, you might be able to cancel part or all of your trip. Exchanges and transfers may be covered as well, so make sure that you read up on this information right away.

3. Pack Smart!

Packing smart is probably the best thing that you can do. If you know that you’re traveling somewhere that makes it easy to buy more specific items you need when you arrive, there’s no need to pack a bunch of stuff with you! This is only going to weigh down your suitcases. This means that it’s harder to move around in the airport. Do you really want to try to walk/run through the terminal with four cases of luggage around you? Definitely not.

You will also avoid running the risk of going over your weight limit, and then having to pay extra fees to take all of the stuff with you. Take only the things that you know that you will need, and then you will have fewer problems when you arrive.

If you are traveling internationally, try to make sure that you are watching the voltages on items. It’s tempting to just assume that you’re going to be just fine but different voltages matter. Getting an outlet plug that just changes the prongs doesn’t make sense. You will need to get a transformer for all of the electric and electronic devices that you wish to use while traveling.

You might want to just take a prepaid phone that you can use in any country that’s already calibrated to the right voltage.

4. Stay Informed!

During the winter months, some things close while other things stay open. Knowing what’s open and what’s closed can prevent emergencies. Do you really want to end up being stuck somewhere because something closed right as you arrived and you couldn’t just turn around and get back on a plane again? Do you have any alternate activities planned if an attraction isn’t available? Do you know where the hospital is if you get injured or just end up getting sick?

Do you know the policy for incoming medications in the country of your choice? You might assume that you can just bring it along in your bag but that’s not the case at all. You have to always think about how you’re going to be treated without fail here. You can’t just think — okay, everything’s fine, so I can take it with me. That is a good way to end up getting tied up at customers, which can delay you going in and out of the country. You don’t want to miss your flight, you know!

Overall, these are just a few things that you want to keep an eye out for if you’re serious about going to head out of your home for the holiday season. Traveling during this time means being a little more patient — after all, many people have the same idea you do. That means that you really do have to be on your toes now! Good luck!