On April 8, a total solar eclipse will blot out the sun for about 4,200 miles stretching from Mexico to Canada — a cosmic spectacle that so much of North America won’t see again for about 20 years. Many made their plans to see it well in advance.
And then there are the procrastinators, who just realized they’re going to lose. If that’s you, you still have options, but not as many.
“At this point, your goal is just to get in the path of totality and see the eclipse for as long as possible,” said Melanie Fish, head of global public relations for Expedia Group Brands. “You’re not trying to find the best party. You don’t try to do that on your dream vacation. You just want to reach the path of wholeness.”
So first, get your hands on some eclipse glasses so you can watch safely. Then find a way to enter the path of totality, with the strip crossing 13 states where the moon will completely eclipse the sun. You will be competing with people who have already increased demand for flights and accommodation, so be prepared to pay more.
And take off the next day too if you can. Otherwise, you can spend hours stuck in traffic, as many discovered after the 2017 eclipse.
Here are four strategies for a last-minute foray into the total eclipse zone.
Drive into the dark
If you have access to wheels and live within a few hours of the path of totality, you can always hop in the car. You might even find relatively cheap accommodation just outside the zone and then drive from there.
But if you’re hoping to rent a car, you might have a problem.
Car rental company Hertz reported a 3,000 percent increase in advanced bookings for car rentals in cities along the eclipse’s path compared to last year. The biggest demand so far has been in places like Dallas and Austin, Texas, as well as Cleveland and Indianapolis.
If you want to try anyway, reserve your car as soon as possible and focus your search for rental agencies outside of high-volume areas like airports, advised Isabella Sawyer, a Hertz spokeswoman. Neighborhood locations, he said, may have better availability.
Whether you rent or own your ride, be prepared for gridlock. “People arrive at different times, but everyone leaves at the same time – and that’s the problem,” said Aixa Diaz, a spokeswoman for AAA. “Let’s say you have about five million people looking at an eclipse and they all leave at the same time. This is like the equivalent of 71 sold-out football games all coming out at once.”
Taking off the extra day could help you avoid traffic. Data from the 2017 total eclipse, which also took place on Monday, showed about 41 percent less traffic from destinations on Tuesday, compared with Monday, Ms. Diaz said.
Fly to the zone
You could also book a last-minute flight to a city in the path of totality, preferably a city where you won’t need a car. Searches for flights along the path of the eclipse have quadrupled compared to the same time last year, said Katy Nastro, a spokeswoman for Going.com.
“What’s unique about this event is that people don’t have to fly to just one place to be able to experience the eclipse,” he said, “which means they can look at multiple cities in the path or even cities near the path. ,” and then, assuming you can find a rental car at your destination, drive down the trail.
“For example, you could fly and stay in Toronto and then drive over the border to see the eclipse from the Canadian side of Niagara Falls, just a two and a half hour drive away,” Ms. Nastro said. (As of Wednesday, Toronto’s main airport still had rental cars available, starting at about $40 a day.)
Go where the hotels are
The path of totality crosses not only small towns but also many hotel-rich urban areas stretching from Texas to the Midwest and upstate New York – places like Dallas-Fort Worth, Indianapolis, Cleveland, Buffalo and Rochester, New York and Montreal.
But even in cities with more rooms available, you’ll likely have to pay a premium.
“I saw a two-star aparthotel in Nashville for $900 all-in,” Ms. Fish said of one of the accommodations she found (Nashville is a couple of hours’ drive outside the path of totality), “and a super 8 in Indianapolis for $500 on eclipse night. So if you book at the last minute to see the eclipse, yes, you will pay more.”
Bundling a flight and accommodations into a travel booking app could help save money, as well as headaches, Ms. Fish said. But don’t forget that you may need some kind of ground transportation, so look for packages that include it.
If you are traveling to an area where there are fewer hotels, consider a short-term rental property. As of March 20, Airbnb, which experienced a 1,000 percent increase in searches along the path of the total eclipse, still had about 40 percent of its inventory available in that zone, according to Airbnb spokesperson Haven Thorn .
Watch the weather and stay flexible
Clouds are the enemy of the eclipse hunter. You can pick a place with the highest chance of clear skies and check the forecast obsessively, but the weather is fickle. If you are driving, be prepared to take a detour at the last minute. And when the big moment comes, run safely in a park or parking lot — not on the side of the road — turn off your car and prepare to be dazzled.
Even if you decide not to go anywhere, you might be able to pop those glasses and feel some of the accompanying environmental changes. Many major cities will still see a partial eclipse: 94 percent in Chicago, 90 percent in New York, 82 percent in Atlanta and 49 percent in Los Angeles.
As Ms. Fish of Expedia said, “The party’s in the sky, so all you have to do is look up.”
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