For a long time, we thought traveling more meant needing unlimited PTO, a huge budget, or fully remote jobs. We were constantly adding places to our travel list, but only checking off one or two destinations a year.
We thought the problem was time or money, but it turned out we were just planning it wrong.
Then we started asking ourselves: what if instead of trying to make every trip a massive vacation, we looked closer to home? Things we could do in a weekend. Even day trips to places we would’ve never considered before. That’s when everything changed.
Now we take trips almost every month while working full-time 9–5 jobs – just by planning our travel differently.
And no, that doesn’t mean we’re taking a big, expensive vacation every month.
Stop Treating Every Trip Like a Big Vacation
For the first couple of years we were traveling, one of the biggest mistakes we made was treating every trip like it had to be a huge, all-out vacation.
Long flights, a full week off work, a packed itinerary, bucket list destination… the kind of trip you feel like you have to “get right” because you only take one or two a year.
The problem is, when every trip feels that big, it becomes harder to plan, more expensive and you end up traveling less frequently.
The biggest shift for us came when we stopped putting that kind of pressure on every trip. We still absolutely want to check off those bucket list destinations, but once we realized shorter trips could actually work with our jobs – we were hooked.
Not every trip needs to be perfectly planned or a big destination. Some trips are just about getting out, trying something new or having a quick reset.
That’s what actually made traveling more often possible for us: not bigger trips, just a different approach.
Our 4-Part Travel System
Once we stopped trying to make every trip a big vacation, we needed a better way to actually plan our trips throughout the year.
This is the simple system we ended up using; and it’s what allows us to travel consistently while still working full-time 9–5 jobs.
1 Big Bucket List Trip
We still take one bigger trip each year. This is usually our main, bucket list destination. The kind of place that takes more time to get to and needs a little more planning.
If you’re working full-time, this is the trip where it makes the most sense to use a good amount of your PTO.
Having one trip like this gives us something to look forward to, without feeling like every trip has to be that big or that planned out. And let’s be honest… the list of bucket list places we want to visit just keeps growing.
Since we’re based on the East Coast, some of our bigger trips have included the Canadian Rockies (Banff) and Yellowstone/Grand Teton National Parks. Depending on where you live and what’s on your list, this could look completely different for you, but the idea stays the same: use this trip for the places that are harder to get to or where you want more time to explore.
1-2 Smaller Trips
On top of that, we usually plan one or two smaller long weekend trips during the year.
These are typically 3–5 day trips. Perfect for long weekends or working around holidays. We’ll usually take 1–2 PTO days and try to stack them with work holidays to stretch the trip a little longer without using too much time off.
These trips are a lot easier to fit into a normal schedule and don’t require nearly as much planning, time, or budget as a full vacation. To keep them as budget-friendly as possible, we’ll look for destinations where we can use hotel points, airline miles, or companion tickets.
Honestly, these have ended up being some of our favorite trips because they’re just easier and a lot less pressure overall. For us, these have been bigger city trips like Washington DC, NYC, and Chicago, but this could look completely different depending on where you live and what you enjoy.
These trips are a big part of what makes traveling more often actually doable.
Weekend Trips (No PTO)
This is where things really started to change for us.
Weekend trips were the biggest shift. We realized we didn’t need to take time off to actually travel.
Leaving after work on Friday and coming back Sunday is enough to get out of your routine and experience somewhere new. Even just one night away can do the same.
Most of these are within a 2–4 hour drive for us. Some of our favorite weekend trips have been within driving distance, like Savannah and Atlanta. Places we probably would’ve overlooked before.
That’s when we realized we didn’t need more PTO to travel more. We just needed to use the time we already had differently.
Day Trips Count Too
This is the one people tend to overlook the most. Some people might even say day trips don’t count as traveling, but we completely disagree.
Not every trip needs an overnight stay to count.
Day trips to nearby parks, small towns, or even just a new area you haven’t explored yet are an easy way to get out and break up your routine. They also don’t have to cost much, which makes them a great option if you’re trying to travel more without increasing your budget.
Some of our favorite days have come from places we never would’ve thought twice about before—and some have cost less than a typical night out. One recent example: we drove about an hour to a state park in a small town we had never been to before. We ended up finding a local restaurant with an amazing breakfast, spent a few hours exploring and hiking in the park, and then visited a historic home with ties back to the Civil War era. It turned into one of those unexpectedly great days.
These are the kinds of trips we would’ve overlooked before and now they’ve become some of our favorites.
How To Maximize PTO
One of the core pillars of our travel system is maximizing PTO. We typically plan everything around about 10 days of PTO for travel each year, so we have to be pretty intentional with how we use it.
When one bigger trip can take up half of that, the rest can go quickly if you’re not careful. These are some of the ways we make it stretch a lot further:
- Plan trips around company holidays
If you already have days off built into your calendar, use them. It’s one of the easiest ways to extend a trip without using extra PTO. - Travel in the evening after work
Instead of taking a full day off just to travel, we’ll leave after work and use that time to get to our destination so we can wake up and start exploring the next morning. - Take a later flight home
On the way back, we try to book later flights so we can still use most of that day instead of losing it to travel. - Use weekends to your advantage
For longer trips, traveling Saturday to Sunday can turn into a 9-day trip using only 5 PTO days. - Stack multiple strategies
This is where it really adds up. Combining a holiday, weekend travel, and smart flight timing can give you significantly more time without using extra PTO.
None of these are complicated on their own, but being intentional with them is what makes traveling more often actually realistic with a full-time job.
Why This System Actually Works
What we didn’t expect when we started doing this is how much better this way of traveling would actually feel.
Instead of putting all the pressure on one or two big trips a year, we now have things to look forward to throughout the year. Travel feels like something that’s part of our life – not something we have to wait all year for.
It also changed the way we think about travel entirely. We stopped feeling like every trip had to be “perfect” to be worth taking.
Some of our favorite memories have come from shorter trips we almost didn’t take because they didn’t seem “big enough” at the time. A quick weekend away or even a simple day trip can end up being just as meaningful as a bigger vacation.
You don’t necessarily need more PTO. You just need a system that works with the time you already have.
Start With One Trip
If you’re trying to travel more, don’t overcomplicate it.
Look at your next 2–3 months and choose one trip that realistically fits your schedule and budget.
And it doesn’t have to be a big trip. If that’s not realistic for you right now, start with a long weekend. Start with a no-PTO trip. Start with whatever actually fits your current season of life.
Then see where you can realistically fit in another trip. Whether that’s a long weekend, a shorter trip, or even just a day trip.
You don’t need to have the whole year figured out; you just need a starting point.
That’s what changed everything for us. Once we stopped trying to make every trip a big vacation and started building around what actually worked with our schedule, we realized we could travel a lot more than we thought.
This isn’t about doing it exactly how we do it. It’s about taking the idea and making it work for you.
Final Thoughts
At the end of the day, traveling more didn’t come from having unlimited PTO or a perfect schedule. It came from being intentional with the time we already had.
Some of our favorite memories have come from trips we almost didn’t take because we thought they were “too short” or not worth the effort.
If there’s one thing we hope you take away from this, it’s that travel doesn’t have to be all-or-nothing. A weekend trip counts. A day trip counts. One night away counts.
Start with what works for you right now and build from there.
If you’re trying to travel more without burning all your PTO, we’ll be sharing realistic itineraries, weekend trips, and travel strategies built for people with full-time jobs.