Who works harder? Aussies or Americans? What does this mean for tourism?

by Jamie Rhein on

In this article in the Sydney Morning Herald, Australians are touted as working the hardest out of people in the developed world.

Here are the statistics given to prove the point. In Australia:

  • Almost 60% of the people with full-time jobs don’t take all of their four-week vacation time.
  • Years of this practice have many people with 8 weeks of unused time.
  • Corporate men ages 35-49 with kids under 12 are the biggest culprits of this practice.

I find the statistics interesting since I don’t know many jobs in the U.S. where people have a starting vacation time of more than two weeks. Many begin a job with less than that. Many folks don’t even get a paid vacation. In order for people to have acquired eight weeks of unused time in the U.S., they would have had to have not taken ANY vacation for at least four years if they are the ones with the two-week time frame. In a Gadling post in 2007, Willy pointed out the U.S. statistics which don’t bode well for those looking for R&R on a beach somewhere.

However, given that if the Australian statistics are indeed correct, and who really cares anyway, the larger point that the article makes is important indeed. Unused vacation time means unspent tourist dollars. In today’s economy, tourism could be a big economic boost to many parts of both countries–Australia and the U.S.

In Australia, the not taken time equates to $31 billion in holiday pay. Yowza! Hoping to tap into the dough, Tourism Australia has a program called “No Leave, No Life,” in order to get the business community to buy into the idea of the importance of taking that vacation time.

I think the U.S. needs to tap into the idea of more vacation time, period. If people are given four weeks, they may take two at least.

As part of the campaign in Australia, and I’d bet the U.S., part of the TV and print ads need to address the issue of how important it is for dads to spend time with their children. AND show dads having fun doing it.

Anyone with kids who are bickering at home with each other and arguing about cleaning their rooms, or whining from the backseat, “How long before we get there?” may think that work is actually more relaxing than that family vacation.

Yet another bad -cation

by Tom Johansmeyer on

“Staycation” was shoved into our lexicons over the summer, as gas prices spiked and credit was squeezed. Now, with the cost of fuel well off its highest levels, the staycation has given way to yet a new flavor of the non-vacation variatoin: the “naycation”. I still don’t know why CNN can’t just say: “The economy sucks, and nobody can afford to drop big cash on a trip. Or, if they can, they’re too petrified to do so, because … well … the economy sucks.” Instead, they are a bit more helpful, offering nine reasons why travel is likely to be down in 2009.

Highlights:

  1. The “economy stinks” (CNN lacks my edge)
  2. Staycations were boring
  3. The deals weren’t good enough
  4. We’re looking ahead to 2010

Now, there are a few others, such as “we’re tired of being lied to.” The big one here is the price of jet fuel, which has dropped from more than $140 a barrel in August to below $50 in November. C’mon guys, why are you still spanking us with surcharges?

Even with all these other reasons, it all comes back to a precarious economy in 2009. Remember that the major layoffs of 2008, in many cases, won’t be felt until 2009, as severance packages run their courses. People with jobs are petrified, and would rather stick a few thousand dollars in the bank than in the pocket of a European hotelier.

[Via Christopher Elliott (not the one who played Cabin Boy) on CNN.com]

The Dutch by numbers

by Jamie Rhein on

This month’s issue of Holland Herald, KLM’s in-flight magazine is devoted to a numbers theme. For example, California’s Highway 1 is touted as being one of the world’s most scenic drives in an article devoted to pointing out the highway’s finer points.

Another article was perfect for in-flight reading. By browsing two pages filled with random statistics, I found out several interesting facts about the Dutch that might be useful to toss out at parties if there is absolutely nothing left to talk about.

Here are five of them:

  • In 2008, Sophie has been the most popular name for a girl, and Daan the most popular for a boy.
  • On average, women don’t marry in the Netherlands until age 32.7, and men don’t marry until 35.8.
  • When the Dutch want to go on a vacation, France is their number one destination.
  • The average Dutch person eats 16.7 kilos of cheese per year.
  • On average, a person in the Netherlands drinks 77.4 liters of beer per year. This is a considerable drop from the 300 liters the same person would have downed during the Middle Ages.

Here’s one more fact about the Dutch I found out. Each year, they produce 3 million pairs of clogs.

Get a tan and feel good about it.

by Annie Scott on

Catalyst Concierge, which was started by 29 year old Simone Callender, creates luxury Caribbean vacations for people who care about children.

Callender was inspired to found the company after a tenure as Governess to four children of a Middle Eastern Royal Family. Traveling the Caribbean with them, she always found the hotel concierge services, even at the grandest of resorts, insufficient. Special dietary needs? Need a private jet? Steel drum lessons? Got an unsightly rash? Callender is on top of all that.

I would imagine that dealing with four royal children for any length of time would make organizing the logistics of lying on a beach look pretty good. Most importantly, the company is doing good:

A portion of Catalyst Concierge’s profits go to benefit children internationally, including charitable organizations such as Keep a Child Alive, UNICEF, The Homeless Children’s Fund of America, and such as.

For sample itineraries and more information, visit the website! And feel good about it.

Volunteer honeymoons: Less traveled couple vacations

by Abha Malpani on

I’ve always been against doing things you are “supposed” to do, especially the stuff that society expects.

As an Indian girl from a large, well-to-do family, I’m expected to have a huge 5-day wedding and a long exotic honeymoon. Talking about both before and after event, as well as the unjustified amount of money spent on them, are a big part of the shenanigan which is why I’ve ruled them both out as a waste of time, energy and money.

However, if I ever get married, I’d bring honeymoon back into the picture if it was a volunteer holiday. Spending your newly wed time away traveling as well as giving back to society (rather than lounging on a beach drinking Pina Coladas for 10 days) validates the whole idea of spending money on a trip you are taking just because you got married.

Global Volunteers, an organization that places over 2,500 volunteers across 20 countries, says that honeymooners are increasingly choosing volunteer vacations as the perfect way to start their new lives together. The company has sent honeymooners to Tanzania, India, Peru and other places around the world where communities are in desperate need of assistance.

Google “volunteer honeymoon” and the options are abundant; of course because a volunteer honeymoon is really a volunteer vacation you are doing as a couple. It makes so much sense and I imagine that it would do wonders for both your relationship and the cause you choose to volunteer for.

So, where do you begin? Well, the folks at Mahalo.com have done all the homework and narrowed it all down for you in a feature that gives you the whole “how to” process. From whether you should go at all, to where you should go, how long for, where and when to register etc, the article is full of resource links to causes you might want to volunteer for as a couple, along with advice on how to go about it — so check out their full feature about how to take a volunteer honeymoon.