If your away-from-home workweek doesn’t include experiences like these, you’re not doing it right

The most successful business travelers—not to mention the happiest—can all agree on one thing: It doesn’t matter if work is what brings you to Miami—or Los Angeles or Raleigh or wherever your company card takes you. You’re in a vibrant new city! Why not have a little fun?

“It’s very important for me to make time for myself,” says Emily Miller, a New York-based event coordinator who travels as part of her job at a tech startup. “If it was all work and no play, I’d be pretty stressed and unhappy.”

Whether your version of “me time” includes a good meal, a little window shopping or an adventure with a view, make it a priority during your next work trip—and don’t forget to post a picture along the way to make your colleagues back home jealous. Need a lesson from the pros? Here are business travel tips and six vacation-worthy snapshots from travelers who are masters at blurring the line between business and pleasure.

Bright lights, big-city sunset (Chicago, Illinois)

After a long out-of-town workday, Miller was tempted to call room service and call it a night. But she and a few colleagues rallied and rented city bikes before finding a dinner spot. “That’s when we stumbled upon this beautiful view of the skyline during sunset,” she says. “It was probably the highlight of my week there. If I hadn’t left my hotel room, this shot would’ve never happened!”

At the edge of the world (Los Angeles, California)

Aurelie Krau, an associate with a travel management company, made it her mission to see as much of California as possible when work brought her to the state for the very first time. During her trip, she arranged her schedule so she could take several days off to get out and explore beyond the city limits. “If you can,” advises Krau, “always adapt your working hours so you have time to enjoy the destination.” For example, if you add a night or two onto your LA visit, you’re only a half-day road trip away from enjoying the same view Krau discovered at Mono Lake Tufa State Natural Reserve, located near Yosemite National Park.

Fireside brews (Raleigh, North Carolina)

When she’s on the road visiting clients, Sarah Kurtenbach, principal and founder of a consulting company, always schedules some fun dinner meetings. “That way,” she says, “the evening is a win-win for everyone!” We wish all meetings ended the way this one at the Angus Barn Steakhouse (just outside Durham) did for Kurtenbach: perched by the fire pit with an ice-cold draft beer. What’s the secret to a memorable business dinner? Look for a restaurant with a unique setting, crowd-pleasing menu and minimal background noise.

A commute with a view (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania)

We get it—sometimes the only time you have to see a city is during the trip from your hotel to your office for the day. If that’s the case, skip the car ride and walk to work. When this New Yorker found himself away on business in the City of Brotherly Love, his twilight commute allowed him to stand shoulder to shoulder with locals and even revealed this charming view (which spies City Hall deep in the distance).

Window dressing (New York, New York)

Mychelle Peterson, a Chicago-based marketing consultant, took this shot of the legendary Bergdorf Goodman holiday windows during a walk down Fifth Avenue when she was in town on business. “No other city does windows like New York,” notes Peterson. A seasoned road warrior who always tries to arrive in her destination the night before a work event and stay an extra day, she has one piece of advice for travelers: Go where the locals go. “Ask your local colleagues where their favorite places to go are; get recommendations from your driver or hotel concierge. The more recommendations, the better!”