Move aside, quiet quitting, it’s time to meet quiet vacations.
While the term quiet quitting described a mental check-out, millennials have quietly escalated the trend. Nearly 4 in 10 secretly hit pause on work, logging in from a beach, a café abroad, or a mountain cabin, without filing a PTO request. They’re working, yet away. And they’re staying on the company clock.
What It Looks Like
Picture this: your coworker’s calendar is full. Their email is flowing. They’re responsive on Slack. But their lunch break is midday at a beach resort. Or the weekly Zoom backdrop is suspiciously tropical. They’re not depressed or disengaged. They’re strategically absent. The inbox stays tended; the sin lies in bypassing formal PTO channels.
Why It’s Catching On
1. PTO shortage and workplace stigma
Americans get about 6–13 PTO days a year, and 78% don’t end up using them all. Millennials feel pressure: take too much time off and you’re branded uncommitted. So, they trade formal leave for stealth mode.
2. Rough economy, rising costs
Inflation, stagnant wages, expensive rent, they all add up. Millennials feel they deserve a break but can’t afford to burn PTO. Stealth vacations offer a workaround: maximize leisure without depleting scarce days.
3. Remote work gives cover
Post-pandemic, remote working has made it easier to pull off. A quick VPN login and a green dot status, boom, your boss thinks you’re working. Managers may not notice the swapped backdrop.
Pros and Cons
Upsides for employees:
- They sneak in breaks and avoid burning out.
- Work quality often holds steady.
- Flexible work culture gets tested and sometimes appreciated.
Downsides for companies:
- Risk of fairness issues if some coworkers take it and others don’t.
- Security hazards come with unknown Wi‑Fi, personal devices, tax obligations tied to different locales.
- Weakens trust between managers and teams when staff are hiding location.
Expert Take
HR voices from Popsugar call quiet vacationing both a symptom and a wake‑up call to outdated PTO practices. “Toxic work culture” and fear of a productivity stigma push employees to sneak breaks. A better model? Be transparent about PTO and make it easier to use.
MarketWatch career coach Erin McGoff spots this as a rational strategy. Her tips?
- Clear gig time well ahead.
- Camouflage video calls when needed.
- Know your manager’s vibe.
She also warns: being exposed mid-beach meeting? That derails trust fast.
The Guardian echoes this: workplace culture needs to embrace rest. US PTO norms lag behind Europe, where taking time off isn’t suspect.
So What Should Employers Do?
- Normalize taking vacation. Make PTO as routine as payroll.
- Lead by example. If leadership doesn’t take time off, employees won’t either.
- Be flexible—but not ambiguous. Permit working remotely abroad. But set clear expectations around notifications, data security, timekeeping.
- Manage by output. Focus on results—not timesheets or VPN logs—to build trust.
And What About Employees?
- Be upfront (if you can). If your boss is open to geographic flexibility, give a heads-up.
- Deliver results, always. Quiet vacations rely on skipping physical presence but not productivity.
- Avoid being caught, literally. Beware of unsecure Wi‑Fi, unreliable bandwidth—or surprise video calls.
TL;DR
Quiet vacations are stealth breaks taken without formal PTO. Nearly 4 in 10 millennials report doing it. It’s a response to tight PTO policies, fatigue, and remote work flexibility.
For employers: modernize PTO culture, clarify policies, and shift to outcome-based trust.
For employees: if you go quiet, plan ahead, do your work, and stay secure.
And for managers, if your team consistently delivers—even while roaming with a laptop—it’s worth showing gratitude. End-of-year employee gifts or seasonal surprises can help reinforce trust and encourage open communication about time off.
When the coffee machine hums and Zoom seems like home, the line between work and break gets blurry. Quiet vacations highlight the need for clarity: a workplace where time off is real, respected, and earned.