Planning the perfect vacation is a tricky task any time of the year. But that’s especially true during the winter, when you have hectic holiday traffic, cold weather, and potentially dangerous travel conditions to contend with. Anytime you plan a vacation, whether it’s a brief weekend getaway or a longer trip, it’s important to research your destination thoroughly. And choosing the right destination gets a little more complicated when you’re planning on traveling during the coldest months of the year. After all, nobody wants their vacation delayed or canceled because there’s too much ice for the plane to get in or out of the airport.

And you aren’t necessarily in the clear if you opt to drive instead of fly. Rookie mistakes can derail a winter road trip, too. But choose the right destination, and you can avoid some of the potential pitfalls of a winter vacation gone wrong. To make that happen, avoid these locales, according to online pokies real money.

1. Regions that are too unexpectedly cold or rainy

It may make sense to escape a snowy winter at home by traveling somewhere warmer, but make sure you aren’t running away from the snow and going straight for a destination in the midst of its rainy season. You should research the weather in any destination you’re considering well in advance. Rob McElwee reports for Al Jazeera that winters in the Mediterranean, for instance, are more severe than you might imagine.”Storms in the Mediterranean can, at their worst, resemble hurricanes in all but name,” McElwee notes.

2. Cities with unpredictable weather

Another kind of destination you may want to avoid during the coldest months of the year? Cities that are notorious for their unpredictable weather. You can plan for winter weather if you know what to expect, but that’s a lot harder to do if you can’t nail down a rough forecast, let alone a basic packing list. Fortunately for those vacationing in the United States, we can tell you exactly which destinations to avoid.

3. Destinations that you can only get to by flying through one of the worst airports

If you’re planning a quick weekend trip in the middle of winter, you may be wise to avoid destinations you can only access by flying through an airport that’s notorious for terrible delays. We’ve all had a flight delayed or even canceled, but the kind of delay that’s a minor inconvenience in the context of a longer vacation can completely ruin a trip you’ve managed to squeeze into a long weekend.

4. Cities that tend to shut down in the winter

We’re all for visiting a great destination during the off-season. That’s a great way to avoid some of the crowds and experience a destination a little more like a local would. But do your research carefully. You don’t want to visit your dream destination, either domestic or international, if none of the establishments you’d want to see will be open. A variety of destinations that may be popular in the summer can shut down in the winter, particularly if the tourism industry revolves around local or family-owned businesses. The destinations you’ll need to be especially careful of include areas where most tourism occurs in the summer. Small towns in coastal New England, for instance, may offer sailing and whale-watching in the summer, but it’s possible those businesses close once the weather gets cold and the summer crowds dissipate. However, you can still play games from machines a sous en argent reel safely.

5. Ski hotspots that won’t have enough snow during the month you plan to visit

Making the trek to a ski resort is a great choice of winter vacation. But you need to do your research to make sure you’re visiting when there will be enough snow for you take advantage of everything the slopes have to offer. As Kelly Bastone reports for Outside, some mountains get plenty of snowfall early in the season, while others don’t get significant snowfall until March or April — well after you might plan on visiting.