Hit The Road For Happiness

The Coronavirus Pandemic has either shut down or complicated many aspects of our daily lives and has negatively impacted our general sense of well being and happiness as a result.

Researchers from Washington State University decided to look into travel and its impact on happiness and what they found may surprise you.

EurekAlert reports  "If you’ve missed traveling due to the pandemic you’re not alone, and it turns out travel really might make people happy."

W-S-U researchers found that people who reported regularly traveling at least 75 miles away from home also reported being about seven percent happier when asked about their overall well-being compared to those who reported traveling very rarely or not at all.

"The results of his analysis show individuals who pay more attention to tourism-related information and frequently discuss their travel plans with friends are more likely to go on regular vacations than those who aren't constantly thinking about their next trip".

Researcher Chun-Chu Chen notes, “While things like work, family life and friends play a bigger role in overall reports of well-being, the accumulation of travel experiences does appear to have a small yet noticeable effect on self-reported life satisfaction.”  Chen says that getting out of town, breaking with your normal routine and having new experiences has power and importance for many of us.

As a result of the research Chen suggests that  travel companies, resorts and airlines should consider social media campaigns, "such as creating hashtags about the scientific benefits of vacation, to spark people's interest in discussing their opinions about travel."