The Everyday Luxury Poll is officially closed, and the results have been tabulated.
The poll asked the question, "When you are unable to travel or take a luxury vacation, how do you attempt to vicariously achieve a similar experience?"
And the results:
- Number one, with 32.56% of the votes, is "Dine in an exclusive great restaurant, with even greater friends."
- Number two, with 23.26% of the votes, is "Go to a movie with a foreign setting, like The Bourne Supremacy."
- Number three is a tie, both getting 16.28% of the votes. One is "Read a book whose authors live elsewhere, like Gabriel G Marquez," and the other is "Find alone time in a luxury spa or home bath treatment."
- In last place, with 11.63% of the votes, is "Read travel guide books, such as the Lonely Planet series."
These are the closest poll results the Luxury and Resort Travel section has yet seen. Looking at the results make it clear that, with nearly a third of the votes, the poll-takers most prefer to spend their "down time" with good friends, perhaps in a festive mood at their favorite restaurant.
Time with friends and families is often underappreciated, I think, but it is so important. The best of memories aren't usually "That time I stood on line and looked at Michelangelo's 'David' for a while, and then I went to the gift shop and bought a pair of 'David' boxer shorts." Fondest memories are aggregate, as in "Remember that year when practically every Sunday we ate brunch at the same little restaurant, and we randomly ran into different friends almost half the time?" Shared memories are the fondest. When we can't travel with loved ones, time spent just hanging out with them is important and valuable as well.
The next three, seeing a movie, reading a book, and taking a luxury bath, are all close. These three are more solitary by nature, as even seeing a movie with a friend largely involves quietly staring up at a screen in the dark. For those of us with busy lives, running from job to school to picking up dry cleaning and other errands, having constant yet brief interactions throughout the day is the norm. How better to relax, than to grab some alone time when we can and partake of it the way we like? For me, reading an escapist type of book while simultaneously enjoying a long soak in the tub, is ultimately rejuvenating. Another combination I really enjoy is, having dinner with friends and then all of us seeing an escapist genre of movie. The former is somewhat solitary, while the latter is more social. A mix of the different poll options may be what works best for you, too.
What clearly doesn't work for the majority of the voters, however, is reading a travel guide book. Basically, just about 89% of the votes went to something other than what is essentially reading about what you can't, at the time being, actually experience. I think this is healthy. Unless you are actually planning for a future trip, wistfully reading about where you aren't able to go won't help you feel any better. And a life filled with regrets is a sad one, indeed. Vicarious vacations through a close read of travel guides may help some people recover from their travel bug, but most travel-oriented people know that nothing can replace the authentic, mind-broadening benefits of seeing someplace new. Be it trekking through a rain forest or sightseeing with a group, time spent traveling is time well spent.
When you can't take time to travel, how do you like to indulge yourself? I'd like to know; please take part in the discussion!
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