Riding a plane, a train, a car or a weather-beaten bus to a new destination makes you a traveler. And depending on how many times you’ve traveled or how experienced you are with the ups and downs of going to unfamiliar places, you have a certain type of travel personality that comes out during trips. But why is it necessary to ask the question, “What kind of traveler are you?” Well, it’s so that regardless of your travel personality, you’ll decide to live boldly and make the most of your journey.
What’s Your Travel Personality?
In my own experience in traveling, I’ve encountered or observed different people—each with their own unique travel personality. I’ve listed the top 10 I’ve met down the road (no pun intended). See if you fit any of them and boldly own it!
1. The First-Timer
(You’ve been one at least once in your life!) This traveler feels nervous before boarding the plane. At the same time, she feels elated at the thought of stepping on land where she’s never been before. She may have trouble with her baggage and is sometimes unsure of herself. Before going to the airport or even booking the trip itself, she researches on the Internet everything from what to bring to what to avoid. She asks strangers and airport officials her questions to double-check her direction. Most of the time, she has a list of all the details of the trip. If you’re a first-time traveler, with curious eyes, eager feet, and Google Maps open on your phone, you tread on with nervous excitement for your adventure!
2. The Brain-Hungry
Nope, I’m not talking about brain-eating zombies. I’m talking about the intellectual, the lover of new knowledge, the philosopher, that person in group tours who lingers and often delays the group from going to their next sightseeing venue because of his many, many questions—you get the picture. If you’re a brain-hungry traveler, you travel to a place for the adventure, but you stay for the history and landmarks. You’re simply hungry to devour the fountain of details you find delectable about the place you’re visiting.
3. The Anthony Bourdain
This one is a total giveaway and is dubbed so in loving memory of one of the truest foodies and travelers this world has ever seen. (If you have no idea who Anthony Bourdain is…you need to watch quality TV more often, dude.) Although you may not be as well-versed with delicacies and such as Bourdain himself, you share Bourdain’s insatiable love for food. You go to the restaurants, the sidewalk vendors, the hidden gems in the barrios, and even the questionable-looking stores in the city—just to satisfy her curious taste buds. If you’re an Anthony Bourdain traveler, you allot a bulk of your budget for your primary reason for traveling: indulging in a food trip at the local scene! And there’s nothing to be ashamed about that!
4. The Photo-Cray-Cray
Yep, you guessed it. This travel personality encompasses the boys and girls, the ladies and gentlemen, the moms and the dads who flip their phones open to take pictures, pictures, pictures! Whether it’s for posting on social media or for printing later for the family’s old-school photo album, if you’re a photo-cray-cray traveler, you just love to take photos on your digital camera or phone. But a warning: Just make sure you respect the culture and traditions of the locals and refrain from insisting to take photos or videos of people or of a place when it’s not allowed by security. But please don’t shove your cameras in other people’s faces. And always keep that selfie stick in check. That stick is seriously getting a notorious reputation in many countries today.
5. The Souvenir Hoarder
This traveler is a treasure hunter. You find it exciting to buy the local goods for your own collection or for family and friends back home. You make sure you get souvenirs at the best price—you don’t let yourself get scammed by vendors who are in the habit of taking advantage of foreigners. For this travel personality, it’s not necessarily the experience of being in a new place or the photos that are most important. If you’re a souvenir hoarder, you handle your budget wisely, making sure you get the most out of your trip and still have enough money left for good finds to take home.
6. The Romantic
If you’re this travel personality, you enjoy lingering on a bench while staring at a majestic sunset. You consider it worth your time to take in the view of mountains and hills or walking on the beach barefoot. In the name itself, this traveler is a true romantic at heart and won’t hesitate in investing in airfare and accommodation just to visit quintessential fairy-tale-looking places of the world.
7. The Adrenaline Junkie
You love to get your heart racing and pumping. You often look at websites about the exciting excursions—like bungee-jumping or sky diving—that you can go on in the place you’re going to visit. In fact, most of the time, your main purpose of traveling to a specific country is to experience the unique adrenaline-pumping offerings it has. If you’re an Adrenaline Junkie, you never fail to leave a place without doing something life-threatening in nature—and you actually enjoy it!
8. The Budget-Stretcher
From the moment of choosing the cheapest flight to rationing money for food and accommodation, you are smart with your budget. You make sure that you stretch your saved-up funds by getting the best deals. If you’re a Budget-Stretcher, you don’t mind staying in a so-so hotel—or in a hostel—as long as there is a clean bed and toilet. Also, you choose to forgo the typical luxuries of fine dining, private tours, and car rentals. At the end of the day, you make the most of your travel experience without going beyond the budget you’ve set for yourself.
9. The Luxury Lover
If you’re a Luxury-Lover traveler, you want the best of the best: the five-star hotel, the best wine… the finest of the fine! You don’t mind splurging your Benjamins on food, accommodation, and experience. In reality, this travel personality is often rich. Yes, you save up for your trip, but you have more than enough cash on the side for your unplanned whims on the road. So, if you love luxury, and you have the money for it—then go for it.
10. The Legit Wanderer
This traveler travels for the sake of traveling. You take to heart the love affair of going to unknown places and diving into new experiences. And you faithfully follow the mantra: “Work. Save. Travel. Repeat.” If you’re this type of travel personality, you simply can’t sit still in one place. You have that demanding itch to move, and you will give all you’ve got and do all that you can to satisfy that itch. Undoubtedly, a passport full of stamps from countries all over the world certify that you are a Legit Wanderer!
Bold Living in Traveling
Whatever your answer is to the “What kind of traveler are you?” question, it is up to you to own your travel personality and make the most of your journeys. Remember what Hans Christian Andersen, well-traveled Danish author of the quintessential children’s story of “The Ugly Duckling”, said:
“To move, to breathe, to fly, to float,
To gain all while you give,
To roam the roads of lands remote,
To travel is to live.”
In a nutshell, traveling is synonymous to living—and boldly traveling, unashamed with your travel personality, is boldly living!
