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Should I go on vacation?

A

Andy T

Senior member
So I got 2 weeks off at the beginning of September. Original plan was to go on vacation somewhere. I live in the North East, and was thinking going to DC and driving down various historical sites through VA, DE. However, I am not really excited about that or just going anywhere.
It has also been a few years since I have gone on a vacation other than staying around the house.
Any other vacation suggestions? I may even consider Europe, although it may be a little short notice.
 
few years since a vacation wtf, i'll never get people like that.

anyways, i'd say to fly down to the caribbean since flights are pretty cheap from the east coast to get down there. i live right by DC and go into VA often so coming around here isn't "vacation worthy" to me heh.
 
You know, I skipped vacations for 3 years because I thought I didn't need them. It ended up making me bored and hateful of my job and everything around me. We took a vacation for 2 weeks this year on a nice beach, we ate some great local food, saw some awesome sights, and did some adventurous things I've never done before. When I got back, I was refreshed and saw everything in a whole new light.

People really need to get away and experience a different sphere of influence once in a while. It's like a recharge for your soul 🙂
 
Go on vacation and enjoy yourself -- you only live once and while you're young and able-bodied, you should see the world.

You are probably not going to be able to do Europe at this stage unless you go through a travel company with last-minute deals, but you can certainly try. Best prices on airfare for Europe are typically between 30 and 60 days out. At 60+ days out, tickets to Germany were $1320-$1350. I waited another couple of weeks and at 53 days out, scored airfare at $1024 per ticket. Once it hits that magical 30 day out period, they go way up. I think you can still score last minute deals but it is risky and you'll probably get stuck on crappy middle seats that are leftovers.

EDIT: I just did a quick look at prices for airfare to Dublin from 9/1 to 9/15 and the ticket was $955. Normally, that ticket is in the $700-$850 range.
 
purbeast0 said:
few years since a vacation wtf, i'll never get people like that.

anyways, i'd say to fly down to the caribbean since flights are pretty cheap from the east coast to get down there. i live right by DC and go into VA often so coming around here isn't "vacation worthy" to me heh.
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Yeah, another option for a cheap, last-minute get away is an all-inclusive on the Mayan Riviera. You can get those for well under $1500/person/per week and even under $1000/per person/per week.
 
purbeast0 said:
few years since a vacation wtf, i'll never get people like that.

anyways, i'd say to fly down to the caribbean since flights are pretty cheap from the east coast to get down there. i live right by DC and go into VA often so coming around here isn't "vacation worthy" to me heh.
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Not everyone values vacations as much as others.
 
Andy T said:
Don't have a firm budget. Thinking of a few k. More or less if necessary.
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Check out www.google.com/flights/explore if you aren't firm on a location or date. It will show you an entire region like 'Caribbean' or 'Europe' and with the price listing for dates and times for those locations. Mouse over one of the price bars on the bar graph to see the flight details and then there should be a 'Book' option where it takes you to whatever site it found the price on (Priceline, United, AA, Orbitz etc) and puts in the pertinent booking information.

I don't know where you are in the NE but Logan airport usually has some great options. Looking at them St Thomas in the Caribbean would be around $300 RT for many days in Sept, Grand Cayman ~$320, Aruba ~$354

For Europe lots of options under $800 RT like Olso, Stockholm, Moscow, Milan, Dublin, Shannon. Quite a few more under $950

One note of caution: That site doesn't seem to be able to list every option for a large region so if you narrow it down more to say 'Western Europe' or even 'Germany' you might find even better pricing

If you know the dates you need\want to travel https://www.google.com/flights/ does a bit better at showing all the airfare options
 
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Anubis said:
Not everyone values vacations as much as others.
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yeah obviously, and i don't get that.

why work for 3 years straight without using your vacation days that are given to you for vacation? i think a lot of people who don't really value vacation/traveling have just never experienced it.

but yeah, to each their own. doesn't mean i have to understand it heh.
 
purbeast0 said:
yeah obviously, and i don't get that.

why work for 3 years straight without using your vacation days that are given to you for vacation? i think a lot of people who don't really value vacation/traveling have just never experienced it.

but yeah, to each their own. doesn't mean i have to understand it heh.
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I love vacation but now that I'm a contractor any time off means I'm forgoing a lot of money.

