I’ve noticed an upswing in questions and discussions online circulating around the topic of “Where should I go on vacation? Where can I find travel inspiration to help make a decision?”
People who are either required to go on vacation for work, afraid of losing PTO, needing a break from their current reality, or just wanting to finally get up and go, have taken to Facebook and Instagram for help. Travel groups that I participate in are constantly flooded with people who want to travel the world, but had no idea where they wanted to go.
Now, as someone who has a bucket list a mile long and constantly growing, I can only empathize up to a certain point. Not that I think I’m somehow better than everyone else, but rather I always have a destination in mind.
I love reading blogs about new places to discover, adding to my ever-growing Pinterest boards, and dreaming up itineraries.
I like to go on at least one major trip every year and spice life up with day/weekend trips sprinkled throughout each month.
But, I get it. It sometimes boggles the mind how much information is readily accessible at our fingertips: pictures of lush jungles, powerful waterfalls, tranquil cenotes, lofty skyscrapers, neon-filled nightlife…the list goes on and on.
Almost every other post on Instagram these days seem to be of a beautifully-dressed person (usually with a large, floppy hat) in a seemingly idyllic destination, followed by #blessed #isthisreallife #lovemylife.
Confession: I love looking at posts like these, because I take them for what they are – my travel inspiration. Sure, some of the posts might seem a little self-centered and elitist, but I don’t internalize them as such. I look at the setting and run right to Google to find out more. I can’t help it. It’s an addiction.
But I also know that I’m weird. I’m different.
Newsflash – we are ALL different!
However in this case, I know that I’m different in that it’s easy for me to pick a destination. I’ve trained myself to find travel inspiration everywhere I go.
I’ve learned to view destinations differently and find beauty in some of the most unlikely places.
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But enough talk. Let’s get down to business. How do you find travel inspiration?
When you want to travel, but aren’t really sure where to go, what do you do? How do you pick a destination? Where do you even begin? I wrote a post about narrowing down the type of trip you want to take, but this is different.
This is like the appetizer to that post – something to whet your appetite.
An amuse bouche, if you will.
How do you plant that seed? How do you find the desire to travel? If you’ve never traveled before, how do you even start thinking about **gasp** taking a trip?
Here are my tips to find travel inspiration.
Read
Wait, isn’t this supposed to be about travel?
One of the best things that I’ve recently done was to subscribe to a prominent travel blogger’s book club email list.
I never thought that one of the biggest pieces of advice from other travel bloggers was to read more. Who has time for that? Because I surely didn’t think that I did: I was far too busy with work, family, life, and spending my precious down time with friends. Why would I carve out some time every day to read a piece of fiction?
I finally spent some time researching the why behind the whole “read more” movement and realized something: reading books about traveling, new destinations, far-off places that I might not ever visit…all added to my already alarming wanderlust.
There’s no better way to add fuel to your fire than to feed the flames with a great book, written by an eloquent storyteller.
I started purchasing the blogger’s “top” book recommendations and started reading.
To be honest, not all of them were as enjoyable as I thought they were going to be.
I struggled to get through “Eat, Pray, Love.”
I discovered through “On the Road” that I wasn’t a huge fan of Jack Kerouac’s writing style (gasp!).
But then I picked up books like “Unlikely Destinations: The Lonely Planet Story” and “In a Sunburned Country” and realized there was hope for me.
Whether it was deep in the forest of Transylvania (I just finished Dracula!), somewhere in lush Bali, or across the rugged Australian Outback, I found myself dreaming of new places, whether or not I enjoyed the books.
Trust me on this one. I am guilty of probably never finishing a required book during my high school and college years. But my travel library has grown ten-fold and I continue to add to it as often as possible.
Watching a movie in an epic location is good and all, but since it’s told from the director’s perspective, you’re forced to see the location how they interpret it. When you read, you are free to let your imagination run wild.
Ask
One of the hardest things that travelers face upon returning from an epic journey…is that nobody really wants to hear them (us) gushing about every. little. detail. Seriously.
Friends, family, coworkers, etc. just want to hear that A) you had a good time, and B) you had fun and were safe.
Yes, those are pretty much the same question, but that’s what I always get asked. Then, when I start describing a little pub that I ducked into in order to escape the rain, or the Irish family that took me in as one of their own…their eyes start to glaze over, they begin to nod their heads and say “uh-huh, cool” over and over, and they pull out their cell phones to check if anyone “liked” their latest Instagram post from 3 days prior.
Side note – this was a major reason I started blogging about my travels. I didn’t want to wear out my friends and family, but still had a TON of things to say!
If you’re starting to think about traveling but are struggling to find travel inspiration, ask someone who has traveled recently.
Where did you go? What did you see? What do you recommend?
We ALWAYS have recommendations!
Ask that person who always travels to the same beach why they keep going back. Ask the nomad about their first backpacking/hostel experience. Ask the old couple about their latest cruise. Learn from others and be inspired.
Look at a map
Seems pretty straight forward. I have a large map in my office, right next to my desk. I look at it all the time. I have pins stuck into LA and Bucharest with a ribbon between them, marking out my trip in September.
Any time I have a second, I get up and look closer at the map. I trace the outlines of countries with my eyes, hungrily scouting out my next destination, wherever that may be.
Right now I’m looking at a Northern Thailand, Laos, Myanmar, Vietnam trip for 2019. Had I not looked at a map, I wouldn’t have realized how close those countries are together.
Absently gazing over a map (or spinning a globe for that matter) will lead you to wonderful discoveries. Bet you don’t know where Mozambique is.
And no, just saying it’s in Africa doesn’t count.
It’s a large continent.
Go look for it!
The more you look at the names and locations of countries and cities, the more they’ll stick in your mind and lead your curiosities towards Googling someplace new.
Use Social Media
It can often be overwhelming to realize how much information is at our fingertips. While trying to process all the information can tend to be a daunting task, why not give it a try for vacation inspiration?
When on Instagram, type in “vacation” or “beach” and see what pops up. Go on Pinterest and click on the “explore” compass and then click on “travel.” Click on one of the blog posts and actually read what the writer has to say.
Check out those Atlas Obscura posts on Facebook and discover places you didn’t know you didn’t know! How else would I have found out about the Extraterrestrial Highway?
The bottom line is simple – you can find travel inspiration wherever you go. You only have to figure out where your starting point will be. So now the only question left is…
Are you ready to embark on a journey?
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