"He then hopped on a flight to Egypt, saw the pyramids, rode a camel and visited the Grand Egyptian Museum, all before returning to San Francisco in time for Sunday dinner.... Mr. Klempf is among the growing number of travelers, short on vacation time or looking to save money, who are embarking on whirlwind itineraries that take advantage of time zones and credit card points to string together one- to three-day trips."
That's the travel trend called "microvacations," from
"Travel Trends in 2026: Uncertainty, Face Scans and ‘Microvacations'" (NYT).
How awful!
I can see taking trips that are only 2 or 3 days, but not with all that time on a plane. Go somewhere nearer! But it seems people want "bucket list" credit, and there's nothing more bucket-list-y than the Parthenon and the pyramids.
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32 comments:
Maybe it's designed to make you appreciate work, and getting back to it.
After you run through your “Bucket List”, you can turn to your “Fuckit List”. The last one can be the most rewarding.
Go to Epcot
Worse that the "7 days, 4 countries!" tourist-bus packaged vacations once sold to little old ladies.
People used to make fun of american tourists rushing through Europe in two weeks (cf: If its Tuesday it must be Belgium) - now its cool. First speed dating, now speed touring.
If all you want to do is hit the tourist traps, its not a bad idea. you can see the Tower of london, the crown jewels, the changing of the guard, Westminster Abbey, and best museums and art shows of London in 3 days.
Bob McClane: What is it that is exactly the same about every single vacation you have ever taken?
Douglas Quaid: I give up.
Bob McClane: You! You're the same. No matter where you go, there you are. It's always the same old you. Let me suggest that you take a vacation from yourself. I-I know it sounds wild. It is the latest thing in travel. We call it the Ego Trip.
For the last few years, me and my wife (who is currently in Rome for work) have taken advantage of airline points, etc. to fly to Bermuda for a weekend for less than the cost of a weekend in NYC. We have a week in San Diego booked for March, total Airline ticket price:12 dollars. Part of a promotion my wife saw months ago. It cost us $695 to upgrade our CC in order to access the Lounges, etc. 3 trips in, I am sure we've had 300 dollars of "free" food and drink in the few trips we've taken.
This doesn't sound like a dumb idea to me, because I really dislike hotels. Even the "nice" ones are noisy (especially since they all seem equipped with heavy spring-loaded doors that loudly slam shut as people enter or exit their rooms all night long). Why spend hundreds of dollars for a worse night's sleep than I'd get in my own bed? Just seeing what I wanted to see somewhere and then going right home might not be so bad.
It is awful. My wife and I travel a lot, even more now that we're retired. We just got back in mid November from 16 days on the Island of Cyprus. Last year we spent 18 days in Morocco, the previous year 18 days in Egypt, and before that 18 days in Greece and Crete, etc. The worst part is the sardine cramped airplanes and the congested airports, so if you are going to endure the suffering of flying to get where you want to go, you might as well stay longer and enjoy things. And there really is a lot to do and see if you stay longer, and you can also slow things down to enjoy the ambiance. I suppose it would be different if you had your own private jet, but that's never going to happen to me.
We eschew Hotels for the most part. AirBnB (knock on wood) has always worked great for us. On the beach, alone in the full home, on St.Croix, cost us about $200 a night last month. It was heaven. No Marriot or Hilton can match that, though some are really nice for a night or two.
… and there's nothing more bucket-list-y than the Parthenon and the pyramids.
Damned right. And the ruins of Troy and Mycenae and Knossos. Also the Rijksmuseum and Van Gogh museum in Amsterdam, the National Gallery in London (and its counterpart in Washington), the Louvre, the art galleries of Glorence and Rome, a gondola ride in Venice, the Stadts Oper in Vienna, there are plenty of things for a bucket list in our wonderful world.
i wonder how much CO2 it saves, doing it all in less than 3 days?
i mean? CO2 is still a thing, isn't it?
or did the need for AI supercomputercenters nulify global warmingism?
Low density economy.
If you just want to see it, I think Google has great pictures. I plan on seeing them in person after the apocalypse clears out the crowds.
I can see taking trips that are only 2 or 3 days, but not with all that time on a plane.
Depends. Is he flying business class, or coach?
