&

“We are overdoing this TRAVEL thing”. Someone had to say it. So yes, I did.

I will try my best not be a rebel of what I am truly passionate about – but this ‘Travel industry boom’ is becoming a bit overwhelming. My news feed is full of bucket lists, articles about people leaving their jobs to travel, must see before you die lists, and solo travel advice. The content if flooding, there are no filters. And no one can know the story behind these posts better than me, as I often write them too, and might still will. But I am in an honest mood today. So I will tell you something REAL.

PAST. I started traveling as a break from my work in 2012. That’s how I started StreetTrotter later. Four year back, the travel industry was an inspiration, and the concept was still new and hard-hitting for workaholics like me. Most of my 9 to 5 daily job kind of peers hardly took a break from work, because we were all in our peak 20’s, and were willing to slog for success. But as much as we wanted a promotion, we were attracting a higher level of stress too. Our relationships were failing, because we were too busy to take a vacation and notice. Our whole generation was running the same race, and then, a few of us couldn’t take it anymore. We packed our bags and left.

The road taught us a lot then. It gave us an escape, and the chance to meet new people, learn and re-gather ourselves. When we returned we were healed through the treks we signed up for, the fresh air echoing in the mountains, the meditations we searched our souls with, the mantras we chanted, and the knowledge that other equally lost travelers shared with us. And then we started writing about it. Thinking that this same cure that cured us, would heal others too who were jailed in the same situations. And it did.

In no time, more and more of us packed our bags and left from the monotonous madness of life and work. We were humming our own beats then and paving our own paths. Travel was the new drug of the scarred, overstressed and damaged millennials. The trend caught up like a raging fire. Bloggers became travel bloggers. And travelers became bloggers. The industry boomed. The idea matured. And just like that – there was a business plan. Travel became a new kind of business. And I became one of its first, but many employees.

And now its all a race again. A race that will soon lose its charm, because we are all overdoing it.

TRAVEL - STREETTROTTER

PRESENT. Last year in 2015, after giving myself all the time I needed to rejuvenate, I got into the grad school of my dreams. I wanted to take the next step into my journalism career, and I wanted to learn more. I then took up two on campus jobs to earn for my tuition fee, and finally got a photojournalism internship at THE Harvard University.

I looked back at my journey, and realized that all those years that I travelled prepared me for these challenges today. StreetTrotter was, and is, the most impeccable portfolio I can share with my employers today, to bag all those dream roles I aspire for. Yet again, the need of success is biting me, and I no longer want to be on the road, as hard work needs me more than ever now.

This is when I realized, that as much as I loved to travel, I needed a good career, a good salary and a good stable lifestyle equally. I like the idea of being a good professional, with a kick ass package, but that means it also requires a fair amount of billable work hours and uncompromised commitment. I can’t be on the road anymore and live like a nomad, because no matter who tells you what, it’s not feasible in the long run. Travel cannot offer you a living. And lets accept it, I can not always be frugal about my travel choices. I need to earn to support the life of my dreams. And this is when the confusion started and the irritation seeped in. I didn’t know if I was failing at my passion, or was I just doing it wrong?

Or was everyone around me overdoing it. And overrating it. 

TRAVEL - STREETTROTTER

I started making a list of all the people who left their jobs to travel the world – and ended up losing track, because there were just so many. So I decided to sit back and wait for them to return. A few of them have started to come back – with posts as to how they cannot do it anymore. Some zeroed out of cash, some saw it all already and some just got sick of the road. Trust me, I am not surprised.

Then I talked to fellow travel bloggers and asked them how do they do it? Most of them do it part time – with full time jobs to support their families. Yet again I was not surprised. In fact, I was in the same boat. 

And now I am looking at all the entrepreneurs who have started their full fledged startups based on travel, and the players are once again, just so many. Couch surfing and Airbnb are not exclusive anymore, because everyone wants to share a piece of the travel infected pie and become competitors of this overrated business.

But being an insider – I can almost sense it. This buzz is going to crash. 

You know why? – Because we overeducated the consumer and gave him too much on his plate. The average traveler is full of knowledge now, and tons of inspiration too – so all they need is a good hotel to stay, an affordable plane ticket, a map with good directions, a few travel apps, and not much of this free-flowing, over glorified travel advice.

