Comments on: We’re All Travelers Here

By: Steph

Steph — Thu, 22 Dec 2011 19:52:06 +0000

Good luck!!

By: Advice for Inspiring Long-Term Travelers

Advice for Inspiring Long-Term Travelers — Thu, 22 Dec 2011 14:01:29 +0000

[...] you’ll forget your camera or you won’t be able to bring it out. Tayrona, Colombia- We’re all travelers here. It doesn’t matter if you’re a backpacker, on a tour, or taking a cruise ship. The fact [...]

By: Roxanne

Roxanne — Wed, 21 Dec 2011 09:22:41 +0000

I totally agree with Steph! Im south african and also a traveller/tourist/nomad.Coming from a conservative society,Ive had to endure criticism from family and friends for not “settling down” with a husband,2 kids and an office job…I dont think I can tolerate being so trapped! It might work for other 20 somethings,not for me!So here i am on my way to europe for a year leaving Jan 1st 2012..wish me luck! and pray my nomadic tendencies will ease off so my older siblings and parents “can stop worrying” about me! lol

By: Steph

Steph — Mon, 19 Sep 2011 00:22:19 +0000

Totally, the world needs tourists too, and just being stereotypical is not necessarily a bad thing. My mom is headed to Beijing in November and I’m sure she will be just as touristy as you can get- but at least she’s going!

By: Jenna

Jenna — Sat, 17 Sep 2011 03:34:02 +0000

Too bad I missed this when you wrote it. I have been thinking the same thing for some time. I dislike showing of status in pretty much every situation, so I immediately noticed when people started identifying themselves as travelers instead of tourists or began making fun of people with that “certain look”– you know, with cameras around their necks, etc. One reason it bothers me is that there are people in my family who would fall into the tourist category, like my grandmother who worked incredibly hard her whole life and couldn’t afford to retire, died with nothing, and traveled with me to Poland and the Czech Republic. She had almost no experience traveling and wanted to do all kinds of touristy things, but that trip meant the world to her. Not everyone has the luxury to travel much.
I am curious what the semantic difference is between tourist and traveler…I’m off to look them up right now.

By: Steph

Steph — Thu, 28 Jul 2011 22:51:37 +0000

Thanks! I think a lot of people would get along much better if we just let everyone do their own thing and accepted it.

By: Maria Alexandra

Maria Alexandra — Thu, 28 Jul 2011 19:13:48 +0000

ps – keep up the HONEST writing!

By: Maria Alexandra

Maria Alexandra — Thu, 28 Jul 2011 19:12:45 +0000

BRAVO! *claps* excellent post my friend! I agree with you in every point you make. It is just like life–not everyone can be a lawyer or doctor or CEO just to be rich. You gotta find your purpose, your own way. We are all different you know. And *that’s* in fact what makes the world itself and life so amazing =)

By: Julia

Julia — Sun, 06 Feb 2011 19:48:35 +0000

Right on!

I fluctuate between traveling in a lowdown, “gritty” way in order to get an “authentic” experience (and guess what? If you don’t speak the language, or are obviously a different ethnicity, or dress really differently — you’re not generally going to get an “authentic” experience, anyway!), and then going for comfort and ease when I need to. I was really excited to see the pyramids at Giza, okay? It was touristy, and I paid for a camel ride, and then got in my A/C van for the ride back to Cairo — but it was something I had always wanted to do. And I can’t imagine that the wonder of seeing something that f*****g AWESOME is any better if I had hitchhiked my way there and refused to take a ton of photos.

As long as you travel with respect for the culture, and a willingness to roll with the punches and engage the locals, hell, travel however you please!

By: Odysseus

Odysseus — Tue, 30 Nov 2010 07:17:50 +0000

p.s. My rant is not a reply to anyone in this comment thread. It’s just an outburst due to someone I met in real life who very condescendingly tried to explain to me that I was only a tourist since I love taking cheesy shots of world-famous places.

