Despite feeling like you could be vacationing forever, there is actually a point it starts getting a bit old.
It’s no secret that most of us probably plan meticulously to optimize the amount of time we can be on holiday (and of course, try to avoid those dreaded school holiday spikes).
Not that you need convincing, but traveling has health benefits like on your mental health, helping you relax, detox, and forget about the distant realities of work.
But science says to get the most out of it, your holidays should ideally be seven to 11 days long.
Researchers at the Finland’s University of Tampere said the reason behind this holiday length being a perfect time is work-related stress.
Though some people couldn’t be further from thinking about work, others start worrying about their tasks and responsibilities piling up back home.
If you only go on holiday for a day or two, you don’t have enough time to switch out of work mode. If you’re gone for two weeks or more, you start to worry about all the work that’s not getting done while you’re away.
So to properly relax without being bogged down by work-induced stresses, you should take no more time off than just a bit over a week.
‘Vacations represent the longest period of temporary absence from work and may, therefore, constitute a more powerful respite opportunity than shorter rest intervals,’ said researchers. ‘Employees are often unable to recover sufficiently during short respites from work due to increasingly permeable boundaries between work and home domains, long working hours, working overtime and prolonged physiological activation as a result of preoccupation with work. ‘Our results showed that health and wellness rapidly increase after the start of the holiday and seemed to peak on the eighth vacation day.’
The study was small and only included 54 participants which mean it may not be completely generalizable.
Respondents who took part were also aware of the study and therefore may have stressed over work commitments more than usual. If you are planning a staycation or jetting off to the likes of Spain or Thailand, think not only of the most-cost effective length of time (you want to get your money’s worth after all) but also how likely your mind is to drift off to work.
