Travelling with youth sports teams is stressful. The athletes are so excited to travel that it sometimes makes it challenging to get them where they need to be on time. Finding suitable hotels and transportation methods within the team's budget cuts into the time you have to plan your practices.
Fortunately for you, we've rounded up the best practices all travelling teams should follow to make it easier for everyone.
Travel Team Best Practices
1. Seek others' input in the planning processSome parents and coaching staff will have some knowledge of the area you're travelling to, so it's worthwhile to seek their input as it could save you some research time.
That said, be wary of having too many people involved in the planning process, as it could cause communication errors or hold up the process altogether.
After collecting others' input, you'll need to pick one person to make phone calls, book the accommodations and travel, and create the schedules. That way, there’s an Event Expert on the team who knows everything.
Lengthy travel between the hotel and the venue leaves more chances to run into traffic and can make everyone more stressed.
This keeps everyone together and makes it easier for coaches and parents to supervise athletes. It'll also save you time when you need to get everyone down to the lobby in the morning, and back to their rooms at the end of the day.
If your team wants to eat together, you'll need to make restaurant reservations in advance. Having activities lined up for downtime ensures you know where your athletes — and their parents — are, and keeps them out of trouble.
Accidents happen, and when they do, they're easier to manage when you've prepared for them. Knowing the nearest hospital and urgent care clinics to your hotel is something you should scope out before you even hit the road. You should also have up-to-date medical information about everyone on hand.
Conclusion
Rep teams spend a lot of time travelling, so make it an enjoyable part of the sport. Effective travel and accommodation planning will save everyone headaches and stress.
Getting input from others can reduce the time you have to spend researching the right fit for your team's needs. Reserving rooms in blocks and being close to the venue cuts down on travel time allocation. Having plans for downtime and preparing for accidents will give you some peace of mind throughout the weekend.
Bonus Tip
Take a few minutes at the end of your last practice before travelling to go over the travel plan with your athletes and your parents, and answer any questions they have.
