Trade Money For Memories: Why You Should Plan Your Next Vacation Now
Vacations are great for your health.
Traveling 28000 feet above the ground, I have enough time to think about my vacation with a smile.
Like last time I tell myself I want to do this more often.
Traveling is a privilege.
You trade money for memories.
Stepping out of your rut and embracing new surroundings.
Bali felt like paradise to me, at least from a traveler’s point of view.
The frequent chats with locals made me realize how lucky we Westerners are to be able to hop on a plane and just leave all obligations behind us.
None of the drivers we had (another adorable privilege) ever set foot in Europe.
Then there was the chat with the driver who took us to the airport in Singapore.
Coming from a Chinese family he said
“Singapore people have a money mindset. They just want to make business all the time. Especially the Chinese people.“
I have respect for ambitious people, but it left me wondering what the goal is in earning a lot of money if you don’t find the time to spend it.
Imagine waiting until retirement to start traveling.
You might have enough time to live, you may be in good health, but you don’t really know.
Wouldn’t it be said to say “If only I…”
You don’t have to spend crazy amounts of money or fly around the globe for a wonderful vacation. But pushing it into the distant future… no thx.
Checking my bank account these days makes me cry. Debit after debit, but you know what…I wouldn’t have it any other way.
Reliving memorable experiences
snorkeling
seeing dolphins
visiting temples
incredible sunsets
enjoying local food
cannot be taken away from us. Hundreds of photos feed our desire to get on the next trip.
And the best part: Traveling is good for your heart, soul and health.
How does traveling promote your health?
Vacations Are Great For Your Health
If you dread going back home at the end of a vacation, there is a good chance you have had a great time.
You might feel overwhelmed by hundreds of E-mails on your first day back at work, but the positive health effects can be detected longer after that.
In one study where middle managers took a 7-day vacation, the following positive effects could be found up to 30 days after the end of the holiday.1
Lower strain
Better recovery
Improved well-being
Lowered perceived stress
Another interesting finding was that compared to people spending their holiday at home, the positive effects were greater for people who left their natural surroundings.
So why is that?
When you break free from your daily routines, your busy mind perceives stress relief, so your mental health improves.
Whether you prefer lying on the beach or being active throughout the day depends on what type of person you are.
I remember as a kid when we would fly to southern Spain where during the summer you couldn`t do much more than lie at the beach, take frequent swims, and have ice cream.
Temperatures around 40 degrees Celsius made taking day trips not an option.
What sounds like a dream for many felt super boring to me. I couldn`t wait until early afternoon, when the temperatures got cooled down and I could jump on my skateboard.
My dad was the opposite: He loved reading all day by the beach.
Exploring foreign cultures, eating unfamiliar food and the occasional chat with locals feels invigorating.
In one study the researchers found that "Engaging in mentally stimulating activities, such as traveling and exploring new environments, helps maintain cognitive health and may reduce the risk of cognitive decline as we age."2
These effects seem to go so far, that travel shows signs of slowing down aging.
Researchers from Edith Cowan University found a connection between exposure to novel environments, physical activities, social interactions, and positive emotions with delayed aging.
What does that mean in detail?
Being in a new place can sometimes trigger stress, but in a way that boosts your metabolism and helps the body organize itself better. This can even lead to an improved immune system.
"In simple terms, your body’s defense system gets stronger. It might release hormones that help repair and regenerate tissues, which supports the body’s natural healing process."
There is more...
When you are walking, cycling, or riding a bike on holidays you boost your metabolism, burn through those extra calories often consumed on vacation, and improve blood circulation.
Feeling the beneficial effects of exercise on vacation is also a great way to bring it into your regular life.
If there is one thing I have to name that feels much different on holiday than back home it has to be sleep.
On an average day at home, I don`t need an alarm and feel sufficiently rested when I wake up after about 7 hours of sleep around 6 am.
Yet, on vacation, I can sleep 8 hours or more and do not wake up after 7 hours.
Is it the lack of obligations, the mind being free of things that need to be done?
Research proves that many of us do not get enough sleep.
This leads to us feeling grumpy, irritated, nervous, and sometimes anxious.
These extra 60-90 minutes of more sleep we get on vacation, can "improve memory and concentration"
A study from Ernst&Young showed that "for every additional 10 hours of vacation time that employees took, their year-end performance improved 8%, and another study showed that using all of your vacation time increases your chances of getting a promotion or a raise."4
In sum, a vacation is a treat to our stress-driven minds and bodies.
Where do you travel next?
I highly recommend Oktoberfest in Singapore. If you never made it to the Original in Munich, like me, this is a serious contender.
(PDF) Short Vacation Improves Stress-Level and Well-Being in German-Speaking Middle-Managers— A Randomized Controlled Trial (researchgate.net)
Travel could be the best defense against aging | ScienceDaily
Participation in cognitively stimulating activities and risk of incident Alzheimer disease - PubMed (nih.gov)
I've been trying to get out of my desk myself! I hope to dream up a nice vacation for myself (and hopefully make it come true too) This was such a great read! It also reminds me to be grateful for the kind of privilege and luxury that I'm surrounded by. Not everyone is fortunate to have drinking water, food, shelter, loved ones. Thank you for this post!
We have two weeks vacation planned in Mexico. Really looking forward to it.
One effect of going to beaches and pools that is unrecognized if the grounding effect of standing on sand or in water barefoot.
We ground all electrical devices, vessels, cell towers, and equipment to prevent electrical charge buildup and degradation. So grounding is a factual, real thing. Yet, we don’t ground our bodies. Except on vacation to beaches and such! Then we get to let all the built up electrical charge dissipate and we feel better.