Travel Articles

Why is traveling so important?

You will meet so many cool people (like me) and traveling forces you to meet new people and make new friends. I have met some great people in hostels (and some terrible people, but that’s another story) and in interviews and if you’re friendly you can open yourself up to so much. Oftentimes the people you meet are also travelers, and because of that you’ll have new (and cheap) places to stay if you ever end up in their hometown. It also serves as a good excuse to visit a place if you know someone who lives there. Another reason it’s great to make friends while you’re traveling is because they will have insight to places you haven’t been and might even go to a new place with you.

You will get to see things you’d never have the chance to otherwise – places that are disappearing, glaciers, glow worms in waterlogged caves, national parks, filming locations, mirror lakes, crazy old monasteries where Richard The Lionheart is buried, sand sharks, the castle where Joan of Arc supposedly spotted the disguised King in a crowd, wonders of the world, famous locals, the oldest winery in the southern hemisphere, etc. And that’s just in my last few years of travel. There are so many things I’ve seen that I will never have the chance to again, just because I love to travel.

You will learn a lot about yourself – and the people you’re traveling with. You’ll learn what your limits are for time in between showers, how many people there really are in the world (after spending 7 months in New Zealand 3 weeks in some of the highest populated cities in Australia was almost overwhelming – the population of the city of Melbourne, Australia is the same as all of New Zealand). And you will surprise yourself at how much you can endure when you’re as happy as frequent travelers are: a 2 hour hike in the snow, a canyon swing, a 2 hour hike into a cave with glow worms and chest deep water, learning to putting snow chains on your rental car on an ice covered mountain road, or learning to body surf with a local. If you had asked me if I would do any of those things a few years ago I would have asked you who you thought I was and who you were and why you were asking me such ridiculous questions. But I am a much better person for all of those things.

Studies show that well-traveled people are more open-minded and less stressed – and who doesn’t want to be either of those things? Traveling is such a great way to de-stress – you’re chill, everyone around you is chill and everything is great. Go meet people, go to new places, and have the best time while you’re doing it. It also makes you more willing to help people out, help other travelers out while you’re traveling and when you come back home. It also just makes you a better person in general, but that’s just my opinion.