Updated: 03/02/19 | 2. marca 2019
I was looking over my interview with Rolf Potts recently and thinking our talk about the false distinctions travelers make among themselves. We typically compete to prove who’s a better traveler or how we aren’t like “the tourists.”
As you travel the world and bounce from hostel to hostel, you’ll inevitably encounter some travelers trying to prove their status and superiority by talking about how much longer they’ve been on the road or where they’ve been, or by emphasizing the number of local buses they have taken. They treat travel like some sort of competition as if bragging rights are the most important part of being on the road.
After a decade of travel, I’ve met more than my fair share of these kinds of travelers. I’ll tell you what I always end up telling them: all travelers are created equal.
While I’d rather take advice from someone who has been traveling for 10 years over someone who left just yesterday, the older traveler (and Rolf would probably agree) is no “better” a traveler than the younger traveler. all of our experiences and opinions are valuable. You are not a better traveler simply because:
1. You’ve been traveling for over X years!
X years is a long time to travel, and you’ve no doubt had some amazing experiences. but this isn’t a competition. You aren’t going to get a prize because you’ve stayed on the road longer than someone else.
When people ask me how long I’ve been on the road, I rarely answer this question in hostels, because I hate the “Wow! To je úžasné!” response – where then someone chimes in and goes “Oh yeah, I’ve been on the road for X years.” There is always someone who has been going longer than you. Dan and Audrey from Uncornered Market put my decade of travel to shame – so do a million other people I have met on the road.
The length of your travels does not mean anything and you should never make someone feel bad for being a beginner. travel is a privilege, and not everyone has the luxury of hitting the road for so long.
At the end of the day, we are all beginners at one point – and there’s always someone who has been out there longer than us.
2. You’ve been to over X countries
Travel is not about quantity; it’s about quality. In my first three years backpacking the world, I had only been to about twenty-five or so countries. There are many people who have been to a lot more in a lot less time. but traveling more slowly (that is, spending more time in each place) is, for me, a much better way to learn about the places I visit.
Travel is not a contest. It’s not a race. spending a day in a country just to say you’ve “been there” is selfish and dumb. I know terrible travelers who have been to all the countries in the world and know outstanding travelers who have only been to a couple. It’s the type of person you are not the number of countries you’ve been to.
3. You don’t go there — it’s too touristy
There’s a reason why people go to Bali or Paris, hike the Inca Trail, or head to Las vegas — these places are fun, or beautiful. They may be commercial, overpriced, and full of “tourists,” but they are still exciting places to go visit.
The number of small villages you have under your belt is not proportional to how terrific of a traveler you are. Sure, I think people should get off the tourist trail as typically as possible. explore the unexplored. wander into neighborhoods to see the rhythm of local life. find a map, pick a random place, and go there. some of my best travel memories are when I went to lesser-known cities.
But I also have terrific memories from popular places like the Gold Coast, Amsterdam, Khao San Road, and Barcelona.
No place is too touristy. Locals live everywhere and they typically don’t interact with tourists….because they live in local neighborhoods. I barely see tourists in my area of nyc or Paris. Why? because I don’t live in ground zero tourist area!
A destination is only as touristy as you are.
Don’t try to be cool.
Don’t judge a traveler just by the places they go or the type of travel they embrace. We’re all out here trying to enjoy ourselves. to each their own.
4. You only do what the locals do
You can eat at all the local restaurants you want and take as many local buses as you can, but that doesn’t mean you know the local way of life. If you really want to live like a local, buy an apartment and get a job.
Don’t spend three days in a place, spend three months — or three years.
Then, and only then, can you start to consider yourself a local.
By your very being there, you’re not doing what locals do. Locals don’t sightsee and eat fancy meals. They pick up the kids from school, go to work, run errands, and try to relax.
While the world may be filled with different cultures and foods, the more you travel, the more you realize people are essentially the same. It doesn’t matter if you live in Egypt, Mongolia, AmeRICA alebo Francúzsko – Každý vstane, ide do práce, chce byť šťastný a žiť dobre a dúfa, že ich deti majú lepší život.
5. Nerobíte prehliadky
Hovoriť odpadky o cestovateľoch skupiny Tour vás nezlepšujú ako oni; To ťa len robí trhaným. Ľudia, ktorí to hovoria, zvyčajne zabúdajú, že jazda loďou, ktorú podnikli v Phukete alebo ten výlet na ostrov Fraser v Austrálii, bola tiež prehliadkou. Nie všetky zájazdy sú veľké autobusy s dvojitým obsahom naplnené turistami, ktorí nosia sandále. Môžu to byť aj malé zájazdy.
Väčšina zájazdov nie je neodmysliteľne zlá. Vzal som si dosť a užíval som si ich. Všetko záleží na skupine a spoločnosti, s ktorou idete.
***
Cestovanie je vysoko osobná skúsenosť. Každý sa vydáva na vlastnú cestu po celom svete. Žiadne dve cesty nie sú podobné, a preto nie je možné porovnávať žiadne dve cesty. Cestovanie je o tom, ako otvoriť svoju myseľ až novým zážitkom a ľuďom. Konkurenčné myslenie vás k tomu jednoducho uzatvára.
Ak ste „skutočný“ cestovateľ, viete, že všetci cestujúci sú rovnakí a na týchto falošných mysleniach nezáleží. Pamätajte, že vždy existuje niekto, kto bol na viacerých miestach, videl viac vecí a trávil viac času na ceste ako vy.
A ak niekto posudzuje vaše cesty alebo sa vás snaží odložiť, nestojí to za energiu. Rovnako ako cieľ, z ktorého ste už boli unavení, jednoducho choďte ďalej – a nájdite ľudí, ktorí si zaslúžia váš čas a ktorí vás zdvihnú, nezadá vás.
Ako cestovať po svete za 50 dolárov denne
Môj najpredávanejší sprievodca v brožúre New York Times po World Travel vás naučí, ako zvládnuť umenie cestovania, aby ste vystúpili z vychodenej cesty, ušetrili peniaze a mali hlbší cestovný zážitok. Je to váš sprievodca plánovaním A to Z, ktorý BBC nazval „Biblia pre cestujúcich v rozpočte“.
Kliknutím sem sa dozviete viac a začnite ho čítať ešte dnes!
Zarezervujte si cestu: logistické tipy a triky
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Cestovné poistenie vás bude chrániť pred chorobami, zraneniami, krádežou a zrušením. It’s comprehensive protection in case anything goes wrong. I never go on a trip without it as I’ve had to use it many times in the past. My favorite companies that offer the best service and value are:
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Medjet (for additional evacuation coverage)
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Check out my resource page for the best companies to use when you travel. I list all the ones I use when I travel. They are the best in class and you can’t go wrong using them on your trip.