Workcations: Mixing work with pleasure
Bored and stressed with work? Try workcations to break the monotony by travelling to scenic beauties & boost your soul to get back to real life while working. Well, Working from home can definitely be appealing for some people for obvious reasons like no dress code, no supervision of your boss, no commute time or expenses, and the freedom to decide where you work and how you work. And then there’s workcation, an alternative workplace that is changing the way people work.
After 2 years of living with the threat of a deadly virus under various restrictions, people are choosing to blow off some steam by going on a workcation. Here is why it has now become a new normal?
WORKCATIONS
Mixing business and pleasure known as a workcation is one of the hottest travel trends today where professionals go to destinations closer to nature, to relax and give their souls a morale boost while they work for their office.
The emerging trend is helping employees who have been reeling under the pandemic. Uninterrupted Wi-Fi connectivity with promising technical support is all required by the companies to give workcation options to its employees. This kind of living was already popular before the pandemic however, the coronavirus took it to a new level. Many companies have been sending their staff to resorts, where they can work and wind down.
The trend was already common outside India but today, many Indian IT companies too have begun experimenting with an idea of ‘workcation’, in which the workspace shifts to a vacation spot for a few days.
Several companies are also arranging hiking and campfires for their employee to unwind in the evenings or on the weekends & even pay for the entire expenses, including food and accommodation.
WORK OR VACATION
Imagine this that you are settling down on a grassy patch by a riverside with honeybees or butterflies buzzing around your laptop, or your work desk that is overlooking the mighty Himalayas, or you are lying on a beach. What more could you ask for while working.
Staycations and workcations are not meant for only digital nomads like freelancers, bloggers, and influencers. They have now become a real thing for employees across industries in the new normal. Just some essentials like high-speed internet connectivity, power backup, and comfort stay, along with first-aid facilities & healthy food will make your workcation awesome.
DESTINATIONS IN DEMAND
Since the lockdown policies change every fortnight and states implement new rules and regulations, you can still work things around. Places like Shimla, Manali, Nainital, Ranikhet, Almora, Ooty, Coorg, Poovar Island, Thekkady and Alleppey, Goa and Andaman and Nicobar Island are the hottest destinations/hotspots of workcations. As per experts, this concept is helping employees improve their productivity, along with physical and mental health.
INCREASING NUMBERS OF TRAVELLERS
According to the Ixigo travel trend report, a change in preferences of travellers was seen when domestic flights resumed operations from May-June 2020. With a majority of Indian companies announcing WFH, 30% of travellers revealed that they have been working remotely from a leisure destination.Many working professionals are planning workcations as a way of taking a break and avoiding burnout. A recent Deloitte survey revealed that most people have put their international travel plans aside and choose staycations/ workcations at nearby places.
The survey also states that over 45% of Indians feel safe staying at a hotel, thus giving rise to more staycations in and around their city.
In 2021, Mumbai observed a 51-53% hike in June while New Delhi witnessed 39-41% hike, in a recent Anarock’s Hotels and Hospitality Overview report.
