What Exactly is A Bookcation?

A few years ago, I had what I considered to be my dream bookcation: I took myself to Disneyland with a ton of fairy-tale retellings on my Kindle. I got to go on the rides I loved and read books that matched the Disney vibe while I waited in line. Overall, it was the perfect bookcation, and I want to do it again.

However, after I went, I was shocked to find everyone has the same idea of what makes a bookcation! In fact, I found out that there are three different ideas as to what one even is!

1. The Staycation

I come from a family of readers. When I was growing up my Grandma and I would sit on the couch, put a bowl of popcorn between us, and read our books together. And even today, if my Mom and I get some time together, we're likely to start having an unofficial silent book club. Spending my school breaks reading was what I always did - but even as an adult I never would have thought to put the "bookcation" label on it! However, it seems like there is a significant population of book dragons who would call this their ideal! The staycation type of bookcation is simple: you stay home and do nothing but read. This lets you explore new lands - real or fictional - through the eyes of your books. it's an easy and cheap way to relax, especially when all the travel is in your imagination.

2. The Literary Traveler

Imagine reading Outlander in the ruins of the halls of Scottish Lords or Dragonfly in Amber at the sight of the Battle of Culloden. For Literary Travelers, that is the point of their bookcations! These readers plan their vacations around the locations in their favorite books - letting them have a more immersive imaginative experience. This type of trip caters specifically to lovers of historical and realistic fiction (or fans of Lord of the Rings if you decide to go to New Zealand) and allows people to fall in love all over again with their favorite books - from the eyes of the characters who live there.

3. The Hybrid

This is my preferred type of bookcation because it combines the reading as much as possible aspect of the staycation with the adventurous part of being a literary traveler. This also is the most flexible of the bookcation types: going to a cabin in the woods and reading nonstop or going to Disneyland and reading in the lines both fall under this category. This is all about adventure: both for yourself and your mind, but it doesn't necessarily have to sync up with the genre you read and the adventure you have.

Overall, I think there are pros and cons to each type of bookcation - but there is no wrong type! I know some people are like me and think the staycation version is just what you do regularly, while others think that's the perfect way to relax. Some people love travel, others detest it and there wasn't enough money in the world that could pay them to go and see the settings of their favorite books. And learning about the different types of bookcations, made me realize how much I love the book community - we always know how to tailor things to what we love most.

So go on adventures readers! Whether they are in your mind, in person, or some combination of both, that is what makes reading magic. How you experience it, it's up to you. And I think that's what makes our community magical.