Can Travel Be Stress-free?
Perhaps you are asking the wrong question
The idea of travelling for leisure has almost become a distant memory for many of us in the wake of the events of the past year. Indeed, one thing that people are looking forward to when their countries reopen is the chance for leisure travel again.
While we leave our politicians to work out the future of our post-pandemic travel lives, it is a good time for the rest of us to take a step back for a bit and think about travel.
I think most of us agree that travel and its related processes produce a fair amount of anxiety and stress. Grabbing that ticket deal before 5 pm, trying to get that last hotel room in time and trying to visit all the recommended locations on that ‘Top 5 things to do in XX’ page in the two days that you are there are familiar blood pressure inducing things that we have experienced in the process of making that wonderful holiday a success.
Can travel be stress-free?
Well, can anything we do in life come with NO stress at all?
Perhaps we have been asking the wrong question all along. If we agree that most things in life are not categorical in nature and instead reframe the question to how much of travel can be stress-free? It turns out that the answer to that is: quite a bit!
I find that there are three main sources of stress to me as a traveller: a lack of time needed to prepare for the trip, a general unfamiliarity with a foreign place, and a desire to experience a place as thoroughly as possible before I leave.
To reduce the amount of stress that I experience so that I can fully enjoy my holiday, there are five things I often do to reduce the three main sources of stress that I have mentioned above. Perhaps some of these things that have been useful for me may be useful for you one day.
1. Create a future-proof packing list.
Think of this as a long-term plan to figure out what you need to travel.
If you enjoy travel, it is likely that you will visit another place similar in climate to the one that you are heading to right now. Also, if you are a working individual or travelling with family members, it is likely that there are certain fixed durations which you are allowed to getaway.
If this is the case, wouldn’t it be easy to reuse a list that you have already made for a previous trip? You may not know exactly which shirt to bring for your new trip, but at least you know that you’ll need three shirts for a five-day trip. No need for a last-minute wardrobe (or supermarket) raid before your well-deserved trip.
I would suggest using an electronic format for your lists so that your list(s) will be easily searchable in the future. Those of you who have deep-search systems can label your files with words such as the number of days, season, and the country as a way of finding the appropriate list when the time comes.
2. Unpack completely when you arrive.
One of the best feelings about travelling is having a sense of a home away from home. Because of this, I enjoy unpacking completely when I arrive at my hotel. I put every shirt on hangers, fold my pants and put them into drawers, and place my toiletries at the bathroom sink. I also take out my footwear and place them by the doorway, all ready for me to jump into them and hit the streets.
The benefits of this are twofold: First, it reduces the sense of unfamiliarity that sometimes comes from being in a foreign place since you have created another “home” for yourself. Second, it definitely reduces the stress that can come from not knowing where certain items are in your luggage, and if you had even brought them with you in the first place. If you manage to get a hotel room or an apartment for your next trip, try this sometime.
3. Scout your environment.
A lot of stress comes from the unknown. Often, the what-ifs worry us more than anything else. What if the area is dangerous? What if you need a night snack and have none in your room? What if you need to buy a gift for a friend on the last day of your trip (admit it, we’ve all been there)?
Going for a little ‘reconnaissance walk’ right after you arrive (and unpack) will allow you to get an idea of your surroundings. At the very least, you will know what shops are nearby, which alleys are interesting (or dangerous), and you’ll feel a little more at home and ready to explore the area around you the next time you leave your room for some real exploring.
4. Form a routine.
Forming a routine does not imply having to wake up and going to bed at regular hours during your trip (we all know that a good night out is always on the cards!), but it refers to having something regular during your trip that your mind can look forward to. This could be something simple, like making yourself a cup of coffee when you wake, going for a morning walk to grab a fruit after breakfast, or doing your laundry before bedtime.
Personally, I always make my bed in the morning, even if room service is provided, and get a couple of pages of reading in before the day begins. I find that my mind is at ease knowing a little of what to expect for some part of the day.
5. Stop packing your schedule.
A great deal of anxiety comes from the perception that one needs to get the most “bang for your buck” or to see as many things as possible, otherwise the trip is not considered worth it. When we come away feeling like we have somehow missed out on some “must-do item” on the list, we get anxious and upset with ourselves, because we feel that we have lost some precious ‘experience’.
I am not sure what led us to the point where many people have this idea about travel, or about life for that matter, but perhaps we could think about this differently: experiences gained from travel are not gained through the number of things we do or see in a fixed amount of time. They are gained through the quality of time spent on a single thing. This quality of experience could come in the form of spending time with your family members, yourself, or even walking around a single museum for four hours, reading every writeup on every single art piece. In my article on Slow-Living, I made the argument that the focus should really be about “living”, and this concept applies pretty much here as well.
If packing your schedule to the brim causes you undue stress and severe FOMO-ism, consider cutting down and going deep instead. Focus on what matters.
Final Thoughts
The key to managing stress when you travel lies in the question: why do you travel? If you travel to relax from the stresses of life and to take time off from some of your responsibilities at home, there is really no need to put yourself in a situation where you will end up feeling more stressed.
Let us hope that when some sense of normalcy returns to our lives, that we will be travellers who actually enjoy the entire process with as little stress as possible.
