SURVEY SAYS: 2018 Summer Vacations

Last week, I asked NewsDash readers, “Are you planning a stay-cation or vacation this summer?” I also asked them to share their favorite vacation destination.

Very few responding readers (2.6%) said they do not plan to take a summer vacation. Among those who plan to take a summer vacation, 7.7% will take a stay-cation, 10.3% will visit family or friends, 25.6% will go to a place where they can wind down, and 38.5% said they would do more than one of these.

Asked to share their favorite vacation destination, Destin, Florida; Hawaii; Colorado; the beach; and the Outer Banks of North Carolina, were repeats. Responses included:

• Beach
• Destin, FL
• Aruba
• Any place that is different!
• Paris or Addis Ababa
• Las Vegas for fun and surrounding areas like Red Rock for relaxation.
• Anywhere with water: an ocean, a lake, a river, or all of the above.
• Europe
• Glenwood Springs, Colorado – world’s largest natural hot springs pool
• Boating in the Gulf Islands in British Columbia, Canada.
• Outer Banks, NC
• Just about anywhere out west where the scenery is beautiful is my idea of a dream vacation. The mountains, Canyonlands, wild animals, wilderness…
• Hawaii; Colorado and New York City
• The Grand Tetons
• Colorado. I love riding a motorcycle in the mountains. It reminds me of how insignificant I am in comparison to nature.
• Hawaii, but my husband and I are using these last years before retirement to explore the world while we are still working and earning a paycheck
• Rocky Mountain National Park
• Cold climates with dramatic scenery – Iceland, Greenland, Alaska, Canadian Rockies
• Cape May, NJ
• York Beach, Maine!
• British Columbia
• Theodore Roosevelt National Park
• Beach or mountains
• My favorite vacation is where everyone gets along, and I get to sleep in!
• St. George Island in Florida
• Any Caribbean island, Kitty Hawk, NC, and Savannah, GA.
• Kauai
• Camping out west – Colorado, Montana, Washington, Oregon
• Ocean Isle, NC
• Canadian Rockies
• Provincetown, MA on Cape Cod
• A little cabin on a lake in upstate New York!
• Ely, MN
• Sanibel Island
• My favorite vacation destination is going to a secluded beach and taking a nap on the beach. The family’s favorite vacation destination is Walt Disney World where it is the exact opposite.

In reader comments about summer vacations, a couple suggested that a “stay-cation” is not really a vacation or an opportunity to unwind. Many readers said they like to vacation at other times than the summer, and some noted that weekend trips can also be fun and relaxing. Because I live in North Carolina, Editor’s Choice has to go to the reader who said: “During the summer, I love the local opportunities around town like Carolina beach music concerts and Carolina shag dancing, summer festivals, etc. It gives you a time to wind down and relax on a weekday evening or weekend event that just makes the pressure and stress of the week easier to deal with.”

Thanks to all who participated in the survey!

Verbatim

One week on the beach. No computer. No cell phone. Nothing but a few good books. My brain needs to rest.

I like to go remote, out of the country, where the cost of WiFi is so egregious, it only makes sense to completely disconnect and leave everything behind – with the exception of my family (obviously).

It’s been a rough few years. I hope 2019 allows for true time off!

My favorite thing is to see new things. We aren’t really “sit around on the beach” people.

Those of us in the benefits industry are always under a lot of pressure. We wear many hats, are constantly under deadlines, deal with ever changing regulations and just in general are pulled in a lot of directions. An “unplugged” vacation is a must!

Now that the kids are all grown up and moved out, my husband and I have realized they don’t have to just be in the summer anymore!

Sorry but a stay-cation is NOT a vacation.

As a kid, our vacations were visits to relatives, most living a few hundred miles away. Occasionally we went camping. While I still visit relatives, I enjoy real vacations immensely.

Everyone needs one whether they think they do or not!

I have no kids so I prefer to travel during cooler, less crowded times

I have one of those jobs where vacation time is earned but can’t really be used. I have accumulated the maximum vacation hours but the work still must be done and no one as backup. I’ve not had a vacation in over 11 years. If I could, I would probably not vacation in the summer but in the off season to avoid crowds.

I love getting away and enjoying the sights of attractions in the U.S., but I am thinking I should go south for the winter instead.

My summer vacation this year will be spent moving into my new home! My West Coast vacation is being postponed until next Spring! Wins both ways!

During the summer, I love the local opportunities around town like Carolina beach music concerts and Carolina shag dancing, summer festivals, etc. It gives you a time to wind down and relax on a weekday evening or weekend event that just makes the pressure and stress of the week easier to deal with.

In addition to having fun, I know how important it is for my mental health to take time off and I don’t understand people who don’t use their vacation time!

With the exception of a long weekend to have fun, this year I will be doing grandma duty on my vacations. I love my kids and grandkids and can’t wait to spend more time with them, but I also miss the days of traveling to exotic and fun places.

Away…I need to go away.

I plan on taking a stay-cation for my birthday in May, and our trip vacation will be in the beginning of September.

We’ve done a staycation for the past couple years, and after a while the burnout reality sets in from failure to unwind. Staycations do not allow me to unwind, so this year we are going away,

I don’t believe there is a person alive who wouldn’t gain value from being around big trees (sequoias, redwoods, old-growth pines, etc.) at some point in their lives. It’s important to be humbled at least once by the sheer magnitude of life that large trees contain. Many places with such trees make fantastic summer vacation destinations!

I usually avoid them. Weekends here or there instead. Too many people/kids in summer. My vacation is actually 1st week of September still technically summer but less people, I hope.

I like to be productive during my PTO time. Every year I volunteer for a week with my church’s summer mission’s trip (this year we’re painting houses for individuals living at or near the poverty level)

Simply awesome – makes the rest of the year worth it!

Whether it is a vacation where we go somewhere else or a stay-cation to get things done around the house I always end up refreshed and ready to go!

My husband and I don’t usually do a summer vacation, we split 2 vacations up over the year (more like long weekends) so all the fun isn’t used up in the summer and you have something else to look forward to later in the year.

I enjoy staycations as well, just don’t have enough vacay time to do it all:)

We went camping with our oldest child when she was just 3 months old. Now that she is in her mid 20’s and expecting her first child, she and her husband are already planning their first camping trip after the baby is born. Runs in the family! What a great way to see this wonderful country, spend quality time with the family and enjoy nature.

My new favorite hobby is planning vacations. Love taking my boys to see new places.

Gotta have ’em!

Summer vacations are great for getting out and exploring the world around us. I like to travel locally to explore what is around my own state.