TRAVEL - STREETTROTTER

FUTURE. We need to balance this theory out. Bring it back to its inspiring reality. How so? I will take the liberty to state a few more facts about travel, that no one else will tell you that easy. So in all honesty, I will. (And it took me a long time to convince myself on these too)…

  • Dear Wanderlust-ers – #SLOWDOWN.
  • Travel is the greatest human healer that will never die, or go out of fashion. So lets stop overselling the concept. Everyone gets it by now.
  • Share your honest experiences, and better stories, than just bucket lists. Everyone can make their own with the help of google.
  • Lets not leave our jobs to travel. Let get back to travel to inspire ourselves.
  • Travel for a break, not for a living. There is no money out there.
  • We need to aim higher, than just going around the world for a lifetime. You can do that in 80 days.
  • Travel for a cause if you want to travel longer. But do come back.
  • Stability is as important as escape. Find a home, that you can really call home. And stay there often.
  • Don’t start a travel startup. You are not different anymore, you are just one more in the race.
  • Travel in our modern world, is overrated. Stay calm, and respect it for what it is.

TRAVEL - STREETTROTTER

By Shraddha Gupta, Founder & COO of Streettrotter


*** DISCLAIMER ***

I the author of the content that can be found here within can assure you, the reader, that any of the opinions expressed here are my own and are a result of the way in which my highly disorganized and somewhat dysfunctional mind interprets a particular situation and or concept.


 

STREETTROTTER

StreetTrotter is a Travel, Culture & Lifestyle blog, inspiring people everyday with real stories to look good and travel even better. Founded in 2012 by Shraddha Gupta, Founder & COO, this space is all about experiencing new things in life, be it a daring mountain trek, a frugal backpacking trip, a runway look made local, or simply anything that scares you enough to live a little more deeper.

  1. Niranjan says:

    Interesting perspectives. I agree to some and don’t to a few others.
    Yes, we are over selling the concept of travel. Need to slowdown as you say. I too believe in experience than churning out bucket-lists.
    Wouldn’t agree to the fact that there is no money out there. There is enough money to travel (maybe frugally), got to find ways and create it. It all dwindles down to the point, ‘how you want to experience travel’. It also depends on how much you are ready to sacrifice the ‘other life’ for travel. Need to balance it well.

    Lovely read. Shraddha. 🙂

  2. samselim says:

    As honest as it gets, true to the last bit, thanks for writing this…thought the same thing so many times the last few months!

  3. Hi Shraddha, thanks for writing this up so well. I’ve been a bit struggling with it myself, as I’ve been very fortunate and have had jobs that I felt were moving me forward in terms of gained knowledge and experience and helped me become more professional in a field I care about. Right now I have a new job where I promised I wouldn’t travel the first 3 months, so my feet are itchy, but it’ll feel even more rewarding to hit the road again after longer abstinence. So I’m quite loving the combination of good full-time work with frequent trips, I guess! 🙂 Thank you for making me realize it again 🙂
    All the best, Veronika

  4. MrBlakeney says:

    That’s because you guys have monetized a rite of passage; made safe what once took gall, reduced the greatest adventure a person can take to instagrammable inspirational memes designed to cash in on millennial’s need to feel good about themselves no matter how inane a belief system they need to ascribe to. Our generation is one of marketers. We don’t build things, we sell them. What blogs like yours and countless others do is scream, “Do you feel stressed? Angry? Hormonal? You need COSTA RICA! Here’s some pictures! Doesn’t that look nice? You need to go, or you’re actually going to kill yourself. Because as we all know, [Insert Travel Meme About Not Actually Being Alive Unless You Go To a Tropical Paradise in Block Letters Over a Picture of a Prettier Girl Than You With Her Hands in the Air on a Beach]. Don’t forget to subscribe to my newsletter for the ten best backpacking credit card hacks!”

    You’re as guilty as anyone in the Disnefication of travel. You people have turned hard to reach places into tourist traps from Hanoi to Ghana, buying the same tchochkes and taking the same filtered pictures of the same spice markets and sunsets and native people you upload and use to increase your social capital. You’ve turned what was once wild and sacred into something as mainstream and banal as a trip to Cabo for spring break. And then you sold it. You’ve never taken an adventure for an adventure’s sake, but I guess you can’t sell it if you don’t take pictures. The world is growing less wild by the minute, and you and your ilk are killing it.

    1. Niranjan Jha says:

      I have copied your words down because they make so much sense. Yes, an adventure for the sake of adventure itself is almost unheard of now. If you have been somewhere and not notified the social space about it with pictures and posts, then you well…do not exist. In this regard, I feel that I feel we millennials may take a leaf out of our fathers’ generation when they traveled for the thrill, peace and joy of it. That sort of travel changed you and it was never about telling family, friends or Facebook friends how broad minded you were. I do still to continue that tradition. But as you said, it is much harder today. Nice words anyway!

