How many of you unplug while on vacation? I ask because on my last vacation, I spent half of it unplugged.

While visiting family and friends in Michigan, I stayed with a friend who doesn’t have cable/satellite television or Internet service at her home. Though it was refreshing, it was quite strange to not be connected.

This got me thinking, when did the shift happen to where we must always be plugged-in? Growing up, my family had a black and white television with five channels until I was 10 and a rotary phone until I left for college. The only electronics we took on vacation were Walkmans with those clunky cassette tapes.  We spent more time on our vacation interacting with each other, exploring the local culture, talking, and laughing. We really did know how to live and relax.

Today we are always running, even on vacation. We are always connected or plugged-in. According to dictionary.com, the definition of vacation is “a period of suspension of work, study, or other activity, usually used for rest, recreation or travel; recess or holiday.” Do you unplug while on vacation?

For your next vacation, let Ingenious Travel help you unplug and reconnect with those who are important to you.

 

40 Responses

  1. I remember have basic TV and rotary phones, too. it’s amazing how technology drives getting in contact immediately with someone. It’s so important to “unplug” for your own stress relief-especially on vacation. Thanks,Maria!

  2. It helps to travel abroad without your iphone. I was totally unplugged on my cruise to Greece and Turkey (or at least people thought I was). I could check my email in the ship’s internet room, but I did not have my iphone and nobody really tried to contact me. It was pure bliss! Now I need to learn to do that without the excuse of being out of the country.

  3. Can relate to what you’re saying here and I totally agree with switching off when you’re away. I did this recently on a long weekend and felt so much more recharged when I came back. I think it’s good to get back to basic sometimes and just talk!

  4. I had a similar experience on a business trip with my phone. My cell does’t have an international plan (note to self:: get an international plan) and data roaming is so expensive that I had to turn it off for nearly a week. What I discovered isn’t that I’m too plugged in, but that I actually enjoy plugging my extended network into my present moment life. It felt like a missing. On the other hand, when I take my next trip to some exotic location (not for business) my extended network can wait till I get back to see photos from my trip. (smile!)

  5. I try to unplug at least once a week, always on vacation and schedule no tech times. We have to take back control of our time. The multi tasking we are doing is literally killing brain cells.

  6. That is always my rules. A true vacation is leaving it all at home and forgetting about it.

    The only thing I can’t unplug when on vacation is with my camera. That is out, front and center, always!

  7. Wow. Lisa Frederiken’s comment brings back some memories. Transistor radios on the beach. 🙂 I haven’t been on a real vacation in awhile, but I fully intend to unplug when I do go. Right now I try to stay unplugged for at least a day on the weekends.

  8. Maria,
    I basically unplug for the most part when traveling or visiting friends and family. Last Oct I took my mother on a road trip of over 2500 miles. We were gone 7 nights and 8 days. The only time I was able to plug in was the first night when we stayed in a hotel. The rest of the time we had no internet service. Most of the time I did have cell phone but that was even spotty. It is actually very freeing and you have time to enjoy visiting and doing things together.
    Yes, it is good to unplug. Actually I believe this being connected all the time has been more intense in my life the last 5 to 10 years. Prior to that I never even thought about taking a computer with me when I left the house and cell phone service was not even available in many areas.

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