essay about bad travel experience

My Top 9 WORST Travel Experiences

Do you ever read about my travel experiences and think, “Blimey, his trips are so smooth and straightforward. How does he do it?”

Let me tell you something: All my trips are FAR from perfect!

And that applies to almost every other travel blogger out there too. We write about how incredibly wonderful our experiences are. And the truth is, yes – they ARE amazing, but as with all great things in life, there is plenty of struggle behind the scenes too.

In all of my personal blog posts documenting my experiences abroad, I try to be honest and write about the shitty stuff that happens as well as the awesome. This is because I want you to understand the reality of traveling from my perspective as a 30-something-year-old deaf guy. It helps to tell my story and makes it unique.

And most importantly, I want you to avoid making the same mistakes that I did, to ensure you make the BEST of your travels.

Planning your trip? Use my favorite resources!

🏨 Accommodation: I recommend Booking.com ✈️ Flights: for the cheapest flights, I use Skyscanner 🚗 Rental Car: I recommend Discover Cars 🛡️ Travel Insurance: for the best deals I rely on SafetyWing

And despite all my bad experiences (including some near-death ones), I wouldn’t change ANYTHING . The good always outweighs the bad, and I have 9+ years worth of the most amazing memories I could ever wish for!

In this post, I have compiled a selection, in no particular order, of some of the worst travel experiences I have ever experienced so far, in just six years of traveling.

Disclaimer: This post in no way criticizes the places these incidents happened. Some of these incidents are common – for example, the bag theft in Vietnam – incidents like these occur all over the world, including in London and New York City. Falling ill in India was my own mistake and could happen in any developing country. And that mosquito bite? I was simply unlucky.

Covering all the bad things that happened to me while traveling over the past decade.

#1. Missing my Flight Home

In 2014 after a visit to Schweinfurt in Germany, I was at Nuremberg Airport, awaiting my flight back home to Birmingham early one morning. However, I was sitting in a cafe and completely lost track of the time.

The boarding gate was making its final call and the staff had called my name out across the tannoy system telling me to make my way to the gate immediately, but unfortunately, that literally fell on deaf ears as I didn’t hear it.

So by the time I got to the gate, it was too late – everyone had already boarded the plane and to my despair, I watched from the gate as the door closed shut on the plane, which meant nobody else could board the plane.

I was shocked and annoyed that I’d missed a flight for the first time. I had to book a new flight, which costed around €200, and it wasn’t scheduled until 24 hours later, so I had to stay in Nuremberg for a night.

At least I took the opportunity to spend a day in the quaint city of Nuremberg. And since this incident, I started making use of Special Assistance for most of my future trips.

I wrote this useful guide on tips and advice for deaf and disabled people thinking about traveling abroad.

#2. Missing my Connecting Flight to India, Twice! (and Lost my Baggage)

I missed another flight in December 2014 when I traveled to India with a stopover at Istanbul Airport. But incredibly, not only did I miss my second leg flight, I was rebooked with a new flight departing 24 hours later only to MISS THAT FLIGHT too!

*Hear me out: unlike my previous missed flight, this one was of no fault of my own.*

Firstly, the flight from Birmingham to Istanbul was delayed by well over an hour due to poor weather, which meant I was almost certainly going to miss the connecting flight in Istanbul. So I informed the staff at Birmingham airport in advance, and they assured me that someone will take care of me as soon as I land in Istanbul, to ensure I get a new flight ticket and be onward with my journey.

So, as predicted, my second flight took off from Istanbul as soon as I landed there, and so I was issued a new ticket. But the next flight wasn’t due until 24 hours later, so they booked me into a hotel for the night. The only problem is, the hotel was quite some distance away, in the city center, so I had to obtain a visa to leave the airport, to get to this hotel.

The following day, the airport bus arrived at my hotel late, and worse still – the traffic was absolutely dreadful. It was total gridlock on the roads, and by the time I arrived at the airport, my flight was about to take off!

I had to explain this ridiculous situation to the staff once again, and nobody could believe what just happened.

So, once again , they issued me with ANOTHER new flight ticket, for a flight taking off – yep, you guessed it – 24 hours later. And so they put me in ANOTHER hotel for the night. BUT, this time, they made sure I was in a hotel right within the airport. So there was no way I was going to miss my flight for the third time.

That wasn’t the end of my troubles though.

When I finally made it to India – my luggage didn’t appear on the carousel. I spent ages waiting at the luggage area while everyone else collected their bags and there was nothing left on the belt, so I had to report to the staff that I’d lost my luggage.

It turns out, my luggage arrived a day earlier than I did. I had to identify my bags in the enormous lost property room, and you can imagine I was relieved when I was finally reunited with my stuff!

#3. Scooter Crash in Goa

On that same trip to India in December 2014 I was in Goa to see in the New Year. Whilst there, my friends and I hired scooters to travel around.

We were riding about an hour north to Anjuna beach, and were slowing down towards one of the crowded roundabouts on the route.

As soon as I stopped, another rider came up too fast behind me on his scooter and crashed into the back of my bike. And as the crash took me by surprise, the impact caused me to tumble over on the left side, as the scooter was a bit heavy.

Luckily though, I walked away from this crash with just a graze on my foot, as I was wearing flip flops (*reminder to self: I should probably get a tetanus jab*).

Did you know: there is a spa just for elephants in India! For more crazy and interesting facts about India, click here.

#4. I once got Electrocuted in Mexico

In the summer of 2014 I had a literal, near-death experience whilst staying in a hostel in Playa del Carmen, Mexico.

I went to take a shower one night and it was dark, so I was touching the wall trying to find the light switch. And all of a sudden, there was a bright flash and I felt a burning pain shoot right up to my elbow from my finger.

After the initial shock, I saw the wall and realized I’d just been electrocuted . The switch panel was hanging loose, and there were exposed cables sticking out everywhere!

I reported this to the receptionist who was very calm and casual when I explained what just happened. He then came down to have a look, and all he did was hastily cover up the loose cables with some black gaffer tape!

Seriously though, I had a lucky escape. I guess it was a good thing Mexico’s electricity grid output is weak, as I doubt I’d live to tell the tale if this happened back home from 240-volt sockets!.

Edit: I forgot the name of the hostel, so luckily for them I have saved them the embarrassment of being named and shamed.

Top Advice: Get Travel Insurance

You could say this near-death experience was a wake up call for me to ALWAYS take out travel insurance wherever I travel now.

You might be thinking,  it was just a freak accident what happened to me..

What’s the worst that could happen to you?

Well, you could suffer appendicitis and require emergency surgery. You could easily have your bag or camera stolen (this happened to me). A family relative could fall seriously ill or pass away, and you wouldn’t be able to afford the urgent flight back home.

For my travel cover I always use SafetyWing. They are one of, if not, the BEST insurance providers out there.

SafetyWing Travel insurance: simple & flexible

You can buy and claim online , even after you’ve left home. Travel insurance from SafetyWing is available to people from over 130 countries. It’s designed for adventurous travelers with cover for overseas medical, evacuation, baggage and a range of adventure sports and activities .

Planning a vacation in the Yucatan? Despite my accident, I had some of the most amazing adventure experiences there. Here’s my 2 Week Yucatan Itinerary Guide.

#5. Delhi Belly In Dehradun

During my second trip to India in January 2015, I came down with the dreaded ‘Delhi Belly’ – an illness that befalls many, but not all, who visit India.

Considering that India is one of the most challenging places a traveler can visit, and, bearing in mind I was living there for six months, a few days in January was the only time I EVER became ill in all my time in India.

