The Great North American Eclipse 2024: 4 Part Series
- Stay Safe with Eclipse Glasses
- 2024 Total Eclipse Travel: Bucket List Planning
- Eclipse From the Air & Sea
- Eclipse Party Ideas, Activities & the ‘Travel Appetizer’
- Bonus: Eclipse 2024 Favorite Things
The next total solar eclipse in North America is scheduled for April 8, 2024 and it will be the last total eclipse that North America will experience for another 20 years. All of the US will experience a partial eclipse on April 8th however there are a lucky ~32 million people who live in the path of totality that will get to experience the total solar eclipse. Let’s get planning your 2024 total eclipse travel to be one of them!
Why Travel to the 2024 Eclipse
In a total eclipse, day turns to night for the minutes that the moon completely blocks the sun. In the half hour preceding the total eclipse, light levels get lower, shadows get sharper and everything takes on an almost a sparkly quality. Once totality starts, there is a noticeable drop in temperature.
Experiencing an eclipse in totality is such a magical experience that eclipse parties are planned, school science programs are built around it, and folks who don’t already live in the path plan years in advance to travel to see it.
There is still time for you to plan a trip to the path of totality but I’d recommend acting fast and bringing your planning patience. Start with your lodging accommodations first and build the trip around what you find available.
Where to Travel for the Path of Totality
The states with areas in the path of totality are Texas, Oklahoma, Maine, Missouri, Kentucky, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, Vermont and New Hampshire so you have options when picking a 2024 total eclipse travel destination in the path.
The further south you consider, you will find the lowest average cloud coverage and the southern states will also have a longer time in totality versus the Northeast. Given this, Texas was our first choice. However, your destination location should include these considerations:
- Where you live or will be traveling from?
- What type of travel you are open to and your budget supports (by air, car, train)?
- Do you have any friends or family in the path that you can plan a visit around?
- Are any of the locations in the path already on your travel bucket list?
- Predicted cloud cover.
- Area within the path.
- Those locations in the center of the path will experience totality the longest.
- See this NASA page for more great information on great 2024 total eclipse travel destinations
Finding Accomodations
As I mentioned, travelers have already been making lodging reservations in the path for over a year so you may need patience when searching for your lodging. Some cities to consider are:
- Waco, TX
- Dallas, TX
- Little Rock, AR
- Cleveland, OH
- Buffalo, NY
- Rochester, NY
A helpful, interactive map for identifying 2024 total eclipse travel locations can be found at eclipse2024.org.
Viewing Parties
You will find that cities in the path of totality are hosting viewing parties. Most are ticketed and are also early sell outs so you should search for eclipse parties in your area as soon as you determine where you will be.
Even if you miss getting tickets to a large viewing party, just being in the path of totality is party enough! If your accommodations do not have an outdoor space where you can enjoy your eclipse experience, look for a nearby park and plan to arrive early. Use these eclipse party ideas to make a great eclipse viewing event yourself or do some of these ideas ahead of time to build excitement with your family or fellow travelers. This is my ‘Travel Appetizer‘ approach to extending the joy of our travel experiences.
Viewing Safety
Regardless of where your 2024 total eclipse travel plans take you, partial eclipse viewing is only safely done with the use of special eclipse glasses. In the path of totality, you will experience the partial eclipse before and after totality making eclipse viewing glasses critical for all. See more in my post on eclipse glasses and find a verified eclipse glasses brand in my Favorite Things.
I’ll be sharing more of our 2024 total eclipse travel and our experience in the ‘path of totality’. Follow me on Instagram and subscribe to the blog to come along.
Adventure on!
Great ideas! My husband and I are planning to take personal days and bring our boys to see the eclipse. We are in St. Louis, and it passes just about 2 hours from here.
That’s awesome! What a great family memory to make!
Excellent read! Love this!
These are great ideas. I was surprised by how quickly the rooms sell out in these locations.
Great post!
Nice article! It totally make me want to travel to visit one of the locations (NY) to see the eclispe. Totally added to my bucklist! Thanks 😊
Excellent Read!