Vacation Day Planning Time is Now! Is Yours on the Calendar Yet? 

Vacation day planning time has been a challenge to do this past year with the concerns of traveling in the time of COVID-19. But not anymore!  Sonoma County’s reopened and removed many of its travel-related restrictions in April.

So get out your calendars and check our dates- we are taking bookings NOW for your vacation! 

Do you have yours on the calendar yet? 

Don’t Stockpile Days Off~Use Them!

Every year more than half of Americans fail to use all their time off, creating a stockpile of  768 million unused vacation days, in 2018. And 236 million of those days were forfeited completely, totaling more than $65 billion in lost benefits.

Yet, while everyone says they want or even need a vacation, just a little more than half of America’s households actually set aside time to plan the use of their vacation time each year. This past year is not different. In fact, it may be worse with the pandemic ruining travel plans. As a result, many workers remain reluctant to take time off.

Did you find your work-life boundaries became blurred while many worked from home? You might even say they vanished.  Were you always on the clock if not for your company’s sake, then for your family’s the added tasks of home-schooling tossed in for good measure? 

NOW is the time to reward your exhausted and burned self and your family with a holiday,

Companies Offer Cash Bonuses for Taking a Vacation

Don’t be that exhausted worker any longer. Even your managers want you to get off the treadmill and start breathing again! Company managers have found that amid all the health and safety uncertainty plus worry that travel plans would be quashed due to the coronavirus, many employees continue to refuse vacation time. This has increased the worries of many managers across the nation who have even relaxed restrictions to allow the days to carry over into next year.  Others, for fear of having their staff burn out, are requiring employees to take their vacation. Others will gladly pay you to unplug, grab the family and go…anywhere… as long as it’s not back at work.

Take the Money and GO!

According to a recent article in the Wall Street Journal,  employers are practically packing up your backs and pushing you out the door with added cash in the hopes you return relaxed and ready to work. For instance, Google offers a bonus vacation day for those who book time off now.  PricewaterhouseCoopers, the accounting and consulting giant will pay its U.S. staff  $250 for every full week of vacation booked, up to $1,000 a year.

Key to Using More Vacation Time

Are your vacation days in that pile too? If they are, we offer you the most effective remedy to assure your vacation is not lost again this year.  

So, what’s the Key to Using More Vacation Time?

Planning!

National Plan for Vacation Day, on the last Tuesday in January, reminds us to plan our vacation at the start of the year for the rest of the year. But nearly half of American households (46%) don’t do this simple step—and they lose out on their time off and the benefits it brings. 

According to Project: Time Off, planners are more likely to take all their vacation time in a given work year and take more extended vacations than non-planners. They’re also happier with their jobs, relationships, and health, so don’t knock the planners who get out the door to vacation!

Jump in and follow their lead this year on January 28.

Get Planning!!

Sure, you’re thinking, “Just like those resolutions made one day and fizzled and forgotten when the sun comes up the next, You tell me all I need to do is plan and Bam! I’m on my way to vacation?!” 

Yup, that’s what I’m telling you. When it’s on the calendar and the reservations are made you are more likely to actually go.

Really! Planning a vacation doesn’t have to be a monumental task. With Project: Time Off’s vacation planning tool you can easily plot out your year. Really, we have the three easy steps to make it happen.

Just enter the number of days you earn, put your vacation dreams on the calendar, and use your custom link to get your family and friends involved in the planning.  

 Plan and Get it Done:

Digging Deeper For Successful Planning

Ok, I know, those three tips are easily stated.  But if you’re someone who continues to avoid booking a vacation it can still be a challenge. So let’s dig into these tips to make sure you actually are successful in enjoying your vacation time this year!

How Much Time for Each Trip?

Will you take a long weekend getaway, a 2-week trip, extended travel, or something in between? Depending on where you live and the amount of time you have to travel, certain destinations will make more sense than others. For instance for the North Bay Area of Californians a short trip to The Sea Ranch is a great 4-day vacation idea. If you have a week or two available and the funds then consider visiting another part of the country or even traveling to a foreign country. Of course, you could always return to Sea Ranch for an extended holiday and save on the airfare.

