What kinds of vacations do road warriors plan? They’re as different as the warriors themselves.

by Leah Ingram
June 2006

When road warriors get some downtime, they tend to define vacations very differently than the rest of the traveling public. Take Gini Dietrich. The 33-year-old president of Arment Dietrich, a Chicago public relations firm, travels to two or three cities a week. Whether she’s in Minneapolis or Seattle, she tries to piggyback time off on business trips and schedules long weekends whenever possible. She does plan longer vacations at certain times of the year, but for her, having a day or day-and-a-half off from time to time is enough of a refresher.

Dietrich’s leisure travel choice doesn’t surprise the folks at the National Business Travel Association (NBTA). They recently released a business travelers survey that showed, among other things, that 62 percent of business travelers “add a leisure component to at least one business trip per year.” Another survey showed similar stats. According to a 2003 New York University study of female business travelers, sponsored by Wyndham International, 65 percent of female business travelers “include some aspect of relaxation into a business trip.... Of that 65 percent, 44 percent incorporate leisure time into their business trip.”

“What I find happens with frequent business travelers is that they build in ‘micro’ vacations within the business travel, so that they might spend a half day at a spa, for example,” says Susan Battley, Ph.D., a psychologist and chief executive officer of Battley Performance Consulting, a Stony Brook, New York–based firm that specializes in executive and organizational effectiveness. “They really try to create a psychological space where they can recharge or do something that is completely non-business-related.”

Of course, combining business travel with leisure isn’t the only way business travelers carve out time for themselves. Finding a vacation that works is more about “knowing yourself and knowing what is going to speak to you,” says Battley. For example, “If you’ve traveled and stayed in comfortable hotels on business trips, then the idea of checking into a similar kind of hotel on holiday doesn’t have the same appeal, because it’s a connection to work.”

Sometimes it takes a lot of trial and error to figure out your ideal vacation. While you ponder the possibilities, consider what the following frequent business travelers have found is the best way for them to unwind and relax.

Vacation Unplugged

As the president and co-owner of Proximo Restaurants, a collection of seven unique eateries in the Washington, D.C. area, it’s no surprise that Rob Wilder is in high demand. Between fielding calls from his chefs to following up on food-related conferences, Wilder, 46, is quite plugged in. His daily armor includes a laptop, cell phone, Treo and BlackBerry, which he schleps on his frequent business trips. Recently, those trips have taken him to such diverse locales as Aspen, Colorado and Cape Town, South Africa. Wilder estimates he spends 18 hours a day dealing with the barrage of urgent calls and messages. “We’ve gotten so tech-oriented,” says Wilder, “that my wife Robin and I often communicate by Treo.”

Not surprisingly, when Wilder wants to get away from it all, he really wants to get away—he doesn’t want anyone to be able to reach him. That’s why the Wilders have taken multiple vacations to Smith Fork Ranch, a luxurious Western-style resort in a rustic location. The ranch sits between the Gunnison National Forest and the West Elk Wilderness Area in Western Colorado—nearly eight miles from the nearest town, and miles from the nearest cell phone tower.

When the Wilders are there, they are truly unplugged, but with a twist. “I think there are lots of places you can go to unplug, but the great thing about the ranch is the quality of what they do there,” says Rob, who read about the ranch in Food & Wine magazine. “They have a spectacular food and wine list, so what makes this the perfect location is being completely out of it, but being able to live as well out there.” The ranch also offers horseback riding, fly-fishing and hiking to keep his mind off the fact that he doesn’t have his BlackBerry pinging in his pocket all the time. Rob confesses that should he need to reach someone on email, there is a laptop computer stashed away in a corner of the ranch. But “it’s on dialup,” he adds, hinting that the slow connection isn’t really worth the trouble for getting reconnected on vacation.

You've Got Mail

For the plugged-in road warrior, being out of touch on vacation can easily push him out of his comfort zone. “I find that people fall down on one of two sides of vacations. Either they have to be totally disconnected to recharge,” says Battley, “or they can’t really enjoy their vacation unless they can stay connected in one way or another. And should they find themselves inadvertently disconnected, they can’t enjoy the rest of their vacation until they reestablish that connection.”

Harriet Lessy has no problem admitting that she falls into the latter group. “I’m the person who has the most amount of contact with our clients, and I feel like I need to be in touch—even when I’m on vacation,” says Lessy, founder and owner of Buzz Communications, a Philadelphia-based public relations and lobbying firm. “If we’re making pitches, they need to be approved. If we’re doing an ad, I need to look at it. If a client wants my opinion, they need to reach me. For me, it wouldn’t be a vacation if I was stressed about all of this going on and me not being in the loop.”

