Two winters ago, my family and I went on vacation to a popular Caribbean resort, and around the casino concourse, a variety of attractions were bustling to entertain us.
We found art installations to climb, artificial floral arches to walk around, and giant, dessert-filled milkshakes in sugar-rimmed glasses to sip on…well, before taking any photos.
First came the photos.
To be honest, it felt less like a holiday and more like visiting an immersive exhibit where everything was a photo opportunity and everyone you know was taking the exact same photo. have They took the exact same photo there and tagged it with the correct location.
Social media has changed why people take photos while on vacation. According to a survey conducted by Forbes Advisor, 82% of Gen Z and 57% of millennials have visited a specific destination they saw on social media. Many are engaged in a constant game of capturing and sharing their travels, posting in real time. The same survey found that 74% of respondents feel pressured to emulate the travel content they consume online.
No doubt we were in that group on a holiday, it was performative, exhausting and above all ridiculously expensive.
Don’t get us wrong: We love social media to connect with friends, get inspired by others, and swoon over beautiful destinations. But the danger of social media is that it clouds our better judgment when making financial decisions that may not be worth it in real life.
A little over half of Americans plan to take a vacation this summer, according to a Bankrate survey. Thirty-six percent of travelers are willing to go into debt to pay for a vacation. As costs across the board continue to rise, including flights, lodging, and meals, consumer purchases are following suit. In the process, many travelers are losing sight of their long-term goals, grabbing something that may seem important in the moment but isn’t actually important.
The argument that “if I hadn’t taken the photo, nothing would have happened” comes at a cost.
Molsa Images | Digital Vision | Getty Images
When something that was meant to be for you becomes something to show others, you lose planning and money. This is a classic example of “if it wasn’t photographed, it didn’t happen.” You can end up spending too much time focusing on the wrong elements of your vacation, like positioning yourself to take the perfect sunset photo, but… do not have Watch a real sunsetCapture half the concert on camera I flipped out on you.
We’ve all done this at some point. No one’s to blame. But is it worth paying a high price to take a photo? Worth getting into credit card debt? Worth breaking into your annual vacation budget? of The resort that everyone claims to love?
Without the core memories attached to those photos, they would be worth less than half the amount of money. The casino resorts were crowded, the restaurants were Vegas-like prices, and there were long wait times for almost anything. We had fun together as a family, but the things we photographed contributed very little to those times.
Focus on the elements of vacation that are important to you
When you’re budgeting and planning your summer vacation, start by determining your spending limit. Think about how travel and accommodation costs will affect that amount. If you’re close to your limit, the trip may be too expensive. You want to leave room to enjoy your vacation, but those experiences will cost money.
In terms of what you do, put yourself at the center of that decision. Why would you want to leave from a holiday saying, “I’ve had enough.” Did that really feel good?
Focus on what’s important to you and your family, not what’s trending online. If you love food, focus on food. If you love adventure, invest in adventure. Setting an intentional itinerary can help you find the perspective you need to cut back on the excess that leads to waste.
Finally, try putting your phone away or leaving it in your room for just a little while. Instead of relying on your usual coping mechanisms, engage all of your senses. Nothing is more memorable than trying, tasting, and seeing new things that you don’t get in your normal life.
Believe us, the following year we went away for the same weekend to a beautiful but much more low-key resort on the beach, where we read the entire book, our phones in our bags and our feet in the sand. Sure, we took pictures, but we got so much more out of our time together than any photo could ever capture.
— Heather and Douglas Boneparth Joint AccountEditor-in-Chief of Money News, a money newsletter for couples. Douglas is a certified financial planner and president of Bone Fide Wealth in New York City. Heather, an attorney, is the firm’s director of business and legal affairs. Douglas is also a member of the CNBC Financial Advisor Council.
