What travel has taught me: Tracey Donaldson

Tracey Donaldson, daytime host for Mix. Photo / Supplied

Holidays can teach us many things — about a destination, about other people and about ourselves.

It took my brother's posting of a photo of his boarding pass, beside a glass of champagne, from some airport somewhere and hashtagging it #thetracey to call attention to what travel has taught me: not to go on holiday for your Instagram followers.

Nine years since the launch of Instagram, how can we still expect to get "likes" on the tired airport photos? There are more than one billion active Instagram accounts, about the same amount of Hawaiian Sunset #nofilter #paradise #sorrynotsorry posts I've seen, and posted.

I could curl into a ball when I think how many holiday hours my husband has lost, sitting vacantly waiting to pick up his fork, drink his cocktail, or read his book because he first has to take photos of me, on my sun lounger.

Instagram Husband is actually a thing (according to an article in Metro UK the
term Instagram Husband doesn't necessarily refer to martial status, relationship status or even gender.

Anyone can be coerced into being an IH including your husband, partner, best friend or parents). There's even an app to hire Instagram Husbands — males and females — prepared to go on expenses-paid holidays in return for capturing it all for your Instagram.

Fair play to all of us who've over-posted the cliche travel photos — those first few heady years of Instagram it was intoxicating to show and show-off. Now, the most alluring thing about a taking a holiday is just disappearing from social media for a few days.