In my long-ago corporate days, when we were ruled by guilt, anxiety and card-carrying members of Workaholics Anonymous (two-ulcer men in three-ulcer jobs), the notion of a sabbatical, or time out, was a cruel joke.

Sabbaticals were for tenured business-school professors, or for freshly fired vice presidents, floating down to earth on golden parachutes, or for the silver-haired rich with time on their hands. (Hell, we did not dare take our annual two-week vacation. You were stressed out and got on with it.)

Fast-forward to today with news that before starting work, or before or after college - the "rite of passage" before settling into a career.

This is the finding of a survey of more than 2,000 British executives, aged 26 to 34, carried out by YouGov on behalf of the Bradford & Bingley building society, the second largest in England.

Nigel Asplin, group general insurance director at Bradford & Bingley, says, "Traveling has become increasingly popular at an age when life itself has become a 'stress zone.' People are using extended breaks to relieve work pressure. Having worked for a few years, they feel they deserve it."

Nearly half of 2,013 executives interviewed (49 percent) said they believe that the best time to travel is when one has some life experience, rather than during their student years; 46 percent see extended breaks as the chance to review their lifestyle and attitudes.

While this group would obviously have more money than students for travel, half still intend to do it in "backpacker" style, staying in cheap accommodation and having a daily food budget while still enjoying sports and cultural activities.

But there are some trappings of their affluent lifestyle they wouldn't leave behind: 81 percent would take their digital camera with them, 18 percent their iPod digital music player and 17 percent their PalmPilot. Most popular destinations include Australia and New Zealand, Canada, the United States and South America.

Brett Shepperson, 32, left his job building a mobile phone network, leveraged his mortgage and, with the £25,000 ($48,000) proceeds, took off with his girlfriend for a year traveling around the world, spending an average of four weeks in each of 13 countries. They scuba dived in the Galapagos Islands, skied in Argentina and climbed the Cotopaxi Mountain in Ecuador. A high point was a Spanish language school in Quito, Ecuador, where they met a rich mix of people - teachers, executives, writers.

"I came back a different person, more confident, more laid-back, new perspective and mental well-being," Shepperson says. "I have a new job now as telecom project manager."

Fiona Smith and Justin Harvey gave up their jobs and a joint income of £60,000 to backpack across South America for six months, through Ecuador, Peru and Bolivia. Harvey, who has worked as an IT consultant in London for eight years, looks for respite and "a different pace of life" for a while.

I should be so lucky. I'll settle for a sabbatical long weekend.

Thailand and Singapore ranked top among countries visited by Asian travelers in the first half of 2004, according to the MasterIndex of Travel, a survey of 6,000 travelers in 13 markets across the Asia-Pacific region, conducted by MasterCard International. Both countries were the top regional destinations for 16 percent of respondents, with China coming in third at 13 percent. But China was the most frequently visited country for business travel, at 23 percent, followed by Singapore, 16 percent, and Hong Kong, 13 percent.

British Airways says it is the first airline in the United Kingdom to let passengers who check-in online print their own boarding pass at home or in the office. The pass carries a bar-code containing flight details. Passengers with hand baggage only go directly to security, where their bar-code is checked with a scanner, by-passing the check-in desk or self-service check-in kiosk. Passengers with bags to check in can use a "fast baggage drop."

The routine began as a trial a month ago at London City Airport, where 47 percent of BA passengers checking in on-line are choosing to print their own boarding passes. It has been extended to certain flights from Heathrow and Manchester. BA says it plan to roll out the service across most of its global network within the next 18 months.

Executive Club members can check-in at www.ba.com 24 hours before departure, and other passengers can check in 12 hours before departure.


Roger Collis is the author of 'The Survivor's Guide to Business Travel,' published by Kogan Page in conjunction with the International Herald Tribune, and edits an online newsletter at www.truthintravel.com. Roger also writes 'The Frequent Traveler' and 'Ask Roger Collis' columns for the International Herald Tribune.