{"id":95097,"date":"2020-01-09T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2020-01-09T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/travelstartblg.wpenginepowered.com\/how-to-maximise-leave-days\/"},"modified":"2025-11-04T13:56:11","modified_gmt":"2025-11-04T13:56:11","slug":"how-to-maximise-leave-days","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.travelstart.co.za\/blog\/how-to-maximise-leave-days\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Maximise Your Leave Days in 2020"},"content":{"rendered":"

The time has come to say goodbye to a glorious festive season, and to greet another working year with open arms. As we head into a new decade, be sure to check out how to maximise your leave days and make the absolute most of long weekend extenders!<\/p>\n

Get your calendar out, mark off these days, and optimise your annual leave as far as possible.<\/p>\n

Plan that dream trip<\/h2>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Pre-planning leave means scoring extra time off and freeing up time for festivals, events, camping, getaways, staycations and so much more. The world is your oyster, all you need to do is make the time!<\/p>\n

Take advantage of your extra time off by exploring somewhere new. Why not take a five-day trip to a top international destination like Morocco<\/a>, Istanbul<\/a> or Rome<\/a>? Rumour has it the beaches in Mauritius<\/a> are the things dreams are made of too!<\/p>\n

With December offering you more than two weeks of holiday time, why not plan the white Christmas you\u2019ve always dreamed of? Book cheap flights to New York,<\/a> Paris<\/a> or Frankfurt<\/a> to experience the winter wonderland you deserve! Which trip seems like one you’d like to maximise your leave days for?<\/p>\n

Travel Tips for 2020<\/h2>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Before heading off though, here are a few tips to keep in mind when travelling over long weekends and public holidays:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Be patient<\/strong> \u2013 be prepared for long queues, heavy traffic and crowded facilities. Being polite and staying calm goes a long way.<\/li>\n
  2. Plan your trip<\/strong> \u2013 beat the traffic and leave early or later in the day, if you\u2019re going on a long road trip. It may be wiser to leave a day sooner or later to avoid heavy traffic.<\/li>\n
  3. Book in advance<\/strong> \u2013 be smart and book hotels, tours, activities and festival tickets at least 1-2 months in advance to avoid disappointment or paying higher rates.<\/li>\n
  4. Compare multiple accommodation options<\/a> to find the best deal<\/strong> \u2013 some resorts offer discounted packages if you book ahead of time.<\/li>\n
  5. Keep the little ones occupied<\/strong> \u2013 pack in plenty of games and activities. Prepare healthy snacks above sweets and fast food to avoid a sugar buzz on your trip. If you\u2019re flying to your destination, read up on our useful tips on\u00a0flying with children<\/a>.<\/li>\n
  6. Take the paths less travelled<\/strong> \u2013 why not skip the crowds and explore some places off the beaten track? If you\u2019re in a theme park or museum, rather start your tour in the opposite direction to everyone else to avoid standing in queues.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    \"maximise<\/p>\n

    Looking for ideas on how to spend your long weekends? Discover the best events and festivals in South Africa in 2020!<\/a><\/p>\n

    Let us know what you plan on getting up to with all these extended public holidays coming up this year! Don’t forget to sign up to our newsletter<\/a> to keep up to date with specials, promotions and travel inspiration!<\/p>\n

