December is coming. Diaries are chaotic, everyone is tired, and many of us are mentally on leave long before we actually go. And when you’re already mentally on leave, even a night or two away can make summer feel a whole lot better.

From today (15 October 2026), City Lodge Hotels is making that easier with its summer specials. A nicer break doesn’t have to be a big, expensive one; one or two nights away in a comfortable room can be enough to reset the mood.

The research backs this up. A 2025 review of 32 studies by Ryan Grant, Beth Buchanan and Kristen Shockley, published in the Journal of Applied Psychology, found that the wellbeing boost from a holiday lasts longer than researchers previously thought: an average of 43 days after returning to work. That means a break in December could still be paying off well into February.

Short Holidays Can Deliver Lasting Wellbeing Benefits

Travellers around the world are increasingly embracing shorter breaks, but for South Africans the appeal is particularly practical. InfoQuest’s annual festive-season surveys show that those who go away mostly stay in South Africa, with affordability the main factor in where they stay.

Read the full article in InBound here.