townsizing

Modelled on downsizing, townsizing is the conscious choice of small towns as a holiday destination rather than the bigger, expensive cities.  You can settle in, however briefly, to the quaint charm of the little town tucked away in some not usually travelled part of the world.  You can meet the locals on market day, buy the local jam, admire the local knitting, spend hours in the local museum with its faded photos inside and rusting farm implements out the back.  And be within cooee of a national park if you’re lucky.  And it all costs a lot less than a holiday in the big cities.

It is akin to detour destination.  The rules of that game are that, instead of taking the main route to wherever you want to go, arriving there in the minimum amount of time although scarred from life-and-death encounters with trucks along the way, you take detours that lead you (slowly) through small towns and minor roads, allowing you to explore the new terrain in an unhurried fashion.

Then there is season swapping.  Everyone goes to the snowfields in winter so why not go in summer for a change.  Everyone goes to the Top End in winter so why not go in summer? Everyone goes to Tassie in summer so why not go in winter?  Savings in accommodation can be massive.