    All information on this blog page was correct at the time publishing and may change at any time without prior notice. Travelstart will not be held liable for loss or inconvenience resulting from the use of out-dated or incorrectly noted information.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    The time has come to say goodbye to a glorious festive season, and to greet another working year with open arms. As we head into a new decade, be sure to check out how to maximise your leave days and make the absolute most of long weekend extenders! Get your calendar out, mark off these days, and optimise your annual leave as far as possible. … Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":16,"featured_media":95098,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_destination_ratings":[],"_destination_review_count":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[16],"tags":[125,423,443,386,224,496,39],"class_list":["post-95097","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-travel","tag-cheap-flights","tag-france","tag-istanbul","tag-new-york","tag-paris","tag-rome","tag-travel","generate-columns","tablet-grid-50","mobile-grid-100","grid-parent","grid-33"],"yoast_head":"\nMaximise your leave days in 2020 - Travelstart.co,za<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"As we head into a new decade, why would you not want to maximise your leave days and absolutely make the most of long weekend extenders?\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.travelstart.co.za\/blog\/how-to-maximise-leave-days\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Maximise your leave days in 2020 - Travelstart.co,za\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"As we head into a new decade, why would you not want to maximise your leave days and absolutely make the most of long weekend extenders?\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.travelstart.co.za\/blog\/how-to-maximise-leave-days\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Travelstart Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2020-01-09T00:00:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-11-04T13:56:11+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.travelstart.co.za\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2025\/10\/Peace-girl.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"800\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"600\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Brandon Mlilo\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Brandon Mlilo\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.travelstart.co.za\\\/blog\\\/how-to-maximise-leave-days\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.travelstart.co.za\\\/blog\\\/how-to-maximise-leave-days\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Brandon Mlilo\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.travelstart.co.za\\\/blog\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/0c92c48c805c2d5ebd15bafa2395fa16\"},\"headline\":\"How to Maximise Your Leave Days in 2020\",\"datePublished\":\"2020-01-09T00:00:00+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-11-04T13:56:11+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.travelstart.co.za\\\/blog\\\/how-to-maximise-leave-days\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":523,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.travelstart.co.za\\\/blog\\\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.travelstart.co.za\\\/blog\\\/how-to-maximise-leave-days\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.travelstart.co.za\\\/blog\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/5\\\/2025\\\/10\\\/Peace-girl.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"cheap flights\",\"france\",\"istanbul\",\"new york\",\"paris\",\"rome\",\"travel\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Travel\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.travelstart.co.za\\\/blog\\\/how-to-maximise-leave-days\\\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.travelstart.co.za\\\/blog\\\/how-to-maximise-leave-days\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.travelstart.co.za\\\/blog\\\/how-to-maximise-leave-days\\\/\",\"name\":\"Maximise your leave days in 2020 - Travelstart.co,za\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.travelstart.co.za\\\/blog\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.travelstart.co.za\\\/blog\\\/how-to-maximise-leave-days\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.travelstart.co.za\\\/blog\\\/how-to-maximise-leave-days\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.travelstart.co.za\\\/blog\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/5\\\/2025\\\/10\\\/Peace-girl.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2020-01-09T00:00:00+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-11-04T13:56:11+00:00\",\"description\":\"As we head into a new decade, why would you not want to maximise your leave days and absolutely make the most of long weekend extenders?\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.travelstart.co.za\\\/blog\\\/how-to-maximise-leave-days\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.travelstart.co.za\\\/blog\\\/how-to-maximise-leave-days\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.travelstart.co.za\\\/blog\\\/how-to-maximise-leave-days\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.travelstart.co.za\\\/blog\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/5\\\/2025\\\/10\\\/Peace-girl.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.travelstart.co.za\\\/blog\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/5\\\/2025\\\/10\\\/Peace-girl.jpg\",\"width\":800,\"height\":600},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.travelstart.co.za\\\/blog\\\/how-to-maximise-leave-days\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.travelstart.co.za\\\/blog\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"How to Maximise Your Leave Days in 2020\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.travelstart.co.za\\\/blog\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.travelstart.co.za\\\/blog\\\/\",\"name\":\"Travelstart Blog\",\"description\":\"\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.travelstart.co.za\\\/blog\\\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.travelstart.co.za\\\/blog\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.travelstart.co.za\\\/blog\\\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Travelstart Blog\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.travelstart.co.za\\\/blog\\\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.travelstart.co.za\\\/blog\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.travelstart.co.za\\\/blog\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/5\\\/2025\\\/08\\\/logo.svg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.travelstart.co.za\\\/blog\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/5\\\/2025\\\/08\\\/logo.svg\",\"width\":147,\"height\":35,\"caption\":\"Travelstart Blog\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.travelstart.co.za\\\/blog\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"}},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.travelstart.co.za\\\/blog\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/0c92c48c805c2d5ebd15bafa2395fa16\",\"name\":\"Brandon Mlilo\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/85747dfa7c29be6c5eab5afe41b9a4d31b3db20961febcb45650400a9bc94a62?