Updated: 12/16/2018 | Posted: 04/06/2009
I was talking to a friend recently about life – and the road it leads us on. I was pushing her to travel the world (like I push everyone to travel the world) to overcome her recent funk. She was a bit lost on what to do lately and was looking for something to fill the void.
“Go travel. You might discover the answer. If not, you’ll have a great time at least!”
While talking to her, I realized that I didn’t know what I would do if I ever stopped traveling. What is life without travel? How else would I exist?
I’ve been moving for so long that I can’t picture my life any other way.
Travel has become a lifestyle for me.
It has become my identity.
Always moving, always on the road, always somewhere different.
That’s my routine.
It’s comforting.
I have so many different destinations I want to visit before I become “Semi-Nomadic Matt” that I think I’d be 50 before that actually happened!
There’s just too much out there.
I don’t really want to stop.
Eventually, I’ll slow down. It’s inevitable. Nothing last forever. Gravity and age eventually take hold.
But that idea scares me.
I’ve forgotten what it’s like to live in one place for more than 6 months.
Routines are comforting. For all the unregularity travel brings, there’s a routine to the chaos that I’m just not ready to give up.
All of which makes me wonder — can you travel for too long?
When travel becomes a lifestyle, are you really better off?
Most travelers who take a long-term trip do it as a career break or take the infamous gap year. Then it’s back home and to the real world. (Not fully, of course, because most people come back from trips like this with a new set of work/life priorities. But they still go back.)
There is a beginning and an end.
There are the digital nomads out there who work from the road and move from place to place slowly.
Then there are the real long-term travelers like myself who travel with no end in sight.
They are nomads.
As much courage as it takes to step away from the cubicle and head out on the road, it takes just as much courage to step away from the road and go back to a more routine lifestyle. Travel eventually becomes all you know. It’s all I know. After about 4-5 months in one spot, I get anxious and antsy and I need to move again. I think of all the destinations worth seeing and think about how I should get there soon. I formulate plans with friends and plan holidays to far-off places. I am constantly changing where I am going and making new plans. I still have years on the road ahead of me, and that I’ll be even more entrenched in this lifestyle of constant motion.
But eventually, we all need a fixed address. We can take multi-month trips to far-flung destinations, but everyone needs a place to call home. You can’t spend your whole life moving from one place to the next — it’s unrealistic. It becomes a lonely lifestyle always saying goodbye to friends, never being in one place long enough to form a real relationship, never getting to know a place. Everyone needs roots at some point. Even the long, long-term travelers I know eventually get a home base.
Can you travel for too long?
The answer for me? Yes, yes, I think you can.
When travel becomes a lifestyle, I think it’s a sign you have been on the road too long. At that point, travel is your life — it’s what you do, and there is nothing else. You have no home or fixed location, and friendships are always ephemeral because, in about 5 months, you’ll be gone again. It’s a great way to live for a short term but not a great way to live forever. It’s fun to do for a period of time but you can’t be peter pan forever.
Trees only grow because they have roots not because they are blowing in the wind.
Sometimes I think I’ve been on the road too long. That, after three years, I’ve become too old a hand at this. But am I ready to give up this lifestyle yet? No. Not all. I’m still young. I’ve only had this blog for a year. I still haven’t climbed Kilimanjaro, dived in the South Pacific, or sailed down the Amazon yet, and then I realize that I still have a bit more to go with this life I lead right now.
And so, while one day I’ll settle down, there are still miles to go on this journey…..and I’m ok with that.
One day, I’ll wake up and say “Ok, it’s time to go home.”
Today is not that day.
Related articles:
Home: The Death of a Nomad
The Travel Slump (And How to Deal With It)
The Downside to Long-Term Travel
How to Travel the World on $50 a Day
My New York Times best-selling paperback guide to world travel will teach you how to master the art of travel so that you’ll get off the beaten path, save money, and have a deeper travel experience. It’s your A to Z planning guide that the BBC called the “bible for budget travelers.”
Click here to learn more and start reading it today!
Book Your Trip: Logistical Tips and Tricks
Book Your Flight
Find a cheap flight by using Skyscanner or Momondo. They are my two favorite search engines because they search websites and airlines around the globe so you always know no stone is left unturned.
Book Your Accommodation
You can book your hostel with Hostelworld. If you want to stay somewhere other than a hostel, use Booking.com as they consistently return the cheapest rates for guesthouses and cheap hotels.
Don’t Forget Travel Insurance
Travel insurance will protect you against illness, injury, theft, and cancellations. It’s comprehensive protection in case anything goes wrong. I never go on a trip without it as I’ve had to use it many times in the past. I’ve been using World Nomads for ten years. My favorite companies that offer the best service and value are:
World Nomads (for everyone below 70)
Insure My Trip (for those over 70)
Medjet (for additional repatriation coverage)
Ready to Book Your Trip?
Check out my resource page for the best companies to use when you travel. I list all the ones I use when I travel. They are the best in class and you can’t go wrong using them on your trip.