So, when it comes to planning vacations, Lessy is keen to choose locations or itineraries that offer her at least email access. For example, Lessy’s last vacation was a cruise through the Western Caribbean—on an Internet-ready ship. “I spent an hour in the morning and an hour in the afternoon checking emails and reading industry news,” says the 62-year-old, who travels for business at least once a month. “That made me relaxed, because I knew that all of this stuff wouldn’t be waiting for me when I got back.”

Whether it’s bringing her laptop to Paris or checking email on a cruise, Lessy makes no apologies for her vacation choices. She knows she would be uncomfortable being out of touch from the office, so she plans accordingly. Sure, she’d like to take an African safari someday—but for now, destinations with high-speed Internet or cell phone service are just fine with her.

Healthy Travel

For some business travelers, technology has nothing to do with the vacations they choose—instead, their health and wellness take top priority. “I want to come back from vacation feeling better than when I left,” says Kat Carney, a health journalist, formerly of CNN, of the motivation behind her vacation choices. “Typically, when I get to thinking of vacation, it’s because I’m so stressed that the one thing I need is a vacation.”

Fixing your mind, body and spirit are a high priority for some frequent business travelers like Carney, 36, who is based in Los Angeles. “When you’re flying across the country or the globe and you’re spending so much time in airports, there just isn’t good food to choose,” say Carney, who always looks to improve her eating habits and/or try new cuisines when she takes time off. Another of Carney’s priorities is massage. “Massage is very high up on my list,” she says. “A vacation without a massage isn’t a vacation.”

That sounds about right to Lisa Iannucci, coauthor of Healthy Travel: Don’t Travel Without It (Basic Health Publications, 2005). “Stress reduction is a big part of having a healthy vacation, but it’s not the only focus,” she says. “It’s about keeping fit and healthy and not just sitting at home and doing nothing.”

Besides massage and the menu, a variety of health-oriented offerings attracts Carney to vacation destinations. A few years ago, she booked two weeks at a resort in Thailand—and not just because she could get a four-hour massage for about US$20. “They had yoga and tai chi classes on the beach, and they made it clear that the culture there was all about taking care of yourself on a daily basis,” says Carney, who treated herself to at least one massage on each of the days she was away. And how did she feel upon her return? The healthiest and most relaxed she’s ever been.

Decadent Treks

While frequent business travelers may not want to stay in hotels reminiscent of where they rest their weary heads when working, the same cannot be said of their desire to enjoy good food, good wine and other indulgences on their time off. Just because you eat well on the road doesn’t mean that you can’t eat well on vacation. However, it may take on a different meaning, as it does for Chicago PR executive Gini Dietrich.

Because her company specializes in the food and beverage industry, Dietrich has become quite knowledgeable and is used to wining and dining clients at some of the Windy City’s finest establishments. But there’s a price to be paid for such entertainment: “When I entertain clients, I have one glass of wine only,” says Dietrich. So, when it comes time to plan her vacation, Dietrich heads to the one place where she believes she can be decadent without limitations: Napa Valley, Calif. “That is my once-a-year indulgence,” she says. “My husband and I try to drink as much wine and eat as much good food as possible.” Also, because of her contacts in the culinary and spirits industries, she is often able to snag a reservation at a top Napa restaurant or arrange private winery tours. The best perk, though, is that she gets to enjoy more than one glass of wine with dinner.

“On vacation, I can have three or four glasses of wine, because I don’t have to worry about staying ‘on’,” Dietrich says. “I don’t have to make sure that the client hasn’t had too much to drink or if he can get back to the hotel. On vacation, I can let all of that go and not worry who is there with me.”

For this wine connoisseur a vacation in Napa is an excellent choice, say Jared Brown and Anistatia Miller, food and wine experts and authors of Shaken Not Stirred: A Celebration of the Martini (Harper Collins, 1997). “No ingredient is ever as fresh as at its point of origin,” they say, so enjoying a California wine mere miles from where it originated is a fabulous way to ensure that the experience is top-of-the-line.

In fact, the Napa Valley is so special to Dietrich as a vacation locale, she adds, “I would never go on client business to Napa.”

Escaping the Rat Race

For some frequent business travelers, a vacation wouldn’t be a vacation if there were anything at all around that reminded them of business—be it a fine wine or a fax machine.

