What 2020 Taught Me About Travel

The end of any year is a great time for reflection.  A time to evaluate and plan for the new year.  When the end of 2019 came around I was excited for 2020!  2019 had brought us the first year we had the pleasure of going on 2 all inclusive vacations in a single year and it was glorious!  The end of that year also saw the birth of this blog.  I was riding a high and felt like the coming year would be a continuation of what had begun.

2020 did start off as expected; our all inclusive vacation to Punta Cana happened in February, but even while on it we were watching as Covid-19 was spreading across the globe.  Little did we know how things would turn out.  Month after month it brought us the realization that our fall vacation would not happen. We talked about doing something closer to home, but we couldn’t commit to anything.

Summer brought good weather, which meant lots of time outside with friends and family.  Once the weather here in Wisconsin started to get colder the harder things became.  I felt myself getting more anxious and generally feeling down.

Finally, we made a plan to find a hotel for a weekend getaway.  The hotel needed to have a hot tub along with a microwave and refrigerator in the room, so we could bring snacks and drinks. A hotel we were already familiar with fit the bill, so we made a plan to go Thanksgiving weekend.  Just having a trip planned made me feel a little better.

Affiliate Disclosure:  There may be affiliate links on this page.  If you click on these links and buy something, Allinclusivetips.com may earn a commission with no extra cost to you.

What truly amazed me was what happened after we got back.  A couple days after we got back I felt like a weight was lifted.  I started to feel like myself again and the anxiety that had been built up was finally gone.

Lesson Learned

2020 taught me how important travel is to my well being.  It’s not just a oh it’s fun to go on vacation, there is a deep psychological need for me to travel, to remove myself from everyday life.  Even if it isn’t jet setting off to a tropical destination for an all inclusive vacation; I need to get away from home every now and then.  It allows me to decompress and reset; it’s great for my mental health!  It is truly an important part of my self care.  

Although this last year has been full of struggles it has also been full of lessons learned and I look forward to a lot more travel in 2021.  Travel has become such an important part of my life that I will do everything I can to prioritize it.  Do you feel this way about travel?  Has it become a part of you over the years?  

Tip: If you are interested in an all inclusive vacation then check out our first post on 10 Reasons For An All Inclusive Vacation Package.