my vacation routine, explained

0:00Emma Chamberlain:I adore routine. So much so that even when I'm on vacation, I like to follow a routine. And I know what some of you are thinking, Emma, vacation is for relaxation, rejuvenation, having nothing on the schedule. What are you doing following a routine on vacation? That's defeating the whole purpose of a vacation. What's so nice about vacation is that there's no structure, There's nothing to do. If I go on vacation with no routine, no structure, just free for all in it, is that even a word? Free for all in it? I don't enjoy myself. I don't know why. This is just who I am. I function beautifully when I have a routine.

0:47Emma Chamberlain:Having a routine brings me a sense of peace, brings me a sense of fulfillment, weirdly enough. Makes me feel happy. I don't know what it is about routine. It just makes me feel so good. And so even when I'm on vacation, I have a routine. And so I thought today I would share with you all my vacation routine. I've spent my entire life developing it. And I think it's really solid. Like it is really solid. I just went on a vacation approximately a month ago. And this was my routine every single day. And I had such an incredible vacation. It blew my own mind because vacation can be sort of hit or miss.

1:35Emma Chamberlain:I don't know. Sometimes by the end of a vacation, I just want to go home. Like I'm sick of it. I didn't have a solid enough routine. And like, you know, maybe I sat around too much or I don't know, like, I've had many vacations in my life that I've been excited to leave. And I know that that might sound ungrateful, but I'm just being completely honest. This vacation that I went on approximately a month ago was so wonderful that I didn't want to leave. I could have extended the trip another two weeks and been thrilled because of how good and balanced my vacation routine was and is at this point in time.

2:17So without further ado, this is my vacation routine. I briefly interrupt this episode to let you know that this episode

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3:07Emma Chamberlain:That's walmart.com slash trends. Now back to the episode. I wake up at approximately 7 a.m. Now, sometimes I wake up at 6 a.m. Sometimes I wake up at 8 a.m., but approximately 7 a.m. every day. And the reason for that is I want to get the most out of my day. If I flew all the way to another state or country or whatever, I want to experience as much of the daylight in that place as I possibly can. I don't want to wake up at 11 a.m. and like miss breakfast and then have to go straight to lunch. And then next thing I know, the sun's going down. Like, I don't want that. I want to get the most out of my day.

3:50I took the time and money to go to this place. I am going to get the most out of it. But also, I find that the morning time is one of the most magical times of the day, and even more so in a new place. Like, I love mornings in Los Angeles in my home, but I love mornings in New York or in Paris or in wherever the fuck even more. Because there are new little sounds, new little birds chirping, new, like, it's just different. The way that the light hits the trees in the morning is going to be different somewhere else. The morning time is so quiet and so subtle. And I don't want to miss that because it's even more special in a new place.

4:43when I used to drink alcohol, it was much more challenging to wake up at a nice hour on vacation because I used to drink a lot on vacation. Vacation was time for always having a glass of wine in hand or a tequila soda when that was my vibe. Vacation used to be for living it up, but now I don't drink anymore, so I don't get hung over on vacation anymore. And let me tell you, it has made vacations so much more enjoyable because I'm able to wake up early. But also, I remember everything. Like, there are some vacations that I went on when I used to drink that I genuinely, like, I don't even know what I did because I was kind of drunk the whole time.

5:31Not like blackout, but like drunk enough that my memory of the trip is blurry. And what a shame that is. So anywho, I like to wake up nice and early, sit outside, listen to the birds chirp,

5:46Emma Chamberlain:the cars drive by if there are cars, the people talking softly, if there are people talking softly, the trees, you know, blowing in the wind a little bit. I like to see the morning light. I want to experience it all. Next, it's time for my first coffee. And depending on where I am, This can go a few different ways, okay? I might, if I'm in a walking city, go walk and get a coffee from a local spot that I found on Yelp, usually. Yelp is amazing when traveling. If I'm not in a walkable place, I might make a drink using the hotel or Airbnb or whatever's coffee machine. If that is not really the vibe and there's some sort of room service available, I'm going to order room service.

6:37And usually for my first drink of the day, I'm either having an iced latte with almond milk or an iced Americano. There's something about traveling for me. I drink more iced Americanos. When I'm at home and I'm making my own drinks, I'm always making lattes because I have my own very specific, very wonderful, very tasty latte recipes. But when I'm traveling, sometimes the latte just doesn't hit the way I want it to hit. Perhaps too much milk, not enough ice, whatever. An Americano is sometimes a safer bed. Oh, also, depending on where you are, sometimes there's no nut milk. I am a nut milk girl.

