Getaways

I’ve been thinking about holidays lately.

Or perhaps more accurately, little getaways.

There is actually quite a bit of research around the value of taking time away from work. What I found particularly interesting is that the break does not necessarily have to be a long one.

Australian research comparing holidays, short breaks and no break found that getting away from home and work can support restoration and wellbeing. Other studies looking specifically at shorter holidays have also found improvements in stress, recovery and health.

Lately, I have been noticing something.

People seem to be creating more opportunities to get away.

A family comes because the kids are playing footy against the Stawell Swifts.

Little gymnastics fanatics arrive for a competition within their district, and they make a weekend out of it!

A 70th birthday becomes a weekend together.

A mother and daughter decide to have a couple of days away.

A few friends realise it has been far too long since they have properly spent time together.

And even a couple connecting, for no particular reason.

The original reason might be quite ordinary, but somehow the decision to make a little more of it changes things.

There is time to talk.

To walk.

To sit around the fire.

To have a long lunch.

To explore.

No rushing to the next thing!

And I wonder whether we are becoming a little better at doing this.

Maybe COVID changed something.

For a long time, so much of life was dictated for us. Where we could go. Who we could see. What we could do.

Perhaps some of us came out of that period a little more conscious of the fact that time is ours to use.

We have certainly felt that ourselves this year.

Our son is working with us between university, and Rohan and I made a conscious decision to use this little window in our lives.

Rohan calls it our gap year.

His version involves a longer break in Darwin around the racing carnival.

Mine is a collection of little getaways scattered throughout the year.

And I have realised I really like that.

A couple of nights with our daughter Keira in Launceston.

A weekend with the girls to Daylesford.

A day trip to Mt William Station for yoga and lunch.

A few days in Kununnara with friends, then drive back with Rohan in the caravan.

Mini getaways with my friend Hester and brother Bart whilst visiting my parents in the Netherlands.

More conscious decisions that make life feel a bit more wholesome:

Take the Monday! No need to wait for a Public Holiday!

Stay the extra night.

Turn the birthday into a weekend.

Book the couple of nights with your friend.

Have the mother and daughter getaway you keep talking about.

Get away with your partner, just because!

Because maybe the point is not to escape the life we already have.

Maybe it is to make more room inside it for the people, places and experiences that matter to us.

A little further reading

A 2025 meta analysis of 32 studies found that holidays had a meaningful positive effect on employee wellbeing, with psychological detachment from work and physical activity associated with greater benefits.

Australian research has also compared holidays, short breaks and no break, finding that getting away from home and work can support restorative wellbeing and attention.

Other studies looking specifically at shorter holidays have found improvements in stress, recovery and health, although some benefits naturally reduce once people return to their usual routines.

Read the 2025 meta analysis on holiday and employee wellbeing

Read the Australian research on holidays, short breaks and restoration

Have you planned an upcoming break?