Tips to keep the vacation feeling as long as possible

Summer vacation is over again for almost all of the Netherlands. Slowly we have to go back to work and household obligations. Do you know that feeling that you have completely lost the vacation feeling after 2 days of work? And that your memories of the vacation are already far behind you? We have a few tips to help you hold on to your vacation feeling for as long as possible. This way you can return to your daily life of work, children and household in a relaxed way.

Get back on track without stress

One of the most important things to avoid is having to go right back to work when you get back from vacation. Then you already shoot into stress right away because you have to unpack, wash, run errands and pretty much run to work at the drop of a hat. So make sure that you always have a few days of slack between coming home from vacation and your first day at work. It’s best to have at least 3 days of rest. Then on day 1 you can get in order from vacation, day 2 you can get to work on regular household chores and make sure you have everything ready for the first day of work and school, and on day 3 you can just relax.

Make sure you have a fun ending

Traditions are fun, but often also serve an important purpose. Namely, they help you usher in or end a specific period of time. For example, it can be a tradition to always eat at the same roadside restaurant on the way back from your vacation destination, or on the last day of the vacation, before everyone has to get back to work, to have a nice dinner out. At our house, the day after returning home, it is tradition to have dinner with the family at the local sushi restaurant. By now, the kids invariably count on this and find it a cozy end to the vacations.

Everyone spic and span again

It feels good to start with a fresh start after the vacations. Check if your children need new shoes or clothes and if all school supplies have been purchased. How nice it is when you walk into the schoolyard on the first day of school in your new clothes with a new school bag, pencil case or lunch box. Check out your own and your sweetheart’s wardrobe as well. Also, go to the hairdresser as a group so that your dried-out and just-too-long haircuts are completely sleek again to look well-groomed.

Also check your bikes if you need them on the first day of work and school. How much stress do you get when you find out at the last minute that tires still need to be inflated or even flat.

Keep your first day of work calm

Then, once you get back to work, you quickly slip back into daily habits. Make sure you get that very first day in order in a calm and relaxed manner. Keep your calendar empty for the first few days, allowing you to calmly go through your mail, catch up with colleagues and determine which things to pick up in which order.

Another smart tip: Give yourself some slack in your out of office reply. Report that you will be back 2 days later than in reality. This also keeps you from being bothered by phone calls and messages from colleagues and clients right on day 1.

Keep your vacation feeling as long as possible

Think about the things you do during your vacation that give you that nice feeling. Is it having some time to yourself with a good book or a magazine? Then keep up this habit when you get back home. Snuggle up on the couch with a book and a cup of tea instead of staring blindly at the television again. Also, try to leave as many other screens behind as possible. These also get you back into the daily grind far too quickly.

Were you doing a lot of walking or swimming during your vacation? You can do all that at home too so pick that up right away. Or stay in the vacation spirit by soaking up the atmosphere of our own little country. Have tapas in a Spanish restaurant, eat fish with your toes in the sand at a beach bar or eat Gyros at a Greek restaurant. That way your vacation feeling will come back a little bit.

Also, take some time after your vacation to pull out your vacation photos and movies. These are often quickly forgotten when you return home, but they give you a brief glimpse of the great vacation you had. Tip: Make a photo book to enjoy afterward. Or make a desktop background of the best photo, so that you are reminded of your vacation while you are at work.

Photos: www.canva.com