I’ve recently returned from a 16 day Hawaii cruise and it was wonderful. The cruise itself was great, I love cruising in general. The food is delicious and you really get to relax. But the benefits of vacations go far beyond the trips themselves.

Sometimes you just need to reset. You need a break from your life and routines, especially from work. It doesn’t matter where you go or what you do, vacations provide a break and a reset. At least once a year (preferably more ; D ), I like to take a vacation.

A major benefit of vacations is that for the duration of the vacation, your identity fades away. At least it does for me. I’m not in my normal routines and therefore I’m not really even the same person. I don’t know anyone while traveling, except for my travel companion(s) and no one knows me. I’m anonymous. I love this aspect of traveling. I can be truly present and relaxed. There’s nothing I need to do or accomplish and I love that.

Also, when I travel I always feel creatively rejuvenated! I take a break from singing, playing piano and painting. This is wonderful in itself. I stop doing these things for a while and I realize again how much I love them. I come back ready to create new paintings and songs. I have tons of new reference photos and ideas. Seeing new places is very inspiring. Travel takes you away from a life routine that becomes boring and normal, simply because you are accustomed to it. We tend to not pay attention when things become too familiar. We take amazing everyday things for granted. Vacations wake you up from the deep sleep of daily routines.

One of the best things about this cruise was I didn’t have cell / internet service for the 5 days at sea going to Hawaii and also the 5 sea days coming back to LA. It was a distance of almost 2,500 miles! Which can be a bit scary if you overthink that. Mid voyage, we were very far from any land whatsoever! The ship seemed to be the only thing out there with endless water all around it. It still blows my mind, as it always does.

Anyway, I refuse to purchase internet when I go on a cruise. It’s just a rip off and I don’t need it anyway. Yeah, it can be useful, but if I want to be on my computer or cell phone I can just stay home and save a ton of money. All that time without YouTube, google, or social media was amazing. Don’t get me wrong, I think these things are useful tools, but my life doesn’t depend on them. Actually, when you don’t have access to these tools for a while, you realize what they are truly good for. They weren’t there to distract me. I ended up reading more than usual and listening to a couple audiobooks, which was a nice change. Mostly it was really relaxing, just the way a vacation should be. And of course, there’s a lot of options with food when on a cruise, so it was nice to experience that. Otherwise, I just focused on the entertainment and spending quality time with my boyfriend.

Lastly, I feel a new appreciation for my life. After traveling, I’m always glad to be back home. Though Hawaii may be the exception, I never want to leave when I’m there. But I love to be at home, it’s my sanctuary and the place I do all the things I love doing. So inevitably, I look forward to going back there. Leaving reminds me how much I really appreciate it. It’s the interruption of a routine that makes this possible. If you always do the same things in the same place, do you even see it anymore?

So, if you can, take the time for vacations. It’s worth it and you can always find good deals. I think cruising is a great value for what you get! It’s my favorite type of vacation. Or you don’t have to go anywhere. It’s nice just to take time off work. Stay at home, relax, take care of things you’ve been putting off. That feels great too and I’ve certainly done that. Or visit local sites. Here in Florida, we have many beautiful springs that are a few hours away. That’s a great mini vacation. You don’t need a lot of money to reap the benefits of a vacation!