      1. Prathibha says:

        Absolutely spot on. I have done lot of travels and not one picture has gone on social media and my social circles have not been notified of it. The idea of adventure for adventure’s sake does not exist anymore. Sadly, it is all about – travel-click pics-post on FBother social media for social approval and validation !!!!

    2. Sissi says:

      Hi MrBlakeney, oh man I wanted to contact you after reading this, but apparently your website is empty. Would have liked to share a few thoughts.

  5. TheLondonMum says:

    I love this post. I love to travel, and I always have. I grew up moving from country to country based upon where my Dad was working. After I graduated at 21 I felt drawn to working full time, and luckily found a job that allowed me to earn as well as travel when I wanted to. I needed the stability of work, wages and being able to buy a house. But with all that stress I also needed to know I had an amazing journey booked somewhere I hadn’t been- a couple of times a year. It’s a balance, and I don’t think giving everything up to travel is the way of life. Travelling is an experience but ultimately you need a home and a life as well.
    I learnt that when I had my Son. If I didn’t have the finances behind me, or the house I really would have struggled when he was born.

  6. Stefan says:

    I agree in some ways. I did it for a year in my early twenties, came back qualified as a lawyer/worked for 5 years and then packed it in to travel with my boyfriend shifting the focus to our blog full time. The sheer amount of work involved in maintaining it and monetising it keeps us on our feet and keeps the travelling interesting, but agreed, you shouldn’t pack it in and go on the road without a good plan in mind.

  7. MissJEJ says:

    The only thing I’d say no to is “there is no money out there.” There is money out there and many are finding it in less conventional ways.

    1. I totally agree that tourism and travel is like a billion dollars industry. But I still feel the way the modern world is doing it, there is only money out there for few, who have a concrete plan in place. I cant seem to find enough money there to buy a big house, a car and send our children to grad schools. For that kind of life, that my father gave me, I cant reply on travel – unless I come up with a plan that is. 😉

  8. Natasha says:

    Thanks for posting, this is a very honest and interesting read. I do notice that quitting your boring job to travel the world is becoming more and more common. Every day I see a new travel blog pop up while there are already thousands to choose from (I myself am guilty of this). I know that I won’t be on the road full time in my 50’s, 40’s, or probably even my 30’s – but I will still travel. I feel that I can travel full time right now as I am in my 20’s and have the strength and energy to do it, and I think I will continue until I get too tired.

  9. Vicki Garside says:

    Thank you for your honesty and an interesting read. I am guilty of starting a travel blog – but it was for no-one’s sake except my own. I wanted a place to catalog my trips and experiences – not a page rank on google. As a by-product, if my posts are read and can be used/enjoyed by people, then I think that’s great too.
    As for quitting your job to travel – as long as you go with a plan and a way to support yourself I think it is ok. My problem with the drop everything and run attitude is what will happen at retirement when you have no savings and are reliant on the state for support. As a society we should be mindful of our impact of our actions on our own futures – and plan accordingly.

  10. Devang Parekh says:

    Totally Nailed it..
    Reading it while I just finished my 1 trip a month travel plan for 2016.
    There will never be enough.
    The desire to tread on a new path as well as The Drag to get back to your Reality.

  11. Shobha says:

    I like your perspective and agree with it. But then I am older, not necessarily wiser just made more mistakes!!. I was ambitious and wasn’t going to turn it all in for a nomads life. I travelled every chance I got, lived abroad and travel with my family now. It’s all about balance and each person has to find their own. As much as I admire people who live a nomadic life I realise I am too much of a nester not to have my own home.

  12. Interesting read Shraddha!
    I’ve never bought into the “How I Quit My Job To Travel the World” school of thought and while I have a travel blog as well, I’m out to prove to the world that you CAN have a full-time job and still explore as much of the world as possible! I aim to #Take12Trips every year, one trip a month, within my limited annual leave! It’s challenging but doable as my successes 2 years in a row will show!

    So it’s definitely not necessary for us all to leave our “boring, mundane jobs behind and set off indefinitely”! I feel that’s what the problem is, to an extent! People of this generation have gotten conditioned to thinking having roots, holding a steady job, is mundane. Run of the mill, ordinary even! Everyone is out to do something extraordinary, little realising that becoming a nomad is what’s run-of-the-mill now!
    There’s nothing ordinary or mundane about having a base and being a part-time traveler! I LIKE my job, I LIKE having a place to call home, family and friends to come back to … And I LIKE to earn well enough to be able to afford to travel on my terms, and to enjoy a certain lifestyle!
    And there ain’t nothing wrong with that !!!

