Los Angeles, CA (10/21/22) Our SabbaticalHomes.com member surveys in 2020 and 2021 were designed to understand how our academic community was managing personal pandemic challenges and overall work / life balance issues.
In 2022, we switched gears and completed a travel focused survey. Travel has always been at the heart of our mission at SabbaticalHomes.com and is one of the main reasons we have worked so hard since 2000 to provide this temporary housing platform.
We believe traveling to other locations, interacting with people in different cities, universities, languages and countries makes the exchange of ideas possible. And when thinking people exchange ideas, the best possible outcome is that every thoughtful interaction can have the ripple effect of opening minds and solving problems.
It was a pure pleasure to read our member feedback to the survey, and to hear anew all the reasons our community also values travel!
Where are our Survey Respondents Coming From?
Our global community lives in countries all over the world. Some people even live in a couple of locations throughout the year depending on their work and research.
Here are a few of our survey respondents’ more specific starting points (not surprisingly, many of these places are home to multiple well-known colleges and universities):
- Melbourne, Australia
- Wellington, New Zealand
- Paris, France
- Berlin, Germany
- Viseu, Portugal
- Montreal, Canada
- British Columbia, Canada
- Santiago de Chile, Chile
- Cambridge, England
- Edinburgh, Scotland
- New York, New York
- Durham, North Carolina
- Berkeley, California
- Washington DC
- Boston, Massachusetts
What are the Top Dream Destinations for a Vacation or Holiday?
It is probably no surprise that Europe overall is a very desirable vacation destination, with Italy and France at the top of many of our survey respondents’ lists. Of course, there are so many places to visit within these two countries alone, that could be a standalone survey.
Other places that many respondents would like to plan a holiday to visit are: the United Kingdom, Canada, Costa Rica, Czechoslovakia, the Caribbean.
And our favorite response: “Anywhere!”
Top Survey Responses: Travel Destinations in Europe
Here is a sampling of how our survey respondents wrote about these destinations:
- “Paris, always Paris. I’ve been in love with the city of light since I was 12 years old. I never get tired of all her charms, and I wish I could go more often.”
- “There are many but they are all in Europe or UK…Paris, Bologna, London, Edinburgh…the countryside in France, Italy, Wales, Ireland. We’ve been to all of these places before but can’t get enough of them!”
- “Italy beyond tourist spots.”
Top Survey Responses: Travel Destinations around the World
We’re not playing favorites with the European destinations; there were plenty of responses that indicate how curious our member respondents are about the world and show a true traveler mentality:
- “African safari or Galápagos Islands”
- “A beach town or small village by a body of water anywhere in the world.”
- “Almost anywhere with enough time to get to know the location and meet locals.”
- “Nature. Ancient forest.”
What are Ideal Dream Destinations for Work or Research?
Dream Destinations for work or research will of course depend on a person’s specialty and where other collaborators may reside or work.
We heard a variety of responses worldwide, with detail like:
- “Rome. I would love to learn the language of my ancestors and learn more about the Roman Empire at the same time.”
- “Ireland for its peace and quiet. Land of rollings hills and rocky cliffs, where great myths and dark mysteries hide. And a peek inside Trinity College Library.”
- “Colombia, Ecuador or Spain (especially Andalucía)”
- “Dublin or Prague”
- “Singapore”
- “Vancouver”
- “[Multiple] countries in Africa”
And some of our retired members have a wonderful perspective:
- “I am currently retired but my avocation is photography so I look for magical moments.”
- “Still working as a clinical psychologist, still interested in attending conferences – the topic rather than the place would determine where.”
- “I’m retired. Just want to explore, have fun, and spend time with relatives and friends in London.”
- And if the pandemic has taught us anything, it’s that we can work anywhere, like this respondent said they’d like to go “anywhere warm, relaxing and by water.”
What is your Ultimate Dream Destination?
Whether you are looking for temporary housing or tenants for a holiday, relocation, fellowship, sabbatical, research trip and something else entirely, you can always search our listings and dream a little about places to stay on SabbaticalHomes.com! Search for a Home Rental, Home Exchange or Tenant for your own home.
Survey Methodology
This survey was designed to provide qualitative, free response answers to the three questions above. It was sent out to SabbaticalHomes.com members in March 2022. Our team recorded 78 responses to the survey questions. Percentages were calculated based on the number of answers (versus the number of responses).
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