It happened after I ate a plate of boiled eggs from a street vendor outside the gym. One evening after a workout with a mate, he suggested we have some chicken broth and eggs to top up on protein. I made the mistake of eating the yolk of five eggs – whereas my mate only ate the egg-whites. Lesson learned.

So that evening at my host’s home, I suddenly began to feel unwell and got hit with a severe case of diarrhea. Yuk!

Luckily, my host’s wife looked after me while I was sick – giving me natural remedies which made me throw up. And two days later, I was feeling much better.

#6. Robbed by a Biker Thief

In January 2018 my partner and I were traveling in south Vietnam, having just seen in the New Year in Ho Chi Minh City. On our last night in the city, my partner’s bag was snatched by a thief on a motorbike.

These incidents happen everywhere, unfortunately, not only in Vietnam. In fact, there are notorious biker thieves that prowl around central London and rob passers-by as they ride on the sidewalks , in broad daylight.

Over in Ho Chi Minh City, it was dark when the incident happened, at around 7pm, and it happened very suddenly, right in the middle of the road as we were crossing it.

We were completely taken by surprise and were overcome with dread when we realized what just happened, yet it was too late to do anything as the biker and the thief sped away into the night.

Naturally, my partner was very upset, as the contents of her bag included her iPhone, some cash, and some ID cards, though thankfully, NOT her passport.

We immediately reported the incident to the police who took a statement, but we realized soon enough, that there was absolutely nothing they could do about incidents like this, in a large city of over 9 million people.

Moreover, my partner’s bag was quite thin and light, with loose leather straps which made it vulnerable to rip, and therefore a very easy target. So we learned our lesson that night: if we have to bring our belongings with us, always keep them in secure and strong, tightly-fitting bum bags that can’t be ripped from us.

Security Tip: Since this incident, every time I go traveling I always wear my Zero Grid Travel Security Belt – a hidden money pouch that’s incredibly useful for stashing away my cash so even the smartest pickpockets don’t stand a chance.It comes with an adjustable, non-metal buckle too. Purchase yours from Amazon

Safety and Security Gear for your Travels:

Below are some more top security travel gear that I would recommend for traveling anywhere in the world – and would not leave the house without these.

Anti-Theft Travel Purse

If you’re after the ultimate theft-proof purse, I highly recommend the Anti-Theft Travel Purse – it consists of five measures of theft prevention including:

• Slash-resistant straps: straps with stainless steel wire inside, protects against grab-and-go thieves
• Slash resistant fabric: the whole bag is made with a slash-resistant mesh barrier inside for extra layers of protection
• Lockdown straps: the strap lock secures bag to a stationary object, protecting against grab-and-go thieves
• Locking compartments: locking zipper pulls that prevent pickpockets from getting into your bag
• RFID blocking pockets: protects against electronic identity theft with RFID blocking card slots and pockets

PacSafe Bag Protector

Another great security option for wherever you travel, the PacSafe bag protector will store all your valuables and secure it to a stationary item in your hotel/airbnb.

Bring a Small Lock

Be sure to bring a small lock for any hostel stays wherever you go, so you can securely store your valuables in the lockers provided.

#7. Missed my Flight (Again!) to Hong Kong

*Why do I keep missing my flights?! To be fair , this incident was also beyond my control. *

In December 2017 I embarked on a flight to Hong Kong via Paris, from Birmingham. The weather at the time was very cold and it was quite icy outside, which had impacted the public travel systems all over the UK and as a result, my train to the airport was delayed and I was pretty late arriving at the airport.

This was the least of my worries though because I soon found that my first-leg flight to Paris was delayed by two hours.

By the time I arrived in Paris around midnight, my connecting flight to Hong Kong had already left, much to the anger and frustration of my fellow flight passengers.

I have been in this situation before (when I missed flights to India) – so I was quite calm and knew that patience was key.

However, I was rather surprised by how furious the other passengers were. These were grown-ups, literally shouting at airport staff, and scrambling to jump in front of everyone else in the queues for new tickets at Paris Charles De Gaulle airport.

I just stood back and watched them make fools of themselves. It was unbelievable. Sometimes, shit happens. Just be PATIENT and relax! Our flight WILL go ahead. We will be put into a hotel for the night. None of this will cost us an extra penny.

There is really no need to take it out on airport staff who aren’t responsible for the actions of mother nature.

#8. My Arm BLEW UP From a Mosquito Bite

Yeah, so this was a bit of a freak accident that resulted in my earning an arm like Popeye’s.

During my second visit to the Yucatan in Mexico, I received numerous Mosquito bites, but that’s nothing new as I got bitten a million times from my first Mexico trip, and actually – almost every tropical place I’ve been to – whether it’s Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, I’ve been bitten by Mosquitos (I mean, who hasn’t?)

Except during this trip, I had this ONE bite on my elbow, which at first, was no different from the other bites, but it turned from a red swollen lump, into a small white bubble.

When I arrived back in the UK, it was still there – a month later. And then one day, I decided to pop it. The fluid in the sac leaked out, so I casually wiped it, and I never thought anything of it, maybe because I didn’t realize it was an old Mosquito bite.

But then, the area around the mark, on my elbow, started to go red again, and it began to swell. And it swelled really fast. I applied some brandy to the area to try and disinfect it, and it was seeping, so I was squeezing more fluid out.

But it got worse. The stinging from the brandy was nothing compared to what came next. The swelling became gradually more painful. In fact, it got to the point where it became so painful I could not even sleep at night – I would literally wake up clutching my arm, writhe around on the floor, and clench my teeth so hard to stop myself from screaming in agony.

The small lump had expanded so much that my entire forearm literally BLEW UP, so it looked just like Popeye’s arm!

I sought medical help soon after and was able to clear up the infection on a round of antibiotics. The doctor told me I was VERY lucky the infection wasn’t higher up my arm, as that could’ve been critical. Instead, it spread downwards due to the swinging motion of my arms from walking, hence the weird Popeye look.

Click here to read how I easily saved over $1000 in just ONE month for my travel funds

#9. I Once Received the WRONG Visa Stamp

I was due to fly back home from India in the summer of 2014 and as I entered the immigration checkpoint at Delhi airport, something odd happened.

The border guard was looking at my passport visa with suspicion and then asked me what date I arrived in India. I explained that I was only here for a week, but still, he was checking my passport photo and visa, with suspicion.

He then called up another guard who arrived and they were talking about my visa (I couldn’t make out what they were saying or what even was wrong). And then they pointed the stamp in my passport, which I received on arrival in India a week earlier.

I didn’t understand what the problem was. But then I took a closer look at the stamp and I read the small date imprint. It says ‘2013’. Shit.

Why on earth did I receive a visa stamp with 2013 on it, when my visit was in August 2014? I was just as dumbfounded as the Indian border guards were.

Yet surprisingly, they ushered me through immigration without another word.

It turns out, they made a mistake by stamping a year-old old visa stamp in my passport when I first arrived! When I checked the stamp again, they appear to have hastily smudged the date out and written, ‘Arrival confirmed on 15-8-2014’.

I was slightly relieved, and was able to board my flight, except I was due to arrive in Moscow for a transfer flight to London. I was seriously hoping this visa doesn’t draw suspicion by the Russian guards in Moscow, as I was seriously beginning to worry they’d throw me into a gulag .

And yep – you guessed it – the Russian immigration guard not only noticed something dodgy with my passport, he actually whipped out his monocular and proceeded to scrutinize my visa for quite a LONG time!

Several moments passed, my heart was racing and sweat began to drip down my face. And I could feel the stare of people behind me in the queue, which made matters worse.

