Idon’t know about you, but I can’t wait for summer.
In my hometown of Lexington, Kentucky, mid-May can be hot, cold, sunny, rainy, windy — or an unpredictable mix. But whatever the weather is like, by this time in late spring, I’m usually eager for summer to begin.
There’s a lot to love about summer. School is out, the weather is nice, the world tends to slow down a bit. I’m looking forward to all those things. But I’m also excited about a few elements of summer that have become highlights of my annual rhythms as a travel journalist.
Here, in no particular order, are things I’m especially excited about over the next few months.
A Meeting of the Minds
I start each summer in early June with a trip to Macon, Georgia, to meet with a few hundred tourism professionals at the Southeast Tourism Society’s Marketing College. I teach a class on group travel and sit on a panel discussing the latest trends affecting the tourism market. I love the energy and curiosity of this group of people, who come from far and wide to spend a week honing their skills to make an impact on their tourism communities. Spending time with them gives me a lot of hope for the future of our industry.
Early Morning Daylight
I find my body functions best when I start the day with exercise before work. Most of the year, that means my 6:30 a.m. workouts take place in the dark, or, when it’s cold, inside on a treadmill. But during summer, the sun is up before I am, which means I can take a long bike ride in plenty of daylight before heading to the office. By Labor Day, the early morning daylight will be gone, so I have to savor the sunshine while I can.
A Classic Vacation
Most summers, I carve out a week for a classic family vacation. Sometimes that means a trip to the mountains. This year, it will be an extended-family trip to the beaches of Florida’s Gulf Coast. With 13 people in one big rental home, it will be wild, chaotic, hot — and a ton of fun. These are the times when family memories are made. And the older I get, the more I value that.
Deep Dives
Summertime is the key work period for one of my favorite journalism projects of the year — our annual Buyer’s Guide for the Group Travel Industry. This special section, which appears in the September issue of the magazine, is full of deep dives on topics we think will impact the tourism industry in the next year and beyond. Along with our associate editor Rachel Crick and a team of talented contributors, I get to interview some of my favorite thinkers and leaders in the industry and bring you in-depth, well-researched articles I’m always proud of.
Time to Look Ahead
Like many organizations, we slow down a bit in summer. In addition to giving people a chance for vacations, this rhythm also gives us time to look ahead. I take time in the summer to do strategic planning for the coming year. Taking a break from the grind of everyday productivity makes space for creative thinking. The summer slowdown gets my juices flowing and powers me for the rest of the year.
