Travel’s Benefits for Behavioral Health and Wellness
When you think of mental health and the ways that you might improve yours, what comes to mind? Rest, relaxation, good food, good company: these might be some of the first things. But one benefit to mental health that may come as a surprise is traveling.
Over time, the grind of daily life, work, chores, and other obligations can wear a person down, even leading to burnout. Research studies have begun to show that there is a correlation between taking vacations and improved physical and behavioral health, and that the benefits remain noticeable even afterwards.
Getting away from your daily routine, be it for a few days or a month, supports psychological resilience, which is the process and outcome of adapting to stress and significantly challenging experiences. Resilience builds flexibility and strengthens coping mechanisms, in turn improving overall quality of life.
For older adults, an article by Shu Cole of Indiana University’s School of Public Health finds that the further out you travel, the greater the benefits become, promoting healthy aging and well-being. Travelling isn’t always easy to do—it can be expensive and require a great deal of planning—but one study suggests that even a three- or four-day break from work can offer similar advantages. What matters in the end is that you are getting away from a familiar schedule and allowing yourself to unwind guilt-free. So, try it out! It is well worth the effort.
Sources
Heller, A. S., et al. (2020). Association between real-world experiential diversity and positive affect relates to hippocampal–striatal functional connectivity. Nature Neuroscience.
Grant, R. S., Buchanan, B. E., & Shockley, K. M. (2025). I need a vacation: A meta-analysis of vacation and employee well-being. Journal of Applied Psychology.
Mulcahy, R., Prayag, G., & Pourfakhimi, S. (2024, online publication). Enhancing Quality of Life through Travel, Happiness, and Psychological Resilience: The Influences of Coping and Vulnerability. Journal of Travel Research.
Cole, S., Hua, C., Peng, S., & Wang, W. (2024). Exploring the Relationship of Leisure Travel with Loneliness, Depression, and Cognitive Function in Older Adults. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health.
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