Why You Should Take Advantage of Your Vacation Time

Using a little PTO sounds like a no brainer, right? For some, sure, but it can also be easy to get swept up in our routines: you get focused on that promotion coming up, maybe you’re reserving the time for a relative’s wedding, or perhaps there are things around the house you need to get done first.

Whatever the reason, it can be hard to find the time to carve out to take a bigger vacation, and let’s face it—some companies do make it more difficult to get away. But with more and more businesses making PTO more lenient (and even starting to offer generous portions of it), plus flexible, hybrid schedules, it seems the tides are turning in favor of a little R&R.

What’s important is finding the incentive to take the time off to explore somewhere new. If the planning and researching feels more like work than your work itself, that’s where we come in!

Even when you do take some vacation, it’s understandable you may not want to put the effort it takes into planning something a year or so in advance, like a longer trip abroad. Plus, finding the tours that fit your interests, accommodations that work for the family, transportation, etc., can feel daunting. We will say this, though—whether you use a tour operator like us or not, we strongly believe a taste of another corner of the world is essential to understanding the entirety of it, and it’s a chance to get out of your comfort zone and live in the moment.

After all, we may work most weeks of the year, but it only takes one week or less to travel somewhere that can alter your perception of the world and experience things you’ll be talking about for years and years to come. Just in case you’re not convinced, here are a few reasons to use up that vacation time this year.

Taking vacation time is good for the body and soul.

It probably goes without saying that here at Tenon we are not health experts! However, our expertise is in travel and we can vouch for the benefits in taking regular breaks between work to help ease stress and prevent burnout. Switching it up a bit allows for some time to relax, reset your mind and get back into a restful headspace to continue to work—and you’ll probably be more efficient upon return. A little time to stop and smell the roses is always a good thing.

If you do travel abroad, remember you don’t always have to be on the go from to tour to tour. Many of our travelers request a healthy balance of attractions and downtime, and our Travel Specialists love helping them find that rest! Think: Finnish sauna, castle spas, yoga in Santorini…and maybe even some play time with baby lambs on an Irish sheep farm—that’s got to count, right?

You’re improving your personal relationships.

You may see your family every night around the dinner table, but having that ability to break out of a routine can spark more communication and opportunities to bond, whether that’s with a partner, your children, cousins, grandparents, etc. One of our favorite kinds of trips to plan is a multi-generational tour—hearing about grandparents, children and grandchildren connecting during a trip to Ireland or Scotland is rewarding. They’re discovering something new everyday, together, and bringing back stories they can tell for a lifetime.

Experiential learning, in our opinion, is the best kind of learning.

It’s immersive and hands-on: you can learn about most anything you’d like abroad, from history, art and architecture to cuisine, horticulture and sporting through firsthand experiences. You can have the opportunity to make fresh pasta in Italy or octopus in Greece if you have a spark for the culinary side of things. You might learn surfing on the golden beaches of Portugal, walk the ancient Roman baths in the city of Bath, or discover ancient architecture among a tour of intricate castle ruins in Spain.

This type of learning can be immersive, engaging and most memorable, and it provides a deeper understanding (and appreciation) of different cultures and their histories.

Traveling abroad offers opportunities to become adaptable.

Heading overseas will probably involve navigating a few unfamiliar situations, whether that means finding your way through a new airport, reading menus with little to no English or simply interacting with people in the destination.

While our main goal is to equip you with all the knowledge you may need while abroad, including travel guides, information on items like tipping etiquette, transportation, need-to-know phrases, you’ll still be experiencing individuals and situations you’ve never encountered before—and truly, this may be one of the most important parts of being abroad. You will overcome language barriers and interact with the world in a completely different way. This may make you more resilient, sharpen your self-awareness and help you connect with others around you.

You’ll come back feeling more imaginative.

Stepping away from work can increase your creativity! Time off allows your mind to relax and think freely, leading to fresh ideas and new perspectives. When you return to work after a vacation, you may find yourself feeling more inspired and motivated, which can benefit your work performance and problem-solving skills. You’ll also come back and look at your normal surroundings a little differently, which, to us, is invaluable.

Are you feeling inspired and ready to go? If you’re not sure where to start, we have a few favorite immersive, hands-on itineraries listed below. Of course, you can always Build Your Tour from the ground-up and a Travel Specialist will reach out to help!

Time to set that out-of-office email up—we can’t wait to hear about your trip.