Vanishing Vacation

By David E.Thigpen/Chicago

So much for a summer getaway. A new survey by online travel company Expedia reports that a record 421 million vacation days will go unused this year; 31% of us will not use all our vacation, and the average worker will leave three days on the table (up from two in 2003). For one-third of the work force, the longest vacation will be seven days or less. That's good news for employers, who will save about $54 billion. But that's not so great for the travel- and-leisure industry, which is scrambling to reverse the trend. Expedia, for instance, is offering discounts on what it calls destination vacations--planned adventures like cave diving or whale watching. Universal Orlando theme parks is so concerned about the vacation deficit that it has created a tongue-in-cheek ad campaign called Have a Life, featuring mock executives thanking workers for sacrificing their vacation for the bottom line. Many hotels are touting luxury beds, Internet service and fourth-night-free deals. But with a vulnerable work force in a tight economy, many workers see vacation as an unaffordable luxury--and even when they do take one, work obligations loom. "I feel like I need to go on vacation," says Elk River, Minn., mortgage-company owner Molly Nadeau, "but to go and then come home and catch up is all very stressful. I just don't feel it's worth it." Unfortunately for the travel industry, a few discounts aren't going to change that. --By David E. Thigpen/Chicago. With reporting by Sara Sturmon Dale/Minneapolis

With reporting by Sara Sturmon Dale/Minneapolis