  13. Upasana says:

    For some reason, this just reads like a whole lot of bitterness that “others” have now gotten into the area, instead of leaving it to the exclusive “insiders” like the writer.
    I’m sorry, but I don’t think a universal desire as the one to travel can be appropriated as the right of a few self proclaimed experts.

  14. Dave Double says:

    I first travelled with $1800 and spent 9 months in India, Nepal and South East Aisa in 1996. There is no travel boom, people have always done it. Stop talking about it, buy a ticket and just go. Don’t over think it or think you’re the first. Traveling is simple, the only thing that’s complicated is deciding what medium to share your stories on. These day people worry to much about sharing stories rather than experiencing the actual adventure. #missingthepoint

    1. Prathibha says:

      Couldn’t agree more on – “These day people worry to much about sharing stories rather than experiencing the actual adventure. #missingthepoint “

  15. Sarah says:

    “To be a mass tourist … is to spoil … the very unspoiledness you are there to experience … to impose yourself on places that in all noneconomic ways would be better, realer, without you.”

  16. liza0728 says:

    This post made me realize that it’s okay to be different. I was composing a long comment here in the last 30 minutes but decided not to post (no play safe here) because I just feel that the article says it all. What else can’t you find in Google? =)

    Now I think it’s time to go back to my old fashion way of writing and sharing my travel stories. That’s it! +1 for this bold article!

  17. Dikshant says:

    I totally agree with your article here. But I would like to ask you what traveling actually is? I might sound naive but my take on traveling is that it is something you do for self introspection, and to do so you have to move out of your comfort zone and see the ground realities of life, because life is not about the destination its about the never ending journey. Traveling gives you experience of lifetime I agree but I don’t like that the term “traveling” has become so overrated these days, that people are traveling without understanding the essence of traveling, it is about reaching a beautiful place like Ladakh but doing it sitting in a Jet airways plane would take the thrill out of the traveling. Traveling is all about challenges, so yeah the more the challenge, better is the experience. Being an Indian, I would say if you are going to a business meeting from lets say Delhi to Chandigarh, once in a while try to do that in a Haryana Roadways NON-AC bus and it would be hell of a traveling people, as you will get to see the most underrated aspect of traveling that is meeting regular people coming from different socio-economic background. And that is what true traveling is for me.
    I have this opinion that if you want to really travel, do that with a minimum of budget and learn to adjust. So yeah do take a break from your busy lives and travel, just not to explore the world but to explore the life!

  18. jersey627 says:

    I agree with most of the author’s points especially about stability. I also wished I traveled more, but alas, I have to be practical since I can’t really afford it all the time. Some people I know who travel a lot always tell me that I am wasting my prime years sitting in an office working a 9 to 5 job. Sometimes I do feel like I’m missing out on a lot but at the end of the day, I know that I’ll be fine even if I don’t travel. At least I’d get to save so I could buy a house for the family someday.

  19. Bernice says:

    Maybe instead of just traveling for traveling’s sake, people should also try to take care of the places they go to. A lot of people go wherever and are not necessarily good stewards- leaving trash, etc. I think what should be emphasized is that traveling is not a competition or a goal, it is not a race- and aside from just seeing the sights we should always check our environmental “footprints” lest we destroy these places just for the sake of “traveling.” Responsible traveling sounds ironic and like a government ad- maybe something like mindful traveling?

  20. Marianne says:

    Too honest perhaps that it reveals the heart. That’s okay with me. No judging. Some people can’t take too much honesty though. I think that you need to do some heart check though and fresher perspectives.

    Before, people travel and then posts experiences. Now, people travel to post. The first one is done only when sustainable. The second one done to sustain them. Nothing wrong here. There’s just differences in purposes.

    Had you been still making big money out of it, would you think of going back to full time work? I can sense some remorse for an industry that grew, well, with you as one of the first culprits for its growth to Blakeney’s point. But did it ever occur to you that you stopped being fruitful in this area as you are being called to another chapter in your life? Because I don’t believe that there is no money in travel & blogging. I am not a travel blogger but I know that the opportunities in the World Wide Web is limitless. You could have ridden in the growth of the industry. That though it grew bloody red with competitors, there is no sign of it ever slowing down unless there’s a global war. To say that it was overdone as a reason for it to be no longer working for you? You cannot control the growth of people jumping the bandwagon. But you could have outsmarted the pack. But….

