Holidays are redundant?
Rethinking our relationship with travel.
Much of our relationship with work is defined by our "holidays". How many days off do you get from your job? Where are you going on your holidays?
There's also the type of holidays that are sold to us as aspirational. Is it going to be a beach holiday? Are you going to sit by a pool and "do nothing"? Is it an all-inclusive situation? How are you going to treat yourself before the holiday is over and you have to return to "real life"?
I'm not trying to be the fun police but I can't help feeling that holidays are a bit of a scam. Not in the sense that it may not be a good use of your money, but it accepts one of the fundamental constructs of capitalism - that because you work hard, you deserve to "go away" for a week or whatever because then you will be refreshed and recharged and ready to throw yourself back into the "daily grind".
Travel has always been aspirational but our idea of what a holiday is and what our travel adventures look like have been super-charged by social media. It's become a bit of a Pokémon quest - you've got to climb Machu Picchu, you've got to get that sunset photo on Santorini, you've got do the Cinque Terre walk.
The travel industry is a behemoth. Globally, it's estimated that consumers spend USD$7.5 trillion each year. The sector's total economic impact is believed to be somewhere around USD$120 trillion annually. About 1 in every 10 jobs around the world is directly connected to the travel industry.
But it's not an industry that treads lightly. On every day of the year, over 100K planes are flying around the world. "Carbon footprint" has become a bit of meaningless term, but the environmental impact of the travel industry is alarming - not least because it's one of the key drivers of the continuing demand for fossil fuels.
There's also the impact on local communities - for example, short term rentals fuelled by platforms such as Airbnb make housing inaccessible for people just trying to live their lives. In cities such as Lisbon and Barcelona this is reaching a crisis point.
Why do we do it? A harsh reality of holidays is that they're often disappointing - they rarely deliver on the fantasy that you've built up in your head. Whether it's delayed flights, inclement weather, or hotel mix-ups - things go wrong. You also end up doing things that are pretty much what you normally do, just in a different location. Are you making incredible memories or are you just distracting yourself from a life that is leaving you unfulfilled?
The obvious solution is, don't go on holidays. Stay home. Live your life. But that sounds like a total buzz-kill. However, reframing our expectations of what travel looks like is part of rethinking our relationship with work and what we're prioritising in life.
Ideally, we'd dismantle capitalism and figure out a more equitable way of operating our society that values and rewards everyone. But let's take it one step at a time.
What I'm advocating is the prioritisation of travel with a purpose. You could use the word "mindful" but that feels like it's trivialising the whole argument.
What does that mean in practice - to prioritise travel with a purpose?
If you've got time available in which you don't have to work, your default setting doesn't need to be: "I need a holiday". Before you start building your dream itinerary and throwing your credit card around, try asking yourself: "What would make me happy?" "What do I enjoy doing?" Then, try and use the time available to work towards that.
If you're in a relationship, you might conclude that what would make you happy would be to spend time with your boyfriend or your husband or whatever. Assuming that he feels the same way, that's great. But travelling to a holiday destination may be counter-productive. What do you enjoy doing together? Schlepping through airports probably isn't the answer.
You may decide that you want a holiday because your living situation isn't comfortable. For example, if your housemates are annoying you and the only way that you cope is to get away on holidays as often as possible, why not address the problem that you're avoiding? Use your time and your resources to create a home that works for you. Maybe that means changing jobs, or shifting cities, or starting over in some way, but that's where your energy needs to be.
If what would make you happy is improving your Spanish. it makes sense that you might want to visit a Spanish-speaking destination and totally immerse yourself in the language. Realistically, that's not Barcelona or Madrid where everyone you interact with is going to speak English. That's not going to be Ibiza or Torremolinos or Gran Canaria. Let's not kid ourselves, you're going to need to go a bit off-grid to get the experience that you're looking for.
If what would make you happy is spending time with your friends, a group trip can be a lot of fun, but it doesn't have to be overcomplicated. Just because you're turning 40 doesn't mean that everyone needs to drain their savings account to join you on whatever adventures you're planning.
I think that travel has most value where there is some element of personal development involved. Going on a yoga retreat in Costa Rica makes a lot of sense. Heading off to a cooking school in Sri Lanka makes a lot of sense. Cycling through the wineries of Burgundy to try and reconnect with your husband and save your marriage sounds like a bit of a long-shot but it's probably worth a try.
It's travel with a purpose.
If you want to lie by a pool and read a book while guzzling margaritas, I'm not judging you. But is that making you happy or is it distracting you from the reality of your life?
Maybe you don't need a holiday - you just need to rethink what's important to you.
Gareth Johnson