Before you plan a week of your calendar around the word downtime, read what a published source says about fractional lasers and recovery.
Where the shorter recovery claim comes from
Penn Medicine states: "Non-ablative or fractional laser treatments have shorter recovery times, but you may need multiple sessions." The trade sits inside the same sentence. Shorter recovery times arrive together with the possibility of more visits. Planning downtime from the first half alone is the home mistake this page is warning about.
Fractional does not name one laser
Penn Medicine adds: "Fractional lasers can be either ablative or non-ablative, offering a middle ground between the traditional treatments." So the word fractional alone does not tell you which kind of treatment a St. Augustine provider is offering. Ask which kind it is before you assume a recovery length. For clinical detail, Laser Resurfacing Pearls on PMC is a place to read further.
Plan time off from your clinician, not a brochure
Do not set your calendar from a brochure. Ask the clinician which type of fractional laser is planned, how many sessions are expected, and what recovery looks like for your skin. Then plan your time off around that answer. If you want a longer read on combining fractional CO2 with 1540/1570 nm lasers, there is a narrative review of sequential fractional CO2 and 1540/1570 nm lasers on PMC.