Is the need for vacationing real or perceived? To what extend is it culturally determined?
The official end of summer has induced in me a post-partum depression of some sort. I am just not ready to part with what has been a long, hot and marvelous summer. And so, rather than accepting the inevitable, I turn to denial and fantasize about vacations in hot and tropical destinations. Even though the whole idea of vacationing is in some way a little curious to me.
Yet in the country of my youth, The Netherlands, vacationing is a must. Everyone vacations. The Dutch tend to explain their fondness for vacations, for being away "from it all," as essential for their mental health. Yet it seems to me that the drive to vacation might rather be rooted in symbol of social status. And the further the better. Nowadays, a few days at the beach just don't cut it. No, one really makes a statement when reporting on past or upcoming trips to far and exotic destinations, like Kenya, Thailand, Australia, China or India.
The Dutch also feel very sorry for those unfortunate and deprived souls who do not vacation and often, the only explanation available to them is that "they must not be able to afford it."
As a result of this real or perceived mental or social need, the Dutch travel obsessively. De Telegraaf, a Dutch newspaper, reports that in the year 2000, 70 per cent of the Dutch vacation, a stunning amount of 12 million people, vacationed. In 2004, this amount had risen to over 80 per cent. In that year, 16,2 million Dutch people traveled internationally.
Compare these numbers with 3.5 million Canadian travelers in 2000 (amounting to 11,5 per cent), and a little fewer than five million Canadian overseas travelers in 2005 (15 per cent). Europe is still the favorite overseas destination for Canadians who are traveling just for fun. These European trips account for 43 per cent of all overseas pleasure visits in 2005. But visits to the Caribbean and Mexico are a close second favorite fun destination, accounting for 39 per cent of overseas pleasure visits.
So, in light of these musings on tropical vacationing, I decided to indulge a little longer in my tropical travel daydreams and write a little on Mexico. To read the article, you know what to do. Yep, click here
References
Kerncijfers. Toerisme & Recreatie Editie (2005). Retrieved September 26, 2006 from: http://www.holland.com/files/corporate/kerncijfers/Kerncijfers%20A4%202005%20def.pdf#search=%22statistiek%20nederlanders%20reizen%20intercontinentaal%202005%22
Laszlo Buasz (2005). Vacations Sour. Print Edition 09/08/06 Page R8 http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/LAC.20060809.HEADS09/TPStory/?query=Europe+as+top+pleasure+destination+