    I think that you are entering a new season in your life. And that’s just what it is. Instead of the remorse, gracefully surrender this chapter and cherish the time in your life when you were blessed to be one of the first in travel blogging. I’ll bet you that after some time in full time work, you will have some feelings of leaving again and will miss traveling. “The heart is deceitful above all else, who can understand it?” I was from corporate and I’m sick to my stomach when I think of going back. But someday I know I’ll miss it and maybe try again. The key is to be content wherever you are, cherish the past and learn from it, live for today and dream for the future. Dreams will keep you alive and thriving but they can be a killer of the now, too. Just strike a balance of everything.

    I think people should travel however way they want. Whether they go back or not is up to them. if they are able to travel and travel, that’s a grace given to them.

    Realities will remain but we strive to always speak life and inspire people, not discourage. Enjoy your next chapter! 🙂

  21. kattrinna says:

    I agree that the industry nowadays is overselling the need to travel. Tourism is a very good business for both the developed and developing countries. I myself love to travel and is currently on a sabbatical to take the plunge. At the end of the day, we need to evaluate our personal goals and aspirations and submit to it. I mean, what is our motive to travel? To see places? To take selfies (sorry but some people are in it to do just that). To be educated? To live life? To experience culture? To make a living of it? It’s like being a musician… Some people do it for the money, some do it for passion. And at the end of the day, some people do it for a lifetime, some people change careers, while some… I don’t know! People just need to be honest about their intention and need to be realistic with their expectations.
    There should be a balance between being free, doing what you really love (in this case, traveling weather for the long haul or for short trips) and being stable, planting some roots, earning money, or establishing a name for yourself in whatever industry you pursue–whether you establish it in the world of wander or you do it in the corporate world. Finding that balance is the true struggle. Kudos to those who really look at traveling as lifetime commitment and are doing it for the long haul. I mean, nomadicmatt and legalnomads for me are some of the perfect examples for this. They travel long term and have established a balance of being stable through their businesses and making a brand for themselves. Kudos to those who are just taking a break and are intent on going back to the real world. Or even to those who have traveled for a very long time and figured they needed a break from that break because of the need for stability. pinaytraveljunkie is my hero on this.
    At the end of the day, we need to be honest to ourselves, submit to our own desires and be smart about it. Own it. At some point, each of us will realize what works best for us. Acknowledge, embrace, and live with it. If eventually, we have a change of heart, then let’s repeat the process. 🙂

  22. Sebrin says:

    Thank you. Thank you for reminding me why I fell in love with traveling. Why I went abroad before Instagram and photography tutorials. Why I don’t always love the “must-see” destination.

    You reminded me why I started my own blog: to avoid lists and tell my own story. But, wouldn’t you know it, now I’ve got lists on my blog. I drank the goddamn wanderlust cool aid.

    I think we all need to get back to our roots, which is, be you without worrying about your peers or your target audience. Take care of yourself and your family and be true to yourself. Great success, internally or even financially, will follow.

  23. Chelsea says:

    Your way is not the only way to travel. Travel is not ‘one size fits all’.
    Everyone has different priorities in life. If your priority is climbing the corporate ladder then no, you can’t travel for leisure for 2 months/year. If travel is your priority, you will make it work.

    Why would you suggest “there is no money out there”. Plenty of people move somewhere to work, work minimally while they travel, or don’t work but budget their travels to fit their lifestyle.

    I have been doing contract work for several years; I have more money saved than many people I know and I just came back from a 2 month trip for pleasure and did a 4 month trip last year that was funded by me. I make sacrifices in other places, but I am smart about the money I spend and because travel is my priority, I case my work and other habits around it.
    You also say things like ‘you can travel the world’ in 80 days. Yes, you can fly to several cities in 80 days, but you can’t even really see all the United States has to offer in 80 days. It sounds like travel is not your true passion, which is fine, but I hope you don’t discourage others from following their true passion with this post.

  24. Riddhzy says:

    This is such a beautiful and brutally honest article. I am among the one wanderlusting people but you bring out the realizations so well.

  25. Poonam says:

    To be honest i wanted to leave everything and travel but i was confused because i like the stability in my life…i want to see whole world but still come home.Thank you Shradda for a insight.

  26. Jerel says:

    Good Read!

    just to add for fellow travellers out there regarding #slowdown, travel at your phase, you don’t need to keep up with others just because they’ve been to different places in shorter amount of time. I’ve read this in one of travel blogs, “you will meet a lot of people while travelling but you can’t have a stronger connection with people you have left. (friends/loved ones)” , except if you do travel with them and lastly just enjoy travel, sure travel is fun but it’s exhausting.