And, AT LONG LAST, I was handed back my passport without a word said. Thank goodness!

So, those are my worst travel experiences so far! I hope this post doesn’t put you off traveling! Have you had any bad experiences abroad?

Further Reading

• How to Find CHEAP Flights (+ FREE Cheatsheet)
• How to Plan a Vacation (+ FREE Travel Checklist)
• How to Quickly Save $1000 for Travel in 1 Month

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Book Your Trip: Top Tips

🏨 Accommodation: I recommend booking.com ✈️ Flights: for the cheapest flights, I use Skyscanner 🚗 Rental Car: I always rely on Discover Cars 🛡️ Travel Insurance: for reliable and trusted cover, I use SafetyWing 🗺️ For all my best travel tips & advice , head over to my Travel Tools

Thank you for reading My Top 9 WORST Travel Experiences

Now you know what to do to avoid these awful situations on your next trip, ensuring it goes smoothly!

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Billy Read is the owner and author of BRB Gone Somewhere Epic, a travel blog that helps travelers discover unique destinations and travel experiences on a budget. With more than 10 years of global travel filled with accidents, Billy aims to help readers avoid making the same mistakes as he did, and make the most of their epic trips.

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Write a Good Travel Essay. Please.

Kathleen Boardman

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Editor’s Note: We know that many of you are looking for help writing travel experience essays for school or simply writing about a trip for your friends or family. To inspire you and help you write your next trip essay—whether it’s an essay about a trip with family or simply a way to remember your best trip ever (so far)—we enlisted the help of Professor Kathleen Boardman, whose decades of teaching have helped many college students learn the fine art of autobiography and life writing. Here’s advice on how to turn a simple “my best trip” essay into a story that will inspire others to explore the world.

Welcome home! Now that you’re back from your trip, you’d like to share it with others in a travel essay. You’re a good writer and a good editor of your work, but you’ve never tried travel writing before. As your potential reader, I have some advice and some requests for you as you write your travel experience essay.

Trip Essays: What to Avoid

Please don’t tell me everything about your trip. I don’t want to know your travel schedule or the names of all the castles or restaurants you visited. I don’t care about the plane trip that got you there (unless, of course, that trip is the story).

I have a friend who, when I return from a trip, never asks me, “How was your trip?” She knows that I would give her a long, rambling answer: “… and then … and then … and then.” So instead, she says, “Tell me about one thing that really stood out for you.” That’s what I’d like you to do in this travel essay you’re writing.

The Power of Compelling Scenes

One or two “snapshots” are enough—but make them great. Many good writers jump right into the middle of their account with a vivid written “snapshot” of an important scene. Then, having aroused their readers’ interest or curiosity, they fill in the story or background. I think this technique works great for travel writing; at least, I would rather enjoy a vivid snapshot than read through a day-to-day summary of somebody’s travel journal.

Write About a Trip Using Vivid Descriptions

Take your time. Tell a story. So what if you saw things that were “incredible,” did things that were “amazing,” observed actions that you thought “weird”? These words don’t mean anything to me unless you show me, in a story or a vivid description, the experience that made you want to use those adjectives.

I’d like to see the place, the people, or the journey through your eyes, not someone else’s. Please don’t rewrite someone else’s account of visiting the place. Please don’t try to imitate a travel guide or travelogue or someone’s blog or Facebook entry. You are not writing a real travel essay unless you are describing, as clearly and honestly as possible, yourself in the place you visited. What did you see, hear, taste, say? Don’t worry if your “take” on your experience doesn’t match what everyone else says about it. (I’ve already read what THEY have to say.)

The Importance of Self-Editing Your Trip Essay

Don’t give me your first draft to read. Instead, set it aside and then reread it. Reread it again. Where might I need more explanation? What parts of your account are likely to confuse me? (After all, I wasn’t there.) Where might you be wasting my time by repeating or rambling on about something you’ve already told me?

Make me feel, make me laugh, help me learn something. But don’t overdo it: Please don’t preach to me about broadening my horizons or understanding other cultures. Instead, let me in on your feelings, your change of heart and mind, even your fear and uncertainty, as you confronted something you’d never experienced before. If you can, surprise me with something I didn’t know or couldn’t have suspected.

You Can Do It: Turning Your Trip into a Great Travel Experience Essay

I hope you will take yourself seriously as a traveler and as a writer. Through what—and how—you write about just a small portion of your travel experience, show me that you are an interesting, thoughtful, observant person. I will come back to you, begging for more of your travel essays.

Take Notes in a Cute Journal

Keep track of all the crucial details- and even the ones you might forget, in a durable and refillable journal.

More from SmarterTravel:

• Genealogy Travel: How to Find Your Family Tree
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• 9 DIY Ways to Upgrade Economy Class

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Bad Trips: Wonderful Essays about Awful Travel Experiences

Vacations are sacred, especially in America, where we work longer hours than our counterparts in Europe and still aren’t legally entitled to a single paid day off . But what we often forget — that is, until we’re getting stung by a jellyfish or stranded at an airport — is that they’re also rarely the ideal escapes we build them up to be. In an essay about Disney World for last weekend’s New York Times magazine, John Jeremiah Sullivan reminds us. Since others’ holidays of misery make us feel better about our own failure to plan a summer vacation, we’ve rounded up some of our favorite tales of awful travel experiences, by authors including David Sedaris, Sloane Crosley, David Foster Wallace, and more.

John Jeremiah Sullivan on Disney World

Blood, ungodly heat, and a whole lot of marijuana turn up in Sullivan’s cleverly titled “You Blow My Mind. Hey Mickey!” The essay follows the author, his wife, their daughter, and another family on a roadtrip to Disney World. Complicated by bad weather, the other father’s pack-of-joints-a-day weed habit, and Sullivan’s ambivalence about the “Happiest Place on Earth,” the trip becomes a way of talking about the mega-theme park’s unsettling history. Did you know, for instance, that “Disney World is a giant mound, one of the greatest ever constructed in North America”? The park tourists know is actually about 15 feet off the ground, built on top of an intricate system of tunnels built to conceal off-duty characters and other not-so-magical sites. Then there’s the dark, weird origins of Epcot. Sullivan’s essay isn’t a straight-up condemnation of Disney, but it will definitely make you think twice before making plans to get back on that tram.

Sullivan photo by Harry Taylor

David Sedaris on Amtrak’s bar cars

David Sedaris has made a career on dramatizing his most embarrassing moments, in stories so conducive to uncontrollable laughter that we’ve had to stop reading them in public. But “Guy Walks into a Bar Car,” a piece Sedaris wrote for The New Yorker a few years ago, is more sad than funny. The essays follows our author on a train trip home from Chicago to New York, as he mourns the end of a six-year relationship and strikes up a brief friendship with a drunk who he’s drawn to because he finds “ruined-looking men” attractive. We meet the characters on the bar car — the guy who won’t stop telling terrible jokes, the woman in the “decorative sweatshirt” — and watch Sedaris hole up in a women’s restroom, high on pills and pot and alcohol. Not only is it a terrible moment in the writer’s life (pre-fame), but the piece also evolves into a meditation on aging, relationships, and diminishing opportunities for happiness.

Sloane Crosley on Lisbon

There are two great travel essays in Sloane Crosley’s wonderful second book, How Did You Get This Number . In “Le Paris!,” she explains why she and Paris have never gotten along. We’re partial to “Show Me on the Doll” (excerpted here ), though, which finds Crosley alone in Lisbon. The solo trip is supposed to be an empowering celebration of her 30th birthday, but she spends much of it hiding in her hotel room, getting lost, and wanting to go home. She finally does meet some locals on her final night in town — and it turns out they’re hipster carnies!

