Scientists say: Don't plan your vacation in detail
If you want a true break, avoid planning your vacation in detail. Make only an overall travel plan
Doing so will leave room for the new and unexpected. You will also get to know new people.
That's the conclusion in a new study from Breda University of Applied Sciences in the Netherlands.
The scientists say that we really need vacations in today's world of stress-related issues such as depression, burnout, and loneliness. It is a basic need.
The trouble is, however, that a fully planned vacation that is organized to perfection in itself creates stress, the scientists say.
"Paradoxical," conclude researchers Marcel Bastiaansen and Ondrej Mitas of Breda University of Applied Sciences.
"To have an optimal vacation experience, it is precisely essential to be open to the unexpected and unplanned. That very experience makes for an optimal vacation feeling and reduces stress."
Breda University of Applied Sciences conducted research into experiencing leisure and vacations in the Experience Lab by directly measuring emotions from the body and brain with the aid of psychophysiological and neuroscientific techniques.
They also used questionnaires and interviews. Various research projects showed that specifically non-scheduled experiences create the most positive emotions and hence, the most memorable experiences.
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"The funny thing is that we in Western societies are inclined to organize our vacation in the same way as our work: carefully planned and organized, selected, and prioritized.
"As a result, we run the risk of no longer being open to spontaneous experiences, such as making real contact with somebody in a destination or unexpectedly exploring an authentic market or church that you come across.
"That's a shame because we deprive ourselves from an optimal experience and the relaxation we need so much."
Breda University of Applied Sciences (BUas) is a specialist and internationally oriented higher education institute in the Netherlands, Breda, with study programmes in the field of Tourism, Leisure & Events, Hotel & Facility Management, Built Environment, Logistics Management, Game Design, Creative Business, and Data Science & AI.