What Is Slow Travel? And Could It Be Right for You?

Slow Travel Isn't About Doing Nothing

Slow travel doesn't mean sitting in the same place for a month and never leaving.

It means giving yourself enough time in a destination to actually experience it instead of racing through it.

Maybe you stay in one city for two weeks instead of visiting four cities in that same amount of time.

You still explore. You still take tours. You still visit the places you've dreamed about seeing.

But you also have time to wander through a neighborhood, shop at a local market, find a restaurant you like enough to visit twice, take a day trip because someone recommended it, or simply change your plans because you discovered something you didn't know existed.

There's room for a little spontaneity.

And there's something wonderful about unpacking your suitcase and knowing you don't have to pack it again tomorrow morning.

You Don't Have to See Everything

This can be one of the hardest parts of slow travel.

You've traveled all this way. Shouldn't you see everything you possibly can?

Not necessarily.

I would rather help you experience five things you genuinely care about than rush you through fifteen because somebody's "Top Things You Must See" list said you should.

Travel isn't a test.

Nobody is keeping score.

If you'd rather spend an afternoon at a neighborhood market than stand in line for an attraction you're not interested in, that's your vacation.

You Start Learning the Rhythm of a Place

One of my favorite things about staying somewhere longer is that the little things start becoming part of the trip.

You figure out where to grab breakfast.

You learn which streets you like walking.

You discover the little store around the corner.

You might recognize the person working at the café or start knowing which bus or train gets you where you want to go.

Those aren't usually the things that make the "Top 10" lists.

But sometimes they're the things you remember most.

Slow Doesn't Have to Mean Weeks or Months

This is important.

You don't need to retire, take a month off work, or move overseas to experience slow travel.

You can slow down a seven-day vacation.

Instead of trying to visit three destinations, choose one.

Instead of changing hotels every two nights, stay somewhere longer and take day trips.

Instead of scheduling every morning, afternoon, and evening, leave some open space.

Slow travel is as much about how you plan a trip as how long you stay.

What About Relocation Discovery?

This is where slow travel can become something even more interesting.

Maybe you've visited a destination and caught yourself saying:

"I wonder what it would be like to actually live here."

A traditional vacation isn't necessarily going to answer that question.

If you're seriously considering retiring, spending winters somewhere warmer, becoming a seasonal resident, or relocating to another city or country, I believe you need to experience more than the tourist areas.

A Relocation Discovery trip is about spending enough time in a destination to begin looking at it through a different lens.

Instead of only asking, What should we see?, you start asking:

• What neighborhoods would we enjoy?
• What does everyday life feel like?
• Where would we buy groceries?
• How easy is it to get around?
• What is nearby?
• Could we see ourselves developing a routine here?
• What do we love about the area?
• And just as importantly, what don't we love?

Who Might Enjoy Slow Travel?

Slow travel can be wonderful for retirees and pre-retirees, empty nesters, remote workers, longer-stay travelers, and anyone who wants more time to experience a destination.

But you don't have to fit into any particular category.

You may simply be someone who is tired of rushing.

If you've ever returned from vacation, looked through hundreds of pictures, and thought, "I wish we'd had more time there," you already understand the appeal.

The Best Pace Is Your Pace

I don't believe every vacation needs to be slow.

Sometimes you want the cruise. Sometimes you want the escorted tour. Sometimes you've waited your whole life to go somewhere and you want to see as much as humanly possible.

And sometimes you want to unpack the suitcase, figure out where the local market is, and stay awhile.

There isn't one right way to travel. There is the way that feels right for you.