Quote #0
No one needs a vacation so much as the person who has just had one.
Anonymous
About This Quote
The earliest located appearance (1899) is in an article by journalist Mary Sargent Hopkins in The Boston Cooking-School Magazine discussing how travel and preparation can leave people more tired than rested. She introduces the line as an already-existing proverb rather than her own creation. The saying later circulated widely in newspapers and was reused by Elbert Hubbard in the early 1900s, which helped attach his name to it.
Interpretation
The quip jokes that many vacations are so busy or stressful that they fail to restore energy; the person most in need of rest is the one who has just finished the trip and returned to normal responsibilities.
Extended Quotation
There is an old saying that one never needs a vacation so much as the day after returning from one.
Variations
No man needs a vacation so much as the man who has just had one.
One never needs a vacation so much as the day after returning from one.
No one needs a vacation so much as the person who has just had one.
No one needs a vacation so much as the fellow who has just had one.
Misattributions
- Elbert Hubbard
- Mary Sargent Hopkins
