Expats in the US have a rare opportunity to also use their free time to explore the wonders of North America. Here are some tips on how to get the most out of your travels.
Length of Trips
Germans, for example, often have very generous annual vacation time compared to their American co-workers. Americans usually have to be in a job for one full year before they accrue any vacation time. Then it is likely 10 years per year and may increase to 15 or 20 days after 5 or 10 years with the same employer. Germans often are entitled to 25 to 35 days of vacation annually.
Frankly, this can produce some jealousy. So I suggest to my German colleagues to not go bragging about or flaunting how much vacation time they have.
But beyond that, the length of time you are away in a single stretch can be an issue. We know that Germans tend to be planners and Americans are great at reacting quickly to “fires”. For that reason many Americans say that if you can be gone from your desk for more than a week, the company probably doesn’t need you.
So I encourage lots of mini-vacations. I realize that if you have family back in Europe, you may want to visit them during the seasonal holidays and such trips need to be longer. No problem there. Americans, who go home to their families every night, understand that you need to go home to visit parents and other family members who are not in the US with you.
But I don’ recommend planning a two-week trip to visit ALL the national parks of the southwest, for example. Consider planning four or five days crossing over the weekend and, better yet, one of those weekends with a holiday on the Monday. It may only cost you one or two of your vacation days and people will hardly notice that you have taken a trip. You can take quite a few of those and still have vacation left for your Christmas trip back to Europe.
Getting There
Sadly, trains are not a popular means of long-distance travels. The country is too large and you would spend to much time on the train. For nearby explorations the car is your best choice and for more distant ones flying will serve well.
Certain holiday weekends should probably be avoided, both for car and air travel. Most notably, from the day before Thanksgiving to the end of Thanksgiving weekend are the busiest on the roads and in the air. For information about American holidays, click here.
Whereby the summer vacation is busier with tourists, it is not so concentrated as it is in German since American students usually have 2 ½ months off from school during the summer. Combine that with the relatively short vacations of American workers and you can see that vacations are spread more evenly across the summer.
It would be foolish for me to recommend where you should go on vacation. There are just too many options which meet every taste. Two of the most popular cities with Europeans are Boston and San Francisco. Los Angeles disappoints some people due to its lack of a real city center. My home city of Chicago is one of the most overlooked. It has much to offer. And the national and state parks are a real treasure.
A little research online will reveal the myriad of options. Enjoy your exploration of America!