OP, how old are you and are you travelling alone? Back when my wife was single she used to go by herself on contiki international tours. Lots of hookups which is typical but she made a lot of good friends from the experiences as well.
 
blackdogdeek said:
I love vacation but now that I'm a contractor any time off means I'm forgoing a lot of money.
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I switched to being a contract consultant last year as well. It sucks not making money during vacations, but I still take them because it is necessary for my mental health AND for me to accomplish some of the goals and see some of the places I've always wanted to see. I was fortunate in that the raise I got (turned out to be 60-70%), I can afford to take a ton of vacation and still be way ahead of where I was on my last staff job. Plus, I have a lot more flexibility and no set vacation time now.
 
I am in the mid 30's. I did the whole "backpacking/hostels" in Europe thing 10 years ago. I do like the Caribbean suggestion. I was in Riviera Maya with an ex, but may go there by myself and do a few excursions.

blackdogdeek said:
I love vacation but now that I'm a contractor any time off means I'm forgoing a lot of money.

OP, how old are you and are you travelling alone? Back when my wife was single she used to go by herself on contiki international tours. Lots of hookups which is typical but she made a lot of good friends from the experiences as well.
Click to expand...
 
Andy T said:
So I got 2 weeks off at the beginning of September. Original plan was to go on vacation somewhere. I live in the North East, and was thinking going to DC and driving down various historical sites through VA, DE. However, I am not really excited about that or just going anywhere.
It has also been a few years since I have gone on a vacation other than staying around the house.
Any other vacation suggestions? I may even consider Europe, although it may be a little short notice.
Click to expand...

If you like scuba diving, snorkeling, jungles, jaguars, cave tubing, waterfalls, deep sea fishing, coral reefs, water sports etc. etc.

I recommend Belize. About two hours from Miami by plane.

Ambergris Caye is a good spot for coral reefs and water adventures.

http://ambergriscaye.com/pages/town/barrier.html


"Belize has three of the Western Hemisphere’s four coral atolls and the second-longest barrier reef on the planet. Bowing only to Australia’s great one, the Mesoamerican Barrier Reef stretches for 700 miles along Central America’s western Caribbean coast. It’s protected as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and is home to 500 species of fish and 65 stony corals. Gorgeous drop-offs lining the offshore atolls and cays are riddled with the dens of loggerhead turtles, green moray eels and a host of small stuff. And on the mainland, this tiny country packs enough big adventures to satisfy your inner explorer."

http://www.scubadiving.com/photos/top-100-belize


"August 2014 edition of Scuba Diving magazine, Belize has been deemed a Central American Paradise that has "earned a host of 2014 Top 100 Readers Choice Awards." It has been awarded for its big animals, wall diving, underwater photography as well as the Caribbean and Atlantic's best overall destination. Overall, Belize was pointed out as a choice destination with authentic and dynamic experiences."


I can recommend cheap Hotels and steer you away from"tourist traps" if you are on a serious budget.

Cheers.........
 
IndyColtsFan said:
I switched to being a contract consultant last year as well. It sucks not making money during vacations, but I still take them because it is necessary for my mental health AND for me to accomplish some of the goals and see some of the places I've always wanted to see. I was fortunate in that the raise I got (turned out to be 60-70%), I can afford to take a ton of vacation and still be way ahead of where I was on my last staff job. Plus, I have a lot more flexibility and no set vacation time now.
Click to expand...

I'm in a similar boat in that I'm making significantly more now than I was previously so we do take vacations but only at most 2 weeks off a year.

Andy T said:
I am in the mid 30's. I did the whole "backpacking/hostels" in Europe thing 10 years ago. I do like the Caribbean suggestion. I was in Riviera Maya with an ex, but may go there by myself and do a few excursions.
Click to expand...

Contiki isn't really hostelling/backpacking. It's more arranged bus tours and decent hotels with other single people.
 
Remobz said:
If you like scuba diving, snorkeling, jungles, jaguars, cave tubing, waterfalls, deep sea fishing, coral reefs, water sports etc. etc.

I recommend Belize. About two hours from Miami by plane.