As somebody that flew internationally in order to work overseas, it seems ludicrous to me to structure an international vacation like a business trip, and imagine it would be pleasurable. Ugh. Not for me, nowadays. When I go somewhere it has to be for really good reasons, strong informed interests, and a desire to soak and steep - to learn something. He may as well have seen it from the plane's window.
"Depends. Is he flying business class, or coach?"
We fly business class and actually enjoy the flights. Airports, not so much. We are about to spend 70 days in one country. We like to live in a place for awhile.
We cruise, because it costs as much as flying without the stress of airports.
The effects of air travel on global warming apparently only occurs if you pay cash rather than use credit card miles. Good to know.
I’ve heard that quite a few people have been in such a rush to check the Grand Canyon off their bucket list that they fall in while taking the selfie. Fortunately it’s deep enough that they usually have time to post it before hitting bottom.
In my younger days I figured it wasn't worth using my 2 week vacation to go to Europe. I would be too rushed. So I moved there and got a job instead. That's the way to do it.
Original Mike said...
Me: "Depends. Is he flying business class, or coach?"
We fly business class and actually enjoy the flights. Airports, not so much.
Business class should get you into a decent lounge when you're in the airport :-)
When a little younger I flew twice to Asia for short stays for weddings. Third time my partner said no, we're not going. The last Asian wedding we skipped for covid.
"He then hopped on a flight to Egypt, saw the pyramids, rode a camel and visited the Grand Egyptian Museum, all before returning to San Francisco in time for Sunday dinner...."
Well, you can see the pyramids on the internet, and riding a camel is overated. Its just a horse with two humps. We liked sailing down the nile, but 10,000 other people were tryng to do the same thing.
Dangerfield : I knew a man who was so stupid the first thing on his bucket list was suicide. Bada-bing.
Business class should get you into a decent lounge when you're in the airport -
Not in Keflavik. That lounge was packed so one could barely find room to stand.
Couldn’t read the article and kinda wanted to. I need a new reader, since whatever Ten Tabs used to be no longer offers a way to do that on a lot of paywalled stuff. Got the suggestion from someone here years ago and would welcome one again. For iOS
Anyhow… My Ex was a Flight Attendant for Delta. Marry Me, Fly For Free. Back in the day when non-revenue passengers had to dress in coat and die or business clothes for the ladies since back then it was almost always up in First Class. (Not a big deal generally, but let me tell, stepping off a plane on a dirt landing strip in the middle of the Amazon for a 8 day fishing trip is freaking brutal!)
My Ex was just senior enough to pick up a Europe trip or Hawaii trip every few months and I’d often go depending on work. And she knew how to get the ones that had a day or two layover. We did Thanksgiving in Amsterdam one year which left Thursday and returned on Sunday. Just Amsterdam. Or just Oahu. Or just BVI, Belize, etc. But I could also non-rev solo and would take weekend trips for fishing.
I really liked it. A bit of a dopamine hit flying to spend a day and maybe a half on Maui. I couldn’t do it now, as I’m 60 and need a day and a half just to sleep once I got there but I totally get it.
Alas it was not forever. I was however able to hang on the benifits for a year while we squabbled in court over division of assets and stuff: all of our stuff was my stuff and she had no stuff so got all my stuff.
And one regret. That L1011 we flew to Amsterdam had an elevator for the crew to go down to the galley to prep meals and also to take breaks and take turns getting some sleep. My Ex took me down to see it, pretty cool for an airplane kitchen and wife took a nap and I read a book. Went back up and all the other FA’s had grins on their faces and giving me knowing looks. And then I realized…
This strategy is fairly routine in Japanese culture. I've heard of "long weekend" trips from Japan to NYC, or DC, or Rome. Travel time can be ~24 hours each way, plus a couple marathon days downtown and in museums.
Team Japan tends to take short vacations all at the same time (e.g., "Golden Week" every spring), and they comment about how Americans and Europeans visit for "very long" 2-week vacations.
"Business class should get you into a decent lounge when you're in the airport :-)"
It does, and that's nice. It doesn't get you out of the crowds and the lines; though you do get to board the plane first. That's a big perk.
It really does make flying more civilized.
The NYT omitted the formerly obligatory fretting about "carbon foot prints" and "climate change." Oh, the humanity!
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