By Meryl D. Pearlstein

All moms need a vacation once in awhile. But for working moms, sometimes the closest they get to one is a night or two away on a business trip. Having a hotel room all to yourself where you can watch what you want, finally read a magazine cover to cover, or even just use the bathroom without interruptions can seem like a luxury all on its own. But why stop there? Meryl Pearlstein has some great tips to make a business trip feel like a real mini-vacation.

 

What good is sitting alone in your room? Here are some ways to turn every business trip into a holiday for you. As they say, “Life is a Cabaret, Old Chum,” so carpe deum!

Why treat yourself to room service when a four-star dining experience may be right around the corner? Find out the names of the area’s finest restaurants and book a reservation at a table in the center of things. Bring a journalist’s notepad to give the appearance of a “working dinner,” if you need a prop to feel more comfortable. Arrange a taxi both to-and-from the restaurant, so there’s no risk of finding yourself alone in dangerous areas.

Is there a city that you’ve always wanted to visit that coincides with your travel layover? For example, if you have a choice betoken a connecting flight via Chicago or one via Dallas and you’ve always wanted to stroll the Windy City’s Miracle Mile, ask your travel planner to arrange your connection to give you time to zip downtown in Chicago before you take off. It may prove to be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

Another idea is to pre-arrange a mini-tour of the city where your scheduled or planned layover is. Call the local Convention and Visitors Board and inquire about off-on in-city trolley or bus tours or guided limousine tours with pick-up and drop-off at the airport. In a couple of hours, you can get a good feel for a city, especially if you have a knowledgeable (and talkative) driver.

Work in at least one “pleasurable” experience into every trip. Depending on the free time that you have, visit a museum, have a massage, or meet a friend for cocktails wherever you go. This is especially helpful if you visit places multiple times or if you are traveling to “less glamorous” destinations. The point is to keep your visits “fresh” and add a new dimension to each one.

And, lastly, remember that even your plane trip or excursion to the airport can become a holiday, if you meet new people and gain a new memory. Nothing ever needs to become stale in the world of travel. If you view a business trip as an opportunity to escape the mundane, then your chances of coming back with some element of vacation will increase.

Traveling with her two sons and husband has given Meryl Pearlstein a chance to “live” all over the world, something she’s always longed to do. Meryl has been a writer from her earliest days on her junior high school newspaper, then working in marketing and advertising, and later as a travel publicist and travel writer. Meryl also drags her clan to restaurants throughout Manhattan where she critiques the ever-changing NYC food scene for Gayot.com. A Bostonian who remains true to the Red Sox despite her NYC residence, Meryl also writes for Fodor’s Guide to New York, and has written for www.ClubMom.com, the Boston Herald, Global Traveler, Fortune Small Business online, GQ, and New York Magazine.

 

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