Ambergris Caye is a good spot for coral reefs and water adventures.

http://ambergriscaye.com/pages/town/barrier.html


"Belize has three of the Western Hemisphere’s four coral atolls and the second-longest barrier reef on the planet. Bowing only to Australia’s great one, the Mesoamerican Barrier Reef stretches for 700 miles along Central America’s western Caribbean coast. It’s protected as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and is home to 500 species of fish and 65 stony corals. Gorgeous drop-offs lining the offshore atolls and cays are riddled with the dens of loggerhead turtles, green moray eels and a host of small stuff. And on the mainland, this tiny country packs enough big adventures to satisfy your inner explorer."

http://www.scubadiving.com/photos/top-100-belize


"August 2014 edition of Scuba Diving magazine, Belize has been deemed a Central American Paradise that has "earned a host of 2014 Top 100 Readers Choice Awards." It has been awarded for its big animals, wall diving, underwater photography as well as the Caribbean and Atlantic's best overall destination. Overall, Belize was pointed out as a choice destination with authentic and dynamic experiences."


I can recommend cheap Hotels and steer you away from"tourist traps" if you are on a serious budget.

Cheers.........
Click to expand...

Wow! That sounds like an awesome place for me to consider for a vacation. (This reply to mark this post for future reference.)

OP, you don't even need to make formal reservations to have a vacation. Hell, you could just get in your car and drive until something sounds interesting. We're about to head to Myrtle Beach; and while we have reservations for a few nights down there, we're sort of winging it for a day or so prior to our reservations, and for a couple of days after the reservations. That is, just more or less driving in some direction until something that sounds interesting to both of us pops up.

This will be vacation trip #5 this summer; I'm doing my best to make up for the people who don't enjoy taking vacations. Been trying to decide where to go for the 3 day Memorial Day Weekend - NJ? 1000 Islands?
 
after i get my open water certification in a few months, i plan on taking a trip to belize for sure to scuba dive. belize has been on my radar for a long time and just never went to it because i've been going other places, but i know it's supposed to be awesome for scuba.
 
purbeast0 said:
after i get my open water certification in a few months, i plan on taking a trip to belize for sure to scuba dive. belize has been on my radar for a long time and just never went to it because i've been going other places, but i know it's supposed to be awesome for scuba.
Click to expand...

I have a beach house on Ambergris Caye and go there a lot. Feel free to ask me my opinions about any Hotels or other tours you might be interested in. I can also recommend some safe and reliable tours as well.

Guys please remember that Belize is more for that fit and adventurous traveler depending on the areas you want to go to. I have seen many "fat" and out of shape tourists cry about walking on long jungle trails and exerting some type of physical exercise. Getting to some areas can be a true adventure indeed.

http://raggamuffintours.com/2012/06...el-destination-by-travel-and-leisure-readers/

http://www.slickrock.com/belizethingstodo.html
 
Remobz said:
I have a beach house on Ambergris Caye and go there a lot. Feel free to ask me my opinions about any Hotels or other tours you might be interested in. I can also recommend some safe and reliable tours as well.

Guys please remember that Belize is more for that fit and adventurous traveler depending on the areas you want to go to. I have seen many "fat" and out of shape tourists cry about walking on long jungle trails and exerting some type of physical exercise. Getting to some areas can be a true adventure indeed.

http://raggamuffintours.com/2012/06...el-destination-by-travel-and-leisure-readers/

http://www.slickrock.com/belizethingstodo.html
Click to expand...

yeah will do for sure. i know a lot about what to expect in belize so i know it's pretty adventurous, and that is what i like on vacations as does my wife. i actually ended up NOT going there because after the research i saw that there aren't really any nice sandy beaches, and the ones that there are, are pretty rocky anyways. and that is the types of places we've typically wanted to go to (aruba, maui, turks and caicos, barbados, bahamas), but once i get my scuba cert and feel more comfortable in the water, the blue hole is on my bucket list!

and yeah, i've never been on vacation alone to any of these exotic places, but if i was single, i would do it in a heartbeat. especially a place like cancun where the party life is insane.
 
You can find vacation packages anytime of the year, to anywhere. Look on any travel sites for all inclusive packages. Just go.
 
Anubis said:
Not everyone values vacations as much as others.
Click to expand...
814b531c2c2b9de4725b510a5a423a4c.jpg
 
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