I’m working on a short book that gives my tips for how people can actually travel more efficiently. I am not a “Master of Travel” yet, but I have been fortunate enough to go on vacation far more than most of my fellow middle class humans.
During my time traveling I have met so many other expats who are also living away from their home countries. I have come to see vacationing really as an artform where certain principles and concepts can create reliably better travel experiences. I am so surprised to hear the experiences of the vast majority of travelers! They have experiences that are vastly shittier than my travels. I don’t think this is because of my perceptions or disposition either. I think it’s simply a function of HOW you design the trip and WHAT you do on the trip.
You see most people just sort of meander through the process in a mindless and unguided sort of way, and there are times that this is perhaps good and even preferred. There is also the danger of being overly-rigid in trip preparations and that can remove any element of real fun and surprise from the agenda too.
Yesterday I wrote 13 pages of it and I think it’s nearly half completion. I will write the rest soon and attempt to publish it as my first mini-book (any book for that matter) within the next month. Here are the main issues my book addresses.
- Over-preparing on the wrong things
- Under-preparing on the wrong things
- Not allowing for enough spontaneity BECAUSE no research was done
- How to research effectively
- How to leverage technologies that save money
- How to leverage technologies that save time
- How to have authentic travel experiences
- Treating your vacation like a work of art in how you approach it’s design
- Using tech to get bad ass food
- The role of “local on the ground intelligence” in international travel