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/85747dfa7c29be6c5eab5afe41b9a4d31b3db20961febcb45650400a9bc94a62?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/85747dfa7c29be6c5eab5afe41b9a4d31b3db20961febcb45650400a9bc94a62?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Brandon Mlilo\"},\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.travelstart.co.za\\\/blog\\\/author\\\/brandonm\\\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Maximise your leave days in 2020 - Travelstart.co,za","description":"As we head into a new decade, why would you not want to maximise your leave days and absolutely make the most of long weekend extenders?","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.travelstart.co.za\/blog\/how-to-maximise-leave-days\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Maximise your leave days in 2020 - Travelstart.co,za","og_description":"As we head into a new decade, why would you not want to maximise your leave days and absolutely make the most of long weekend extenders?","og_url":"https:\/\/www.travelstart.co.za\/blog\/how-to-maximise-leave-days\/","og_site_name":"Travelstart Blog","article_published_time":"2020-01-09T00:00:00+00:00","article_modified_time":"2025-11-04T13:56:11+00:00","og_image":[{"width":800,"height":600,"url":"https:\/\/www.travelstart.co.za\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2025\/10\/Peace-girl.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Brandon Mlilo","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Brandon Mlilo","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.travelstart.co.za\/blog\/how-to-maximise-leave-days\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.travelstart.co.za\/blog\/how-to-maximise-leave-days\/"},"author":{"name":"Brandon Mlilo","@id":"https:\/\/www.travelstart.co.za\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/0c92c48c805c2d5ebd15bafa2395fa16"},"headline":"How to Maximise Your Leave Days in 2020","datePublished":"2020-01-09T00:00:00+00:00","dateModified":"2025-11-04T13:56:11+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.travelstart.co.za\/blog\/how-to-maximise-leave-days\/"},"wordCount":523,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.travelstart.co.za\/blog\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.travelstart.co.za\/blog\/how-to-maximise-leave-days\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.travelstart.co.za\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2025\/10\/Peace-girl.jpg","keywords":["cheap flights","france","istanbul","new york","paris","rome","travel"],"articleSection":["Travel"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/www.travelstart.co.za\/blog\/how-to-maximise-leave-days\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.travelstart.co.za\/blog\/how-to-maximise-leave-days\/","url":"https:\/\/www.travelstart.co.za\/blog\/how-to-maximise-leave-days\/","name":"Maximise your leave days in 2020 - Travelstart.co,za","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.travelstart.co.za\/blog\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.travelstart.co.za\/blog\/how-to-maximise-leave-days\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.travelstart.co.za\/blog\/how-to-maximise-leave-days\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.travelstart.co.za\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2025\/10\/Peace-girl.jpg","datePublished":"2020-01-09T00:00:00+00:00","dateModified":"2025-11-04T13:56:11+00:00","description":"As we head into a new decade, why would you not want to maximise your leave days and absolutely make the most of long weekend extenders?","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.travelstart.co.za\/blog\/how-to-maximise-leave-days\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.travelstart.co.za\/blog\/how-to-maximise-leave-days\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.travelstart.co.za\/blog\/how-to-maximise-leave-days\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.travelstart.co.za\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2025\/10\/Peace-girl.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.travelstart.co.za\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2025\/10\/Peace-girl.jpg","width":800,"height":600},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.travelstart.co.za\/blog\/how-to-maximise-leave-days\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.travelstart.co.za\/blog\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"How to Maximise Your Leave Days in 2020"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.travelstart.co.za\/blog\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.travelstart.co.za\/blog\/","name":"Travelstart Blog","description":"","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.travelstart.co.za\/blog\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.travelstart.co.za\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.travelstart.co.za\/blog\/#organization","name":"Travelstart Blog","url":"https:\/\/www.travelstart.co.za\/blog\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.travelstart.co.za\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.travelstart.co.za\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2025\/08\/logo.svg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.travelstart.co.za\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2025\/08\/logo.svg","width":147,"height":35,"caption":"Travelstart Blog"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.travelstart.co.za\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.travelstart.co.za\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/0c92c48c805c2d5ebd15bafa2395fa16","name":"Brandon Mlilo","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/85747dfa7c29be6c5eab5afe41b9a4d31b3db20961febcb45650400a9bc94a62?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/85747dfa7c29be6c5eab5afe41b9a4d31b3db20961febcb45650400a9bc94a62?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/85747dfa7c29be6c5eab5afe41b9a4d31b3db20961febcb45650400a9bc94a62?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Brandon Mlilo"},"url":"https:\/\/www.travelstart.co.za\/blog\/author\/brandonm\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.travelstart.co.za\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/95097","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.travelstart.co.za\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.travelstart.co.za\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.travelstart.co.za\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/16"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.travelstart.co.za\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=95097"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.travelstart.co.za\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/95097\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.travelstart.co.za\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/95098"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.travelstart.co.za\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=95097"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.travelstart.co.za\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=95097"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.travelstart.co.za\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=95097"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}