When we travel, there are only certain dates or seasons that we can choose to take a trip depending on our work and personal life. And when we do go on that vacation, we’re not always guaranteed the best weather. I’ve been on many trips where rain has impeded my carefully planned vacation, but for the most part, I don’t always let it stop me from exploring! Plus, there are still options on what to do when it rains during your vacation so that you can still enjoy your time away! It may even give you the opportunity to slow travel during your trip.
1 – Don’t Let It Bother You And Rough It
If you want to take advantage of your time abroad and don’t mind roughing the bad weather and still follow through with your plans – I applaud you! You’re there already, might as well not let bad weather bother you – unless there’s a weather statement that warns you to stay indoors. Rain may be inconvenient, but if you have a pair of waterproof shoes or boots like Vessi, a good rainjacket, and an umbrella it’ll make it much easier to enjoy the outdoors when you’re prepared for it.
2 – Visit Museums And Other Indoor Exhibitions
If the weather really isn’t great out, you can take a ride to visit all the museums and other indoor exhibitions that are available at the destination you’re visiting. You can spend hours at these museums and exhibits while having fun, learning a lot, and avoiding the rain all at the same time. You won’t really need to encounter the rain all that much except when you get from place to place but a few minutes of rain won’t hurt!
3 – Go Bar-Hopping
One of some people’s favorite pastimes is to go bar-hopping, and what better time than to do this when it rains during your vacation! Bottomless mimosas are a must, and visiting some of the city’s best bars and pubs can be quite an experience – or if you’re at an all-inclusive resort, take advantage of the unlimited drinks you can get at the bar. Speaking of all-inclusive, here’s When To Choose An All-Inclusive Vacation including the benefits and the occasions when this is a great travel option. Not to mention, there can be a large number of activities to do and amenities to visit especially during bad weather so you can stay entertained without leaving your resort.
4 – Stay In, Use Hotel Amenities And Watch A Movie
The easiest thing to do when it rains during your vacation is to stay in, wind down, have a movie marathon and takeout food all day or take advantage of your hotel amenities. Traveling can be tiring when you’re going nonstop like I do, and sometimes it’s actually quite nice to be able to really relax and not have to do anything. Of course, you’ll want to make the most of your time abroad and not just laze on the couch because for the most part, you can do that at home – but if your trip allows for it, it really isn’t so bad to do so especially if you don’t get that luxury at home.
5 – Watch Live Entertainment
Depending on where your travel destination is, you can watch many live entertainment and shows. Think of performances like Cirque du Soleil, Broadway, ballet, opera, a concert, or whatever else it may be that’s unique to the country you’re visiting. Sometimes, you can only attend these types of live entertainment in certain countries – think sumo wrestling in Japan or Muay Thai competitions in Thailand. It’ll really be a once-in-a-lifetime experience since a lot of these shows may be only there for a limited amount of time.
6 – Visit The Mall
What better thing to do than to walk around a mall for hours when it rains during your vacation? It’s always the simplest form of entertainment when you can’t find anything else to do even if you’re not traveling. Plus, all the shopping, walking around, and getting food will all take time and it’s easy to spend 4 hours or more at a mall – and even longer if the mall is really big!
7 – Have A Spa Day
Well, if you’re going to be stuck indoors on a rainy day during your vacation why not get pampered and treat yourself to a spa day. Now that is the ultimate vacation – when you can visit a new country, explore a new culture, have fun on unique excursions, try new foods, and be able to get a relaxation session in on top of it! Whether it’s getting your hair and/or nails done, a full body massage or a multi-step facial, and enjoying saunas and thermal baths, not only will you feel completely refreshed and rejuvenated, but you could spend a good amount of time passing the time this way.
8 – Self-Guided Food Tour
One of the most exciting things to me when traveling is trying all the new foods in that country. So why not take yourself on a self-guided food tour and pick your favorite cuisines and the most popular restaurants that locals frequent to really get a taste of your travel destination? I’ve even done this a few times when the weather was good out, it’s just fun to be able to try dishes you can’t get anywhere else. You don’t have to order a whole 3-course meal, even ordering multiple different appetizers and going restaurant-hopping and trying their most popular dishes is worth it. And some restaurants have centuries’ worth of history to go along with their amazing food.
9 – Sort Your Travel Photos
If you have a lot of time on your hands when it rains during your vacation and you like to take a lot of photos for your memories or social media, this is the best time to start sorting your travel photos and even get a head start on editing them. When I travel, I take thousands of photos on my camera and my cellphone! It’s tough keeping everything organized, and sometimes even remembering exact locations and I spend a lot of time doing this at the end of my days. But if you’re lucky enough to have a slow day, this is a good time to take advantage especially if you’re a photographer or content creator.
10 – Socialize
If you’re a solo traveler or just like to socialize with others, this might be a great time to make some new friends where you’re at or engage in conversations with the locals to learn about their home a little more. You may even find a lot of interesting facts you didn’t know about the destination you’re in and even get recommendations for your next outing when the weather gets better.
11 – Go Underground
If you can’t be outside when it rains during your vacation, go underground if you have the option to at your travel destination! There are plenty of underground cities and malls like in Toronto or Montréal, or even Cappadocia, Turkey and Edinburgh, United Kingdom. Other countries even have catacombs or caves that you can explore. Here, you are guaranteed to avoid all the bad weather and still have fun on your vacation at the same time!
Ready for your next vacation no matter rain or shine? Here are some useful travel tips.