🏖️ Gen Z's Vacationing Problem

This week we explore Gen Z's relationship to vacation and taking time off. From quiet vacationing, "sleepcations," to new research that uncovers an underlying emotional truth about [dis]connection.

📊 New Research

Some new studies show the barriers and motivations for how Gen Zers are thinking about their time off.

Fast Company: Gen Z May be Quiet Vacationing Because of Loud Vacation Anxiety

A new survey from Babbel shows that Gen Zers are taking ‘quiet vacations’ - slipping away from work for a day or two without official PTO. While polling holds that half of these folks are carving out bonus PTO on the clock because they’re nervous to ask for time off, anxiety over longer travel plans is preventing Gen Z from taking proper time away from their jobs.

• 69% of Gen Z travelers have canceled or changed their travel plans due to anxiety and a lack of preparedness.

• Additionally, 38% of Gen Z survey respondents said they feel obligated to stay on top of work while on a trip—which has long been the main reason cited for quiet vacationing

Harris: Out of Office Culture Report

A new report from Harris examined the culture of time off in the US across generations. Here are some things they found around Gen Z:

• Gen Z on average takes the fewest vacation days per year compared with all other generations.

• 56% of Gen Zers say “I feel guilty when I take paid time off / vacation days.”

• 95% of Gen Zers say they would check an email from their boss while on paid time off / vacation.

• 47% of Gen Zers say they prioritize self-care during their time off.

Data from an older LinkedIn study shows the generational difference around taking time off as well:

NY Post: Burned-out Gen Z, millennials are opting for ‘sleepcations’

Extending the priority on self-care of vacation and time off - Young travelers are prioritizing sleepcations. Similar to the Out of Office Reports stats on self-care, 61% of young trippers are prioritizing “self-care” and “personal wellness” for their upcoming leisurely holidays - with an emphasis on sleeping and rest as a respite from burnout.

🙂‍↕️ dcdx Gen Z research on taking time off…

We polled Gen Z’ers from our network of 300,000+ to understand how they feel about disconnecting from work while taking time off.

Gen Z often feels anxious about asking for a vacation. And even when they do manage to go on vacation, Gen Z is plagued by vacation guilt. We found that while 53% of Gen Zers say they manage this well, many others struggle with disconnecting. A total of 47% of Gen Zers either want to disconnect but find it difficult (33%), never even try to disconnect (8%), or have no clue how to do this [disconnect] at all (6%).

This 47% of Gen Zers who struggle to disconnect on vacation matches the exact 47% of Gen Zers who desire to disconnect from their phones in general - a stat we uncovered in our Digital Captives Part 1 work. In Part 2 of that work - we found that while disconnection brings a sense of peace, mentally disconnecting is the real challenge.

What is lost in the vacation anxiety and vacation guilt narrative is a recognition of the larger struggle to disconnect in general.

How can we expect time off to serve its purpose for Gen Z if they struggle with disconnecting in the first place?

The phenomenon of quiet vacationing—while upsetting to employers—is just another coping mechanism for living in a constantly connected world. So long as this state of constant connectivity remains the norm, Gen Zers will continue to find new methods of escape.

🧠 More on Gen Z, Work, Vacation, and Travel

dcdx: Gen Z in the Workplace 2024

• We looked at the 5 key themes around Gen Z in the workplace in 2024. For Work-Life-Balance, the big driver for Gen Z was a sense of autonomy, with 70% saying they want the autonomy to choose the hours and days they work.

Business Insider: Gen Z, millennials going into debt for summer travel

• “Credit Karma's survey found that nearly 40% of Gen Z and millennials said they'll prioritize summer travel over their finances.