I don’t know about you but the things I do on holidays, even the simple things, suddenly seem much more appealing than they do at home. This is the whole reason we love caravanning. Driving to a new home site and a new view is just the beginning of the fun. Once you’re there, you get to live a whole new life whether it’s for a weekend, weeks or months, but with all the comforts of home.

Suddenly the things that bore you at home are much more interesting. Simple things like buying food is more interesting when there is a new town to discover, and don’t you find you actually take the time to talk to the staff working in the shops when you have a more relaxed attitude of not having to live by a clock. To have the time not to rush from one chore to another, but browse at your leisure and wander in and out of shops and enjoy talking to the locals.

Cooking and eating healthier becomes more of a pleasure too. Some camp kitchens that you’ll find both in caravan parks and National Parks are a great way to enjoy your surroundings while doing the mundane things like preparing the evening meal.  Also they are great places to talk to strangers of all ages, socialise with other travellers and swap stories of places to see. How many times have you heard from another traveller ‘if you like this place, then you’ll love…’.

Another great facility in caravan parks are the fish cleaning stations. How appealing is it to catch and cook your own freshly caught seafood when it is made easy to clean your catch in an area all laid out and ready to use and with ways to dispose of the waste. We find we (mostly) eat healthier on holidays, eating more freshly caught seafood and quick to prepare fresh salads, bought from roadside stalls or markets if we are lucky. We always check to see if there is a farmers market on during the time we are on holidays.

Holidays are a time to go walking, something we do far more often than we would at home. There’s no better way to get a feel for a destination than to walk through the streets and see what it has to offer. National Parks are another great place to go for walks and get an understanding and information on the surrounding environment. Its good to find walking trail maps especially if they give you a guide to the distance or how much time to allow for a walk. At least then you know which trails to follow depending on how fit and up to it you’re feeling.

On holidays there is always a beach to sink your toes into, a walking path to follow, a hill to climb for a view, a gorge to scramble through or an esplanade to discover. And…in all sorts of weather! Does it matter that it’s rainy, windy, hot, humid or any other weather condition on holidays?  No way! If you only have a short amount of time to discover your surroundings you tend to do it no matter what.

The same goes for fishing. On holidays it tends to be I’m here, there’s water, let’s give it a try.  No fussing around with tide times, time of day, right season or weather conditions. Plenty of times we enjoy fishing just for catch and release, happy to be enjoying the time outdoors in a glorious environment, take a snap of the catch and let them live for another day.

I’m much more inclined to welcome seeing a sunrise on holidays too, why not? When the rest of the day is yours to fill however you choose, getting up early for the dawning of a new day is pretty special and easy (well easier) to do.

Holidays are also a time to you get out of your comfort zone and challenge your fears. I admit I’m not brave when it comes to being on the water, the legacy I think of having had a seriously scary experience in a boat once that put me off (almost) for life. But when it’s the only way to experience the best there is to see, you just have to make it through somehow. A stiff drink helps!

Then there are destinations you can visit for their health benefits in particular. One such place is Crystal Castle and Shambhala Gardens, 20 minutes from Byron Bay in the hinterland. Here you can immerse yourself as much or as little as you want in crystal experiences, labyrinths, a reflexology path and a spiral walk but no matter what you believe or are open to, you will definitely feel a lovely sense of peace and calm as you wander through rainforest and bamboo gardens dotted with stone statues.  The views and the food at the café are well worth it too and whether you take any of it seriously or not, if nothing else you will have had a healthy outing, wandering through a beautiful garden and enjoying the lush environment.

Take a holiday it’s good for your mental and physical health, breathe in the fresh air, take notice of the little things and remember…Life is like a camera, focus on what’s important, capture the good times, develop from the negatives and if things don’t work out, take another shot!

Here’s to improving our health, one holiday at a time!

Glenys