Why I Believe Slow Travel is the Best Way to Travel

Slow Travel.

It’s been a bit of a buzz word over the past couple of years in the travel industry.

But what does slow travel really mean?

And why am I such a fan of this type of travel?

 

 

What is slow travel?

You probably have a relative or friend who has traveled to X country in Europe.

As he or she recounts the trip — that was all of 10 days on the ground — they list off about 25 places they visited.

It was a whirlwind and your head spins at all that this person saw and did.

But did they really see it?

Did they really do anything?

And, more importantly, what did they truly experience?

Slow travel is the opposite of this.

It’s spending more than one night in any given town or city.

It’s getting to know the destination, the history, the culture and the people of that place.

Slow travel is more about experiences and connection.

And it’s not about spending an hour or so at some site or landmark, checking it off your list then moving onto the next site.

 

You don’t need a lot of time to travel slowly

I think there’s a misconception that you need to travel for a month to travel slowly.

As many of you who are reading this might be American, I get it.

We don’t get a lot of PTO — paid time off.

So those vacation days are precious and we want to see and do as much as possible in that short time.

Some of us spend our vacation time as we do our every day time — packing as much into a day as possible.

It’s always go, go, go!

But it doesn’t have to be.

Even if you only have 10 days on the ground you can choose to use that time to really get to know that destination.

You can stay in one place the entire time and truly experience it, digging deep and making connections.

Maybe you choose to break that down and do 3 nights in 3 different spots.

This is a great idea as you are at least avoiding the “one night stand.”

Remember: you don’t have to see it all to have been to a country, city or region.

And I can guarantee you that if you slow down and spend time in a place, you’ll have a far richer and more meaningful travel experience than your neighbor who took that whirlwind trip.

You won’t be saying, “Then I went to Z and saw A. And then I went to Y and saw B.”

Your travel stories will go something like this, “I was wandering around this small town in Italy when I saw some local women making pasta outside their shop. We started talking as best we could since my Italian was so-so and their English was only a bit better. We laughed and smiled but used gestures to have a conversation. The next thing I knew I was joining them, making this pasta that is indigenous to this region. I spent the entire afternoon with them as we then cooked the pasta into one of the region’s traditional dishes. I shared a meal with these wonderful women, talking and laughing. I’ll never forget this experience!”

Connection.

And something you can’t do when you are trying to see it all and do it all.

Slow down.

 

Avoiding exhaustion

Slow travel keeps the exhaustion away.

When you travel slowly you actually have time to sit and just be and take in your surroundings.

You aren’t always up at the crack of dawn and to bed late to pack it all in.

There’s at least a little bit of down time for you to sit at a cafe with a glass of wine in Paris to people watch or to relax at your guesthouse with a cup of tea as you relish the view of the rolling green Irish hills.

You don’t want to come back from your vacation exhausted, do you?

The other exhaustion you avoid is sensory overload.

I’ve heard some folks say, “I got so tired of seeing church after church. I don’t even remember what I saw.”

Ahhhh.

I call this sightseeing exhaustion.

And this happens when your trip is so jam-packed that you actually end up not really enjoying what you are seeing.

That doesn’t sound like fun to me.

And isn’t your vacation supposed to be fun?

Avoid physical exhaustion and sightseeing exhaustion by slowing down.

Trust me.

Your body and mind will be so much happier.

 

Why I love slow travel

I have a confession.

I have traveled quickly before.

It was my first trip to Ireland in 2007.

I spent 2 weeks in this wonderful country and did way too many one night stands.

I was so tired of living out of a suitcase and driving daily from Point A to Point B.

While I saw a lot, I didn’t really experience a lot outside of time in Dublin with my friend.

And that was because I spent a few nights in Dublin on either end of the trip.

As my travel evolved, I started to slow down, spending more days at any one place.

But sometimes, that faster travel crept into my plans.

And, do you know what?

It’s the destinations where I slowed down that I have the fondest memories of connections and experiences.

Slow travel really allows you to make that connection.

It might be connecting to the vibe of a city through its museums, historical sites, food or its people.

Or maybe it’s connecting to a natural destination by hiking, biking, kayaking or skiing.

Ultimately, I find that slow travel allows us to make that human connection — getting to know the people who live in any given destination.

This is when we take that step back and see another human being and not a German or a Swede or a Greek.

All that makes us different melts away.

And all that makes us alike comes to light.

For me, that human to human connection is the best part of slow travel.

And when you are traveling quickly, there isn’t much time for this.

But when you slow down, you have the time.

 

I hope you decide to travel slowly

My hope is that you slow down on your next trip.

Have experiences.

Make connections.

Savor moments.

Create lasting memories.

Trust me.

Once you experience slow travel, you’ll never want to travel quickly again.