That’s how Mark Palmer views vacation. He is one of those “if it’s Thursday, we must be in Vienna” kind of guys. As vice president and general manager for Progress Software Corporation in Bedford, Mass., Palmer often travels to four countries in five days for work. That’s why when he’s ready to take a vacation, he makes sure that he goes someplace “where I’m not shuffling in and out of cabs,” he says.

When Palmer takes time off, the only thing on his to-do list is time to write and run. “I’m a marathoner,” says the 40-year-old from North Andover, Mass. “I run every day, and when I’m on vacation, I just increase my running.” One of his favorite places to vacation is at a beachhouse on nearby Cape Cod, where he can run for 20 uninterrupted miles. He usually spends two weeks a year there with his family.

Another place where Palmer has enjoyed a do-nothing vacation is Anguilla, a Caribbean island. It was more of a sabbatical than a siesta, though. “I took nine months off from work and spent a portion of the time in Anguilla,” he says. “It was the perfect place for me, because it’s an island that’s not too built up.” So, no cabs to get in and out of—just time to write and run and relax. That’s Palmer’s perfect antidote to the rat race.

Learning Curves

Sometimes the best vacation for a business traveler is a getaway where she can get something done. For many, it is the only time that their minds are free enough to tap into an old talent or discover a new one.

“I find that successful people are aggressive learners,” says Susan Battley. “They’re always wanting to do something, learning a new skill.” One CEO that Battley works with wanted to learn how to make pottery, but as a busy businessman, he simply had no time for lessons. Cleverly, for his next vacation, he went off to a school in France, where he spent a week throwing clay and sitting at a pottery wheel. When he returned to work, he felt refreshed and like he’d accomplished something.

For Type A people, sitting around doing nothing on vacation is about as close to torture as you can get. That’s why many on-the-go types like to book a vacation that includes an educational element. Take Kat Carney, the health journalist. “I like to do different things when I’m away,” she says. “I may not take a dance class when I’m home, but if I’m on vacation and they offer it, sure, I’ll try it.” Recently, Carney was vacationing at a Mexican resort that offered Native American dance classes. “I thought, ‘No way am I ever going to take this. I’m going to hate it,’” she recalls. But curiosity got the best of her, and she signed up for a class. Before long, Carney was moving around the dance studio and loving it. “It was very freeing,” she says, “and I learned something.” Just what the professor ordered.

Volunteer Vacations

Sometimes a businessperson’s desire to accomplish something on vacation has nothing to do with traditional learning, but more with giving back. “Since September 11, we’ve seen more and more people interested in giving back,” says Doug Cutchins, coauthor of Volunteer Vacations (Chicago Review Press, 2002). “People have a desire to get to know people who are different from themselves and want to make a difference in the world.” One of the ways those desires and interests play out is in volunteer vacations.

Curt Cultice of Washington, D.C., has taken two volunteer vacations and is already planning his third. “I wanted to bring an understanding of American culture to students in China and Hungary,” Cultice, 48, says of his first two trips, “but also to learn about their cultures.”

John Reid of Larchmont, N.Y., expresses the same sentiment about his volunteer vacation experience. “The business traveler too frequently thinks they know another culture because they stay in a hotel or eat the food,” says Reid, 55, president and CEO of Memorystone Publishing, a digital publisher. “But deep down, we all know that this is really just skimming the surface. I was feeling the need to live in a culture, rather than simply do business there.”

Three years ago, Reid spent time teaching English to elementary school kids in Bangkok, Thailand. Both of Cultice’s volunteer vacations also revolved around teaching English to locals. “I taught three weeks each in China and Hungary,” says Cultice, a senior communications specialist with the U.S. Commercial Service. He arranged his volunteer vacation through Global Volunteers, a Minnesota-based organization that arranges one- to three-week volunteer stints in the more than 20 countries. Most volunteer projects involve teaching English, like Cultice’s, along with childcare, health care, construction or conservation work.

“Internationally, teaching English is always popular,” says Cutchins. “People feel like it’s a skill they’ve mastered and can share with others, and you can see a difference in a short amount of time.”

By the end of his three weeks in China, Cultice was able to have impromptu book group discussions with his students, who were already reading books in English. By the time he left Hungary, his students knew English idioms and even slang. They also knew how to order in English at a restaurant. Adds Cultice, who hopes to volunteer in the Ukraine next year, “I’m still corresponding with many of my students.”

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leah ingram is a freelance writer based in Pennsylvania. Email Leah at editor@executivetravelmag.com.