  27. What a refreshing outlook. I recently went on a skiing trip out in New Mexico (I’m from Florida). The timing was impeccable; I was beyond frustrated at work and had already started looking for a new job, still looking actually. The get away made what I ABSOLUTELY HATED about my job, come back with a little more acceptance of what is. I’m no longer frustrated, the vacation was just that, a trip away from normality, away from the routine. But a week was just the right amount of time. I missed my home, my cat, eating home cooked meals, and not to mention my very very comfy bed.
    The digital world is making it harder and harder to ‘make it’ in our passions. We are forgetting what is important. Thank YOU for your honesty 🙂 <3

  28. kikings says:

    You can have a career and travel by living in different countries rather than backpacking. I have lived in 9 different countries in the last 26 years and I have a great career with a pretty good package. I hate Backpacking but I love living in a country for few years to really experience it and then move on. If you want to know a country and its people don’t travel it, live it, make it home, have local friends and a local job and you will get the best of both worlds. What you said in this web is so true but I”m sorry to say….nothing new.

  29. Jayden says:

    That’s a very honest sharing. But i do have the “thing” that can make travel, a living! contract me for more details 😀

  30. Jayden says:

    Thanks for the honest post! But I do have the “thing” that can make traveling a living! Do contact me for more details ! 😀

  31. Pingback:Around the world… and next? | the Qubicle

  32. outofoffice.me says:

    That is an honest post for sure. Dont Travel for the sake of travel. Dont travel to just look cool. Dont think travel will make you any money. And last dont leave your jobs, family and your boring daily lives to travel!

    We enjoy travel only because your day to day lives are too boring. Once the life becomes not so boring you would stop enjoying travel.

    Treat travel as a break. Treat travel as fun. Treat travel as momentary thing. You over do stuff – your are bound to get bored of it.

    So will you. So will your readers/consumers.

  33. Pingback:“We are overdoing this TRAVEL thing”. Someone had to say it. So yes, I did. – 50shadesofcaramel

  34. Claw says:

    That’s Your point of view and it became like this because You have done it all already. But there are many people who want to experience life out of routine,- road life. You know it very well how much it changed You and how it developed You as a person,- it would not be the same with “part time” travel. Once in a life time everyone should do it.

    For example I am not a career orientated person at all, so it’s difficult for me to feel You as good as I would like to, but I understand what do You want to say with this career thing.

    I am still looking forward for my world trip. But first I have to bring my house to a liveable state. I am also not excluding an option of setting up a blog.
    But one thing is sure – if I won’t die in about 3 years I am going to hit a road for a looong, looong time.

    I have to admit that this article is “different” I am almost never ever commenting on anything in net., but this time I decided to made acceptpion, and I am writing it down after a few days I red it. So You got me 😉

    Anyway good luck with becoming a great press!

  35. Pingback:Minimalism | The Adventures of Pearl

  36. matluccla says:

    Interesting and though-provoking.
    Several of the countries I’d love to visit are now war-zones so it seems as though the impetus to travel is greater, in part, because of the ‘need’ to go somewhere before that somewhere changes beyond current recognition.

    Also, no mention of family – travel before you start a family, travel whilst family growing up or travel when family have grown up?

    Rather a one-sided view?

  37. Jeff Bell says:

    This is a thought-provoking post that has created some interesting discussion. I commend you for taking a risk and posting this.

    I have been traveling for about 15 years. I have been working 8 months a year my entire adult life in seasonal jobs in the tourism industry which have allowed me to build a career, save for retirement and yet see the world. It is niche I carved out for myself because I love travel so much. I don’t think it is possible to oversell travel. It is transformative, helps you grow as a person, allows you to meet new people and try new foods. It is also damn fun.

    I have never met anyone who went on a 2-3 month backpacking trip and didn’t love it. I have met many people who set off to travel for a year or more and got burned out. Moderation is the key for most people.

    As far as the money aspect goes, there is money out there but it depends on what you do. Is there money in blogging? No. Journalism has never been a highly paid job. Is there money in working as a tour guide, a barista at a lodge in a national park, a bartender at a beach bar somewhere awesome? Yes. Maybe a lot. You can work in the travel industry and see the world and make a small fortune if you really work at it. The lie is to tell people that they can start a blog and travel the world full time by posting about their life.

