How to Read on Holiday Without Ruining It For Yourself - A Completely (Non) Serious Guide

Holiday reading should feel like one of life’s great pleasures, not a logistical challenge involving baggage allowance, sunscreen damage and public spice-related panic. In this completely (non) serious guide, I’m sharing a few practical tips for choosing (and actually enjoying) your books while you’re away.

I’ve not long got back from enjoying a wonderful week in Turkey and it was amazing! Holidays are a great way to relax and recharge and, for me, that includes some seriously dedicated time with my nose in a book. And yes, I have a bit of a reputation for packing as many books as changes of clothes (proof above), so I wanted to pop in and share my insights on holiday reading with you ahead of peak holiday season.

In my head, I know that I should be sensible and pack light. After all, books have weight and (rather annoyingly) airlines seem to care about that! Even knowing this, I still find myself trying to force books in a space and hoping that the bag looks light enough that they won't weight my carry on!

The reason is simple: holiday reading matters.

A good holiday book can become part of the whole trip. But choose the wrong genre (do we really want a dark, emotionally charged thriller as we lounge by the pool?), forget to pack that lovingly stacked pile as you zip up the case, inadvertently start a steamy scene at an inopportune moment, or come back to the room only to find those pristine pages now resemble the waves you were just swimming in, and suddenly the whole thing becomes more complicated than it needs to be.

So, in the spirit of public service, here is my guide to reading on holiday without ruining it for yourself.

Choose your books before you get to the airport

Don’t just rely on the “convenience” of airport book shopping. Choose some holiday books before you go.

Think about what you actually want to read, not what you think you should read. Holiday reading is not the time to impress – this is pure indulgence reading and is all about you. If you want cosy romance, small-town romance, contemporary romance novels, thrillers, fantasy or something with a shirtless man and a lake-based emotional problem, choose that.

Your holiday. Your rules.

Pack more books than you think you need

People who say “I’ll just take one book” always amaze me (one book??? seriously???). 

Always take more than you think you’ll read.

You need options. What do you want to read on the plane, by the pool? What happens if you get part way through and the book feels too sad? 

This is not overpacking. This is preparation and trust me, you will feel far better packing your own books here than demolishing your “one book” mid-way through week one and trying to find something interesting in the hotel gift shop. 

Protect your books like tiny paper royalty

Sand, sunscreen and water are the natural enemies of the holiday paperback.

You think you’re being careful, then suddenly there’s sun cream on chapter twelve and one tragic splash from the pool has turned the pages into a wavy little accordion.

A few practical tips:

• Keep books in a separate tote or pouch (I love the Dryrobe wet bag)

• Don’t put them next to wet swimwear 

• Let sunscreen dry before reading 

• Never balance a book on the edge of a pool unless you enjoy danger 

• Accept that at least one page corner may come home looking traumatised 

A slightly battered holiday book has charm. A book that looks like it survived a shipwreck is another matter.

Keep those precious pages safely away from water

Caution when starting a spicy chapter in public

This one is important.

You may think you are safe. You may think, “I’ll just read a few pages while I wait for my iced coffee.” Then suddenly the grumpy boat captain has removed his shirt, the tension has escalated dramatically and you are sitting in full daylight trying to arrange your face into something neutral.

Holiday reading is full of risk.

Proceed with caution and practice your game face.

Protect your reading time like an actual appointment

Reading on holiday sounds easy, but somehow it can disappear if you’re not careful.

A quick ‘let’s pop to the local shop/park/arcade’ and three hours later you’re making your way back in a rush to get changed for dinner, and that quiet relax-and-read time has vanished.

Whether you enjoy a read with your morning coffee, in between dips in the pool, pre dinner quiet time or simply a way to settle in at night – protect your time. 

E-reader or physical book?

Ha ha – BOTH!!!

An e-reader is brilliant for travel. Light, practical and capable of holding enough romance books to emotionally sustain you through a delayed flight.

But, for me, there is something magical about a physical book on holiday. The smell of the pages as you pull it out of your beach bag, seeing how far you are through it without tapping a screen. These moments become part of the holiday (surely that is not just me??) so my advice is take both if you can. This is not indecision. It is balance.

If a book isn’t working by page 50, put it down

This is a big one! And one that I know so many people struggle with. You have bought a book for your holiday, and you feel like you HAVE to read it. You don't!

Sometimes a book is good but not right for that moment. Sometimes your brain wants something softer, funnier, warmer or spicier. 

Holiday reading time is precious so if you’re fifty pages in and you’re not feeling it, you are allowed to stop. No guilt, no dramatic breakup speech required, just close it and tuck it away. Pick something else (another reason why we pack more than one book!) and get back to enjoying your reading time.

One final holiday read suggestion

If you’re looking for a cosy romance with sunshine, heart and just enough heat, The Cherry Blossom Boathouse might be the perfect holiday read.

It has a lakeside setting, a British heroine who very inconveniently falls into a lake and a grumpy boat captain who is absolutely not as immune to her as he’d like to be.

It’s part of the Solace Springs Romance Series, so expect small-town romance, found family, slow-burn tension and the kind of setting you might want to move into immediately.

My final word… Pack responsibly. Or don’t. I clearly won’t be judging.