Bah. Breakups suck. And it’s cold…and people are grumpy all around me. Christmas is usually one of my least favourite times of year. Too much stuff going on and people getting pissy at each other.
I need an idea to cheer myself up. Maybe a holiday trip. Something fun. Please give me some ideas.
Shit yeah, man. Take a trip. Christmas week is stupid expensive, but there are a lot of great deals the week before. I’m flying solo on a dive trip to Grand Cayman this December. I started diving in the Caribbean in December, four years ago. It’s a pilgrimage for me now. This will be my 6th full week dive trip, each one as a solo traveler. I’ve been to Jamaica, Mexico, Curacao, Barbados, St. Lucia (this past August, the only non-December trip) and Grand Cayman is next.
But you don’t have to dive or snorkel or swim or zip-line or Jeep-tour or museum-tour or sight-see or do anything you don’t want to do. The best part about vacationing solo is the only compromise you ever have to make is with yourself. Sure, there are awkward moments being a single in an industry built around couples and families, but there are a lot of upsides to traveling alone. On every trip I’ve made friends. Short term friends, but friends all the same.
If you’ve got the cash to do it, just book a week at some resort in the sun somewhere. Hell, if you want to book a room on the East End of Grand Cayman, I’ll share drinks with you every night, no shit. I’m staying at The Reef from 12/12-12/20 but it’s the remote end of the island and there are better places for cheap fun in the sun (I’m obviously there for the diving). Just go somewhere. You don’t need another person to take a vacation.
If Mexico interests you, I have nothing but great things to say about Cozumel Palace. Diving in Cozumel was great, if a bit crowded. The resort was fantastic. All-inclusive with room service and full bottles of booze in the room, mini-fridge with beer and mixers, great on-site restaurants and fantastic friendly people working there. Palace has a handful of resorts in Mexico, but the Cozumel one was great, walking distance to the tourist port and all that entails. Of the places I’ve stayed, Palace stood head and shoulders above the rest.
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Yeah, the East End of Grand Cayman is pretty nice. 
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Even if not a trip to Cayman you can find some great deals for the weeks just before Christmas. Take a look at Fly Me Anywhere which uses the SkyScanner search engine to find cheap fares for your available dates.
I thought this thread was going to be about motorcycle repair. Who knew?
How about buying yourself a motorcycle for Christmas. Take a cross-country trip.
X2! Get some riding lessons first though.
Arizona would be a good motorcycle area in December. Or maybe Australia, or New Zealand!
When I’m glum, and none of my usual games or such help, I come up with ways to make other people happy. It’s how I turned Christmas into something not so great into something fun again.
Whatever sport or physical activity you like, do it, or try something new. The endorphin rush usually does wonders for me, plus the activity is fun.
I have no idea if this would be your thing, but I have spent the last seven Christmases in Vegas. I don’t know about the comparative costs of flights, since I’ve always driven. But hotels there are VERY cheap during Christmas week. If you like to gamble, play pinball machines, see some cool museums, eat, bowl, or any number of other forms of entertainment away from home, I’d suggest at least looking into it.
Good luck.
Yeah, I really want to make some new human connections. I have solo travelled almost a decade ago when I was younger. Maybe I’d be better at talking to people this time. I want to spend my holidays not feeling dirt alone. I was thinking of finding a dance event somewhere and going to meet people. Or visit my bro in Ontario and visit a friend in Montreal.
Bah humbug. Christmas is my least favourite time of year.
Winter is cold and dark and gloomy. If you don’t already know people to socialize with, it’s a hard time to get started doing that. Everybody is hibernating or cocooning.
See if you can find it within yourself to wait patiently until spring, when people start coming out and sprouting new foliage again. In the meantime, buy yourself a bottle of wine, and bag of chocolate chip cookies, and turn the heat up nice and comfy, and go web surfing.