Is this the first time you hear about family vacations? If yes or you are new to that world, what comes first to your mind may not be the benefits, but the stress and cost they incur. After all, taking kids on a trip can be expensive – over $4,000 on average, according to a 2018 Bankrate survey. Most of the cost goes to accommodation and La Cabane Africaine is there to ease that burden by providing you with some of the most comfortable hotels and resorts throughout the world without effort and pocket breaking.
But research shows that vacations are not only good for us, they’re also good for our kids. From providing much-needed family time in our overworked world to making kids smarter, packing up for a family trip can be well worth the effort and expense.
Here are some of the major benefits of taking your family on vacation.
Vacations increase your productivity at work
If you plan to forgo a vacation this year, you’re not alone. Almost 50% of respondents told Bankrate they wouldn’t be taking a trip, and only 36% planned on using all their vacation days.
One of the top reasons most people cite for not going on vacation is the inability to take time off work. But research consistently shows that taking a vacation can help your bottom line by making you more productive when you are back at work.
In fact, several studies show that not taking a vacation can derail your career by leading to stress, burnout, illness, and depression. All of these can significantly impair your ability to focus, be creative, and complete tasks. As a result, your career may stall, and you may be passed over for raises and promotions.
A survey conducted by the U.S. Travel Association found that about 75% of children said their parents brought work home, and six out of seven said they brought work stress home along with it.
Parent’s inability to set work aside has significant consequences for kids. A study published in the Journal of Family Psychology found that the more stress parents experience, the less supportive they are when responding to their kids’ negative emotions. And children deal with plenty of their own stress; according to the Travel Association, 8 in 10 children reported experiencing stress daily. Other research shows that stress is on the rise among kids. For example, the American Psychiatric Association’s 2014 Stress in America survey found that teens’ stress levels are higher than adults.
When you take some time off work, it can help reduce your kids’ stress. The Travel Association survey found that 77% percent of kids reported feeling no stress at all when their parents made more time for family time. Even a single day off can help. While only 19% of kids in the survey reported being in a good mood on an average day, that number soared to 60% when parents took time off to spend with them.
Moreover, as parents, we can take future stress off our children’s shoulders by teaching them what’s truly valuable. Katie Denis, the author of the Travel Association report, tells the Harvard Business Review, “What worries me the most is we’re not only telling kids that working all the time is acceptable behavior, we’re creating a new norm. And if that’s the case, our kids are going to think it’s OK – and it’s only going to get worse.”
