Embrace Micro-cations: The New Travel Trend Perfect for Your Budget and Schedule

When we daydream about going on vacation, most of us think of trips that last at least a week, if not longer.

But our busy lives and sometimes limited budgets don’t always allow for lengthy holidays, no matter how much we long (no pun intended!) for them. So we wait.

We try to save up time and money for that perfect vacation that will (hopefully) happen someday soon.

It’s time we consider the latest, hippest trend in travel—the micro-cation.

There are vacations, which are proper, long trips; there are stay-cations, where you don’t leave town but luxuriate in the comfort of a nearby hotel; and there are micro-cations, which are leisure trips that last fewer than five nights (as defined by Allianz Global Assistance, a leading travel insurance and assistance company).

While the idea of the micro-cation is not new, more travellers all over the world have been choosing multiple mini vacations over conventional, longer leisure trips.

The same holds true for Singaporean travellers.

According to Expedia’s Year in Review trends report, which analysed Singaporeans’ travel habits for 2018, the general Singaporean population favours short getaways.

Singaporean travellers took an average of 4.6 overseas trips in 2018, and each trip lasted an average of 2.3 nights, which falls neatly under the micro-cation category.

Most Singaporeans ended the year with a bang, scheduling most of their travels in December, while January was the least popular month for travel.

Interestingly, Singaporeans’ favourite destinations for travel in 2018 were Kuala Lumpur, Bangkok and Hong Kong, in neighbouring nations which are all short flights away, making them perfect for the micro-cation.

The micro-cation has plenty of great perks that cannot be overlooked:

• You can visit more places in a year.
• You don’t have to spend too much time planning.
• You’ll be able to travel more frequently.
• You don’t have to bring a lot of things with you, so packing will be a breeze.
• You can feel re-energised and refreshed even after going away for only a few days.
• It’s much easier on your budget.
• You won’t have to save up too many vacation leaves at work.
• It will be easier to find someone to watch your pet (or your kids, if you need some alone time or time with your partner!) while you’re gone, and you won’t feel too guilty about leaving them because you’ll only be away for a few days.
• There’s no chance of running out of things to do or getting bored in a place (especially if you’re the restless type!).

While the idea of a month’s long backpacking trip around Europe may seem like the most ideal vacation in your mind, it may also be the least feasible at the moment—unless you’re rolling in the dough and have loads of time on your hands.

But not all of us are that lucky, so we thank our lucky stars that something as awesome as the micro-cation exists. /TISG