A Fast Passport for Ebenezer Scrooge - Expedited Passports

“If I could work my will, nephew, every idiot who goes about with “Merry Christmas” on his lips should be boiled with his own pudding and buried with a stake of holly through his heart.” — Ebenezer Scrooge

It’s officially the holiday season and while most of us are (fortunately) less bitter than Mr. Scrooge, wanting to get away from it all is actually a fairly normal reaction. I love Christmas in theory, but in practice the packed shopping malls and obnoxious Christmas music usually have me saying “Bah, Humbug!” halfway through December.

If Ebenezer Scrooge were alive today, he’d probably apply for a fast passport and cool his heels somewhere far away until the holiday season is over. If you want a ticket away from all of the hustle and bustle that is Christmas-time in America, you have several possible choices. For example, according to this article on NewsChief.com, a winter cruise is a great way to escape. Since decorations and dinner are handled for you, you get the best of the season without all of the work. The article quotes Ben Carpenter of Winter Haven, Florida, who says “”The holidays are the best time to take a cruise. I’ll golf on four islands this season and share festivities with brand new friends each year.” While it’s certainly not a miserly way to celebrate the holiday, it isn’t traditional, either.

Or, you could go a step further and go somewhere where Christmas is not celebrated at all. Over at AlmostFearless.com, Christine Gilbert is spending the holidays in Thailand. She writes:

“If you travel to the other side of the world, the holiday season means absolutely nothing. That’s all it takes. A move to another country, another life, and suddenly, that big-deal-holiday that you’ve celebrated every year of your life evaporates. It’s gone. “

For me personally, Thailand sounds particularly inviting whenever I’m out and about and hear those annoying “Alvin and the Chipmunks” Christmas carols.

But if you want to escape the holiday madness, you’ll need to get a fast passport if you don’t have one already. Normal passport processing takes about 6 weeks, while expedited service through the Department of State takes 2 to 3 weeks. For truly fast passport processing, you have two options: make an appointment to apply in person at a Regional Passport Agency office, or use a passport expediting company like RushMyPassport.com. Let us handle the appointment with the passport agency for you, and you’ll have more time to do last-minute shopping and send out cards. Just try not to gloat about spending Christmas, lest your Christmas Eve pad thai turn into the Ghosts of Christmas Past, Present and Future.

Need a fast passport for the holidays? Let us help!

For most people, there’s no place like home on Christmas. But what if you want to travel, to experience Christmas somewhere new and different?

London is an especially magical place to spend Christmas, and right now, Virgin Atlantic is having a sale on fares  to London.  You can get to London from New York City for just $512 round-trip, while $526 will get you there and back from Washington, DC.  On the West Coast, $642 will get you round-trip tickets from either San Francisco or LA. See more fares and additional details on Smarter Travel.

Once you’re there, you can enjoy traditional activities like ice skating and watching the English National Ballet’s traditional performance of The Nutcracker. Pantomimes are another popular English pastime during the holiday season-these are humorous theater performances where men often play female characters, and vice versa. There’s also the Great Christmas Pudding race, where contestants dress up and compete to see who can run around Covent Garden the fastest while carrying a large Christmas pudding.

It almost goes without saying that London is an excellent place to do some Christmas shopping. Plus, the atmosphere is almost guaranteed to get you in the Christmas spirit.  An enormous Christmas tree lights up Trafalgar Square, and Christmas carols regale people passing by with traditional Christmas songs to raise money for charity. Plus, there are lights everywhere-see this post on Write On! for some excellent pictures!

Before you take off for London, you will have a final piece of Christmas shopping to take care of in the States-obtaining a passport.  If you don’t have one already, you may have trouble getting one before your plane leaves- Christmas is only 2 weeks away, and the US Department of State advises you t0 allow at least 3 weeks to receive your passport if you choose the government’s expedited processing option.

Your best option at this point for obtaining your passport in time is to use a private passport expediting company like RushMyPassport.com. We make obtaining a passport easy by helping you complete the paperwork and gather the necessary documents, and then forwarding your application directly to the Department of State. This puts your application on top of the stack, resulting in processing times as low as 24 hours.

Apply for your passport today!