If You Couldn't Take Your Smart Phone, Would You Still Choose The Same Holiday Destination?

Who do we go on holiday for?

Everyone and their uncle Charlie seem to be heading to those picturesque destinations such as Venice, Rome or Amsterdam mainly because air travel has become too cheap and perhaps due to the motivating factor of posting real time photos to all friends, acquaintances and country men...Yes, we have become show offs or to use an old fashioned term...braggards.

Watching a few documentaries about the effect of tourists on Venice and Mallorca, I couldn't help but notice a huge chunk of people standing in that artificial selfie pose or even worse, head down looking at their phone whilst the most stunning architecture and scenery surrounded them is totally ignored. Why bother. Wouldn't it be just as efficient to go and Photoshop oneself into a St. Marx square or gondola?

Flying anywhere used to be a luxury when I was growing up and meant saving for years to either head overseas or to another country yet, now for folks in say Vienna it cost less to fly to Rome than a meal at a decent restaurant.

If the temptation of bragging ( let's face it, that is exactly what we are doing by posting holiday albums online ) is gone, would we still choose all those ' must see ' destination or would we be happier merely going for a drive in our own country, clad in jeans, t-shirt and devoid of make-up? Holidays are meant to be a time to unwind and switch off which nowadays might only be achieved by leaving one's smart phone at home...

Biggi