I was talking to a friend recently about life – and the road it leads us on. I was pushing her to travel the world (like I push everyone to travel the world) to overcome her recent funk. She was a bit lost on what to do lately and was looking for something to fill the void.
“Go travel. You might discover the answer. If not, you’ll have a great time at least!”
While talking to her, I realized that I didn’t know what I would do if I ever stopped traveling. What is life without travel? How else would I exist?
I’ve been moving for so long that I can’t picture my life any other way.
Travel has become a lifestyle for me.
It has become my identity.
Always moving, always on the road, always somewhere different.
That’s my routine.
It’s comforting.
I have so many different destinations I want to visit before I become “Semi-Nomadic Matt” that I think I’d be 50 before that actually happened!
There’s just too much out there.
I don’t really want to stop.
Eventually, I’ll slow down. It’s inevitable. Nothing last forever. Gravity and age eventually take hold.
But that idea scares me.
I’ve forgotten what it’s like to live in one place for more than 6 months.
Routines are comforting. For all the unregularity travel brings, there’s a routine to the chaos that I’m just not ready to give up.
All of which makes me wonder — can you travel for too long?
When travel becomes a lifestyle, are you really better off?
Most travelers who take a long-term trip do it as a career break or take the infamous gap year. Then it’s back home and to the real world. (Not fully, of course, because most people come back from trips like this with a new set of work/life priorities. But they still go back.)
There is a beginning and an end.
There are the digital nomads out there who work from the road and move from place to place slowly.
Then there are the real long-term travelers like myself who travel with no end in sight.
They are nomads.
As much courage as it takes to step away from the cubicle and head out on the road, it takes just as much courage to step away from the road and go back to a more routine lifestyle. Travel eventually becomes all you know. It’s all I know. After about 4-5 months in one spot, I get anxious and antsy and I need to move again. I think of all the destinations worth seeing and think about how I should get there soon. I formulate plans with friends and plan holidays to far-off places. I am constantly changing where I am going and making new plans. I still have years on the road ahead of me, and that I’ll be even more entrenched in this lifestyle of constant motion.
But eventually, we all need a fixed address. We can take multi-month trips to far-flung destinations, but everyone needs a place to call home. You can’t spend your whole life moving from one place to the next — it’s unrealistic. It becomes a lonely lifestyle always saying goodbye to friends, never being in one place long enough to form a real relationship, never getting to know a place. Everyone needs roots at some point. Even the long, long-term travelers I know eventually get a home base.
Can you travel for too long?
The answer for me? Yes, yes, I think you can.
When travel becomes a lifestyle, I think it’s a sign you have been on the road too long. At that point, travel is your life — it’s what you do, and there is nothing else. You have no home or fixed location, and friendships are always ephemeral because, in about 5 months, you’ll be gone again. It’s a great way to live for a short term but not a great way to live forever. It’s fun to do for a period of time but you can’t be peter pan forever.
Trees only grow because they have roots not because they are blowing in the wind.
Sometimes I think I’ve been on the road too long. That, after three years, I’ve become too old a hand at this. But am I ready to give up this lifestyle yet? No. Not all. I’m still young. I’ve only had this blog for a year. I still haven’t climbed Kilimanjaro, dived in the South Pacific, or sailed down the Amazon yet, and then I realize that I still have a bit more to go with this life I lead right now.
And so, while one day I’ll settle down, there are still miles to go on this journey…..and I’m ok with that.
One day, I’ll wake up and say “Ok, it’s time to go home.”
Today is not that day.
Related articles:
Home: The Death of a Nomad
The Travel Slump (And How to Deal With It)
The Downside to Long-Term Travel
How to Travel the World on $50 a Day
My New York Times best-selling paperback guide to world travel will teach you how to master the art of travel so that you’ll get off the beaten path, save money, and have a deeper travel experience. It’s your A to Z planning guide that the BBC called the “bible for budget travelers.”
Click here to learn more and start reading it today!
Book Your Trip: Logistical Tips and Tricks
Book Your Flight
Find a cheap flight by using Skyscanner or Momondo. They are my two favorite search engines because they search websites and airlines around the globe so you always know no stone is left unturned.
Book Your Accommodation
You can book your hostel with Hostelworld. If you want to stay somewhere other than a hostel, use Booking.com as they consistently return the cheapest rates for guesthouses and cheap hotels.
Don’t Forget Travel Insurance
Travel insurance will protect you against illness, injury, theft, and cancellations. It’s comprehensive protection in case anything goes wrong. I never go on a trip without it as I’ve had to use it many times in the past. I’ve been using World Nomads for ten years. My favorite companies that offer the best service and value are:
World Nomads (for everyone below 70)
Insure My Trip (for those over 70)
Medjet (for additional repatriation coverage)
Ready to Book Your Trip?
Check out my resource page for the best companies to use when you travel. I list all the ones I use when I travel. They are the best in class and you can’t go wrong using them on your trip.
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