David Foster Wallace on cruises

In the world of neurotic travel writing, no essay is as widely cited or celebrated as David Foster Wallace’s “A Supposedly Fun Thing I’ll Never Do Again,” originally titled “Shipping Out: On the (nearly) lethal comforts of a luxury cruise” when it appeared in Harpers in 1996. We fear that going into too much detail will ruin it for those of you who haven’t yet read the piece, so let’s leave it at this: Wallace, in all his hyper-footnoted glory, simply cannot submit to the totalitarian regime of pleasure that rules the American cruise industry.

Umberto Eco on America

Years before anyone had ever heard of Second Life, the postmodernist Italian philosopher Umberto Eco wrote a long essay called “Travels in Hyperreality,” chronicling America’s bizarre fascination with simulated reality. Eco takes on everything from holograms to wax museums to William Randolph Hearst’s California castle, with its loud and cartoonish mix of genuine art and gaudy reproduction. Our favorite part will always be his exploration of the Madonna Inn , a hotel in San Luis Obispo whose themed guest rooms represent everything from a caveman’s quarters to a Hawaiian tiki-themed chamber. “The Madonna Inn is the poor man’s Hearst Castle,” Eco writes, “it has no artistic or philosophical pretensions, it appeals to the savage taste for the amazing, the overstuffed, and the absolutely sumptuous at low price.” You can read the essay, which appears in a collection of the same name, at Google Books .

Gary Indiana on Branson

Writer/filmmaker/photographer Gary Hoisington may have adopted as his pseudonym the name of a Midwestern city, but rest assured he has little love for Middle America. The title of “Town of the Living Dead,” a Village Voice piece that appears in his collection, Let It Bleed: Essays 1985-1995 , pretty much sums up Indian’s thoughts on Missouri’s own country-music mecca. From theme parks to the Osmond Brothers, Indiana points out that Branson represents the ultimate in reactionary nostalgia, whose visitors are “profoundly out of whack with the trajectory of American popular culture, which, for all its inanity, is generally libertarian, multicultural, and secular.” Or, to put it less gently, he describes the city as “the tightest little cultural sphincter you are likely to find in the United States.”

Rachel Shukert on Europe

A freshly graduated (and flat broke) Rachel Shukert uses an unstamped passport and a trip overseas as a bit player in a theater production to wander around Europe in search of, well… she isn’t quite sure. There’s love, intoxication, and other forms of embarrassment in Everything Is Going to Be Great , but (luckily for those who aren’t big on 20-something navel-gazing) Shukert makes it all funny. Bonus: The book doubles as an irreverent travel guide, featuring everything from “Foreskin FAQs” to a brief guide to the Dutch obsession with Phil Collins.

Ian Frazier on getting sick while traveling

In a piece for Outside magazine, New Yorker writer Ian Frazier tackles the ultimate vacation bummer: getting sick while we’re traveling — and why it seems to happen so often. “A Kielbasa Too Far” combines anecdotes from Frazier’s own life with a substantial history of diarrhea (which the author has the delicacy not to name) in travel literature of the past, some tips (“Alcohol, in strengths you drink, does not purify anything”), and a conversation with a doctor who notes the prevalence of travel-related psychosis. It’s enough to make you want to stay home. Almost.

Illustration by David Hughes at Outside

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Why bad trips can make for great stories

Disastrous journeys tend to be transformative and more memorable than perfect ones—and actually make us happier.

Good trips come and go. Bad trips are forever. There is nothing more forgettable than a journey that goes exactly to plan. That’s why I’ll take a bad trip over a good one any day, a seemingly twisted doctrine that says a lot about human nature, the way we remember—and why we travel in the first place.

The label “bad trip” covers a lot of ground. Some trips skew only slightly: a missed connection, a rained-out parade. Other trips careen so wildly off track they make headlines. The awfulness of the 1910 Terra Nova expedition to Antarctica , recounted beautifully in Apsley Cherry-Garrard’s The Worst Journey in the World , turned this debacle into a classic of adventure literature. A trip needn’t involve subzero temperatures to qualify as bad. Travel long enough and eventually all travelers experience their own “worst journey in the world.”

There’s a reason the words “travel” and “travail” share a common root.

The test of travel

For the past few decades, social scientists have poked and prodded our psyches, searching for the secrets to happy people, and happy places . One consistent finding: We’re not very good at predicting what will and will not make us happy. We think amassing more stuff will do the trick, yet studies consistently find it is experiences, not material possessions—doing, not having—that yield the greatest contentment.

Travelers might assume a perfectly smooth journey will boost our happiness. Experience suggests a few bumps in the road make the journey memorable.

Bad trips love company. Nothing tests the sturdiness of an old relationship, or cements a new one, like a journey gone awry. Eric Weiner , Author

I think the real reason we travel is to stretch ourselves, test   ourselves, and unearth abilities we didn’t know we had. We travel to travail. Bad trips supply the narrative arc for our hero’s journey, that ancient archetype elucidated by Carl Jung and Joseph Campbell, among others. The steps are always the same. Step one: Hero embarks on adventure. Step two: Hero is tested. Step three: Hero passes test. Step four: Hero returns home transformed. Over the centuries, travelers from Marco Polo to Ibn Battuta to Gertrude Bell have fine-tuned the hero’s journey.

Everyone’s notion of a bad trip is a bit different. For American author and journalist Martha Gellhorn, nothing was worse than a boring trip and nothing more boring than a cruise. (“It bores me to even think of such a trip.”) In 1944 she found herself on a kind of un-cruise, crossing the Atlantic aboard a Norwegian dynamite ship. The ship’s hold was loaded with high explosives. The food was terrible, the drinks nonexistent, the crew humorless. There were no lifeboats. When the ship reached Liverpool safely, she was relieved but also oddly wistful. She had enjoyed her bad trip. “If the choice was between a cruise ship and a dynamite ship, I’d have no trouble choosing.”

( These travel books document the worst trips in the world. )

Then there are those stubbornly optimistic travelers, like British author Jan Morris , who “made a professional specialty of the happy journey.” No hardship or setback could dent her cheerfulness. To prove her point, she once suggested a thought experiment. What if the various mishaps she endured over a lifetime of travel were to converge on a single journey? What if she were to find herself “robbed of my passport and plane ticket, my luggage having already been lost in flight, while suffering from extreme diarrhea during a high summer heat wave and a severe water shortage, while the local electricity supply and telephone service have been cut off because of political disturbances.”

Terrible trip, right? No, says Morris. “Why, I would have said to myself, how lucky I am it isn’t raining.” For her, a bad trip is the exception that proves the rule, the bump in the road that renders the smooth stretches more enjoyable.

Friends and memories

Bad trips love company. Nothing tests the sturdiness of an old relationship, or cements a new one, like a journey gone awry.

It also explains why The Worst Journey in the World makes for such compelling, oddly uplifting reading. The author, an assistant zoologist way out of his depth, recounts in excruciating detail how he and two fellow explorers embarked on a quixotic search for emperor penguin eggs. Cherry, as the young man was known, describes an almost unimaginable ordeal: meager rations, brutal cold (temperatures dipped to minus 77 degrees), and unrelenting darkness. Yet the men never lost hope, or their warm camaraderie.

Bad trips reveal much about the workings of human memory. We typically think of memory as a kind of photograph or digital record we retrieve at will. In fact, memory is much more fluid, and complex, than that. We don’t retrieve memories so much as form them, construct them, a cognitive edifice that bends and flexes over time.

( Here’s why planning a trip can help your mental health .)