By: Odysseus

Odysseus — Tue, 30 Nov 2010 07:12:15 +0000

Love this post! I’m really disgusted by the strange snobbery that’s come into play as some “travelers” act elitest because they “never go anyplace listed in the guidebook” and refuse to take touristy photos. They just sound like jerks to me, like first they were jerks at home and now they’re jerks abroad. It seems like they’re trying their best to prove they’re superior to everyone, maybe because travel is their “thing” and if they see others doing it successfully, then they feel not as special anymore, thus they like to make a distinction between travelers and tourists so they can resume the superiority their egos require.

By: Steph

Steph — Tue, 26 Oct 2010 10:07:18 +0000

This is true, but as long at those tourists aren’t being offensive or harmful, then I think it’s really their choice how they spend their travel money, even if it means missing out on what actually makes travel great.

By: Rease

Rease — Tue, 26 Oct 2010 03:07:15 +0000

I definitely agree that some travelers can be overly arrogant about their travel superiority. I have run into my fair share of douchebags who think because they roughed it on a bench in Prague that they are better than well, everyone. This is, of course, ridiculous and I don’t like feeling like I have to compete with people when swapping travel stories.

However, I have to admit that I DO distinguish tourists from travelers in certain respects. The biggest issue for me is that tourists do not wish to experience the culture of the locals. I find it a little annoying when tourists stay in fancy hotels, eat at touristy restaurants that don’t serve local cuisine, and only go on guided tours. There is no shame in doing “touristy” things but there is shame is shunning the local culture.

By: Steph

Steph — Tue, 05 Oct 2010 15:19:24 +0000

Yeah, not that i’m traveling I’ve noticed this all the more!

By: Praveen

Praveen — Mon, 04 Oct 2010 20:08:19 +0000

Thats a great piece there man…
I could very well relate to it because I’ve travelled with snobs like this who think they are doing something more than what the others are doing….
I hate that contempt which they reserve for the tourists…

afterall, these are all labels as you said …
cheers from India!

By: Seeing the world « Itchy Feet

Seeing the world « Itchy Feet — Mon, 04 Oct 2010 14:10:48 +0000

[...] on an unrelated subject, an interesting post from Twenty Something Travel – We’re All Travelers Here – on this whole snobbery about being a traveler and not a tourist. Hey, I have been guilty of [...]

By: Itchy Feet

Itchy Feet — Mon, 04 Oct 2010 14:07:52 +0000

By: Lisa Lubin

Lisa Lubin — Thu, 30 Sep 2010 13:28:16 +0000

Hey Steph-
Great post. When I am traveling and perhaps observe what some would call the ‘ugly American’ tourist…even if they are doing something slightly annoying or ‘not the way i would do it’, I always still try to give them the benefit of the doubt and say, ‘hey they are still here, they are still out in the world traveling and not at home on their couch watching ‘Jersey Shore’ and for that i have to give them props. They still made the decision to travel no matter HOW they are doing it.

Keep up the good writing!
LL

By: Steph

Steph — Sun, 18 Jul 2010 02:34:17 +0000

Thanks Katie! I think group tours can serve a lot of good purposes, and definitely anything that encourages people to travel more is a-ok in my book!

By: Katie

Katie — Sat, 17 Jul 2010 22:03:13 +0000

I love this post! I didn’t start travelling abroad until I was 24 (totally regret not starting sooner!) and have travelled in groups, with friends, with parents and solo. And while my friends view me as someone who is very well-travelled, there are times when I am talking to others on the road or reading blogs and I somehow feel inferior.

I actually just did a blog post on group travel and why to try it because I feel like so many people seem to “look down” on taking group tours. My first trip abroad was also a Contiki tour – 7 countries in 23 days. As someone above noted, I probably wouldn’t do it again, but it gave me a taste of what was out there and what I wanted to see again and it gave me the confidence to eventually go it alone. I also made some wonderful friends on my Contiki and other group trips.