  38. Hong C.W says:

    very thought provoking. But I guess those with privileges could travel all they want or they care for..but as you said travel with a cause…that..I will give a big like. thanks for sharing 😀

  39. ashwin says:

    Very good read.. Valid & interesting & thought provoking perspective.
    As they say the “Need” is proliferated by the commercial aspects & the industry..

    Agree & love the lines especially for the majority lot:
    Travel for a break, not for a living. Travel to get inspired !

    Good perepectives in the discussions as well !

  40. Heather says:

    Hey Shraddha, this is my first time reading your blog. I’ve seen this article shared quite a bit and I had to check it out for myself 🙂
    You raise a lot of interesting points here. Since I started traveling two years ago, I’ve toyed with the idea of starting a travel blog – but you’re right, the market is SO oversaturated and I wasn’t convinced I could put anything new out there (aside from my own snarky opinions). Instead, I’ve focused on cultivating work that allows me to travel, but looks very much like a regular full-time job.
    There’s a few things I disagree with, but I really love this: Dear Wanderlust-ers – #SLOWDOWN. I totally agree – I no longer travel to any destination for less than a month (how else can I get any work done?!), anything shorter is a vacation 😉

  41. Fitz says:

    I understand your frustration as this travel thing is getting too crowded for comfort. The unstoppable market forces are a natural threat to anyone.

    Thomas Edison felt crowded with Tesla around. So did Michelangelo with Leonardo da Vinci. But did they overdo invention, science, or the arts?

    Don’t get stuck up with being a pioneer or an insider. Increase in travelers and travel bloggers are an inevitable trend and an invincible power. Just adapt. Else, you’ll end up like Nokia.

  42. Anna says:

    I understand your frustration with the travel industry. However, I do think that – from a wider perspective – your observation isn’t quite true.

    I have been a travel blogger for 3 years because I love to share stories from my travels. I have never been on a RTW trip and I don’t plan to travel long term because I am and have always been very happy with the way I live at the moment: working part time and traveling and blogging the rest of the time.

    In the past 3 years, I have surrounded myself with people who love to travel as much as I do. When I open my facebook, instagram or twitter, I see my timelines flooded with travel related advice and “leave your job to travel” news. My online world is full of travel related stuff and I also get the feeling that people (including me) are overdoing this travel thing.

    But know what? It’s just a bubble. I chose the people I follow myself – and just because my timelines are flooded with travel related stuff that doesn’t mean it is true for everybody. We tend to surround ourselves with likeminded people – but we can still chose not to follow tham any more. Personally, when I need to talk about real stuff, I go out and meet my real friends – among whom there are many who aren’t nearly as crazy about traveling as I am. I don’t think that the travel craze has grown worse in the last few years. That is just a perception.

    Cheers, Anna

  43. Franziska says:

    So true! But as traveling puts you on a journey to yourself, it can help you change your perspective on your life at home. While being away I actually realized how much I appreciate my homebase, so to step out of the box helped me to position myself again. I called it the “Risks and side effects of travelling” https://kontrollierteschaosincanada.wordpress.com/2016/02/07/risks-and-side-effects-of-travelling/
    Traveling is a drug and we should be careful with the doses.

  44. Pingback:I found out that not all travel bloggers are actually happy with what they are doing - P.S. I'm On My Way

  45. Pingback:What We Can Learn from Young Filipina Who Worked While Travelling All over the World – Things With Tin

  46. Trish says:

    Great post! I’m on the other side (the side that has mortgage payments, a retirement fund yet, still manages to travel) and I do need to calm myself down about being frustrated that my 9-5 only gives me 3.5 weeks of paid vacation. I love that I am able to travel on my own terms and can afford nice stays and astounding meals without being beholden to anyone.

    Good luck with the internship and I’ll keep following your blog!

  47. shayan Naveed says:

    Couldn’t agree more. There’s no place like home. It’s good to get out of comfort zones and explore and travel but in the end, home is home! I’ll never give that up.

  48. I agree with you 100%. I love to travel but take a break for short trips once every quarter while maintaining a full time job to support myself and my family. It’s a hard battle….every walk of life is such a competition. Oh boy…growing up is not easy. There’s always a race to see who can earn more, who can do better at work, and now than ever before who can travel to better places. My goal in life is to try and cherish each moment, slow down, and celebrate, trying to fight the urge to race. But hey…sometimes a little competition is a good thing to drive you to move forward. There’s nothing that frightens me more than complacency. Hard balance…but I guess at the end of it all, life is beautiful:) Cheers!

  49. jilene says:

    Do you think they are bombarded by travel articles simply because they are what you’re subscribed to? The algorithms will follow you and whenever you are signed into an email, facebook or what ever, the internet knows your identity.

