I only travel solo because I need to schedule nap time on vacation

20.08.2023 - 13:05 / insider.com

I've been a solo traveler for most of my life, but these days, there's a weird reason I prefer to do it alone: I love to nap when I'm on vacation.

Yes, I'm a 36-year-old who needs a good snooze so much that I actually schedule nap time into my travel itineraries. 

Sadly, my nap policy has caused a few conflicts on group trips but I'm not willing to compromise on it to satisfy my travel buddies, so I end up traveling alone.

That "vacation rush" many of us feel when we board a plane or walk around a new place for the first time can be overwhelming.

I experience that adrenaline rush quite often because, as a remote worker, I typically average one or two international trips per month. I'm privileged to see so much of the world, but being on the road quite often means I can feel a lot more tired once I reach my destination. 

My exhaustion manifests in a number of ways. I get overstimulated easily, so even small things, like navigating the London Underground or spending an afternoon at the Guggenheim Museum in New York City, can mentally and physically drain me.

I also live with severe anxiety and depression — and fatigue is a symptom of both. I do my best to manage these mental-health conditions but, I won't lie, I've spent whole days in my hotel room on some trips just trying to catch up on sleep. 

So I plan for at least one nap during the day when I travel, and sometimes I'll designate an entire day to just rest as well. I don't always need all that time to sleep, but I'm grateful it's there in case I do.

On past trips, suggesting something as short as a 20-minute nap has felt like too big of an ask for my travel companions.

Most of them haven't understood my need for rest, replying with, "You're on vacation, why would you want to spend time sleeping?" They'd rather spend that time running around to every attraction in Barcelona or hiking all day in the Scottish highlands so they don't "waste" one minute of their trip. 

I totally get it — most of my friends and family only get two weeks of vacation time a year so they want to savor every minute. They have a right to do so, and I don't want to hold people back from seeing as much of the world as possible. 

But I hate feeling pressured to stay out all day simply because others get bored too easily or don't want to take a break. If a friend or family member wants to see the Tokyo Skytree so badly, they should go for it — I can rest up and feel ready to explore more with them in a few hours. 

When I'm alone, taking a nap on a trip isn't a big deal. And, honestly, not compromising on sleep has been a huge game-changer for me. 

I don't want to let something like exhaustion keep me from seeing the world, and I've gotten really good at figuring out how to sneak