My advice is simple and can be summed up in one word. GO! That’s it. If you’re thinking about travelling, do it. Even if you’re not thinking about it, start thinking about it and then do it.
People often have a list of reasons why they don’t travel even though they want to. Money, children, vacation time, fear of traveling alone, no passport. In my opinion, none of these are valid excuses for not travelling. Don’t have enough money? Save up and look for cheaper travel options (fly on non-peak days, get a couch surfers account and stay in someone’s home for free, buy things at a local market rather than eating out every day, check out the free activities in your city of choice). The reality is you may need to save for a little while before you can go, but waiting for a little while is better than not going at all.
Having children is also not a good excuse. In fact that’s a great reason TO travel. Expose them to other cultures and countries early in life. I met so many families with young kids back packing around Africa…and if you can do that in Africa, there’s no reason you can’t do that in a country or city closer to home.
Vacation time is there to be used. Save it up and go on a nice long trip. Many jobs also have leaves of absence or unpaid vacation days so you can go for more than just a few days.
Fear of travelling alone? …nonsense! You’re rarely ever alone. You may leave your house by yourself and return by yourself, but while you’re on the road there are always travelers and even locals that are interested in meeting up. You may need to step out of your comfort zone a bit and start talking to strangers (Yes, I’m speaking to myself here, too) but that’s the beauty of travelling. You get to challenge yourself and try new things while getting the reward of learning and observing a new land.
And no passport? Well, that’s easily fixed with a small photo, a stamp a moderate fee and an application. And don’t wait until you’re planning a trip to get one. Do it now so you’ll have it ready whenever the travel bug bites.
Ready? Set? GO!
