Frequent travel will make you 7% more happy than others
DO YOU travel frequently? If so, chances are that you are leading a much happier life – in fact, a whole 7% more joyful existence – than those who don’t venture out at all, a new study has revealed.
The study, published in the journal Tourism Analysis, showed that participants who reported regularly travelling at least 120km away from home also reported being about 7% happier when asked about their overall well-being than those who reported travelling very rarely.
“While things like work, family life and friends play a bigger role in overall reports of well-being, the accumulation of travel experiences does appear to have a small yet noticeable effect on self-reported life satisfaction," said Chun-Chu (Bamboo) Chen, Assistant Professor at Washington State University.
“It really illustrates the importance of being able to get out of your routine and experience new things,” he added.
For the survey, the participants in the study were asked about the importance of travel in their lives, how much time they spent looking into and planning future vacations, and how many trips they went on over a year.
They were also asked about their perceived life satisfaction.
Out of the 500 survey participants, a little over half reported going on more than four pleasure trips a year.
Only 7% of respondents did not take any vacations.
As travel restrictions due to Covid-19 should begin to relax in the future, the research could have important implications for both tourists and the tourism industry.
Based on the results of the study, Chen said travel companies, resorts and even airlines could launch social media campaigns, such as creating hashtags about the scientific benefits of a vacation, to spark people’s interest in discussing their opinions about travel.
Previous studies have examined the stress relief, and health and wellness benefits of tourism experiences, but they have tended to examine the effect of a single trip or vacation.
“This research shows the more people talk about and plan vacations the more likely they are to take them,” Chen said.
“If you are like me and champing at the bit to get out and see some new places, this research will hopefully be some additional good motivation to start planning your next vacation,” he added. |