7:18You know, almond milk, occasionally oat milk, soy milk sometimes. Cashew milk is underrated. So good. Coconut milk. Yum. But sometimes those things aren't available and an iced Americano is just the best option. Okay, so I like to enjoy my coffee in the early morning aura. You know what I'm saying? I already described it, so I won't do it again, but I like to slowly enjoy my first coffee of the day, ideally outside or with a window open, just enjoying the early morning vibe, knowing that I don't have to get to work soon. You know, like there's something so beautiful about waking up and just being able to enjoy a quiet morning and not feel the impending sort of, not doom necessarily, but like the impending pressure of the workday.

8:11And I know what you're thinking, Emma, what's your job again?

8:17Emma Chamberlain:What's your job? You make podcast episodes? You're a YouTuber? Emma, shut the fuck up about your, whatever, everything's relative and I still feel pressure job-wise. So leave me alone and go easy on me, okay? Okay. After that, I'll start sort of getting ready for the day. Okay. One of the first things I do is find some sort of water bottle or if I really prepared my Stanley cup, which sometimes doesn't fit in my luggage, but sometimes it does. And I make myself a water for the day. Okay. I'll load it up with electrolytes, really put a bunch of powders in there, get it tasting good. And I get that ready because when I travel, I do not drink water and it's a real problem.

9:07Emma Chamberlain:When I'm at home, I have my Stanley cup, you know, filled up with all my fun little drinks in there. Sometimes it's electrolytes. Sometimes it's sparkling water with apple cider vinegar. Sometimes it's, you know, some sort of lemon ginger concoction. I have lots of fun drinks that I make for myself at home and I put them in my Stanley cup and I carry my Stanley cup around with me like it's a baby or whatever. And I sip out of it all day. And now it's weird that I said it's like a baby because you don't anyway, but you get what I'm saying. And so that helps me stay hydrated. But when I'm on vacation, I don't have that.

9:41And I'm usually going out for the day. And so like, whereas when I'm at home, I'm usually I'm usually at home all day. And I usually have my car so I can leave my Stanley Cup in my car. It's just really hard for me to stay hydrated when I travel. So I try to

9:56Emma Chamberlain:make an effort in the morning to make myself some sort of bottle of water that I can either take around with me or just have in the hotel room or the home that I'm staying in, whatever, just so that it's there. Because I can't tell you how many times I've been traveling and felt really lightheaded and sick all of a sudden because I didn't drink any water, because I forgot, because I was having too much fun or whatever. Okay. After that, I will put on my workout clothes, You know, I have a very specific workout outfit that I wear every single time I exercise. Black spandex shorts, black sports bra, black tight top over top.

10:40And that's pretty much it. And then I like to get in some form of exercise. Now, I know what you're thinking. Emma, you're on vacation. Why are you working out? Like, take a week off. hear me out. I genuinely feel better physically and mentally if I exercise a little bit every day. And it doesn't need to be anything intense. Like I don't need to go on a 10 mile run. I don't need to lift weights for two hours. Sometimes it's just like a 20 minute little workout video on YouTube. Sometimes it's trying to remember my favorite Pilates class and what I do in that class and do that in the hotel gym or outside on the lawn if I'm staying at like a house or whatever.

11:28Just something. I mean, ideally, ooh, this is my favorite. I love when I'm traveling somewhere and they have workout classes nearby. Like there's nothing better than landing somewhere and opening up Yelp or Maps or whatever and like typing in hot yoga and then there being one like 10-minute walk away. That is the best. Not always realistic, though, but if that's available, I will do that. I just mentally feel more peaceful, physically feel more peaceful. After I exercise, I just feel like I've gotten tension out of my mind and body, and I'm able to fully relax. And so this is very important for me.

12:12I don't do it every day, necessarily on vacation, but every day I feel motivated enough. I will cringe, kind of cringe, but it's, it's what I do. Okay. After that, I get ready for the day. I rinse off. I do my skincare. I do my hair care, you know, nothing crazy. Like I'm moisturizing my face. I'm putting leaving conditioner into my super bleached hair. I might do a little bit of makeup depending on what type of vacation I'm on. If I'm on like a beachy vacation, I'm probably not putting makeup on. I'm probably putting a bunch of sunscreen on. If I'm not on a beachy vacation and I'm not going to be submerging my body into water, I will probably put a little bit of makeup on because it is kind of fun to look cute on vacation and there's extra time to do so.

