I took a cheeky week-long break in Spain without using annual leave – here’s how

A SAVVY office worker managed to get a cheeky week-long break in Spain – without using up any of her annual leave.

London-based Olivia Smith and her pal Amy Irvine spent a week in the warmth of Marbella in April.

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Their workplace, a digital PR company, allows all employees to work from anywhere in the world.

So Amy, the head of the firm, and Olivia, both 27, spent their days working from the balcony of their apartment which was just a stone’s throw from the beach.

Lunch breaks usually meant a dip in the pool and the pair would head out for drinks in the evening.

Amy had used the firm’s policy to take two other trips around the UK – Kielder Forest in Northumbria for her mum’s 50th and Whitby in the North East to extend a holiday – but this was the first time she had gone overseas.

Amy, from Kendal, Cumbria, said: “After Covid we realised that everyone could work from anywhere and it became a policy.

“If the job allows, then everyone should ask their boss if they can work remotely – and use the chance to head abroad.

“Chances are if you can work from home, you can work from Spain, France, anywhere with a similar time zone to the UK.

“I’d 100 per cent recommend doing it – it’s nice to get away, but not have to use up your holiday allowance.

“I just wanted to go and get some sunshine to be honest. I feel like it was so nice to have that change of scenery and work from anywhere. Maybe it would have been more stressful in the UK.

“The sunshine just makes everything better. We went for drinks and some tapas in the evenings and it made you feel like you’re on holiday again – we even went to a beach club one evening.

“We went for a swim on our lunch breaks and it was so nice to wake up to sunshine and not the rain. It felt really surreal.”

Amy believes the working holiday, along with the new surroundings helped with her productivity.

She said: “I definitely felt more productive and it increased motivation.

“It was nice to work with my colleague – who is usually in the London office – as well.

“I think if you work in a job where you can do that it’s a really nice benefit and leads to a better work life balance.”

Amy said she doesn’t have any current plans for a future trip but hoped to work abroad again in the summer and autumn months.

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