Negative events make deeper impressions than positive ones, research shows. It’s called the “negativity bias,” and from an evolutionary perspective, it makes sense. In order to survive, it was more important that early humans recalled the location of the lion den, rather than that beautiful rock formation.

The negativity bias, though, is counterbalanced by another psychological force: the “fading affect bias.” Simply put, over time, we forget the bad stuff and remember the good. And, as a recent study found, focusing on the context of a negative event diminishes its corrosive effects. Researchers placed 19 participants in a brain scan, then showed them a series of disturbing photographs superimposed upon a neutral background. When asked to shift their focus to the neutral background, they rated the photographs as less negative and retained fewer detailed memories. Our psyches shed negative memories and preserve positive ones, a tendency that grows more pronounced as we age.

Memory is more than mere cognition. Our emotions play a large role. What we are feeling during an event determines how likely we are to recall it, and in how much detail, research shows. Heightened emotions lead to heightened memories.

Our retelling of a travel tale changes over time. That big fish you caught gets just a bit bigger in each version. Remarkably, at least one study found that these revised stories lead to revised memory . You don’t merely tell incredulous friends that the fish you caught “was the size of a small car,” you believe it. You remember it that way.

( Why travel should be considered an essential human activity .)

All this research lays bare an essential truth about travel: It is not only a physical and cognitive activity but also a creative one. More important than a full itinerary is a rich imagination, for it’s not the journey that is memorable; the remembering makes it so.

In other words, your trip, good or bad, doesn’t end when you return home. In a very real sense, it has only begun.

Eric Weiner is a former foreign correspondent for NPR and the author, most recently, of The Socrates Express: In Search of Life Lessons from Dead Philosophers . Follow him on Twitter .

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The Sole Speaks

10 of My Worst Travel Experiences

Living through a pandemic as a single woman with strained familial relationships has demanded a lot of strength. The last few days, I have been reminding myself of all the terrible times I have had to face by myself in the past. These experiences, though horrid, did make me a stronger being and in times like these I draw strength from knowing that this badass Manisha who handled these 10 of my worst travel experiences in unknown lands, resides within me. I can summon her when need arises.

I have listed 10 of my worst travel experiences below, not to discourage you from traveling, but to remind everyone who needs to hear this that this too shall pass. When we are not left with any other choice, we have to be stronger than we know ourselves to be.

Often times, in such situations people say ‘It’s for the best’, so I have added that to give readers an idea how I view those experiences now.

1. Forgot my phone in a Toilet Booth at Chennai Airport

I was returning from my first international trip (Sri Lanka, 2015) and was severely sleep-deprived. I was waiting for my connecting flight at the airport and decided to take a nap for a few hours. I woke up past the beginning of boarding time and rushed to the toilet only to discover my periods had started. It was around 5 am, everything was quiet and empty but my mind was racing.

I rushed out as soon as I could and immediately heard, ‘This is final call for Ms. Manisha Singh’. Needless to say, I ran out and was rushed to the plane. This was happening 20 minutes before the departure time. Almost like a trigger, the moment I sat down, I realised I didn’t have my phone on me. I had forgotten it in the toilet booth.

I informed the staff to check if someone could fetch it for me. The airport was fairly empty, I believed my phone would still be where I left it. The staff told me they will inform the ground duty and get it sent to my destination.

At my transit airport (Hyderabad), not one person from the airline crew (Spicejet) knew what I was talking about and seemed fairly indifferent to the whole thing. But a person from another airline (Indigo) was very helpful, called the ground duty staff, called my phone which was ringing then. He told me the procedures at the airport that prepared me to handle the situation at Mumbai airport.

What did I do to fix the situation: I spent a few hours at Mumbai airport only to realise the crew hadn’t spoken to anyone or done anything about it. I sought help from other airport staff and no phone had been submitted to the lost and found. Later, someone started disconnecting the call on my phone, and a few hours later, it was turned off.

I wrote to the airlines later, but it didn’t amount to anything.

Lessons learnt: My contacts are now synced with google and so are my photos.

I don’t trust what the airlines staff (I believe they are as clueless as anyone else)

Most of my travels are now via Indigo airlines

Was it for the best: Nope, I could have used the phone for a few month months. There was nothing good that came out of it.

2. Stranded without a Hostel at 11 pm in Argentina

I was hitchhiking in Argentina. It was summers which meant sun set fairly late. My last ride dropped me near the bus stand and from there I had about 5 km to walk to the nearest landmark. Along the way, I stopped at a hostel to see if I was headed in the right direction. I had the address but my offline maps couldn’t exactly find the hostel. A guy at the hostel was headed in that direction and offered to drop me. I didn’t see any harm so I waited the 15 minutes he was going to take to pack up. around 9:30 he dropped me at the beginning of the street. I thanked him and started walking uphill. All the houses/hotels had gate locks so I couldn’t walk into a property to seek directions. I walked all the way up, couldn’t find the hostel, I stopped at a patch which was pitch dark, too afraid, I walked down believing I missed it along the way. Nothing. So, I walked back up all the way including the patch with no lights. Nothing again, there were no houses there either, just wilderness. Too afraid and tired (I had my backpack and daypack on me), I turned around, also tried a different smaller lane along, tried buzzing a house who cut the call after telling me they didn’t know where my hostel was. I reached back at the beginning of this road for the third time. It was well past 11 pm, I was afraid, along the way some dogs had started barking at me, one caught on to my trousers, and I just wanted to get away from the whole thing.

What did I do to fix the situation: I saw a couple in distance reaching for their car, I rushed to seek help. They didn’t know anything about my hostel but seeing me distressed they just took me under their wings. After a failed attempt at reaching the owners of the hostel, they called another friend of theirs and dropped me there. Needless to say, I was and am extremely grateful to them.

Lessons learnt: I swore to never reach a new place that late in the evening. At times I didn’t have a choice with the bus schedules but for those situations, I was better prepared.

I also switched to a different app (maps.me) that had much better offline data than google maps. This helped me with directions in new places.

Was it for the best: Yes, It’s because I didn’t find the hostel that next day I called the lady who had given me a ride to the town. She had invited me to her farm which turned out to be one of favourite memories from the trip. It’s exactly what I romanticised doing on my travels, cherry picking, making jams, sitting on the green grass with dogs.

3. A government Bus left with my luggage on board

I was headed from Hampi to Gokarna on an overnight government bus which was packed. At around 6 am the bus took a halt at a bus stand. I checked with the conductor regarding how long would it stay and I was told 10 minutes. So, I quickly ran out to use the washroom. I got back 5 minutes later, got on the bus and see my bag was missing and wait, there were other people sitting in my seat. I was confused, I asked the men on my seat regarding my bag and it was then that I understood that this was not the bus I was traveling in. That bus had left.

What did I do to fix the situation:

Panic-stricken me got out, approached the two policemen nearby who were extremely helpful. They made some calls, spoke to others, and first got me on a bus, traveled on the bus for a bit then explained to me that the conductor and driver will help me further. And, like they had some along the way, this bus overtook my original bus and they both stopped for me to be able to board the bus.

My bag was where I had left it, intact.

Lessons learnt: I travel with a fanny pack now so I always have my most important things on me like cash, ID proofs, phone, etc. (This is not something I would do in a country where robberies are common though)

Was it for the best: Ummm, I don’t know. It was just an adventure. I didn’t lose anything so that’s good.

4. Denied boarding my flight to Cuba

I was all prepared for my month-long trip to Cuba which means I had my currency changed to Euros, spoke to a guest house in Havana, read everything I could on how to travel there, and even had a travel friend I was going to meet up with on day 1. Cuba has no wifi and I don’t take local Sim cards so I was preparing for a month of no internet.

