Happy International Day of Happiness!

Across the globe, people are gearing up to celebrate International Day of Happiness on March 20. And, if there is one thing that most Canadians can agree on, it’s that a well-timed vacation almost always makes them feel happier.

Expedia.ca conducted a poll on Canadians to learn how important vacations really are to their health and happiness. Not surprisingly, the results showed that 80 per cent of Canadians associate vacationing with their overall level of contentment. In fact, when compared to other experiences eliciting feelings of joy, such as finding money (16 per cent), or receiving a tax refund (13 per cent), vacationing was chosen by 48 per cent of respondents as number one for generating happiness.

And, as it turns out, 90 per cent of Canadians are willing to make some pretty significant sacrifices just to get their hands on a few more days of relaxation. For example, for one additional vacation day a year, Canadians would give up the following for an entire week:

• 56 per cent would give up video games
• 46 per cent would give up alcohol
• 45 per cent would part with their favourite outfit
• 44 per cent would give up chocolate
• 43 per cent would go without television
• 36 per cent would be willing to give up their cell phone / smartphone
• 36 per cent would be willing to give up coffee

In the spirit of pursuing happiness, why not take a few minutes this Friday to do more than just daydream about putting those vacation days to good use.