By Bruce Oliver, Luxury Travel Adviser

As a youth, I listened to my elders say, over and over, that
the one thing they wish they had done more often was take longer vacations when
they had their young families. Seldom did someone say I wish I had worked more.
Couples who wait until retirement to travel may have lost their opportunity to
travel while they were together or in good health. Now, one woman said, he’s
passed and it’s too late. Another said, “When we were young, we thought that
we’d be healthy forever. But now I must go for dialysis and it’s too late! (Not
really, many cruise lines can accommodate people on dialysis.)

I love everything about travel. Early in life I always made
time to go somewhere new. Maybe it was because I belonged to a Scout Troop that
always took us on vacations to Washington, D.C., World’s Fairs in Montreal and
New York City or destinations that the average boy would never visit. As an
Eagle Scout, I was awarded a 30-day bus trip across the United States to hike
for twelve days at Philmont National Boy Scout Reservation in Cimarron, NM.
Today, I plan and use my vacations because I tend to be a workaholic. I plan a
two-week vacation at least once per year and each quarter I have weekend trips
to look forward to. This is especially important when things get difficult.
Life is a sine wave with ups and downs. When the down periods come, I always
say, but I’m going on a cruise in a few weeks. Knowing this helps me cope with
the downs and I am more productive.

As a matter of fact, productivity experts have discovered
that the longer it is between vacations: “Fatigue sets in, rigidity applies,
and all creativity and innovation are lost — both of which need time away for
other activities to increase the probability of new ideas,” said Lotte Bailyn,
an MIT researcher and author of the book “Breaking the Mold: Redesigning Work
for Productive and Satisfying Lives. (Bailyn, 2006)” “Unhealthy overwork
costs company’s money for healthcare and creates stressful and unrewarding
lives, both of which detract from the good work they are supposed to be
furthering.”

Everything that I’ve read says the same thing. The more and
longer vacations that you take, the more productive you will be when you get
back to work. I feel best coming back from a two-week vacation (I don’t mean
visiting relatives to paint their house either.) It usually takes me 3-4 days
to begin to relax and the balance of the vacation is full of rest and
relaxation. I’ve gotten to the point that the only time I say I’m on vacation
is when I leave the country and get away from the phone which I answer 24/7 and
my normal regiment.

According to Ellen Galinsky, President of Families and Work
Institute, the longer your vacation, the less stress you’ll feel. People’s
stress levels dropped significantly when they took over 6-days and more as they
approached 13 or more consecutive days away from work and their regular routine
life. Families participating in these vacations tend to be less depressed and
form tighter bonds with other family members (Ellen Galinski, 2014). It’s true, my
siblings and I often talk about the time we spent camping each summer at Lake
Ossipee in New Hampshire or at Clinton Beach in Connecticut.

Galinski says: “Knowing that skipping vacation stifles creativity, creates health problems, leads to stress, depression, and less-than-ideal home lives, it seems as if companies would make vacation enforcement a priority. But with a few exceptions, the experts say that is not happening.