Vacation Travel Hacks — Straight From The Pros

We interrupt the workday to bring you a somewhat depressing fact: According to a Glassdoor survey, Americans took only half of their paid vacation time last year. Whether due to crazy workloads, lack of funds, or the nagging feeling that planning a trip is more stressful than it’s worth, this failure to redeem much-needed R&R actually hurts job performance and (duh) increases stress levels all around. Yikes, right? Well, don't panic just yet; we've got some good news, too.

To make sure you actually enjoy your time off — whether it's spent on an epic European getaway, a road trip down the Pacific Coast Highway, or an impromptu long-weekend trip to the shore — we tapped our favorite packing, beauty, food, and money-saving experts for their all-time best travel tips. Read up, grab your weekender, toss in a bottle of Hawaiian Tropic sunscreen, and take off.