How to maximize your vacations, no matter how much time off you're allotted

You need a vacation. But when you have limited time off, there’s a lot of pressure to do it right – so much pressure that many Americans skip out on vacation altogether, leaving precious paid time off unused.

But time off is good for you, good for those around you and good for the company you work for. Not to mention all the places you could travel and explore during those precious days away from work. 

Whether you have one week or four, there’s a way to make your time off feel abundant and pack in as much travel as you can. SmarterTravel has put together a customizable plan to maximizing your vacation time.

If you get one week off

One week of vacation time per year may not seem like much, but if you dole it out carefully, you can make it feel like so much more. There are some who think going all in and using the whole week in one go is the way to do it. The chance to totally unwind for five workdays straight may be the right thing to do. But be warned: it’s going to make those other 51 weeks of the year feel pretty long.

Which is why you should consider the piggyback technique, in which you use the days one or two at a time and tack them onto any paid holidays your company already offers.

Use the piggyback technique most effectively by pairing the weekday holiday with your paid vacation days in the same week. So for Memorial Day, instead of taking the previous Friday off, take the Tuesday after the long weekend off. That way, you’ll get the dual benefit of days off and a significantly shorter work week, which will make the following weekend come faster and feel more like an extension of your vacation.

And three- or four-day trips are easy to plan. Fall weekend trips to New England to see colorful foliage or a trip to see a national park could be just the thing you need to recharge. Or you could consider a surprise vacation by having Pack Up + Go or a similar travel agency plan a surprise three-day vacation for you. You tell the company your budget, and they take care of the details. 

If you're driving for a long weekend away, make sure you take in fun roadside attractions and do a little research on best road stops along your route. 

But flying for short trips isn't out of the question either. You'd be amazed at how much you can pack into just a couple days in Chicago or New York, for instance. 

Where to go: 7 seaside hotels fit for your bucket list

If you get two weeks off

Two weeks is, sadly, pretty standard for American workers. But, used strategically, it can give you both a long vacation and a series of shorter ones to keep you feeling refreshed and inspired.

If you’ve got two weeks, use a week of it all at once. You’ll get that feeling of freedom and relaxation that comes from nine days (two weekends and one workweek) in a row away from your workplace.

Make sure you're planning week-long trips in advance to take advantage of optimum flight booking windows around the holidays or peak travel times. 

With a full week off, you could travel to one of U.S. News & World Report's world’s best places to visit. Paris was No. 1, followed by New Zealand’s South Island, Rome, Tahiti and then London.  National parks dominated in the U.S. destinations on the list, with the Grand Canyon coming in first, followed by Yosemite and then Yellowstone.

And if you’re aching to really get away, create a plan to use both weeks at once every other year. After all, when you’re traveling far, you want to make the long flight worth it (and give yourself time to get over the jet lag).

For the shorter trips, use the other week to piggyback on paid holidays (see one week, above, for details).

This year-on-year-off approach gives you bigger trips to look forward to while preserving the benefits of more shorter vacations.

For the history buffs:  10 timeless cities where the past comes to life

If you get three weeks off

With great power comes great responsibility. A surprising number of three-weekers come to see vacation time as a logistical challenge. Don’t be that person. Embrace vacation time as vital and start planning.

As a three-weeker, you can take two weeks off in a row, a move that maximizes that glorious vacation feeling. During the first week, you’ll slowly disengage from work stress and melt into the vacation mindset. By the second week, you’ll be in full vacation mode and able to reap the benefits of the time off. Two weeks all at once is also a great way to do a bigger trip.

So go ahead: Plan a bucket-list trip. And use the opportunity to try something you wouldn't do in your own city, like swimming with manatees in Florida or ziplining over Wales at 100 mph.  

Then use the additional five days as vacation extenders for long weekends and company holidays. You’ll return refreshed and inspired.

If you get four weeks or more

Congratulations: you’re living the dream. But you, like your three-week-off brethren, are at greater risk of losing out on vacation time if you feel like you don’t have time for that time off. But I’m going to let you in on a strangely-well-kept secret: You have time. And it’s worth making the extra effort to use it.

Take a two-week vacation at least every other year. 

You could take a cruise or travel around Europe for two weeks. You've got time to explore, so why not visit Iceland, Portugal, Tokyo or some of the world's greatest places? You don't have to go overseas though when there are plenty of hidden gems stateside. 

You can then divide the rest of your time into shorter segments to give yourself the treat of regular smaller vacations. Four-day weekend? Why not. Extensions around holiday weekends? Go for it. But remember, vacation time is only vacation time if you actually use it.

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Contributing: Julia Thompson, Paste BN