The term “tourist” almost immediately, creates a picture in most folks’ minds. A picture of pushy, loud people (usually American) in loud clothing, shoving their way through the crowds to obnoxiously snap pictures of things they are not supposed to be taking pictures of in the first place. These are the images of tourism.

Am I being too colorful? Do you think I am embellishing? If you think so, do a google image search for “tourist” right now, and tell me what pops up.

It isn’t pretty. What is most bothersome is “tourist”, by definition, means “a person who travels for pleasure or culture”. That is the most accurate (dare I say “perfect”) description of why and how I travel! If you are anything like me, and the fact that you are reading this suggests that you may be, it is precisely how and why you travel, as well.

“Traveler” just means “one who travels”.
Hell, even “wanderer” just means “someone who moves around aimlessly. While they are both part of my methods, I define myself as a tourist. I travel, and often aimlessly, but always…always, to acknowledge & appreciate the cultures I am touring.
With that said, I am taking the term back.
I am a tourist. I am proud to be a tourist.

I have often said there is no wrong reason to travel. I also believe there is no wrong type of travel. I do believe there is a wrong way to travel.

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This first one may seem like a no-brainer, but you’d be surprised how many people are averse to the notion. I can reasonably assume that most (maybe all) of the people that would be on this site, at least fancy themselves to be open minded (whether they really are or not) and, honestly, that’s the real first step. The self awareness can come later. At this point, let’s just cross our fingers that you think you want to try new things. Tourism should be a challenge. We are creatures inherently set in our ways. If we do not find ourselves challenged to adapt to our new surroundings, likely we are challenging others to adapt to us. They are our hosts, it is their couch.

There is a quote on our front page, from the ever-opinionated and sardonic tourist, Anthony Bourdain, that reads “Travel isn’t always pretty. It isn’t always comfortable. Sometimes it hurts, it even breaks your heart. But that’s OK. The journey changes you; it should change you. It leaves marks on your memory, on your consciousness, on your heart, and on your body. You take something with you. Hopefully, you leave something good behind.” This was a man who’s life passion was drinking in other cultures, and respectfully. Bourdain had a very specific (and completely accurate) idea of what it meant to not just travel, but experience.

I want to be clear, lest I seem to be contradicting myself, your level of comfort is your level of comfort. No one should define that for you. So, when I say “there is no type of travel”, I mean just that. If flying thousands of miles to land (and spend most of your time) on a beach resort that could be identical to something back home is your thing, have at it. There is nothing wrong with that.

The journey changes you; it should change you. It leaves marks on your memory, on your consciousness, on your heart, and on your body.

Just try to challenge yourself here and there. Read a book about the country you are in. Learn some key words in the local language. Find and eat a piece of fruit that looks alien to you. Because, at the end of the day, if it didn’t change us, did it matter?

One of the most important elements of effective tourism is flexibility. Imagine not being beholden (and severely limited) by what’s in your mind. This starts as soon as you start thinking about travel. Literally the first thing we are programmed to do is think “Where do I want to go?” and then every decision from there is based off of that first one. Think about it:

• I think I want to go to Ireland!
• Let me check to see what flights are available.
• Oh geez, those are expensive. I think I will wait until they come down.

From there you can very easily enter an endless cycle of “prices are too high” vs. “now is not good for me”, all because you are chasing a destination. You have now created the expectation that your next trip will be to Ireland and you are beholden to that expectation until the stars align for you.

Instead, if you were to start by seeing what flights are available and within your budget, you can now proactively align the stars.

1. I have some time off coming up, let’s see what flights look like.
2. Wow! There are some pretty reasonable flights to Bruges, right now.
3. I’m going to Bruges, even though I don’t know where the F it is! (it’s in Belgium)

OK, maybe a bit oversimplified, but you get my meaning. We are in the age of information, so why not explore places that you had no clue about anyway. There will always be help along the way (see: this blog). Let fate take the wheel a bit, chances are it knows as much about what’s out there as you do.

In addition to saving money and time with this method, it will also potentially force you to do a bit of research. Read a blog or a book or join a discussion board and find out more about whatever destination you land on. Now, you are already touring, before you even leave your house!

