The Secret to Making Weekends Last Longer

I’ve recently re-learned something about weekends that I tend to forget.

It has to do with travel. Ever wonder why a weekend (or week) away tends to feel longer than the same amount of time in one’s regular routine?

Basically, you’re out of your rut — seeing and doing new things — so you’re actually noticing the world, no longer on autopilot. That means you’re fully alive in every moment and experiencing every detail.

As a bonus: you’re also doing more fun things (unless you’re travelling for work); you’ve literally left the grind of work and other daily responsibilities behind; and you’re probably getting more exercise (walking!) and more nature.

I’ve found this time-dilation phenomenon to be true of all sorts of travel, from long-weekend hops to a nearby town or city, to multi-month overseas expeditions, and everything in between. Last weekend I took a road trip through gorgeous countryside to another city, poked around a trendy street, stayed in a place I’d never been before. Earlier this fall I spent a weekend in Montreal, doing much the same things. This summer I went hiking in the Rockies for most of a week. A year and a half ago, I spent three months backpacking around Asia. All of those trips felt twice as long as they really were.

Here’s the secret: you don’t have to actually travel.

You can get the same mental and emotional benefits right in your own city — by taking a day, or an afternoon, or even an hour, and stepping out of your normal life.

• Go to a part of town you don’t normally visit, and wander around, poking into the shops (no need to buy anything), sitting in a park or an indie cafe and people-watching (or reading — why not? It’s your day).
• Try out a new restaurant — or even better, a new kind of cuisine.
• Go to a park, beach, or urban trail system, and really look at everything around you.
• Take a camera (a cell phone camera will do) or a sketchbook…and make art.
• Go to a small (read: free) art gallery.
• Go to a farmers’ market.
• Go to a library that’s not your usual one. Bonus points if it’s in a pretty building.

Do anything, as long as it’s not part of your regular routine.

I promise you’ll feel like you had a holiday.