How Women Can Travel More — Even With A Full-Time Job

There’s something about travel – whether domestic or international – that gives us a fresh perspective. For some, it’s the break in routine, for others, it’s the change of scenery that’s much needed. For myself, I also find that stepping away from responsibility in ordinary, daily life is a must for my mental health. Only travel profoundly impacts my mental health in this way.

We, as women, need to travel more for pleasure and self-care, even when we have full-time jobs and full-time responsibilities. Traveling often, however, may be difficult to do. There are solutions, though, and realistic methods we can employ to get away for a few days, a week, or longer.

Long weekends, national holidays and other automatic time off are built into most folks’ work schedules. These are times to take advantage of as travel time, whether you’ve got a short or long trip in mind. Optimize these times to extend your travel time.

For example, a friend and I are planning a long road trip to see several states she’s always wanted to visit. She has a strict work schedule and only so many days off per year. For the trip, we’ve chosen a federal holiday weekend to kick off our vacation and this gives us an extra three days for the road trip.

One of my favorite travel options of late has been finding concerts my husband and I want to attend somewhere within a three-hour flight’s radius for a fun, fast weekend trip.

We each pack a carry-on and book the trip with the concert as our focal activity at the destination. Quick trips are often affordable, thanks to airline flash sales to lower-traffic destinations during non-peak seasons.

To increase your travel options, don’t just focus on trips overseas or to the other side of the country. Use your long weekends to give yourself a few days away from the office and personal responsibilities. A short break away from “reality” may help your mental, physical and emotional health, as well as improve your work-life experience, specifically by boosting positive emotions, increasing happiness and reducing stress levels.

You can also plan half days to extend travel time and shorten the amount of time taken off.

To travel more, establish an annual travel budget. That is, in December each year, plan your next year’s travels. Determine where you want to go, how often you want to travel (both short and long distance), and create a rough budget for each trip, based on the length of the trip, the location and the local costs for lodging, food and activities, as well as when you plan to travel.

Keep in mind that peak season for a location drives up prices on transportation, lodging and dining. If you can, avoid traveling during peak times to skip overly crowded airports, higher prices and long lines at attractions.

My personal favorite method for traveling more is budget travel. I skip eating out most of the time and rely on quick, easy meals like sandwiches and salads, or stay in youth hostels where kitchens are available for everyone to use for food preparation.

If you selectively choose your outings, walk whenever possible (great exercise and savings!), and choose budget-friendly lodging options, you can afford to travel to a lot more places more often.

For better travel, focus your adventures year-round on experiences rather than possessions.

Choose low-cost, free and key experiences as you travel, to amplify your travels. Instead of loading up on shopping trips and clothes you’ll wear once, you’ll wind up with amazing memories, less clutter at home and, in many cases, save a lot of money.

The reality is, if you have income above your base needs, you can travel more. You just need to budget and plan properly and employ the right approach to travel that works for you.

If you enjoy getting active, budget travel is a great way to go. If you prefer higher-end travel, you’ll need to save more and strategically plan your time off to take full advantage of your travel budget.