Haven't Vacationed in a Year? Neither Have 135 Million Americans
More than half of Americans have not taken a vacation in 12 months or more. Have you? (Photo: iStock)
Not using your vacation time? You’re not alone.
According to a new study, 56 percent of Americans (135 million) have not taken a vacation in 12 months.
Related: Why Americans Must Slow Down and Travel to Have Better Lives
What exactly does qualify as a vacation these days?
According to the Vacation Confidence Index, an annual report from Allianz Travel Insurance, a vacation is a trip that lasts for a week or more that’s at least 100 miles from home. That’s about the distance between Los Angeles and San Diego, or halfway between New York City and Washington D.C. Fifteen percent of Americans haven’t taken a trip like that in 7-12 months, while 16 percent say it’s only been 3 months, the data shows.
Americans are taking the least amount of vacation days now than they have in the past 40 years, according to another study by the U.S. Travel Association released in October. The trend is due to overworking, and some of its effects include weakened personal relationships and up to $52.4 billion lost in benefits.
Related: Didn’t Take Your Vacation Days? Good Job, You Just Helped Waste $52.4 Billion
“Americans are working more and enjoying it less, and the bottom line is, when they don’t take their time off, it’s not getting them ahead,” the U.S. Travel Association CEO, Roger Dow, told CBS.
But despite the high number of non-vacationers, 51 percent of Americans still believe they’ll be able to travel in 2015. Meanwhile 36 percent are not confident that they’ll be able to make any trips at all.
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