CarolDisney1

Looking for some thoughts!

I have traveled on business for 20 plus years. I am interviewing for a postion now where I would move to the new city and that's it... no more travel.

It's a good job, it's in my field, it's what I claimed I wanted to do when "I grow up" (Well maybe not. Does anyone grow up wanting to do Internal Audit? But you know what I mean)

I wondered if anyone on here had tried the "no travel" lifestyle and gone back to the road? I am interested in if you really "missed" it? Some days I think I would and others........

Thanks!

jerseygirl

I traveled internationally for former company, about 1 -2 trips/month, many to Europe then on to japan. Too tiring and became complex with international direct reports. Now with a small American company, travel on business maybe 2 - 3 times/yr with maybe one international trip. Much less stress but somewhat more boring! yes, I sometimes miss the "paid" travel, esp to Europe (I usually managed to take a day for myself while on the trip) . But I now take a personal EU, caribbean or hawaii trip when I want and personal travel is much more pleasant.

I also learned much about points, upgrades, etc from FT when doing a lot of travel so my personal travel benefits. Left former company 4 yrs ago and still have a fair number of airline and hotel points that I use to make personal travel more pleasant

Flyer_70

I was never on the road "too much" for my last company. 3x per year ( + or -) but they were normally long hauls. I would miss it if I couldn't travel at all.

However, my *new* company has such a horrible travel policy, I may be forced to quit if they ask me to go anywhere. (the horribleness involves where they set us up to stay). Hopefully a new job will come along soon!

busygirl

After 20 years, the travel is probably in your blood. You are the only one to know if it is time to quit being a road warrior.

I have been a road warrior off & on over in assignments for an energy company. Most recent was a two year stint in internal audit. Being away from home was tough the last week of every trip. I have a desk job now with no travel. I admit I desperately miss the travel sometimes- especially since the people I support are constantly on the road.

My husband and I take a plane trip about once a month to visit friends or family. It is nice, but I miss the high that I got from weekend trips during work assignments, such as a hiking in Banff, museums in Berlin & London, or snowmobiling in Yellowstone. I am panicky about keeping my airline elite status that I treasure. I took a 4 day trip to Belgium earlier this year just to ensure that I kept my status for next year. I have gotten used to frequent flyer and hotel perks, so less travel makes it very difficult to keep the statuses.

CarolDisney1

Kind of my fear... I am used to the perks, but...

We will see. Since neither place with the reduced/no travel has actually offered me a job this is all just "theoretical" right now.

b1513

I traveled for the last 8 years because of my position on a Board of Directors. My term has expired and I now don't travel nearly as much as I did. I really do miss it. I know this sounds crazy but I even miss complaining about the delays, missed connections and problematic flights. I liked being in the club lounge, meeting new people, seeing new airports, taking advantage of a few extra days seeing the sites in new places and the list goes on.

Bobette

travelsavant

If you love to travel, you will miss it. If you have the time & money, you can switch to more personal vs work travel, but paying your own way, especially if you are used to 4-5* hotels & biz class air might be a tough transition.

Another consideration is the new city you are moving to one that you have always wanted to live in? If yes, then exploring your new location might take the edge off of need/desire to travel.

Don't forget that just because new position does not require travel, be sure to ask if you can attend job related conferences, meetings, classes, etc. If you don't belong to any job-related societys, join 1 or 2 now - make sure they are both national & international. Publishing papers, becoming guest speaker or serving on meeting committees can be another way to get to travel & sure helps the career too.

prncess674

I don't think you are going to find many people here on FT who have given up biz travel. Once the biz travel stops most stop regularly posting. I would be interested in hearing your experiences if you do decide to give it up. When my current project wraps up in 3 weeks I am scheduled to be on a local project for 6 months. Haven't had a local project since right out of school and the thought of no biz travel for 6 months is giving me hives. I am not so much concerned about the 6 months but I am more worried that I will really love it and not want to go back to my travel life.

SkiAdcock

I know you - that's not gonna happen My biz & leisure travel last couple of years is down significantly due to bizness being down significantly (I'm self-employed), and I must say - I miss the travel terribly. Granted being on the road every week isn't something I want, but being on the road on a regular basis I do miss. However, there are times when roof over head trumps discretionary travel; sigh.

Cheers.

jan_az

Well here is one who has given it up with no complaints

I did the Sunday out Thurs back for years

Then I switched jobs to a job where I got two trips a yr. Our current travel policy now says NONE.

I am still a 1K on fun travel. I love coming home to my house every night. When I get restless I go somewhere that I want to go.

