5 Steps To Take More Trips This Year (Even if You Have a Desk Job)

Travelers, I am so excited to be sharing this guest blog post with you by Rachel-Jean Firchau with Rachel Off Duty! I met Rachel at the Women in Travel Summit in 2018 where we bonded over figuring out how to travel more while having full-time jobs. In this blog, she shares 5 steps to take more trips this year, even if you have a full-time blog. Enjoy!

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There’s nothing like the first few months of a new year to dream up some incredible adventures. Your mind is fresh and ready to set resolutions and goals. Your calendar is a blank slate. And – best of all – you probably have a fresh pool of vacation time (or knowledge of the number of days you will have available as you accrue this year) to start using. 

But life happens quickly, especially in steady rhythm of a 9-to-5 work cycle. And it’s easy to let months go by before realizing you haven’t taken a single day for yourself in ages. In fact, over 55% of Americans end up not using all of the paid time off they earn annually (a whopping 768MM days of unused PTO). 

Of course, if you’re reading this article, it’s likely because you don’t want to be a part of that 55%. You want to find ways to make sure you’re getting the most out of your benefits – and your life! – and there’s no better time to start than the present. Read on for some steps towards incorporating more travel into your life, even if you have a desk job. 

5 Steps To Take More Trips This Year (Even If You Have a Desk Job) 

1. Make a Wish List at the Beginning of the Year

First, decide whether you want to travel more frequently, or take longer trips. Do you want to see a bunch of new places? Or do you like slow travel and hope to maximize your time in that dream destination you’ve been dying to visit? It doesn’t matter what kind of traveler you are; the only thing that matters is making sure you plan ahead! Spend some time at the beginning of the year deciding what your travel goals will be for the next 12 months, where you might want (or need) to go, and how you plan to get there. This can include new cities you want to see that are only a couple hours’ drive away, weekend getaways you want to take with your significant other, weddings and birthdays you need to attend, and possibly even some solo time in a place you’ve never been. Wherever you want to find yourself this year, get out a piece of paper (or a note on your phone) and write it all down. 

It may sound like a simple task, but just like making resolutions or vision boards, determining what your destination wish list is at the beginning of the year is a great way to layout your ideal travel schedule and start mapping out the steps you need to take to get there.

2. Decide How Much Time You Want to Spend Where

This step is crucial if you’re working with limited time (i.e. vacation days) or a tight budget. Though vacation time benefits are slowly increasing across the country, on average, US employees are still banking just 10-15 paid days off a year. If you want to do a couple of domestic trips this year, one two-week stint in Greece and still have enough time left over to go home for the holidays, how do you do it?

First, decide how much time you absolutely need to spend in the most important places on your list – the dream destinations and the big events (like weddings, birthdays, and being home for the holidays). Then, work backward from there with what’s left.

3. Divide Up Your Vacation Days & Paid Holidays

The scenario involving Greece, domestic trips, and being home for the holidays may sound a bit far-fetched for a 15-day annual vacation policy, but it is possible with a little strategic timing and flexibility. While you might have only 15 days of time off (for example), you are also working with 104 weekend days and probably somewhere between 7 and 11 paid holidays – that’s 126+ days this year entirely at your disposal! 

Two years ago, I vacationed in Australia (pictured) for just over 3 weeks while working full-time. But once you factored out the weekends and paid holidays I planned my trip around, I ended up only being out 13 days of paid time off. Knowing that Australia was going to be my longest trip of the year, I planned the rest of my year accordingly with shorter trips and remote work wherever possible – 2 days off to take a 4-day trip to Alaska, 1 day off to spend 3 days in Mexico, a half-day off to extend a work trip in Utah, a half-day off to take a weekend trip to Seattle… you get the picture! 

4. Use Free Weekends for Staycations & One-Day Road Trips

Of course, travel does not always have to involve a flight (or even a long-haul distance, for that matter). I personally love using my free weekends for staycations in my home state, or even one-day road trips if I don’t want to pay for a hotel. You can see and experience a surprising amount in a 24-, 48, or 72-hour period. It does not matter if you’re only somewhere new for a short amount of time. All that matters is that you’re getting out and exploring, rather than sitting at home and saying “I wish.” Working Monday through Friday week in and week out is mentally taxing and can feel draining sometimes. We all need a reset and a change of scenery now and then, even if it’s only for a day or two. 

5. Explore Conferences, Sabbatical, and Remote Work Opportunities

While taking your weekends and paid vacation travel is great (and you should 100% use up all the vacation time you earn each year), another fantastic way to squeeze more adventure out of your year is by exploring work-based travel. Are there conferences* you could attend on behalf of your company? Are there remote or sister offices you could visit to train new employees or shadow more senior executives? Do you work at a company that offers a work-from-home or remote work policy? Does your company offer sabbatical leave? While some of these opportunities could result in more work, the trade-off is the potential of exploring a new city or state you may have otherwise not visited, while simultaneously keeping your employer happy. Whenever I take work trips, I always try to take the first flight in and the last flight home (or even extend the entire trip a day or two out of my own pocket) so I can maximize my time there when my work duties are done. 

*If your company doesn’t currently attend any conferences, seminars, or networking events, – that’s okay! Don’t be afraid to pitch one or two that you think will be relevant. If your company has the budget to support your knowledge growth while getting the word out about their product or service, odds are, they will (and who knows, you could pave the way for other employees in your office looking for enrichment opportunities and travel, too!). 

No matter what your specific travel goals are if your prerogative is to take charge of your life and maximize your adventure potential, start small, start here, and most importantly, start now. With some proactive planning, strategic timing, and the willingness to be open to new opportunities (even ones you may have never previously considered), you’ll be jet-setting in no time, desk job and all. 

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Rachel-Jean Firchau is the founder behind Rachel Off Duty, a website for career-conscious women dedicated to exploring life’s possibilities outside of the 9-to-5. Employed full-time while hitting the road 2-5x a month, Rachel aims to showcase the possibilities (and challenges!) of a travel-focused lifestyle. Rachel works as a client success manager and travel consultant in the advertising space, and when she’s not behind a desk or catching a flight, she spends her time binge-watching old shows, practicing yoga, and finding new things to do in her current hometown of Long Beach, California.