During 2020, the hospitality industry took a huge financial hit worldwide. With the rise of the COVID-19 pandemic, we saw businesses across the country and the world close their doors.

Employees were laid off, furloughed, or lost their jobs entirely. Many employees, in fact, took the shutdown as a time to reevaluate their lives and their worth, and left the hospitality industry altogether. Today, as of 2021, the hospitality industry across the globe is still struggling to regain ground amid a life-altering pandemic.

For those travelers and vacationers out there who still rely on the hospitality industry, though there are options available, you can also find activities to fill your time while visiting a new place. Your favorite hotel or resort may not still be fully operational, but there are several ways to get around these minor setbacks.

Here, we’ll explore a few possible activities to help pass the time while on vacation that don’t involve hotels or resorts.

Go Fishing
One of the more timeless vacation experiences, and one that you can literally do anywhere you have a body of water available, is fishing.

Taking a simple fishing trip not only allows you to get out of the house (or the hotel) and into the natural environment, it will actually be a positive experience. Studies have shown that simply being around a natural body of gently moving water produces beneficial physiological effects.

Negatively charged ions are released as a result of water in motion. Being around these negatively charged particles is known to enhance or produce a peaceful state, lowering blood pressure, reducing stress, and helping to calm brain activity. This usually results in greater focus and concentration, and an overall boost for your immune system.

So, go out and buy new fishing tackle and find the nearest lake, river, stream or shoreline and enjoy the day.

Primitive Camping
Sometimes when you head out on an impromptu vacation, you’ll come across tourist destinations, resorts, or areas that are all booked up. No vacancy means that you need to find an alternate method of staying in the area, or you’ll be forced to drive for miles until you find suitable accommodations or lodging.

When a situation like this arises, consider taking your trip primitive and look for nearby campgrounds. While cabins are nice, and offer the comforts of home, with a primitive site all you need is a tent, or just a sleeping bag if the weather conditions are favorable.

Primitive campsites can be found all around the country, and you can count on finding campgrounds near most major resorts. So, take advantage of the opportunity to commune with nature and see a different side of life other than the tourist traps that are common in resort areas.

Remote Backpacking
So what happens if all the cabins and lodging are booked, and there are no campgrounds available? Believe it or not, during the COVID-19 shutdown, this was a common occurrence in the spring and early summer of 2020, as most Americans realized that campgrounds were one of the few vacation options available in some areas.

Regardless, if you find yourself in this situation, why not venture into the backcountry? Remote backpacking is perhaps the only way to see places that you would normally never experience. While remote backpacking you can hike out deep into the wilderness, follow old game trails, experience nature up close, and learn the art of self-reliance, the way it was for our early human ancestors.

It’s recommended that you travel with a group or with a partner if it’s your first excursion into the wilderness. But no matter if you travel with a group or if you’re venturing out solo, you need to know the basic fundamentals of survival in the wilderness just in case a situation arises.

Even though the COVID-19 pandemic changed the way we work, play, and socialize across the globe, it hasn’t altered those timeless activities that anyone can enjoy at any time throughout the year. When all of your hotel or resort plans get thwarted, just remember that you have plenty of natural options available.