DH is still on the Sun-Thurs bit and he is sooo tired of it.

FlyForFun

Back in the 1980s, I was employed as a consultant. I was away from home at least three weeks out of every month. Most of my travel involved flying but usually the flights were less than 750 miles. I had a few exceptions - I had a project in San Juan and another in the Virgin Islands (since these happened in the 1980s, I had to wear a suit, silk blouse, and pumps).

About three years into my consulting career, I fell madly in love with a nice young man. He was able to fly non-rev since a relative of his worked for AA. He was not able to join me in my business travels, but I used a lot of miles flying with him on weekends. After three more years of travelling for work during the week and flying with him on week-ends, I realized that I simply could not bear to be away from home so much. My last year of consulting, I commuted between my home in Fort Worth and one of my company's three offices (it was a major accounting/financial services firm); the offices were Dallas (a 45 minute drive), Houston, and Miami. I even flew back and forth to Houston two or three times a week since it was actually cheaper to fly than to stay in the Hyatt.

One day in Houston, I realized that I simply could not continue so I gave two weeks notice. I did not have another job but I did have a lot of money saved. I had purchased a Porsche six months before and had three and 1/2 more years of car payments plus my mortgage; I had enough savings for a year or two.

For about six months, I did nothing to earn money. I lived off my savings, drove my Porsche, and enjoyed spending time with my boyfriend. We travelled to many destinations during my sabbatical.

Even with all of my business travel (all paid and refundable tickets), I never obtained elite status on American or Delta. I received my AAdvantage Gold card the summer of my sabbatical; this was before AA had Platinum or Executive Platinum and qualifying for Gold was very mysterious with no published requirements.

After nine months, I started job hunting and found a great job within two months; it was in my career field where I worked before becoming a consultant. I still have the same job after almost 20 years. My current job involves almost no business travel; I've flown two times for business and both trips were from DFW to Corpus Christi. I have the flexibility to take off almost anytime that I want and make a six-figure salary. I have a Mercedes instead of a Porsche. I no longer have the man that I loved; he ended up being a jerk and marrying someone else.

Over the past 20 years, I have accumulated 3 million AAdvantage miles; most are from actually flying and flight bonuses. I typically fly once a month and I fly purely for fun - hence my handle. I qualified for AAdvantage Platinum when AA first implemeted that level and have re-qualified every year since. In 2009, I am trying for Executive Platinum and need less than 20,000 more miles (unfortunately, I booked 5 trips to Europe before the double elite qualifying promotion). In 2009, I have flown to: Paris, Maui, London, Paris, Paris, Frankfurt, Paris, Dublin, Anchorage, and Jackson Hole. I am flying to DCA this weekend.

Eventhough I was totally tired of business travel, I never lost my passion for flying and travelling.

clortiz

I started traveling in my mid-20's when my kids were age 1 and 3. I had nannies for years. Once they got into high school, it was tough to control them, so I came off the road after 13 years. I worked locally (1 hour drive each way), but at least I was home at nights. However, when I did fly every now and then, I hated going back into coach rather than getting upgraded! I lasted in my local job until my last child got out of high school and then the itch to get back on the road was too strong. I went back into consulting and have been traveling every week since (my kids are now 25 and 27). I'm ready to give up the every week Mon-Thurs, but I'll always travel.

I really do miss being home, especially as I'm often gone two weeks at a time. My husband isn't fond of me being gone so much either, but he puts up with it.

I'd love to find a nice balance of traveling 2-3 days about 3 weeks a month, rather than only being home about 6 days each month now.

Good luck in your decision!

onlyairfare

I traveled 4 days per week for almost 7 years as a health insurance executive and loved it, but when my daughters became teenagers I realized I needed to be home more, so I switched to a job that involved traveling no more than 1 week per month. That was a big improvement for the home front and 1 week a month kept me out on the road enough that I didn't miss it.

Then I got tired of the corporate world and decided to go back into clinical practice, since I am a family doctor by training. I've loved seeing patients again, but do miss the travel so I am changing jobs once more - to a higher paying practice that offers 8 weeks vacation per year, plus two weeks of educational leave, which I will use to attend meetings in attractive locations. I also anticipate doing one humanitarian aid trip each year (I like Afghanistan, Ghana, and Ecuador) plus two or three personal vacation trips for the rest of the 8 weeks, which I think will satisfy my travel bug.

I'd never be happy staying at home 50 weeks per year, so I am hoping this will provide a good balance.