Bowman’s Travel Brief: When It Rains on Vacation

What do you do when it rains on vacation?

Do you chalk it up to a lost day?

If so, that’s the wrong approach, the wrong attitude to have when it comes to that rainy day on vacation.

My family and I went to the Sweetgrass Inn at Wild Dunes Resort in Isle of Palms, South Carolina for a three-day weekend getaway.

All week long my wife and I are continually checking the weather forecast, texting each other updates about the chances of rain each day.

Friday arrives and thankfully it’s a clear day for the five-hour drive. However, the rest of the weekend still called for rain, with Saturday (our only full day) scheduled to receive rain all afternoon.

Initially I was bummed. I felt as though it might ruin the weekend. We have a four-year-old who just wanted to go back and forth between the beach and the pool.

We’re eating lunch under a covered pavilion when the storm comes rolling in. At first, she thinks it’s cool to be outside eating while it’s raining. But then she realizes she can’t immediately go the pool once lunch is done.

She’s quite sad, but once it’s time to walk back to the room she’s excited about running in the rain and jumping in puddles. We huddle up in the room to dry off and watch a movie to wait out the rain for a little bit. The sky clears and we’re able to get another hour of pool time before we have to get ready for dinner.

The resort area has ton of small puddles, and she wants to jump in all of them. My daughter is over the moon with joy as she jumps as high as she can and splashes in puddle after puddle.

Seeing this reminded me that even though rain will force you to change your vacation plans up a bit, there’s still a way to make the most of it.

Sure, your situation might be different than mine. However, it’s all about the mindset.

Rain is a good thing.

What did you do the last time it rained on vacation?

Let me know your thoughts and follow me on social media: @EricBowman_