I dunno about you but I find London life draining and I’m constantly thinking of my next adventure. Perhaps it’s because Spring is a concept in the UK at the moment or my heart truly belongs somewhere else…
As much as I would love to travel the world forever, I would probably lose interest in it at some point. I like being able to dip in and out of airport as I please (or as my annual leave allows).My life is here in London… for now.
Anyway, as I explained in my post the other week, I am trying to travel affordably (within my preferences) this year but when I’m not travelling, I like to keep the spirit alive and the momentum going…
I threw this question out there to the Twitterverse (and Instagram) as I was intrigued to find out how my fellow travellers keep their wanderlust spirit alive when they’re back home.
So, here’s how YOU like to do it…
Documentaries
Aside from vlogs, travel documentaries are a great way to educate yourself about the world around you. The Globe Trotter (Deeptha) from the aptly named Globe Trotter blog loves watching a series that strongly focuses on ecosystems. The world as we know it is disappearing, so it is important to keep these stories alive and show everyone that we must save what we have left.
Magazines
Ella from Hey Paradis (Her IG page is goals btw), likes to take it old school with paper. In a digital age, its refreshing to hear paper lovers still exist. Staring at a screen all day is gonna turn us brain-dead, so open a book once in a while, you never know where it may take you…
Tayo from the 5 to 9 Traveller is another traveller who travels using her annual leave (hence the name!) and she also enjoys having something tangible to read. Having a subscription keeps the travel spirit alive month by month and its a great way to discover new destinations, new ways to travel and new activities to do.
Photos
Just looking through your camera roll whilst you’re on your daily commute, lunch break or just lying in bed is another way to keep the travel spirit alive. If anything its mental scrapbooking as a photo has a thousand meanings, or so they say. This is Lola from The Reet Petite blog’s favourite way to keep her travel bug alive, and did I mention she also runs her own brunch club? I wanted to get down to the next one but ironically I am away but you should head on down for brunch and good vibes. Get your tickets here.
Faye keeps the spirit alive by not spamming her IG timeline with pics whilst she’s away. Instead she spreads the content out for a little while after her trip, thus giving the illusion she is always travelling.
This gif sums her travel spirit strategy up:
Blogs and Vlogs
I guess most of us get our inspiration from travel blogs as Laura neatly summed up here:
It’s a great way to get under the skin of a place and get a feel if its right for you. Fatima summed up how she likes to research perfectly:
Scrapbooking
If I’m honest, I never really thought people would still have scrapbooks. I think I just assumed we’d all turned to Pinterest, but its great to hear this art is still alive. Keeping your plane ticket stubs, shells or any other momentos from your travels is a beautiful way to relive the memories other than pressing ‘repin’.
Travel Chats
Emma likes to keep her travel spirit alive through talking. The best way to share tips, tricks and of course your experiences. Diarising a few is a great way to have a moment every week to reflect on your travels and look forward to the next ones!
Books and Podcasts
Beautifully put by The Northern Boy. Podcasts and books are a little forgotten in a visual world of Instagram, vlogs and blogs.
Having your ultimate destination in mind…
The beautiful Selina from Fashion and Beauty blog Selina Wears uses her ultimate destination as a way of keeping her travel spirit alive. Every trip until then is a stepping stone until the ‘big one’, wherever that may be.
Everywhere?
Although, if that dream destination is just a dream for now, try exploring the Skyscanner everywhere option like Laura from Wander With Laura does. I’m so impressed with her Singapore on a budget post that I’m browsing flights right now (Sentosa Island looks out of this world).
Here’s how I like to do it…
A Little Bit of Ink
A little extreme, but I have Wanderlust tattoo on my right shoulder and it reminds day after day that I’m not supposed to be in one place forever. That’s why I have feet right?
FOOD
I’m kinda shocked food wasn’t a popular answer? The ladies behind Flights and Feelings summed up exactly how I love to keep the spirit alive by eating. You can be in Greece one day and India the next from simply walking through your local food market… or using the Just Eat app. Whats funnier is them looking at flights leaving today to keep their bug alive… (IF ONLY).
Lets Get Pinteresting
I am ADDICTED to Pinterest. Every destination I consider visiting gets a board whether it’s booked or not. It’s a great way to create a rough itinerary, get ideas and learn a few phrases for your next destination. You can follow me here…
Why you can’t travel travel constantly…
One of the main reasons we (I’m talking to the ones with commitments like work, families and bills) we can’t travel constantly is mainly due to funds, work and life taking over. Some of us are able to take work with us, become digital nomads and make it work. But there is no right way to travel. Not all of us want to combine our worlds.
A lasting thought
But travelling doesn’t just mean you have to get on a plane or train. Your hometown and current surroundings are waiting to be discovered, waiting to be explored and documented somehow. Everywhere has history, or some places are waiting for something to happen.
Becky from The Owlet Blog summed this up perfectly:
What are ways you like to keep your travel spirit going when you’re not travelling?
Char xo
Thank you to all who took a minute out of their day to respond to my tweet/IG story. You guys are the greatest.
Temi. A says
Amazing post Char – couldn’t have put it together any better! Reading this post alone has made me want to book another holiday today! I tend to keep the travel spirit alive by looking over old photos, skyscanner search, travel blogs and Instagram! Would definitely like to start listening to podcasts and reading travel magazines! X
Memoirs & Musings (Char) says
Thank you Temi! You inspired my Hamburg trip gurl! xxx
thereetpetiteblog says
Sooo many tips on keeping the sprit alive. I’m definitely subscribing to a travel magazine! Thanks for this Char, enjoyed reading it. Thanks for the shout out too ❤️
Memoirs & Musings (Char) says
Thank you brunch bae!!!
Dan Copping says
I thought this was a great idea for a post. People become trapped in their own lifestyles. The thing is, we can travel without actually going anywhere (like Jay K, travelling without moving). It’s more about a mindset. Although granted it’s much easier to get into that mindset by actually travelling.
Dan
http://www.somethingmoreweekly.com is the ongoing story of my actual life in South London
Memoirs & Musings (Char) says
Thanks so much for commenting Dan! You can definitely travel without moving and its a beautiful feeling when you realise you don’t need to book a ticket to travel!
Rae says
I cannot wait to go on holiday!
http://www.raetalks.co.uk
inlocamotion@gmail.com says
I really appreciate this post! I’m not a full time traveler, and prefer to take shorter trips and have a place to come home to. But I get wanderlust if I haven’t traveled for a few months or so… there’s just so much world to see and after a while the routine of home can get boring. I think these suggestions are great, but I feel like a lot of them actually make me feel more nostalgic and envious than anything else though! I read travel blogs and then I’m like “can I just be there right now?” but alas… I think what helps me most in between trips is feeling like I’m “traveling” in my own city – getting out and meeting new people, trying new things, having the sorts of experiences that you might have while traveling – but from home. It helps me to be present but still unlock that risk-taking, open-to-anything side of me that comes out in full force while traveling.
Thanks for sharing this post!!
monkeysue816 says
I am constantly looking into new places to go and scheduling the next one or I lose my mind!
ONEadventures says
Such a cool post. I started blogging for several reasons, but find that is a great way to reflect on my travels and dream of the ones to come.