I had met a traveler traveling on an Indian passport who flew to Cuba from Cancun (Mexico) a few weeks ago. He was issued a tourist card based on his Valid US Visa on the Indian passport. my situation was the same but I still wanted to be certain so I went to the airlines’ office on the west coast (3 days before my flight) where I was informed that there’s going to be no issue getting the tourist card in Cancun. So, I took their work, flew to Cancun from where I was going to fly out to Cuba in less than 40 hours. I went to the airlines’ office to get a tourist card to avoid last-minute hassle and of course, it’s never easy on an Indian passport. The man behind the counter looked at the list and told me that he couldn’t issue Indian passport holders a tourist card. Rules had changed recently and the only way for me to travel to Cuba was to get a Visa. Getting a visa meant going to Mexico City, waiting for 5 days, and submitting a gazillion documents, none of it I was ready to do anymore. I was tired of trying to go to Cuba and being misinformed (I had a similar experience in Colombia but my fights weren’t booked then).

What did I do to fix the situation: I dropped my plans of going to Cuba, got my flight rescheduled (which costs nearly as much as booking a new flight), and decided to go back to Colombia from Mexico city after 2 months. This time I decided to spend in Belize and Guatemala. Countries I hadn’t been to and had chosen not to visit the only coz I was quickly running out of money.

Lessons learnt: Don’t trust the staff of airline companies unless you have things on paper. I also learned that there are no wrong answers in travel, I would have enjoyed going to Cuba but I also greatly enjoyed my time in Belize and Guatemala and met some incredible people along the journey.

Emotionally, I wasn’t affected in the least bit but I lost money that I was low on already.

Was it for the best: Yes, I instead got to go to Belize and Guatemala, two stunning countries, I hiked an active volcano something that I wanted to do since the very beginning of my trip. I’m sure Cuba would have been good too but that’s the thing, there are no wrong answers in travel.

5. Denied entry into Guatemala at the border

I was going to live on a boat for a few days, excitedly I took the bus from Belize to Guatemala border. Guatemala was also going to be last new country on the year-long adventure in South America. I exited Belize, paid my exit fee of $20, changed leftover currency to Guatemalan quetzal, and walked towards to the Guatemala border.

The short queue had me at the counter quickly, but only to be told that I couldn’t enter. India apparently was a type 3 country and on this passport a valid US visa made no difference to the entry into Guatemala. But I had done my research, I had read on the website, other people’s experiences and everywhere the information was same, Indian passport holders with a valid US Visa could enter Guatemala Visa-free. I tried convincing him to see the website, speak to a senior, or another colleague but nothing worked. So, I walked out, sat on the pavement and realized I was truly in ‘no man’s land’. I did not have a local SIM card from either Belize or Guatemala, there was no wifi, I didn’t know anyone in either of the countries except my host in Belize and my to-be host in Guatemala but I anyway couldn’t reach anyone.

What did I do to fix the situation: I asked an official where was the nearest Guatemalan embassy and was told in the town I had crossed while coming to the border. I sprung into action, walked back to the border, requested the person who had purchased my currency if he would give it back (he did), spoke. spoke to the officials at Belize border and requested them to let me in, took a shared cab to the town and landed at the Guatemalan embassy.

After a good waiting period, a gentleman came out and explained that I was indeed right, I don’t need a Visa for Guatemala with my Valid US Visa. The staff was very kind but I was afraid if I was turned a second time I wouldn’t have money to reach here and the office would probably be closed. I requested them to give me some official document that I can show at the border. The man obliged and gave me a piece of white paper with his signature and something scribbled in Spanish. They also called the border to clear things.

I hitchhiked my way back, exited the border (I had earlier requested them. to not charge me an exit fee again, they did not), joined the international queue at the Guatemalan border and my passport was stamped by. the same man without a word. It was at that moment I realized that none of it was about the rules, he was seeking a bribe.

Lessons learnt: On an Indian passport, be prepared for anything.

Was it for the best: It didn’t change much except that I lost some money but the time I had in plenty anyway. I didn’t get to stay on the boat but I took a different route that allowed me to go to a waterfall (Semic Champey) that was stunning.

6. Being stalked by a stranger in Colombia

Colombia clearly didn’t vibe with me. I had taken a bus that dropped me around the second-hand market lane, the only stop near my hostel. I started walking the few blocks to my hostel and noticed many shops were closed (It was weekly off). Since experiencing another worst travel experience (mentioned later in the post), I had gotten into the habit of watching my back often (literally). I cut a corner and a few feet later, turned around and my eyes met a man’s directly. And I instantly knew it was trouble. I was in a fairly busy block but after this, there was a near isolated section before I reached a central area. I stopped a little further at a stall and wasted time buying something, by this time the man had reached me and of course, didn’t go ahead. Instead, he went to the right and stood by a wall. I had nowhere to go, he was waiting for me to leave and he wasn’t being coy about it. All the shops in the building were closed, so I couldn’t go anywhere.

What did I do to fix the situation: I did what I had to, confronted him, in my broken Spanish but he didn’t flinch. He looked at me with his blank eyes. and then I saw some bikes coming towards me with police men. I started jumping in the middle of the road and spread my arms to stop one. The officer, didn’t bother checking this guy who casually walked away when I started yelling in Spanish that he’s been following me. I didn’t let the officer leave though and made him accompany me to the center from where I walked to the hostel by myself.

It had angered me not because I was in a vulnerable position, I had nothing on me then. I had already lost my phone and camera. I was angry because I had lost my valuables in that very city and someone wanted to rob me again!! I didn’t want another Colombian to rob even a pencil from me again.

Lessons learnt: No matter how rude it feels to turn around and look strangers in the eye, continue to do so.

Was it for the best: Nope, just made me more angry towards the country.

7. Discovering the last currency note gone on a Bus in Guatemala

I was on a chicken bus headed for the highway. From the highway I had to take a few more buses to reach Mexico border. It was my last day in Guatemala and I was headed back to Mexico. As the conductor approached, I dug into my wallet to get my last currency note, a 100 quetzals (~USD 13). I scrambled through my wallet but it was not there, I checked my backup wallet, not there, I checked my daypack pocket where I put away coins, not there. The conductor was standing looking at me probably wondering when will I stop with the act.

I asked him, ‘cuanto cuesta?’ (how much), I scrambled through my wallet and I had the exact change for ticket price so at least I was not going to be asked to leave midway which was also middle of a fairly empty route.

I knew the currency was gone, I had put it in my wallet only 2 days while preparing for a volcano hike. I had very cautiously spent money so I didn’t have to withdraw cash before leaving. Withdrawing cash drew a fee of around 50 quetzals. I felt saddened thinking who could have taken it, could it have been one of the locals when I left my backpack in the tent and went to see the sunrise? Could it be my hosts from last evening? Could it be the guy I shared a bus ride with? All options saddened me.

What did I do to fix the situation: Once on the highway I decided to hitchhike the 130 odd kilometers to Mexico border. I had Mexican currency left to get me through there before I could find a cash machine.

But hitchhiking in Guatemala is a bad idea. Nobody stopped for quite some time and eventually the car that did stop had 4 men inside. I was wondering how to decline the ride when a guy popped out and said ‘we’ll give you a ride but we’d like to discuss bible with you’. It turned out to be one of the most educating car rides on my trip. It was not just because we discussed the bible but we also spoke about each other’s lives and it was in this ride that I found words for my quest. ‘Don’t seek happiness, it’s temporary. Seek peace, it’s permanent. I truly believe in this and live by it.

