Traveling vs. Vacation | 3 Healthy Tips for Happy Travels

Traveling and Vacation are two different things and today I want to share 3 healthy tips for some happy travels. I will simply start with two definitions from Wikipedia.

Travel is the movement of people between distant geographical locations. Travel can be done by foot, bicycle, automobile, train, boat, bus, airplane, ship or other means, with or without luggage, and can be one way or round trip. Travel can also include relatively short stays between successive movements, as in the case of tourism. 

Vacation is an extended period of time away from work or school.

Rice fields, Bali 2017

If you plan on starting to travel or you are just looking for some travel tips continue reading about Traveling vs. Vacation – 3 Healthy Tips for Happy Travels.

1. Plan less, enjoy more – Travel slowly

Learn to travel slowly. Take time to connect with the places you go to, with the locals, chew your food and sip your drinks with time. Go sightseeing and remember to take me time too. Enjoy every moment, have fun, laugh and live the dream! And be kind to yourself too.

Back in 2018 when I did my last south east Asia solo travel backpack trip I was in the 4th country, the Philippines and I was tired af. I could not understand why. I was in this magical place, having fun, doing boat trips, taking 4 hours ride buses to get to places, running after internet every other day and I was feeling tired. Funny right? Very late I was aware of the busy schedule I created with early flights changing location every 3-4 days. But I was a real traveler. My heart was filled with sunsets in different locations (this is Maldives in 14 sunsets) my hair was sun kissed, my smile was wide and my eyes were tired, but I was living the life. I was free and I was living the ultimate freedom: being able to move when I want, where I want, stay as much as I desire in a place or move away to the next one. After this experience I learned to plan less and book longer stays between flights (see 3rd point) and I end up enjoying traveling even more.

2. Take a day off traveling

It is ok to have a day or more off when traveling. It is ok to stay a whole day in the hotel, order take in and watch TV in languages you do not understand.  We are thought in life that more is always better, but listening to your body is always better. Less is more. When you feel tired rest, when you feel hungry nourish your body even half a globe away in some magical place. Give yourself a real break from all this moving from one destination to another, from one accommodation to another in a never ending loop of packing and unpacking. Plan a day in between to do nothing but rest. Take care of yourself so you can enjoy all the other days.

3. Book longer stays in one location

My last important tip for happy travels is about How much time do you need to pack and unpack your backpack/ suitcase? How long does your transfer take? How much time do you need to settle in the new location? Ask yourself all these questions before you book too many different accommodations. During our long travels 30-56 days we discovered that staying 10-14 days in one location was actually more enjoyable. Having more time for one place allows you to know it at a deeper lever than “just another beach/ town” etc. You will meet your “neighbors”, be a “regular” at the corner shop and have a deeper glimpse of what living there means. One of our best experiences was staying 17 days in Westpunt, Curaçao. Read more here How to find inner peace in Curaçao | 3 Travel Lessons.

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