To some, there may not need explanation and reasons for why they should travel as they just know why. Others, perhaps, need a little more convincing especially if it’s something they haven’t done too much of. Travel means very different things to different people. Some want to travel the world and some want to travel to the next town over. Some travel often throughout the year, some travel once or twice a year and others don’t travel at all. I want to say right now that there is no shame in not traveling. It takes time and money to travel and while I know you can budget for a trip on any salary, people shouldn’t be made to feel bad for not traveling, especially if they don’t have the means or the passion to do so.
BUT, if you’re interested in opening your mind, getting out of your comfort zone, and are curious about travel, then listen up. Because these very reasons will convince you to book your trip right now, even if it’s just by yourself. Besides, there’s always a fellow traveler on social media who would be down to go with you.
10 Reasons Why You Should Travel
Travel is one of the most magical, intriguing, full-filling and beneficial things you can do for yourself. I wasn’t always such an avid traveler, it actually grew on me gradually with a few key experiences. My parents had me at the very young age of 21 years old so they basically brought me everywhere with them. This includes parties, outings, get-togethers and moving all over the country for the first several years of my life. We finally moved back to Long Island, NY where we are from where I spent about 25 years of my life. During that time, I didn’t do much traveling, just your occasional beach trip to Fire Island and summer sleep-away camp in New Hampshire. I decided to go to college about 8 hours away at West Virginia University and even then, I wasn’t doing much traveling.
It wasn’t until the summer of 2016 when I decided to move to California with my boyfriend (Bubs) to start a fresh life and career. So I left my Manhattan job and quickly found a corporate company where I would continue my career in planning events. California opened my eyes to so much beauty and wonder. I had never lived in a place that was so vastly different and interesting everywhere you went. I found myself wanting to take weekend trips to explore CA as much as possible which then extended to longer trips and wanting to go abroad.
Since then, I’ve had a passion and hunger to see the world that doesn’t seem to be going away anytime soon.
I know this desire and independence came from a young age, but it took me a little while to understand just how special travel is. There are endless places to see and there’s destinations for everyone. Even with the pandemic, travel has become more sacred and sought-after, with people wanting to see the world as best and as safely as they can. I can say with every ounce of my being that travel is good for you and is one of the only things in life you can buy, that makes you richer.
Travel Helps You Figure Things Out
Many times throughout our lives we are faced with hardships, troubling times, decisions and maybe even the feeling like we don’t know what the heck we’re doing. Anytime I feel overwhelmed or stressed out in life, I use travel not to escape, but to understand. Travel can help alleviate a lot of tension and also help put things into perspective. Sometimes taking yourself out of your normal environment can help spark creativity and clarity.
Travel Helps You Move Forward
Life is hard. There are a roller coaster of emotions throughout our lives as we all naturally experience loss and tragedy from time to time. Regardless of what you went through or are currently going through, travel cannot erase the feelings completely, but rather help move you forward. Between experiencing a new place, meeting new people, eating interesting food and taking part in fun activities, there’s just too much going on around you to worry about grieving. Let the good times roll, as they say.
Travel Expands Your Interests
I can’t count how many times I’ve experienced something for the first time on my travels and have said “This is SO fun,” because I had never tried it before. This includes fishing, kayaking, zip-lining, snorkeling, seeing animals in the wild, etc. So many new things are near and dear to my heart because travel brought them to me. Or I brought myself to it. There’s so many fun activities out there to try and you’ll never know unless you just go for it.
Travel Helps You Develop New Skills
Every destination specializes in something and you’ll discover hidden gems everywhere you go. It’s always wise to pair your travels with an experience, activity, lesson or class so you can learn how people do things differently than you. If learning another language has always been an aspiration of yours, then it’s the perfect excuse to go abroad and learn how to speak it. The phrase “an old dog can’t learn new tricks,” doesn’t apply to humans!
Travel Teaches You So Much About Life
Travel obviously brings about new experiences and situations you’ve never been in before, both good and bad. The more you see how other places operate and what the culture is like, the more you understand about how the world works and why we do the things we do. There’s nothing like some hands on experience when it comes to understanding the world better.
Travel Teaches You So Much About Others
Out of all the reasons listed here, this is my personal favorite. You simply cannot understand others, how the world works or what other cultures are actually like unless you are exposed to them first-hand. Travel teaches you how to be understanding and empathetic in ways no other method of teaching can. One’s view of the world is very skewed without seeing more of it.
Travel Helps Foster Meaningful Relationships
Traveling whether with a friend, family member or partner, can help deepen the relationship with others. It’s a special bond to be experiencing a new place and new adventures with someone that almost always creates memories that last a lifetime. In addition to that, the people you meet when you travel are also special because you create a friendship and bond over what brought you there and the place you met.
Travel Teaches You So Much About Yourself
Not only do you learn more about others by traveling, but you get to know yourself pretty well too. Travel exposes beauty, wonder, adventure, curiosity and joy and while experiencing all the little things, you learn more about who you are, what you like, what you don’t like and how you view yourself. It’s incredible.
Travel Makes You Extremely Self-Aware
There’s nothing like a pure cultural travel experience to make you realize you don’t know shit. And I mean this in the least disrespectful way possible. Like I said, you don’t really understand the world unless you see more of it. Once you realize there are people with lives, opinions and struggles different from you, then you are awaken. Self-awareness is one of the highest forms of emotional intelligence and travel will absolutely make you more aware of who you are.
Travel Makes Life Richer
There will never be a time where you regret taking a trip. Travel is one of the best gifts we have on earth. The fact that there are places, people, animals, landscapes, experiences and love in endless places, makes it all the more beautiful. You’ll miss it all even before you return home. Once you start experiencing travel and loving it for what it is, you won’t be able to stop. But why would you ever want to?
There are endless benefits to traveling but those are the top main reasons. If you’re officially craving travel and are overwhelmed with where to go, check out these travel guides to spark some inspiration for your personal travel plans.
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