One in seven women in the UK say that social media is making them more indecisive about their travel plans, while nearly half (43%) say they feel overwhelmed by travel choice anxiety and consider it one of “life’s most stressful decisions.”

And the infinite choices have left over a third of women with reservation remorse, feeling they had made a mistake after booking – with indecision and anxiousness kicking in within two hours compared to two and half hours later for men.

First Choice’s study also found that over half of women prefer to take control of travel arrangements, investing more time in planning a holiday than men. On average, women spend 56 hours a year planning trips compared to the 49 hours spent by men.

Six expert tips to beat your travel fobo

Planning a holiday doesn’t have to be a stressful experience, however. The psychologist Dr Becky Spelman has six tips to help with your travel planning and beat the fobo once and for all.

Are you a maximiser or a satisficer?

Psychologists have identified two common categories that most decision-making falls into: ‘maximisers’ are people who make choices based on the maximum benefits later on, whereas ‘satisficers’ tend to make the best decision based on what they need right in that particular moment.

Dr Spelman says: “Maximisers tend to set higher standards or aspirations, and then feel disappointment when they’re not reached, lingering on what they could have had, not what they actually have. If that’s you, be kind to yourself and take some time to practise gratitude by making a list of all the things you are grateful for.”

Try a fresh take on somewhere you’ve been before

“For the chronically indecisive, going somewhere we know already can help narrow our options and reduce a lot of the micro-decisions that we have to make when we’re there, like where to eat and what beach to visit.”

Don’t compare highlight reels

“Comparing ourselves to others often feeds our insecurity. Social media is our highlight reel and people rarely share anything but the best bits. Just remember that what we see on our feeds is not the reality,” says Dr Spelman.

More choice doesn’t mean better options

A huge part of travel planning is trying to find the best deal possible but because we’ve never had so many options to choose from, it can end up leading to the ‘procrastination paradox’ where we put off booking our trip in the hopes of finding an even better deal. Only to find that we’ve missed out on the best price or everything’s booked up.

“Too much choice can be overwhelming and affect our ability to make a decision,” says Dr Spelman.

Ask your best hive mind for insider tips

“Ask your like-minded social communities for tips on where you’re planning to go. There’s no better insight than from real travellers who can give you the lowdown on a particular place or area, and can share the best places to stay and visit. In the internet age, personal recommendations have even more value,” explains Dr Spelman.

Book ahead and save money

“Although last-minute getaways can be a great way to blow off steam, searching at the eleventh hour can be more stressful due to the time pressure, and you may end up booking a holiday which wasn’t what you wanted,” says Dr Spelman.

So, consider booking in advance, that way you can research and plan the trip you really want and it’ll likely save you some money in the long run, too.

Can’t decide where to go on holiday? You might have travel fobo