News Operation Vacation: 50 Ways to Use All of Your Vacation Days This Year T+L's exclusive travel deals will make the most of your well-deserved time off. By Christopher Tkaczyk Christopher Tkaczyk Instagram Twitter Christopher Tkaczyk is a writer, journalist, and content strategist based in New York City. He was previously the senior news editor at Travel + Leisure, overseeing daily breaking news stories for the web, editing the magazine's Upgrade section, and managing T+L's annual A-List. Before joining T+L, Tkaczyk was a senior editor at Fortune, where he wrote and edited feature stories and managed the brand's many multi-platform lists, including the Fortune 500, the Global 500, the World's Most Admired Companies, and the 100 Best Companies to Work For. His work has also appeared in/on CNN.com, Health, People, Time, Money, Food & Wine, The Advocate, and Yahoo Finance. * 20+ years of experience working as a writer and editor * Appeared as a commentator on BBC, CNN, CBS, NBC, NPR, WNYC, Fortune Live, NY1, and HuffPo Live * Created and hosted Better, a podcast featuring interviews with executives from Fortune's 100 Best Companies to Work For * Created and launched T+L's Operation Vacation, a page of exclusive deals and discounts on airfare, hotels, cruises, and travel packages * Former member of T+L's Business Travel Advisory Board * Received a bachelor's degree in English literature and playwriting from the University of Michigan Travel + Leisure Editorial Guidelines Published on June 20, 2017 Share Tweet Pin Email Photo: Gabriela Herman America has a vacation problem. Or a not-taking-vacation problem, to be more precise. Last year, 54 percent of U.S. workers left an astounding 662 million vacation days unused, according to The State of American Vacation study from Project: Time Off. The reason why all of those days were left on the table? “American workers hold fast to the belief that the path to career success requires sacrificing vacation and embracing work martyrdom,” according to the report, which also suggests that if those workers used just one more day off, it would drive $33 billion in economic impact. In response, Travel + Leisure has launched Operation Vacation, making it our mission to encourage everyone to use their much-needed vacation days to get away and recharge. As incentive, we're offering more than 50 exclusive deals on flights, hotels, cruises, vacation packages, and more to help your budget go a lot further. Operation Vacation offers always include discounts of at least 20 percent off published rates. The editor-curated list is updated regularly, so sign up for T+L’s Deals newsletter and be the first to know when new offers have been added. Some of the exclusive deals currently available include: 8-day tour of Machu Picchu and the Sacred Valley for $1,989 per person 40 percent off luxury cruises from Cunard 2-for-1 deal on 7-night sailings in the Caribbean on MSC Cruises Save 37 percent on bookings at two Four Seasons resorts in Bali 6-night culinary tour of Switzerland for $2,295 Four nights at a private game reserve in South Africa for $1,715 per person 5-day Galapagos cruise for $2,523 per person Book a villa in Wailea, Maui for only $849 per night 61 percent off sailings in Asia with Windstar Cruises 6-day tour of Cambodia for $627 per person The Project: Time Off study found that only 23 percent of workers who went without a vacation last year were promoted, meaning that limiting your time off won't help you get ahead. Leaving behind unused vacation days isn’t just bad for your mental health, it’s also bad for your career. So how can you be certain to use all of your vacation days this year? The answer is simple: Start planning early. The sooner you start doing your research, the better deals you’ll find. To see all of the Operation Vacation deals, visit travelandleisure.com/operation-vacation. Join our movement and spread the word. Tell your friends about your next trip by using the hashtag #OperationVacation. With nearly half of the calendar year gone already, the time to book your next hard-earned getaway is now. Was this page helpful? Thanks for your feedback! Tell us why! Other Submit