Do you tend to go on whirlwind trips, the kind where you’ve lost all track of where you even are, never mind what day it is? I’m talking about the sort of holiday where if it’s Tuesday, it must be [insert destination name here]. You rush around so much that it’s hard to fully take in or process all your unique experiences, or absorb any interesting information you may be presented with. If that sounds like you… it could be time to slow down.
Regardless of your chosen destination, think about what would be most rewarding: a journey dashing from airport to hotel to airport, overstuffed with dozens of experiences you can’t properly remember, or one where you took your time to let a place reveal itself to you, and had carefully chosen encounters that stay with you for life?
Taking your time to slow down and do less, but enjoy it more, is the answer. Our time is precious, and we can fall into the trap of believing that packing in activities means our time has been well spent. With limited windows for leisure, we may also be rushing around in a frantic attempt to ‘make the most’ of rare opportunities to escape the daily grind; to do something really special.
Yet, however valuable our getaways, or however fleeting our windows to see the world, it’s a matter of paying attention to the old rule — and choosing quality over quantity.
In the past, I’ve written about the need to stop overvisiting destinations that don’t want the extra burden on their infrastructure and ecosystems. I’ve also mused on the freedom of not overstuffing our suitcases. But there’s one more way we can avoid overdoing it, and that’s to keep our itineraries calmer, more curated, and more mindful.
Of course, there can be a temptation to do absolutely everything while in a new place. It’s exciting to be presented with seemingly endless possibilities and choices of experiences. After all, we may pass this way but once, and the Fear Of Missing Out (FOMO) can be strong. When that FOMO is fuelled by a deluge of social media posts telling us what we simply must do in a destination, it’s easy to over-book activities to the point of overexhaustion.
Instead, think about what you’d enjoy most, and at the same time, what would suit best.
There is no law to say that every holiday must leave us in need of another holiday, to actually find the relaxation we should have included in the first place. With possible exceptions like high-energy adventure travel and extreme sports tourism, on most journeys it’s quite pleasant to embrace the challenge of building in some time to just ‘be’ — to people-watch, enjoy the scenery, sit and think, listen to the breeze in the trees, chat to a shopkeeper, read, wander, breathe.
But perhaps you’re the active type — relaxing is great, sure, but you also want to do things on your trip. Being that type myself, I’m trying to find a new approach. Rather than ticking all the boxes on my list (I like street art, museums, food, drink, walks, history, the list goes on and on), I’m starting to realise that I’d get more out of less.
I’m actively trying to discourage the old FOMO, and transform it into travel JOMO — the Joy Of Missing Out, particularly when on a trip. It’s a mindset shift to finding satisfaction and contentment by deciding not to worry about what others are doing, or even what I should be doing, but instead enjoying the moment, and treating the journey as something that will develop and unfold more organically.
At the same time, it’s important to consider how we get to, and move around, our destinations. If we stop thinking about the quickest way from point A to point B, and instead decide that we want to try the most interesting way, the potential for meaningful transit multiplies. Often, what the locals do is what works best.
So there’s no need for a flight if a train journey serves equally well; you can avoid the hire car if a tram will do the job even better; and two feet or two wheels can be the best way to explore, no matter where we go. They may take longer, but the key to slowing down is realising that’s actually the point.
