Travel / Work-cation if you ’ re planning on working . They ’ ll get you back to Sandton by about 11:00 so , after a quick change into a business suit and high heels , you could be at your first meeting before 12:00 . Or – hey – get to know Jozi – there ’ s a lot more to this city than the Northern Suburbs and Midrand . Do a walking tour of central Joburg , visit your ancestors at the Origins Centre at Wits , go bird-watching in Soweto , do an art tour of Alexandra , or watch the fabulous Lipizzaner stallions perform in a tradition that goes back to the 16 th century in Europe – and is the only recognised one of its kind outside of Austria .
All work , all play , all at sea
Taking some time out from a planned business trip is a really good
idea , but sometimes you have to be proactive about your leisure time – especially if you have a family that wants a ‘ real ’ holiday . In cases like this , you need a ‘ work-cation ’. Basically , it ’ s taking the concepts of cyber-commuting , flexitime and bleisure to their logical extreme . Plan a trip with the family , ensure that you have good comms , and then strictly structure your days so that you have time allocated for work , time allocated for play , and time allocated for staring at the horizon – with or without a long , cold drink in your hand .
There are lots of great places you can do this , but one of the better ones is on a cruise ship . There ’ s something so otherworldly about being at sea . And there ’ s so much to do that the rest of the family won ’ t begrudge you your dedicated few hours of work time . You can plan your day to have family time , me time , work time , couples time and even contemplating-your-navel time . You can work for a few hours every morning , or plan to do all your work while you are at sea , and then join the family for excursions when you ’ re in port . Or whatever combination works for you .
All cruise liners have Wi-Fi but not all cruise liners are equal . Some are fine for checking emails and doing the odd web search but no more , and some charge an arm and a leg for data , but there are some with uncapped super-speed Wi-Fi with – seriously – dedicated satellites virtually following the ship ( or it might be the other way round ). Anyhow , the bottom line is that – if you choose the right ship – you can have enough rock-steady comms for high-level coding or processing of immense amounts of virtual data . Check carefully with your Lifestyle Cruises agent when booking , and make your needs known so that you don ’ t end up data-deprived .
Jennifer Stern
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