By Karen Espig

It has been well established that disconnecting from the workplace is vital to our overall health and well-being. However, if your vacation days are few or you are a busy business owner, getting away for a few weeks (or even days!) at a time might be challenging; introducing the workcation!

A workcation is you working but while away from your routine location. With the rise of remote and hybrid work models, it’s easier than ever, so let’s look at what it is and whether it’s right for you!

So Many Options

Whether you take a short (a few days), medium (a few weeks to a month), or long (many months or even years) working vacation depends largely on the nature of your work and your lifestyle. The good news is it can be highly personalised.

Digital Nomad Villages

For working vacations of a month or longer, there are now numerous digital nomad communities to consider. Many are in gorgeous locations in the Mediterranean and East Asia. They are already set up with quality internet and coworking spaces, not to mention a built-in social scene. A pilot project was set up in 2021 in the Madeira Islands, Portugal, and it continues to grow in terms of locations and services.

Coworking Spaces

There are now thousands upon thousands of coworking spaces worldwide that can be utilised for a few hours, days, or longer. So anywhere you’d love to take a vacation, there’s likely to be a suitable working option available. 

Coworking spaces provide a quiet environment with full services, which is especially beneficial if friends or family are with you at your destination and you need to escape to work for a while.

Dedicated Work Retreats

It is even possible for your boss to foot the bill! The savvy execs out there know that team building is good for business and employee retention. Be sure to opt into these opportunities if they exist in your workplace, or consider them when looking at your next job. Or why not put forward the idea and see if it sticks?

Working Holiday Programs

If you are between jobs or considering a change, several international programs (both volunteer and paid) allow you to work in new locations. This would be a great way to dip your toes.

Time With The Family

Kids are typically out of school for one or two long breaks per year; why ship them off to summer camp when you can rent an apartment on some far-off coast or a cottage nestled in the woods somewhere? You can have quality time together and share a travel experience with your kids.

If you have two weeks of vacation and your partner has six, it can be problematic for both of you to maximise the much-needed time away from work; a working holiday can be a terrific solution. One person can work, leaving the other to explore the destination or languish at the beach. At the end of the workday, there is ample time for both of you to enjoy local cuisine and culture.

Perks

There are many upsides to this type of work structure, a flexible schedule being one of them. You could work mornings, then break for a swim and lunch of local cuisine, followed by a siesta. If you have to, you can work a couple of hours in the evening to connect with other time zones.

There is the obvious benefit of being in a novel environment, whether in a big city like Paris or Bangkok or a village in Italy. It provides the opportunity to explore a new place, immerse yourself in a different culture, and try new cuisines or experiences.

Challenges

Of course, it’s not all beaches and sunsets. Creating a healthy work structure wherever you are is crucial to benefitting from the joys of remote working. You should be clear with your boss, coworkers, co-travellers, clients, and most importantly, yourself on your work hours, and stick to these boundaries. The key to success is communicating your availability with coworkers or clients.

You might experience a little FOMO (fear of missing out) if your work requirements occur during the best hours or days in a location. You may be missing out, but perhaps a perspective shift is in order. Here you are, working your butt off during the day, but in the evening you get to take a gondola ride through the canals of Venice or people watch from a café in Montparnasse… not too shabby, don’t you think?

There is a Victorian quote which was repeated by Winston Churchill and many others: “A change is as good as a rest”. So, if you have some flexibility in where and when you work, whether, for a few days or weeks, a workcation can help you feel physically refreshed and mentally nourished.