Joyce

Unless you are self-employed or retired, there is never an ideal time to travel:<BR><BR>1. If you are unemployed, there is concern about money.<BR><BR>2. In you are employed, there is still concern about money, because in these times of downsizing, no job is secure. Job security no longer exists.<BR><BR>3. If you were unemployed but just got a new job, it is even more difficult to take vacation. You will not have vacation hours accumlated (this takes about a year). Also, you will be too busy trying to make an impression in your new job to take a vacation.<BR><BR>You only live once. Soon enough everyone gets to be too ill to travel. Take your travel opportunities when you have them.

JB

Will,<BR><BR>I got laid off in 2000 a month before my wedding and then again last October. Both times I had trips planned and took them. <BR><BR>The only difference was that I had a husband with a job so I did feel some sort of security. I probably would have cancelled if I were the sole bread winner.<BR><BR>There is a balance b/t being responsible and "only living once." If you can do both, I say GO!<BR><BR>JB<BR><BR>P.S. I know a couple who both got laid off - and they have very good financial circumstances, so rather than panic and start looking for new jobs, they have taken 6 months to travel the country and see China and Japan! I applaud them!

Go for it

I myself quit 2 weeks before everyone was made redundant. My nerves were shot from the stress and I got a small (TINY! 1/5th the promised amount) share payout the month before. I was planning to go away and could not find anyone to come with me firther afield. Instead I relaxed and visited some pals in London (I live in europe already). I wish I toll a longer trip but sometimes even a small one helps. You need to refeul after a situation like that. I've worked in HR for years and these situations no matter how well are handled brings a lot of stress into peoples lives.<BR><BR>Maybe go a ltlle more budget with accommodation and food and make sure you can last frugally for 1-2 months at home. You can always get temp work if you need to top us the cash. <BR><BR>I say go but plan you money for the next few months as well so your mind is at ease! Enjoy the break.

Mr. Go

Not hypothetical here.<BR><BR>Mrs. Go worked at Andersen for 15 years, until a few weeks ago. We didn't cancel our plans...in fact we added two days! If anyone ever deserved a nice Swiss/Italian vacation, it's her.<BR><BR>Just my 2 cents.

xxx

I guess I'm the lone voice of dissent here. Personally, I would not go. Having some semblance of financial security is too important to me. Regardless of my opinion, best of luck in whatever you decide to do.

Fred

I going not matter what happen(unless I die or a medical condition stop me), because I've waited a long time to take a trip like this.

Been

I lost my job and had a trip to Ireland and England planned. I went having the same thoughts that travel was important and now I had added time. Loved my trip, but don't always have fond memories since I now look back at it as spent money that I could now be using for bills. Unemployment income is virtually useless and evaporates too quickly. I have been looking for 9 months and still no luck at finding a permanent position (two years ago I was offered jobs 2 and 3 times a week). That vacation money really could have come in handy.

lizbeth

Will,<BR>You eventually will be employed again, and when that happens, you'll have to earn vacation credit, which can take up to a year or more for a decent two-week getaway. I would go, and just find a few ways to cut some corners financially. For instance, a two-star hotel instead of a three-star, sandwich lunches (makes a world of difference to eat that ham and cheese in the Luxembourg Gardens), etc. I'm sure you are a seasoned enough traveler to know the difference between economy and parsimony. Go, refresh your outlook, and when you are earning your vacation time again, you'll be much less impatient. Good luck!

Dawn

I would go and just look for ways to economize a bit. As someone else said "you only live once" , and jobs will come and go. Best of luck

Momma

I'll join the voices of dissent: sorry, Will, but I couldn't go if you get laid off. You will need the money, because you don't know when you'll be employed again. My brother thought it would be 2-3 months, he went to Rumania for 2 weeks, he's now 18 months without a job and his unemployment is exhausted and he has no money to relocate and look elsewhere.<BR><BR>But ALSO, you should be looking for another job right now, while you still have one. In any case, if you are out of the country when The Call comes for your next job, you've lost out completely. <BR><BR>Save the money and spend it on a "victory trip" when you get that new job or your current employer makes your situation clearly secure.

Momma

sorry, make that "I wouldn't go if.."

Jim

The opposite happened to me. Lovely wedding, two weeks in Europe and returned to a laid-off notice. Turns out to have been the best thing. I am a firefighter now and love it. Go for it.

former telecom worker

Tough call. I've been in your shoes. I went ahead with my vacation plans. Therefore, I'm more on the "go for it" side of the fence. However in my situation, I'm not responsible for a family and have fairly low living expenses. Also the trip costs were only $1300 (used freq flyer miles for the airfare). Admittedly I could use that $1300 now (still without a job), yet I don't regret for a moment proceeding with my travel plans. <BR><BR>

Alex

here's a twist on the question. My husband knows he is going to get laid off and I am deciding whether to buy him (us) tickets to Europe for his birthday for a long weekend trip in September (post his lay off). We have a free place to stay and airfares are low. what I am wondering from anyone who has been in this position is - did you worry about money the whole time you were away (in our case the costs wouldn't be exorbinate but one might feel guilty about it)? did you feel nervous looking for a new job with these plans set (e.g. you won't be around to interview those days, if you do get a job you'll have to take days off)? or if you didn't go, do you look back and think you made the wrong decision because you could have gone away at a time when you had free time?<BR>obviously all these depend on the person but curious for some insight.

flygirl

personally, I think you should go for it...<BR><BR>I didn't read each of your responses, so I apologize if this was asked/covered already...<BR><BR>you don't have responsibilities to other people, do you? (little ones, spouse, etc).<BR><BR>I'm a firm believer in being irresponsible if you are hurting no one but yourself - the equation changes if there are others to consider. <BR><BR>if it's just you, baby, - go for it. you'll figure out the job sitch when you get back.

