Vacation Recommendations based on Your Element
In honor of the upcoming Summer season, we are making vacation recommendations based on your Element! As adults, we’ve developed characteristics and competencies in all five of the Elements, but everyone has a default setting, usually the one that was predominant when we were children. Some people present with more than one Element that’s very strong, and that’s normal, too. If you don’t yet know your Element, read this post on Kids and the Five Elements and see which one best describes what you were like as a kid.
Some of our vacation suggestions are meant to lean in and allow you to indulge in your natural tendencies; others are meant to help you step back and do something slightly out of character. One thing they have in common: all suggestions are meant to bring balance and happiness to your life.
(Side note: you might be annoyed that we haven’t provided links to specific vacations you can book, but we didn’t want to endorse any tours we haven’t taken. Don’t worry, we’ve included enough key words for you to do an easy Google search.)
Fire
There’s no place like home. Fire is the element of love, but instead of focusing on a romantic couple’s getaway or a scenic tour of Paris or Rome, we like the idea of reveling in the love of family and old friends. Take a break from looking for the perfect Instagrammable spot for selfies and focus on reminiscing about your younger years. Pull out childhood photos and recreate them with your older selves so you can see how far you’ve come.
A hands-on retreat where you can create art is another wonderful way to rekindle your fire. Express your creativity by making beautiful paintings in breath-taking settings, from Italy and Spain to the Scottish Highlands and Sri Lanka. You can even book mini-apprenticeships with master artists from around the world for anything from Japanese calligraphy to street art. Creativity can flow when you look at life from a new vantage point.
Earth
Let someone else pamper you at an all-inclusive resort. As an Earth person, you devote so much to the care of others, so take a step back and let other people care for you. Indulge in an all-inclusive resort and spa where you don’t have to worry about making sure everyone else’s needs are met. On this vacation, the focus is on filling your tank with food, fun, and absolutely no picking up after anyone else!
Vacation with purpose by taking a humanitarian trip abroad. Humanitarian trips allow you to help those in need around the world, from supporting medical and healthcare projects, to women’s education and childcare initiatives. You might be out of your physical comfort zone, but you’ll be in your elemental sweet spot in taking care of the community and learning about the culture you’re immersed in.
Metal
Relax into some unstructured time in Hawaii. As a Metal person, you’re unlikely to not schedule anything, but try to stick to only one solid plan per day, whether it’s an outdoor excursion or a restaurant that can’t be missed. The rest of the time, play it by ear – it’s not possible to “waste” time in Hawaii, it’s too beautiful everywhere you look. Indulge in some frivolous beach reading that you pick up at the airport; Yelp the nearest food truck if you need sustenance. You don’t need to accomplish anything on vacation but to reset and recharge.
Head to Japan for a tour of the Toyota Factory at the Nagoya plant. Indulge your love of rules, processes, and operational perfection by visiting Toyota’s manufacturing facility in Toyota City, Japan. There you will learn about the history of the company, from its origins as a loom manufacturer to its rise to becoming the world’s largest automaker. You’ll get to see the full automotive production process which is so streamlined, they can make any of their vehicles on the same production line.
Water
Go on a great adventure in the African jungle. Nothing grounds you in the here and now like the prospect of coming face-to-face with the “big five”: lions, leopards, African elephants, rhinos and Cape buffalos (oh, my!). Between wildlife sightings, take advantage of the tour guides and local naturalists to learn as much about the environment and the history of man’s involvement in the ecosystem. As you watch animals like wildebeest and zebras make their great migration, you’ll remember that we’re all a small piece of the universal puzzle.
Pay a visit to ancient times with a history vacation. Dive head-first into the past and let yourself be carried by your Water currents’ search for knowledge and meaning. Whether it’s an archeological visit to Machu Picchu or a deep-dive into China’s history with the Terracotta Army of the Qin Dynasty, dig into the ancient ruins and tap into the flow of time, gaining an understanding of how we came to be where we are today.
Wood
Visit over 2,200 temples and pagodas in the former capital of the Pagan Kingdom, Bagan, in the Mandalay Region of Myanmar. A true testament to both human religious devotion and ancient technological achievement, over 10,000 Buddhist temples were built between the 11th and 13th centuries; unfortunately, only a fraction of them survived to today. Definitely don’t miss the pyramid-shaped Dhammayangyi Temple, the largest of all the temples in Bagan, and wonder whether it was only human ingenuity that built this tremendous monument.
To exercise a bit of your own power, hike the Grand Canyon or the hundreds of miles of trails in Redwood National Park. Open yourself up to being inspired by the grandeur of nature, from the vast depths carved out by the Colorado River to the tallest trees in the world. Then conquer them! A rim-to-rim hike of the Grand Canyon is a 12-15 hour feat that fewer than 1% of visitors attempt. Or traverse rope and timber obstacles suspended in the canopy of the Redwood trees eighty feet above the forest floor. We know you’re up for the challenge!
Traveling Companions
Some people enjoy a nice solo vacation, but many of us like to bring along a friend. Here are some travel companion pairings and the dynamics you can expect:
A Wood person would benefit from traveling with a Metal person to temper their spontaneity and lend some structure to the planning. (The Metal person could also plan for safety contingencies on physical adventures like hiking the Grand Canyon.)
A Fire person should travel with a Water person to combine the ecstatic joy of living with some context of how today fits into the long-term.
An Earth person would benefit from traveling with a Wood person because their indulgence in the routine will get loosened up with a dose of spontaneity.
A Metal person should travel with a Fire person to warm the rigid comparison of merit between countries with some empathy for the otherness of the people and cultures. The Fire person will also be able to guide the Metal person through any awkwardness around cultural differences or language barriers.
A Water person should travel with an Earth person so that Water does not go into a monastic life of studying a foreign culture, but can engage in the lived experiences of the people today.
A Water/Wood pairing could give Wood the stamina to fruitfully survive his adventures.
A Wood/Fire pairing could make a vacation into a sparkly and spontaneous array of pleasurable events.
A Fire/Earth pairing could make a vacation into an experience of all the senses, pairing food with music and colorful presentations with making new friends.
An Earth/Metal pairing could make a theoretical collection of cultural data into a hands-on experience of food and good living.
A Metal/Water pairing could make a cultural experience into a deep dive by combining good planning with a running commentary of facts and their contexts.
