Pack Up + Go Vocabulary
Pack Up + Go: A travel brand that plans getaways around the United States.
The catch? Your destination is a surprise until the day you depart!
Follow along as we explain some of the lingo that you may come across before you purchase your Surprise Vacation and during your Trip!
Accommodations: We want you to be safe, secure, and in the middle of the action on your Pack Up + Go trip!
For that reason, we book hotels + Bed and Breakfast inns that are centrally located in our destinations and do not book with hotels that are below 3-stars - most tend to be 4 or 5-star accommodations.
All of our hotel partners are non-smoking properties. We primarily book boutique + luxury hotels that each add their own personality and style to your trips. You can also opt for a Bed and Breakfast accommodation if you prefer. Learn more about our favorite hotel brands here!
Due to the surprise nature of our vacation experiences, we do not currently offer trips with Airbnb stays.
Accommodations for Pack Up + Go Outdoors are more off the beaten path. These include glamping options (such as a yurt, canvas tent, or tree house), cabins, small-town Bed and Breakfast, inns, lodges, or boutique hotels. Read all about your accommodation options for Pack Up + Go Outdoors trips here.
Budget: Your Pack Up + Go budget impacts where we send you, how you get there, and where you stay. The primary factors to consider when choosing your budget are your travel dates, point of departure, and the number of nights.
We guarantee that your budget will cover your accommodations, the Pack Up + Go service fee, and travel (for Plane Trips). For every getaway, we will provide an itinerary with personalized recommendations for great activities and restaurants.
If there are additional budget funds left over after we purchased the guaranteed items, we use those funds to book trip extras such as restaurant or rideshare gift cards, tickets, and more! While we cannot guarantee these add-ons, if you choose a higher budget you are more likely to have more add-ons. If having pre-booked activities is very important to you, please let us know on the Pre-Trip Survey.
Solo trips are more expensive than our multi-traveler trips. This is because a large portion of the budget is allocated for your hotel or bed + breakfast stay. A hotel room will cost the same, whether one or two people are staying in it, so the per person price for our trips is lower if you've got a travel companion. Solo travelers, we love you, but you're just a little more expensive!
No matter your budget or where we send you, you will be staying in great accommodations. The higher your budget, the more options our Travel Planning Team has when booking your trip. If you have any questions or special requests regarding activities for your trip, please send us an email or give us a call!
Departure: Your departure is when and where you are leaving from. Your departure date, which travelers tell us on the Pre-Trip survey, is the day that you would like to leave. While our most commonly selected dates do fall over the weekend, you can depart any day of the week - we have trips departing 7 days a week!
The departing location depends on the type of trip selected. For Road Trips, Staycations, and Pack Up + Go Outdoors Trips travelers usually depart from their homes and for Plane Trips, we will tell you when and where to head to the airport or station.
If you are planning a group trip where travelers are coming from different cities, we know that it can get tricky to coordinate a destination + airfare. One of the major benefits of a Pack Up + Go Surprise Vacation is that we'll do it for you! When you're checking out for a Plane Trip, you'll need to include each traveler's departure address, so we'll know where everyone is coming from and find somewhere for you to meet in the middle.
For Road Trips and Pack Up + Go Outdoors Trips we do require that all travelers depart from the same location so that we can create custom traveling directions for your getaway.
Envelope: Your Pack Up + Go Surprise Destination envelope contains your surprise destination, recommendations, hotel information, and other fun information for your trip.
The envelope will be mailed to you one week prior to your departure. It should arrive 2-3 days before your departure date. You will be able to decide where the envelope is sent on your Pre-Trip Survey. This is particularly important if you are filling out the survey to celebrate someone's birthday, graduation, etc., and want them to receive the envelope at their address.
If you believe that you made have made an entry error on your pre-trip survey, please do not hesitate to reach out.
There will only be one envelope mailed if your group is departing from the same airport, even if your group's travelers have different home addresses, there will only be one envelope if you are leaving from the same airport. If members of your group are departing from more than 1 airport, each departing airport group will receive an envelope.
Nercited: The nervous and excited feeling you experience while waiting to learn your Pack Up + Go surprise destination. Don’t worry - everybody knows how you feel!
Pre-trip Survey: The Pre-Trip Survey is the first step in the Pack Up + Go journey.
Come to our sign-up page, where you’ll first choose your mode of transportation (Plane Trip, Road Trip, Staycation, or Pack Up + Go Outdoors Road Trip), departure date, and the number of Trip nights. From there, you’ll fill out the Pre-Trip Survey, giving our trip planners the information they’ll need to design you an unforgettable vacation.
The Pre-Trip Survey is where you will tell our travel agents additional information that will help them pick a destination + recommendations for you! Some of the key points of info are travel history, personal interests, what your trip is celebrating, and a section called “Anything else we need to know”. This last section is where you can tell us any additional information that didn’t fit in another section on the survey - have trouble walking long distances? Really love specialty donut shops? Can’t stand tour groups? Let us know!
Remember - the more info you share, the better prepared our planners are to craft the perfect experience!
Road trip: All Pack Up + Go Road Trips include personalized directions from your departing address to your surprise destination. We will also include some great pit stops along the way in case you want to stretch your legs!
Depending on where you live and what your travel history is will have a large impact on where your destination city will be. On average, transit times are between 3 - 6 hours, but if you have a specific preference regarding travel time - please let us know on the Pre-Trip Survey.
The budget for Road Trips includes your hotel or Bed + Breakfast accommodations, as well as valet parking so that you can have peace of mind knowing your car is safe and sound.
Surprise Destination: Pack Up + Go has sent travelers to a variety of destinations in the US - more than 300!
Transit times are between 2 - and 6 hours depending on your starting location. You may always inform us on the Pre-Trip Survey if you would like a closer or further destination.
Pack Up + Go is all about embracing the unknown, so if you have a specific destination in mind, we're not a perfect fit for your travel needs.
Partner: Pack Up + Go partners are local small businesses and hotel properties around the country with whom we have established a professional relationship due to their exceptional services and offerings. In many cases, they also offer us a small discount off of the advertised rate, which is passed on to the traveler!
We love our partners (and you should too) because they are familiar with Pack Up + Go travelers and are there to provide excellent, in-person customer service if you run into problems or just want some local recommendations. We have personal contacts with each of our partner organizations and this keeps everything running smoothly and ensures problems will be resolved quickly!
Plane: Plane Trips are one of three modes of transportation currently offered by Pack Up + Go - and are our most popular selection. With a Plane Trip, you are going to be able to get the furthest distance when you opt for a plane Pack Up + Go Trip. Whenever possible, we try to book direct flights, 3 - 5 hours away from your departing city, at convenient times. If you would prefer a shorter or longer flight for any reason, please include that information on your Pre-Trip Survey.
Pack Up + Go books transportation for our customers with the following transportation operators:
Alaska Airlines
American Airlines/American Eagle
Delta Airlines
Frontier Airlines
Jetblue
Sun Country Airlines
Southwest Airlines
United Airlines/United Express
West Jet
Ready to book your Pack Up + Go Surprise Getaway?
Sign up today or feel free to contact us if you have any other questions!
Originally posted 3/6/2020. Updated 1/8/2021.