13:04So I'll do a little bit of light makeup. I'm usually not doing like a full face on vacation because that doesn't feel the best. Like that can feel kind of heavy and it can kind of be like a stressful thing to maintain. And I don't want to worry about that when I'm on vacation. Then I'm going to put on a cute outfit. Now here's the thing about putting on an outfit when on vacation. There's a balance that I personally am trying to strike. Okay. I want to look cute, right? Because vacation is about having fun and enjoying oneself. I want to look cute because that's an enjoyable experience for me.

13:42But I also want to be comfortable enough that I can participate in all the fun vacation activities without feeling constricted or uncomfortable in any sort of way. This is at times challenging. And I feel like there's always a sacrifice that like needs to be made.

14:02Emma Chamberlain:For example, on my most recent vacation, we were doing a lot of walking and there were times when I'd put on an outfit and the shoes that looked cutest with the outfit was my little ballet flats or not ballet flats, but just like plain black square toe sort of flats, right? Now, are those the most comfortable shoes for walking? no. However, there were moments when I put on an outfit and the thought of putting like, you know, my sneakers, though fashionable with the outfit, it felt wrong. So I would sacrifice foot comfort to wear my flats. Now, listen, did I experience a little bit of foot discomfort?

14:44Sure. Sure I did, but I looked cute. You're never going to find the perfect vacation outfit, right?

14:51Emma Chamberlain:Like it's, hard. Something's always got to give when it comes to the balance of cute and comfy. But I'm always trying to strike that balance. I feel like the best example of that is whenever I'm traveling to a touristy place, I always notice this outfit. Okay. Imagine a woman wearing a sundress, beautiful sundress, beautiful flowers on it, beautiful sundress with hokas, running shoes. I am not judging at all, but this is such a great example of how hard it is to be cute and comfy. It's like you got to take care of your feet on vacation because there is usually a lot of walking. But you also want to look cute in the photos that you're going to put on Instagram and your mom's going to put on Facebook.

15:39Like you want to strike that balance.

15:41Emma Chamberlain:Listen, I will tell you, I will not under any circumstances pair like running shoes with an outfit. that's where I draw the line. Like I will literally have blisters all over my feet, have like plantar fasciitis in my foot. If you don't know what that is, it's like nerve pain in your feet. I think I had it a few years ago. So I kind of remember what it is. I will literally like cause like foot injury before I will wear running shoes with a regular outfit. I can't do it. I'm not judging anyone who is. I'm just saying that I have boundaries. I have limits. and that is something I will not do. But I do work really hard to find the balance.

16:22Okay, after I've picked out my outfit for the day, it's time for one of my favorite parts of vacation, breakfast.

16:29Emma Chamberlain:Now, it's very weird that I like breakfast to the extent that I do well on vacation because at home, I could not care less about breakfast. In fact, I often don't eat a traditional breakfast. Like my first meal of the day can happen any time between 9 a.m. and like 1 p.m. It just depends on when I get hungry for the first time. If I wake up really, really early at home, like at 5 or 6 a.m., I'll get hungry at like 9 or 10 a.m. If I wake up at like 7 or 8 a.m. when I'm at home, I might not get hungry till 1 p.m. If I ate dinner the night before at like 8 p.m., I'm not gonna get hungry the next day till, I don't know.

17:09Emma Chamberlain:My at-home routine does not include breakfast, usually. Definitely not one that feels special. That's for sure. Like, I don't know. I'm just not a breakfast person at home. But when I'm on vacation, breakfast is one of the highlights of my day. I usually, if I'm staying at a hotel, will eat breakfast at the hotel. I briefly interrupt this episode to let you know that this episode is brought to you by Hotels.com. Okay, I'm going to let you in on a little secret. it. Hotels.com could help you level up your vacation. So if you sign up for free, I might add, you save up to 20 % on select hotels. Yep, up to 20%.

17:53Emma Chamberlain:That's actual real money back in your pocket, which means yes to massages, yes to room service, yes to those little extras that make a trip feel extra special. Head to hotels.com to book now. Now back to the episode. There's very few things that I love more than a hotel breakfast, especially if it's a buffet. Oh my God, I love it. My dad and I both, we travel a lot together and my dad and I both cross our fingers every time we travel that where we're staying we'll have a buffet breakfast because there's something so incredible about sort of what feels like a never-ending breakfast. Like you get up, you pick out a few things from the buffet, you sit down, you eat it slowly, you have a coffee, then, you know, a little bit later, you get up again, fill up your plate again with a few more little things and then sit back down and then eat it and then get back up again.

