As you grow older, you learn a few things.
One of them is to actually take the time
you’ve allotted for vacation
John Battelle

Vacations are important.  Not only do you get to have some fun, but you get to relieve some stress.  In order to relieve that stress, it’s important to find the vacation that’s right for you.  Usually, we get caught up in taking a vacation that will please other people like our spouse or our kids.  But in order to truly relax while on vacation, you have to find something that works for you too.  You need to have the time to take your vacation.

I’ve found that I don’t like vacations with structure.  We once went to Disney and used the dining plan and it was a nightmare for me.  The stress of having to be somewhere at a specific time each night just wore on my nerves.  The following year, we planned a vacation with just one scheduled event and it was stress-free and relaxing.  We’ve learned not to over schedule our vacation.  Yes, there are some touristy things to do, but there’s also some relaxing that needs to get done.

If you’re the type of person who feels great after a jam-packed vacation, then go for it.  If that helps to re-charge your batteries so you can tackle work again, then it’s the perfect vacation for you.  I have a friend that’s like that and when I’ve gone on trips with her I needed a few extra days of vacation after those trips in which to recover.

How to Get Some Down Time

If your family likes a jam-packed vacation, but you need to have some downtime, you can still make it work for everyone.  Some ideas are to come back from vacation a day or two early.  Instead of arranging a 9-day vacation that starts on Saturday of one week and ends on Sunday of the following week, make it 7 days and come back on a Friday.  This will give you a couple of days to recover from the non-stop running around.  Or plan some downtime into the week.  For instance, for every two days of sightseeing or amusement parks, plan a day to relax at the beach or the hotel pool.  (You could always hope for rain!)

As I said, the key is to find what works for you and I know that for me, the best vacation includes beach time.  It helps me to slow down and recharge.  Especially coming off of a cold winter (heck, it’s cold in May!)  Chris and I are at the beach for the next week.  I hope you’ll get to enjoy a vacation soon, we all need a little less stress.