Lessons learnt: No leaving cash behind, ever.

Was it for the best: Yes, that ride I hitched is a very important event in my life.

8. Finding myself on a Snow Hike Without Crampons

I was in Nepal during late 2018, the trekking season had just ended so I had given up on hiking the Annapurna base camp that year. I especially gave up the idea when I met a guy on my second day in Pokhara who entered the dormitory with such strong stench, he looked battered quite literally, and sought a soap from me. After his shower when we could talk, I learned he had just returned from the Annapurna circuit. That was a no for me.

In my second hostel stay, a few days later, I met another couple who had just returned from the Annapurna base camp and looked like they had returned from a stroll around the lake. They encouraged me to go for it if I wanted to. I met a few other people who said the same.

A few days later, I was hiking the Annapurna base camp by myself.

Towards the end of day 2 I did meet two super nice guys who continue to be my really good friends. I tagged along with and we continued hiking together. On day3, it started raining midway so we cut short our walking hours, it snowed afterwards. On day 4, we saw snow here and there but it kept getting thicker. It was evident I was not prepared for the weather but I was told I could rent crampons in the next village. So I marched on (mostly with the help of my friends) and before I knew it, I was beyond the point of return by myself. I would have needed help to cross certain difficult points.

There were no crampons at the next camp, which meant, I could stay back at this place and wait for my friends to return next day so I could hike back with them or I could continue pushing forward. I was so close to the top, I decided to continue walking plus I felt a lot more comfortable being with my friends than being holes up in a room alone.

The terrain kept getting worse (except the last stretch), we got caught in a blizzard that hampered the visibility but we reached with no injuries. On my way back, I couldn’t wait to leave the snow so we hiked until late evening to a base location with no snow.

What did I do to fix the situation: I took advice from the locals and put the largest pair of socks I had in my backpack and wore it over my hiking shoes. This is supposed to be better than crampons and I did find it extremely useful.

Lessons learnt: Nothing in the mighty Himalayas should be taken lightly.

Was it for the best: I didn’t die, so it’s okay.

9. Being Stalked in India

I am not being precise in the heading because unfortunately, it has happened more than once. I don’t wish to undermine the issue but in my personal experience, a lot of times it’s harmless.

The two times when I felt trapped and threatened was –

• I was walking the ghats of Varanasi (the steps near the holy river Ganga), I paused to get something from my bag when I noticed a man walk past me slowly and looking at me then looking back at me and a few steps later he stopped too. I didn’t think much of it but a few meters ahead noticed he was walking behind me (I was walking very slowly so it was unusual that we had the same distance between us as earlier). I stopped on purpose this time, and unashamed as he was of following me, he stopped too but a few steps ahead of me. This continued one more time. The third time I sat overlooking the Ganga though. I was afraid even sitting there because I had to turn around take some 50 odd steps, cross a few dark corners to reach my guest house. It wasn’t far once I climbed those steps but I am a slow climber and I feared being cornered along the way. One option was to go back and take a longer route that was busier. I sat there evaluating my options when I noticed two tourists walking up the steps. I quickly got up and went past them but continued walking in front of them. Once on top, I ran to my guest house. I had turned around from the steps to assess the situation, he was still sitting on the ghat but was not looking at the Ganga, instead, he had turned around and was looking at me.
• The scariest experience I had of someone following me has unfortunately been in one of my favorite destinations – Kodaikanal, Tamil Nadu . I was walking in a quiet lane, looking at old buildings. I was working on a project back then that required me to assess properties as potential hostels. So, I would often walk into buildings, speak to the caretakers and inquire about the owners. On such a visit, I was walking around the property but I could barely communicate with the caretaker. I continued checking out the nursery and see if I could gather any details on the availability of the property. Soon the caretaker called me to explain her son was here and he could answer my questions. As soon as I met him, I was afraid. his pupils were dilated and he looked deadpan at me. He said nothing, just stared at me. He was another friend on a bike, I tried to look at him and talk but the caretaker’s son would just not look away. I wanted to run away but I pretended to be all calm and just waited for them to leave. I left soon afterward, at the next property I met a dog who stuck around while I was walking in the vicinity. I took a turn at a road that connects to the lake which is generally busy but this stretch was empty, another turn and I saw the man with dead eyes again. He was standing on the side of the road and continued staring at me. I was scared, really scared. I didn’t know what to do so, I had to pretend to be composed. I pretended like the dog was mine and took an about-turn because I knew I could seek help quicker on that road. But the moment I cut the corner, I rushed and entered the first building, a guest house run by the church. I ran in, make small talk with some guests I saw. When I turned around (I was at an elevation), I saw the man walking on the road I had taken. He had started following me. As a reflection, I ducked and continued sitting on the floor, hidden from the road for some time. The problem with this was, I didn’t know which way he went. There were three roads I could take from there and all of them were fairly isolated.

What did I do to fix the situation: I stayed hidden for a 20-30 minutes and then chose a path that took me to a busier section quickest and I ran through this stretch.

Lessons learnt: Always have a taxi driver’s number handy, in case you need a pick up from such situations.

Was it for the best: Absolutely not. Nobody needs such an experience in life.

10. Being Mugged at Knifepoint in Colombia

This hopefully remains one of my worst travel experiences because worse than this would be too much to handle. I was hiking back from this very popular tourist destination named – Montseratte in the capital city of Bogota. I was accompanied by my local host (a young woman), and it was about 4:30 pm (which means broad daylight). In fact, the reason we were rushing back was so we could make it back to her house while there was still daylight left. 10 minutes from the trail end (which joins a fairly busy road), three masked men jumped from behind a bulging boulder. In no time there was a man in front of me holding a machete to my throat and a man behind me. On my left, I saw another man with a machete chasing my host who was screaming and running backward.

They took my entire daypack (which had my camera, phone, passport, and both my debit cards, among other things that I had carefully picked 6 months ago for this trip of a lifetime). They also took my host’s sling bag which had her iPhone and her identity card.

What did I do to fix the situation: There were many things I had to fix in this situation starting from getting a new passport but the most difficult task was to access my money. The Indian banks I had accounts with had no presence in Latin America, they would not mail me the card either. It was a complicated task and a stressful 2 weeks.

After the robbery, I was left with less than $30 that was in my main backpack. I didn’t know how long I had to go on the $30 so I stopped taking dinner. I would cook lunch with just onion, tomato, garlic, and spaghetti.

I knew it was going to be an arduous few weeks, so the first thing I did was to find an alternate stay arrangement. I didn’t want my hosts to take the brunt of my situation. I knocked on hostel doors in the tourist town to find volunteer work. After nearly losing hope, and breaking down in tears in the middle of a street, I did find reception work in a backpackers hostel.

Two months later, I left Colombia for Mexico with a new passport, new US Visa, money transferred to my travel card, no camera, no phone (so no way to see the time or take pictures), but a great deal of determination to continue traveling.

Lessons learnt: I still struggle with this. I haven’t been able to make sense of that experience at all. Why did it happen, why did it happen to me, and what did I learn from it? I was already being as safe as I could. A few things that I experienced after the incident were:

• The incident, unfortunately, made me slightly indifferent towards the poor, the addicts, the whole glaring economic disparity esp. in Colombia.
• It reinforced the idea to never let the guard down. I was trying to book my exit tickets a day before the incident and had accidentally put my backup card in my daypack after that.
• I learned that locals don’t always know best. I was recommended that place by both my previous hosts and none knew of the situation there.

Experiencing and fixing a situation like that by myself definitely prepared me for everything. Like Cheryl Strayed would say, I felt like a total “hardass motherfucking Amazonian queen”.