  50. I could not agree more. That probably sounds quite hypocritical considering I’ve just started a blog of my own. However, my blog is place for me to recited my travels. I try and write honestly and share the anecdotes of my travels rather than make bucket lists etc I figured that had been covered and in 60 years, I want to look back at my memories.
    I dot expect to make money, or be big but it’s a personal thing and it makes me really happy to write!

  51. Sara says:

    It’s a great article. I know people, families, that have been travelling for a long time. It is true there is not that much money in the world but they have managed with the help of others. Of course “this” lifestyle is not for everyone and travel, even if you blog about it, should be more than that. Travelling & blogging now it has to be for the fun of it, at least that is our view, we are not expecting anything else out of it. I’m sick of watching list of things to do before… (you die, you turn 30…) it seems that you have to rush everything and travelling shouldn’t be that. Thanks for sharing

  52. Thank you so much. I agree SO MUCH with you. Thank you thank you … from a nomad who is soon getting back to a normal life because she’s fed up with making travel a business.

  53. Amber says:

    That was such a good read, and the comments section is awesome too! I’ve been dying to travel for years now, life has taken a few turns that have stopped me from upping and leaving, but it’s hard knowing that I’ll just be another fish in the sea of travel bloggers.

    When I do go travelling I would like to focus more on ethical travel and ways to minimise our foot prints when we travel, and be better visitors. But I know I’ll still just add to the overcrowded travel blog market. But when travel is your passion and it’s a great way to utilise a love of writing and photography, what else is there to do?

    I want to have adventures and discover new and breath-taking places, as well as see the iconic scenes along the way. So I’m not going to be deterred from my dream, but maybe find a more useful and realistic way to do it.

    Again, great article, food for thought and I really respect you for writing it!

  54. Alaska Rue says:

    What I’ve been thinking too, lately. I’ve been starting to think that there really isn’t all that much of a point to travel, unless you’re doing it with a purpose. So, I’ve started to refine my travel style to something that is much more sustainable in the long run. Thanks for writing! Well said!

  55. Mwende says:

    Here’s my advice, unfollow all those travel bloggers, unsubscribe to all that noise about travel. Follow people who talk about settling into a career that gives that kind of money you want. You will suddenly stop hearing a lot about travel. It will be total silence. It’s okay to feel overwhelmed, that’s the point you shousd turn off that overwhelming frequency. Move back to a regular life. Bye bye!

  56. Luckie singh says:

    There was fad among Indian youth (mostly IT industry ) to leave the job and travel, it was inspired by movies like “Into the wild”, but we didn’t watch the climax, climax is happening now,
    We were trapped in social media bubble, as we check one travel websitee we star seeing all ads and posts in our feed related to travel, and then we like more travel page we see more exotic locations, we buy gear and book the tickets and thats what business industry wants… That fad is getyomg over now

    But let me tell you the new fad, fashion of Transformation, gettimg slim in 60 days, having abs in 4 weeks etc

  57. Pingback:Is WANDERLUST still a thing? – Mõtisklused pühapäevase kohvi kõrvale

  58. Ambar says:

    Our whole generation was running the same race, and then, a few of us couldn’t take it anymore. We packed our bags and left , and end-up overdoing it

  59. Matthew says:

    Spot on. I had to end my traveling and resign from work altogether! This is what happens when you mixed up your passion for traveling and your motivation to work.

  60. Husain Anas says:

    Everyone will pick and choose what he does – I guess what we all collectively should look for is a fulfilling lifestyle, please note that I didn’t use the word “happy” or “happiness”. There should be no need for an escape unless you are in a torture cell.

  61. Ching chiching says:

    Travelling is for people who are not afraid to take risk in the wild. They are not happy sitting in a chait no matter what and cant stay in one place. If your life style and your dreams is the norm, then youre a tourist not a traveller. It will return as a regret and not a rewarding experience.

  62. Kelly says:

    With you 100%! I’ve actually been tossing these thoughts around in my head for a while now. I’m actually on a world cycle tour at the moment… but after 5 years of constant travel, and a previous 5 years of occasional travel, I’ve reached the point where it’s not exciting anymore and we’ll it’s become pointless. There is more to life than travel at the end of the day and I think it’s a bit sad if travel is all you do in life.

  63. Michael says:

    The game changer of course is that everything’s become too accessible, too easily “found out”, and so, the mystery of travel is gone. What’s left is the misery of airports and throngs of people getting in your way getting to that destination which you already knew about,

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.