What constitutes a vacation for you and your family?

[philos]

So when you are considering vacation plans what are your "qualifiers" for a vacation?

Is it distance? For some a vacation must be a plane ride across country-others a few hours drive.

Is it in a place that is a vastly different landscape or climate from where you live/work? Do you escape heat in summer or cold in winter?

Do you try to get away from what you do for living? If you are a marine biologist do you shun coastal vacations? If you work on a dude ranch out west do you crave sand and saltwater?

Will a long weekend suffice or must your ideal vacation be at least 7 days? Do you consider a solo trip as vacation? Do you even go on vacations?

Ever gone on a vacation with no plans/reservations or fixed itinerary?

Yes I am a curiosity driven nerd so indulge me with your thoughts.

 

[lak2004]

If I have a decent chance to relax and not think about all the crap at home, I consider it a vacation. Oh but it has to include fishing, the wife loves that anywhere we go, I figure out some way to fish. Distance is irrelevant for us, more about the escape of the day to day.

 

[hunterjmj]

Our yearly family vacation is to the Hunt Expo. It's middle of winter, there is shopping for the wife, hunting stuff for me, lots of kid stuff for our kids and we stay at a nice hotel. This was our first vacation as a family so it's turned into tradition. We all look forward to it.

Summer vacations are usually visiting family as both sides live 1000 miles away in opposite directions. They aren't necessarily vacations but needed as it's family.

Mini vacations we do several times a year in Billings, Bozeman or Great Falls. 1-2 nights in a nice hotel, eating out and shopping.
It's fun for the kids, needed for the wife and I don't mind getting away sometimes.
Sometimes we'll just hop in the truck and go to Sheridan, lander or whatever for the heck of it.

 

[fngTony]

Wife and I share a desire to see new places. So seeing new places, disconnecting from the daily grind, fortunately my work can’t travel but my wife’s can so we have to plan around that.

Local activities are fun to try or just observe different life styles. Usually we look for outdoor activities that aren’t too common near home (hence why we haven’t been to other mountain states).

Different climates are fun, what I thought was a biblical hurricane was just a brief downpour.

 

[Pony Soldier]

What's a vacation? I spent 37 years on the job, camping in one wilderness or another for 6 months at at wack. I'm not sure what I would do differant than what I do all the time.

 

[cnelk]

I grew up on a farm and doing construction. No family vacations. Always working.

Never been on a ‘vacation’. My vacation time earned at a job was spent working around home or hunting / fishing.

 

[JFK]

A vacation is time where you are just enjoying yourself. Doing what you want, when you want to. Could be a car ride or a plane ride away. More and more I’m trying to do longer stays. 10-14 days is a lot of fun and really allows us to do/see more, as well as fully relax.

 

[Trackerbacker]

What's a vacation? I spent 37 years on the job, camping in one wilderness or another for 6 months at at wack. I'm not sure what I would do differant than what I do all the time.

Yall looking for an apprentice or intern?

 

[Pony Soldier]

At nearly 72 - not really but I don't regret a day. The agencies I worked for used to hire 30-40 students per year. I wasn't as lucky and only got help occasionally or dragged my wife and kids along. Lots of memories!

 

[Tradchef]

Never been on one

 

[Rob5589]

We like to travel but that could be just 5 or so hours away from home. We like a relaxing spot, great eats, fun stuff to do.

 

[Pony Soldier]

A good friend of mine told once that the minimum vacation had to be at least 10 days. That's three days of mentally finishing the work you left undone. Then 5-6 days of actually enjoying doing something else. The last days of the vacation is spent mentally preparing for going back to work.

I guess that is why I took every day of my vacation hunting since 1990. With the gov't holidays added in it gave me 30-35 days to escape the world.

Most of that for me to plan for goose hunting in december. Truely a civic endeaver to save the world from drowning in goose poop.

 

[Fjellvei]

A family vacation is a really nice event in a place conveniently located where I may have a big game tag. During this time I also like to negotiate a scenario where i disappear for a responsible 24hrs to observe wildlife.....

 

[MattB]

For me, it is getting my wife away from home and the chores and routine. When I was working, it was putting me in a situation to disconnect from my job. Pony Soldier's comment above about the 10 days (3 days on the front end to disconnect and 1 day on the back end to prepare to return) is spot on.

We generally go to Cabo for a week each year and do some vacation around travelling around the state to see family. I tack 2-4 weeks away from the family hunting each year on top of that.

 

[Nykki]

My vacation for most of my career was spent moose hunting, I got two weeks a year. Had a lot a of memorable times out with the wife and partners. Working the oil patch or construction it was usually seventy or more hours a week so hunting season was our only down time.

 

[displacedtexan]

Change.

We've done resorts and cruises in the Bahamas and South Pacific in the winter. Gone north in the summer. Visiting family or friends. 5-11 day road trips will little or no itinerary. Slept in tents, hammocks and the vehicle.

Got a Jamaica all inclusive in March for our 20th, an Alaska cruise in September. Some days sleeping on BLM/NF land in between. I'll be back on BLM land in October.

 

[Michael Rankin]

Family vacation to me means we are off work, and away from home.

 

[Marble]

For some of those who don't take vacations, I imagine it's because you really truly loved what you were doing everyday.

But others postpone and put off things they have wanted to do all of their lives. There isn't always a next time. Don't delay life experiences.

Sent from my SM-G986U using Tapatalk

 

[Rich M]

My wife’s idea of a vacation is to sit at a cabin or on beach. Maybe go out to eat a time or two.

As an overall family thing, miltiple generations kind of trip, usually a fishing trip somewhere.

If we're talking about satisfying wants & bucket lists - don't delay for too long. Don't go into debt over it but don't wait til you retire or anything like that. Like the NR & 90/10 stuff, you might not have an opportunity if you wait too long.

Timeframe - at least a week. A long weekend is just that, a long weekend.

 

[Boarmaster]

Any time I am away from home for overnight. I have short vacations and long vacations. From weekends to up to three weeks. I always work during vacations so I never even consider that in the definition.