18:51And then breakfast can go on for like an hour and a half that way. If you do it slowly and you sort of course it out, you can sit there for an hour and a half. That's a solid activity. And for my dad and I on vacation, it is a solid activity. If there is no buffet, no worries. No worries.

19:09Emma Chamberlain:Breakfast can still be a wonderful, lengthy experience, and it should be on vacation, in my opinion. Meals are one of the best parts of vacation. Like, you don't have to cook. You just get to sit down. I mean, I guess sometimes on vacation, you might cook, you know, if you're like staying in a cabin or something, barbecuing in the backyard, who knows. But even if I'm staying somewhere where there is no sort of restaurant attached to the establishment, like if I'm staying at a house or like a cabin or something, I will find the nearest breakfast restaurant. This is who I am. I love the vacation breakfast experience.

19:55Emma Chamberlain:I usually order a minimum of two coffees or matchas throughout the breakfast. Matcha is harder to come by depending on where you are, but I'm usually ordering a minimum of two drinks I usually eat a lot of fruit for some reason when i'm traveling like I love a fruit plate, okay? I love an egg dish of some sort depends I'll pretty much eat any kind of egg as long as the yolk isn't runny like an omelette great Hard-boiled sure fried egg great. Um, I mean fried eggs are honestly my favorite, but or at least right now they are But sometimes randomly on vacation, I'm like, fuck it. Let's do an omelet.

20:36Emma Chamberlain:So I usually will do some sort of egg situation. Most importantly on vacation, I am eating pastries for breakfast. This is the best part of breakfast. It's kind of like breakfast dessert. And I'm a croissant girl. Like if there's a croissant available, that's probably what my breakfast dessert is going to be. however I'm open-minded like on the vacation I went on approximately a month ago my dad and I became obsessed with these little chocolate hazelnut cookies that they had at the breakfast buffet so that randomly became you know one of our breakfast desserts we were also having a chocolate croissant we would share it but you know we would kind of make a little plate from the buffet of different little pastries and that would be our breakfast dessert and it is just too much fun.

21:25Like, listen, at my house, I don't have chocolate croissants. You know what I mean? This is what vacation is for. Okay.

21:32Emma Chamberlain:After an hour and a half, two hour long breakfast extravaganza, I'm feeling full. I'm ready to go on an adventure. Okay. I have all this energy. I just ate. I'm ready to move. And it's still pretty early in the morning, usually, perhaps 1030, give or take. Like, actually, maybe, yeah, no, like 10.30, maybe 11. It's time to go on an adventure. After breakfast, I like to go on a long walk. Now, depending on where I am in the world, this can look very different depending on where I am. If I'm on, like, a beachy vacation and there's no sort of downtown area or anything, like, there's no city, it's kind of just like beachy, that's a walk on the beach then.

22:23Emma Chamberlain:Maybe a little hike somewhere. If I'm staying somewhere that has a wonderful sort of downtown area, there's shopping, there's restaurants, there's coffee shops. I'm exploring that. I am exploring that. That's my favorite type of vacation to go on. A vacation where there is like stuff to do. There's stuff to see like that. Like, I love being able to shop around. I love being able to pop into coffee shops and get a little, you know, afternoon coffee. I like to be able to pop into a museum, perhaps go to a farmer's market. I just, I like having stuff to look at. And some people don't really care about that.

23:11Emma Chamberlain:Like some people, their ideal sort of vacation is I want to go to a resort. I don't care what's outside of the resort. I just want to go to the resort I want to float around in the pool. I want to You know have everything be brought to me. I don't want to have to move a muscle I totally get it. That's just not my dream Like that's not what i'm looking for on a vacation. I like to have stuff to do Um, I will say is there something wonderful about going and staying in in a cabin in the woods where there's nothing around? Yes. You know, is there something fun about bringing groceries and bringing everything and doing everything yourself?

23:51Emma Chamberlain:Like, yeah, that can be really wonderful and fun. Is there something fun about a beach vacation at a resort where you don't have to lift a finger and you're just being waited on, you know? Sure. My favorite type of vacation is one where there's a bit of city to it. And it doesn't need to be like rustling and bustling. You know, like, I'm not asking for New York City everywhere that I'm going. I'm not asking for Paris. I'm not asking for San Francisco. You know, it doesn't need to be packed full of people. There doesn't need to be more than one coffee shop necessarily. I just like to have a town to hang out in.