Match your time to your dream vacation to avoid frustration and making vows you’ll never take another vacation. This works whether you want a Zenful break from the stress of your life or want a trip that gives you the thrills of your life. Fit the event with the time to avoid traveling too far or cramming in too much.

Share Calendars with Your Travel Buddies

The practicality and success of any vacation trip will depend on who joins you or if you make it a solo trip.  Are you traveling as a romantic couple, with young children or teens, for a girl’s retreat or a guy’s getaway? If you are vacationing with others, be sure to invite them to help coordinate planning too.

Other things to consider include your comfort zone and your desire to test it. Are you hoping for a novel experience of repeating a favorite one? Naturally, seasonal weather preferences for your getaways are another factor in determining your destination. 

Book it and Put it on the Calendar

Now the only thing left to do is to actually write it on the calendar and book those reservations! 

To help you book your vacation safely and still have money to spend on your time away from the office be sure to review our three-part series that explains the mystery of booking fees and to instruct you on how to directly book vacation rentals and how to do it securely whether you stay with us or others.

So What’s Stopping You from Vacation Planning?

Are you still expressing any of these top barriers to taking a vacation?

• If I go on vacation I’ll just return to a mountain of work
• No one else can do the job 
• Taking time off is harder with seniority
• I cannot financially afford a vacation
• I want to show complete dedication

Let Go of the Martyr Complex

American workers’ martyr syndrome combined with a corporate culture of silence where negative perceptions thrive is the vacation killing culprit. As a result, you feel chained to your workstations rather than free to recuperate from the stresses of the job.

Even senior business leaders overwhelmingly recognize the importance of using time off. Tim Ryan of PricewaterhouseCoopers states, “100% physical attendance doesn’t equal 100% heart and mind, mental attendance.”  For that reason, he is pushing his staff out the door and paying them up to $1000  to rejuvenate.

Rejuvenating Power of a Vacation

Hopefully, now, you really do recognize the rejuvenating power of vacation. Vacation time is essential for strong bonds with family and friends, a productive workforce, and a fulfilled life.

When you take a vacation you’ll return to work relaxed and recharged. Nearly two-thirds of employees say their concentration and productivity at work improve with taking time off. This sentiment is echoed by senior business leaders. In fact, business leaders believe employees return from vacation recharged and renewed—and ready to work more effectively.

Time to ProActively Plan Your Sea Ranch Vacation

Now that you know how much time you have for vacation and you’ve committed to actually use those days, it’s time to fulfill those dreams. Of course, a Sea Ranch Vacation would be our first recommendation.  

Abalone Bay Announces Availability to Inner Circle Members

Naturally, we’d suggest you book Abalone Bay for that Sea Ranch Vacation! But as you know we are in the middle of a remodel project.

However, as our  Inner Circle learned we now have our calendar opened! Currently, we have dates available in time for a Christmas holiday! We expect to open up our 2022 calendar soon. So be certain you are signed up as an Inner Circle member now!

Remodel and Construction Progress

As a member of the Inner Circle, you’ll receive periodic updates of our progress. So far to date, we’ve completed…

In the living room:

• the addition of a western viewing picture window offers you a winter’s sunset viewing
  

New furniture and new views

• a larger, more efficient gas fireplace
• hardwood flooring
• updated furniture, TV, and decor

Conversion of the Garage into a  Game Room:

• Then
  

and now…

• bench seat under the window
  
• sliding barn (before above bench seating was added)
  
• on-demand water heater
• New decor, TV and of course games!

Addition of a two-car garage later in the Spring

Your Sea Ranch Vacation Resource

While we are closed, we suggest you visit our blogs to aid you in planning for your Sea Ranch Vacation. Then be sure you are a member of Sea Ranch Abalone Bay’s Inner Circle!