This method continues on throughout your travels. For instance, I almost always write an itinerary…and I almost always ignore most of it. Try not to get too caught up in the minutiae. This one took me quite a while to master, as I am a recovering control freak and half a perfectionist. At the end of the day, though, we can’t control the things we can’t control (see: weather, crowds, moods, etc). For me, it is way healthier to let the day take me. Relinquish control. Get lost.
That is usually where all the best experiences are hiding out, anyway

I know, I know…you’ve heard this before, and you probably find yourself in one of 3 buckets;

1. you know nothing about rewards points and/or have no interest in them or paying for things with anything other than a debit card or cash.
2. you have little to no credit (or bad credit) and think earning reward points is nothing more than a pipe dream for anyone other than privileged bloggers. Or,
3. you already use credit card rewards to their full potential on flights and other parts of travel, In which case, Congrats! (I mean, I don’t believe you, but still congrats)

Let me say this in a way that hopefully resonates a bit better than the “experts” before me.

Debit 👏 Is 👏 A 👏 Sucker’s 👏 Game.

There is really no way to sugar coat it. That is not to say that you need to pay for things you cannot afford (also a sucker’s game), but just keeping your money in a bank for transactional use, is the lowest return on investment you can possible get. Because that’s what it is, an investment. You are lending your money to the bank, just to take it back in the future for 0% interest.

Conversely, a Credit Card company lends you money, in hopes that you will have a month over month balance, to which they can then charge interest. They are so dependent on it, in fact, that they will offer you (often wild) bonuses in hopes of you letting let them lend you the money. Now, if you do not have a month over month balance…well, then, they just lent you the money for free , and guess what…you get to keep the bonuses!

In regards to having little or no (or bad) credit. Would it surprise you to find out that it was only a few years back that I had a credit score of somewhere just south of 600, sizable medical bills and an impending bankruptcy due to them. There are ways to build and (yes) fix your credit. Research your options (and don’t tell me you are not good at research, you are like 15 paragraphs in to a travel blog), and make some changes. I was also a father to a newborn, while in those financial hardships…oh, and I have a chronic illness…those are all true facts, so I know it can be done, but it looks different for everyone. When you can, open the first credit card that will accept your application and start small. These are things that I literally had to do myself. The credit will grow. Then, when you can, find a card with benefits. Have the banks pay you to let them lend you money.

As a point of reference; I currently earn about $1000 in travel credit a year. On top of that, I have benefits like free TSA pre-check, free CLEAR and free Global Entry (in other words, I don’t wait in security lines at the airports) as well as access to most airport lounges (most with free food and drinks). I also get free car rental upgrades and free self checkout (again, no lines) and a free 2 year Southwest companion pass that I am able to easily renew every 2 years. Oh, and probably 50 non-travel related benefits, as well.

The best part of all of that, is that Leena get a similar bag of benefits.

This is essentially one international trip a year, almost completely covered for each of us. All for strategically using our credit cards to make the purchases that we would be making anyway.

I won’t belabor the point any further, but I hope you can see how important this is. You can find more details, strategies and tips in my upcoming post on Choosing Which Card Is Right For You or ask any questions to fellow deal hunters in our Community Forum or in our Facebook Group.

Having a solid system for packing is often overlooked as a key component to getting the most out of your travel. I would argue it is maybe one of the most important. Especially considering that the cost of checked luggage can sometimes amount to the price of an extra flight (so, simple math, save the cost on the checked bag, you could theoretically take another trip, or come closer to it).

There are a few ways to achieve this, and you can read more about HERE.

The key take-aways are this: US Domestic Fights almost all charge for each checked bag, other than Southwest (which offers one free checked bag) OR if you have a co-branded credit card with a particular airline (like Delta SkyMiles). Most International flights allow one free checked bags. If none of these suit your needs and you still want to avoid checked bag fees, there is no business like packing as light as possible and being strategic with your carry-on and personal bag. Not only will this mitigate costs, but you will also be dealing with way less at your destination, and a much lighter carry.