Leslie

Having been laid off at the beginning of June, with an awesome severance package and continued paid medical benefits, and then being re-employed 5 weeks later in July, I would say that you need to evaluate somethings. I would have been able to survive for 6 months on my severance package, without dipping into my savings or using the unemployed compensation from the state. Others that were laid off at the same time did not receive a comparable severance package. <BR><BR>I was laid off along with 44 other co-workers. This had been the 11th layoff in 18 months at my firm, of which 200 had previously been let go. I don't know how many of the 200 are now employed, but of my group, only 2 are back to work. Many of the 45 that were laid off in June decided to take the summer off. 28 more are being laid off tomorrow and Tuesday. I was actually relieved when I was laid off, I had been waiting for the inevitable to happen for months. I left with some uncertainty, but with a positive outlook, I said I had survived 10 layoffs.<BR><BR>You need to look into somethings in order to make a rational decision - how many people in your field are unemployed now? Are there available jobs in your field and industry without having to relocate? How long is it taking to get interviews, and how long is it taking for offers to be made? If you go on vacation, how many weeks can you survive unemployed, as unemployment benefits do not cover much. What is your current debt and are your current monthly expenses manageable while you're unemployed?<BR><BR>Do you have a support network in case you need to borrow money down the road? Based on your present budget and what you have prepaid for this vacation, how many weeks does that equate to for survival money? You've got a great deal of uncertainty to deal with, and the anxiety can become overwhelming.<BR><BR>Any nest egg that you have in the stock market has possibly lost 25% or more of its value. You don't want to take a withdrawal against your 401K plan or IRA, as you're going to pay a hefty penalty for an early withdrawal. And vacations and monthly expenses aren't qualifiers for this anyway.<BR><BR>I only had tentative vacation plans when I was laid off. I could have also enjoyed taking the summer off, but I decided that I didn't want a lot of competition for available positions -- they were sparse and still are, and it wasn't just the firm that I worked for that was laying off. In Boston and the surrounding area, there were probably 1500 people in my industry that were unemployed, and 500 in my field. The competition for available positions has been steep.<BR><BR>I was very lucky, I barely dipped into my severance package and my monthly expenses are not great, so I am now planning a spring vacation, along with 2 weekends away this year. I had a good network of business contacts and referrals, who recommended me for positions that they knew were available.<BR><BR>You could postpone your vacation, and when a position is offered to you, you can negotiate an early "unpaid" vacation. Most employers don't mind this. In fact, that was a question my current employer asked me, and said to feel free to take time off if I needed to.<BR><BR>There is life after a layoff but you have to be proactive; someone recently told me that the best job is the next one that you have. Being laid off was the best thing that happened to me. Each person's circumstances are different, so get your resume updated and start looking now before you are laid off. It's easier to find a job when you have a job, but looking for a job is hard work. It's best to have a lot of irons in the fire and it's better to have choices instead of accepting a job out of desperation. <BR><BR>Best of luck to you in your job search and new career, but only you can decide if you should postpone your vacation plans.

Will

I'm glad to be receiving additional advice. As I said, I've decided to go on with my upcoming vacation as it's one thing to look forward to-and I've been looking forward to it since the beginning of the year when I started to plan for it.<BR><BR>I have the money set aside for the trip expenses and I am and have been for some time looking for another job. In San Francisco where I live it's a very competitive location for my type of job. Therefore, there are not that many positions as before. Of course I am thinking of looking at other parts of the Bay Area in my search. I'm not sure what is in store for the coming month but that's the rumored time of the impending layoffs. I can only do what I can but as for the trip I feel that I really need to go on with it. Many thanks to all again for the great advice and thoughts you've given me. Good luck to those that are in my situation also.

Lori

Thought my 6 month severanced was going to be plenty to get me through to my next job. Hopped a plane to Europe, since I figured I should take advantage of the time off. Thought for sure that I was going to get a new job in a few months, since I had so many offers in the past. Suddenly the job market froze up and 17 months later, I could be using that money for car insurance, new interview clothes, etc. On the positive side, I did have more than enough time to put together a really niced scrapbook of my trip.

Claudia

I have been in that situation, not once, but twice. A lot of it depends on your financial situation but I say go for it. WHEN you get a job, you will wish you took advantage of your time off. Believe me, I feel guilty every time I've gone away since I've been unemployed but I don't regret these trips at all. <BR><BR>You can always recoup the money you spent by scrimping once you get a job again BUT you cannot recoup the free time you lost.<BR><BR>Have a great trip!

banker

well i will throw a pail of water on this live for the moment manner of living. if you are single and have enough money to tide you over for 6 months-ok if yoou have heavy responsiblities like a large mortgage or other loans then rethink your position. where did the idea start that everyone deserves a vacation. that is a luxury to be done after all obligaations have been meet . for many investments have tanked in the recent stock market fiasco. if there is any reasonable chance that you will need that vacation money for food,rent etc then stay home. there is always another opportunity in the future. the old way of buisness first and pleassure second is harder to follow but much more mature and safer in the long run