I really wish I hadn’t vacationed so much. Rather have stayed home than had all those experiences.
Is this something most of us would ever say?
Not very likely. Why? Because…
YOU WILL NEVER REGRET TRAVEL.
If anything, you will regret that you haven’t traveled more.
The Priceline Group shows that between 1/3 and half (44%) of American adults regret not going on more trips.https://www.lifehack.org/419207/survey-finds-how-many-people-regret-not-traveling-enough-the-results-are-impressive
Unfortunately, many put off their travel dreams to “some day.” There are many excuses for this procrastination. But I’m here to cheer you on and tell you that you can travel on a budget, you can travel safely, and there is always time to travel. Always. Don’t let time pass and let your dreams evaporate.
Now, there are probably hundreds of reasons why you’ll never regret traveling. But here are my top reasons for why there will be NO regrets if you fill your life up with travel:
You create a bank of memories and stories to share.
Travel experiences don’t end when you come home. The memories stay with you forever. Your investment in your trip pays dividends in the form of memories and stories to share with friends and family. Few things in life can equal the impact of what travel offers.
Whether the memory is of the best meal you ever ate, the most beautiful or diverse landscape you visited OR even the chaos you may have encountered on one of your trips, think of the stories you can share!
After all, a well traveled person is probably one of the best story tellers.
You expand your food palette.
Travel provides a truly authentic food experience. Exploring local markets, trying the local street food, eating at local establishments or attending a cooking class all provide a “cuisine close up” to that destination’s culture. Immersing yourself in the food culture of your travel destinations will expand your food palette.
So,when you travel, leave your food comfort zone at home. Try foods that you would never eat at home. Many times, you will find that a specific dishes’s preparation is not what you’re used to . However, the ingredients are familiar. Over time, you may be surprised but you will come away with a more sophisticated food palette.
And when you come home, you can continue your travels in your own kitchen!
You gain the important understanding that we’re all more alike than different.
Living life within a 5 mile radius from your home really doesn’t help you grow as a person. I believe that it actually limits your personal tolerance and understanding about others.
Travel, no matter how far or extensive, is great for gaining a new perspective of our differences and learn how much we are really alike. It teaches us about people, traditions and cuisine that differs from our own. And these differences can be found in our own country!
Eventually, we come to the realization that people, no matter where they are from, are so much like us! They experience many of the exact same daily challenges, ups and downs in life that we do. They celebrate with food, they have their own traditions, their own love of sport… The list goes on.
After all, we are all human beings.
You gain appreciation for what you have.
Travel can make us appreciate our home in ways we might never have thought. At home, there is an ease of language, familiarity of places, foods and customs.
In our daily lives, we overlook what we have — the beauty of our town or country and the conveniences that we are lucky to have. It may only be when we’re looking in from the other side — in our travels –do we truly see how lucky we are.
You build confidence in yourself and what you are truly capable of.
Our travel journey, just like our life journey, can throw us some curve balls. It’s inevitable that you will face some sort of obstacle (e.g., language barrier, different traditions etc..) in your travels.
The exercise of leaving your comfort zone will allow you to expand your thinking and understand that there is not only one way of doing things. You learn that the way you’re used to doing something is not the only way. Your perspective changes.
Being open to “learning and adapting” is a confidence builder. And this doesn’t only apply to adults. Traveling with our kids over the years has proved this to be so true.
“First-time travellers report that learning about other cultures, picking up new skills (like map-reading or languages), trying different food, and meeting new people all helped improve their confidence.” Read more by clicking on this link:https://www.booking.com/articles/how-to-improve-your-child-s-confidence-through-travel.html
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