How YOU can Plan for National Plan for Vacation Day

Over the past several years, we’ve seen the participation and promotion of National Plan for Vacation Day grow exponentially among the travel industry and beyond. We’re anticipating National Plan for Vacation Day 2020 to continue this trend.

The fact is, Americans are still having trouble taking all their vacation days—in 2018, 768 million days of paid time off went unused. That stunning number represents loss, whether you look at it from a personal, business or economic angle. But it also represents opportunity.

Studies show that those who plan for vacation are more likely to use all or most of those days off—hence the beauty of National Plan for Vacation Day. A national holiday to do just that: Plan. And it’s celebrated at the beginning of the year, before meetings, projects and never-ending to-dos are added to the calendar.

Perhaps what’s most interesting is how Americans want to use those vacation days. More than 80% said they want to use their time off to travel.

There is no better voice to carry this message forward than the travel industry, who represents the best America has to offer. From the iconic hikes through our national parks to one-of-a-kind shopping destinations, America has something for every type of traveler. 

We recognize that January 28, 2020 is around the corner and with several holidays between now and then it may feel like here’s no time to, well, plan. Don’t worry, we have a toolkit just for that, complete with ideas and resources to make it easy to get involved:

• Find ideas for different ways to celebrate which includes a breakdown by industry segment
• Use one (or all) our videos on your social media channels or at events—one features U.S. Travel Ambassador and TV host Samantha Brown
• Incorporate sample social media posts and graphics onto your feeds
• Use our sample press release to spread the word about how you’re participating
• Embed our interactive vacation planning tool to your website for your audiences to use

If you’re looking for more analysis, data and trends, you can find them in our vacation and paid time off toolkit.

All these resources are meant to be easy to use but we encourage you make them your own. Customize them as you see fit or take them a step further to better reach your audiences.

The simplest way to get involved is to incorporate #PlanForVacation into your existing social media content where you’re already promoting your destination or business. Last year, the hashtag reached 38 million—that’s 38 million opportunities to help get your brand into the conversation about how American workers should use their time off.

Let us know how your organization plans to get involved—email me or Nikki Carpenter or tag U.S. Travel on social media:

• Twitter: @USTravel
• Facebook: U.S. Travel Association
• Instagram: @ustravel_association
• LinkedIn: U.S. Travel Association

One last thing: while you’re planning for how your organization will participate in National Plan for Vacation Day, don’t forget about your own time off. As my boss and U.S. Travel Association President and CEO Roger Dow says: The best memories aren’t made in the conference room, they’re made in the moments you spend with those you treasure most doing what truly fulfills you.