Holiday Makers

8

The return and the feedback

Recuperated?

‘Relaxation is the incentive and reason for travelling, but seldom its effect ... People have enough time during the year to recuperate from the last trip for the next.’⁴⁶ Ironic but true: the holidays and the weekend do not bring urgently needed physical and mental relaxation. On the contrary, the stress involved in holidays and leisure time is considerable. Medical experts who have studied the problem report that the great majority of ‘normal holiday-makers’ do not return home relaxed and refreshed but tense, nervous and distracted.⁴⁷ One psychiatrist has observed what he calls a ‘holiday syndrome’ in many holiday-makers on their return home, manifesting itself in insomnia, exhaustion and anxiety. ...