Was it for the best: NO. I was never able to buy a camera again (I had bought it when I had a job), now I’m always somehow in survival mode. Trauma from that experience haunted me for months and it permanently changed my interaction with strangers.

I hope sharing these 10 worst travel experiences of mine which required me to go back to those unpleasant moments, helps someone find their strength back.

10 thoughts on “10 of My Worst Travel Experiences”

all seems to be a spooky/ thrilling scenes from a movie, more power to you 🙂

Yes, quite dramatic when I look back but we all have it in us to endure what seems unimaginable. And i’m sure many people are experiencing that right now with Covid.

Hmmm… well covid is a more of like a organised catastrophe , like we know its coming yet we let it come

From leadership point of view and large group behaviour but on an individual level, that’s not everyone’s truth. I got a really bad case of Covid last September while following everything I was supposed to (Staying home, going out once a week to get groceries, mask, sanitize, etc.)

Hmmm i get it 🙂 hope you are well now

yes, I am. I was a long hauler so my symptoms (esp. social anxiety and loss of smell) persisted for months.

Yea , many of my friends experienced the same .

Bad incidents somehow do ruin your travel experience, I’m glad you found ways to get out of these although I’m sure it must not have been easy.

Yes, for sure. We are only human, many of these incidents hurt how I interact with strangers and the trust I put in them. But except the robbery in Colombia, every other incident led to only short-term discomfort.

Well said, Manisha

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English Compositions

Essay on Travel Experience [200, 500 Words] With PDF

Travelling plays an important role in our lives as it enriches our experience. In this lesson, you will learn to write essays in three different sets on the importance of libraries. It will help you in articulating your thoughts in the upcoming exams.

Table of Contents

Essay on travel experience in 200 words, essay on travel experience in 500 words.

We travel to get away from the monotony of our daily lives. It’s a refreshing diversion from the monotony of everyday life. It allows our minds to relax and gives our inner child the opportunity to play. Some trip memories are nostalgic and melancholy, while others are daring and exhilarating. A trip to the graveyard, the poet’s corner in London, or one’s ancestral house, for example, is a voyage to nostalgia.

These travels allow them to relive memories and treasure golden memories from a bygone era. People who go on these journeys are frequently depressed and artistically inclined. Travelling instils a sense of adventure and encourages us to make the most of every opportunity. Some people prefer to travel in groups, whereas others prefer to travel alone.

Trips to amusement parks with massive roller coasters or a deeply wooded forest could be exciting. It’s important to remember that Columbus discovered America due to his travels. The journey becomes much more memorable when things don’t go as planned. For example, if a car tyre blows out on the highway and it begins to rain heavily, the trip will turn into an adventure, even though it was not intended to be such. A visit to a museum or a gothic structure, on the other hand, is sure to be exciting.

We travel to get a break from the mundane and robust lifestyle. It is a welcome change from the monotonous routine existence. It helps our minds rest and gives the inner child within us to have a good time.

Not all travelling experiences are adventurous and exciting, and some are nostalgic and melancholic. For instance, a trip to the cemetery or the poet’s corner in London or one’s ancestral home will be a nostalgia trip. Such trips help them re-live the moments and cherish the golden memories of bygone times. People who undertake such trips are often melancholic and have an artistic sensibility.

Travelling experiences bring enthusiasm and teach us to make the best of every moment. While some enjoy travelling in groups, some people love to travel solo. Adventurous trips could be to amusement parks with giant roller coasters or a deep, dense forest. One must not forget that travelling led Columbus to discover America. When things don’t go as planned, the trip becomes more memorable. For instance, if the car tyre gets punctured on the highway and starts raining heavily, the trip, even if not intended to be adventurous, shall become one. A trip to a museum or gothic architecture shall be thrilling. 

Last Christmas, my trip to Goa with my friends was an enriching one. The golden sun-soaked beaches offered a refuge from the humdrum city life of Kolkata. The cool breeze, the rising and setting sun, and the chilly wind all transported me to heaven. It was paradisal and divine. The cuisine was exquisite. The Portuguese culture and the museums offer various historical insights.

Although it was the peak season and most crowded places, people were civilised and cultured. The melodious music was in the air in every nook and corner, and the happy vibes were contagious. I danced, sang, played and had a great time. I tried sky diving, and it was a thrilling experience.

Besides fun and frolic, I found the independent spirit of people commendable. We spent three days in North Goa and two days in South Goa. We stayed at a guest house as most hotels were expensive and very occupied. We booked scooters to travel far and near. We also went on the cruise for the casino night.

My favourite spot was Thalassa, where we enjoyed the spectacular belly dance performance by males and females. We spent Christmas at Curlies witnessing the waxing moon at midnight. The lap of nature enriches one travelling experience and soothes their soul. The chirping of birds, the sound of the waterfall, the waves of a beach or the snow-covered mountain uplifts the traveller’s spirit.

One must not restrict oneself to a specific type of travelling experience. Life, after all, is a long journey that offers us different durations of vacations to make us laugh and learn at the same time. As Francis Bacon puts it, “Travel in the younger sort is a part of education, in the elder, a part of the experience.”

Hopefully, after going through this lesson, you have a holistic idea of the importance of travelling in our lives. I have tried to cover every aspect of a traveller’s experience within limited words. If you still have any doubts regarding this session, kindly let me know through the comment section below. To read more such essays on many important topics, keep browsing our website. 

Join us on Telegram to get the latest updates on our upcoming sessions. Thank you, see you again soon.

Bad Vacations: Three Factors that Can Negatively Influence Your Experience (and How to Avoid Them)

I’ve enjoyed looking at this photo I took from the top of a tower in La Rochelle, France, because the weather was so cold and windy I couldn’t enjoy the view while standing there. July 5, 2021.

I write often about my experiences and impressions of the places I’ve traveled and the things I experienced while there.

Each time I return from travel and think through my impressions and the angles and subjects for my articles based on the trip, I find it a delicate task.

In assessing a place or an experience, I try to parse out the aspects of an experience that may have unfairly influenced my impressions, including weather, mood, or my exact place of stay. If someone else visited the region and had different variables in these key categories, would they have a different impression?

After all, these three factors can unfairly bias anyone’s impressions and experiences of a vacation or travel moment.

We can’t control for these variables in all cases, yet we can take them into some level of account when planning. Read on for more detail on how each of these factors can affect your experience and my recommendations for how you can plan around them as much as possible.

Think through the Weather Factor

Note: You’ll note a cold-and-damp theme here. Because I don’t like cold and damp.

When we visited La Rochelle, France, one mid-July, the normally warm and sunny coastal town where people reportedly rent bikes to ride between islands and beaches was windy enough to dry out my contacts, gray enough to make anyone depressed, and miserably cold.

We had a good meal along one harbor or another, yet I can’t remember the name or location of the restaurant because I was focused on staying warm and dry. I’ve enjoyed looking at the photos and the videos I took on our visit, only because I can’t feel the cold and wind in the photos and the place looks better than I remember it feeling. (I didn’t even want to leave the hotel while there, I found it so miserable.)

A harbor in La Rochelle, France. Don’t see any people? Look kind of depressing? No wonder. For our entire visit the weather stayed cold, rainy, and windy. July 5, 2021.

Perhaps I should give La Rochelle another visit sometime, but I won’t put it at the top of my list for upcoming vacations. Visiting a place twice rarely makes sense, with so many places to go in this amazing world of ours.

However, Lyon in France is a large city relatively near to our home base in Lausanne, Switzerland, and Arnaud has a close family friend who lives there. We’ve visited Lyon twice (so far).

Of note regarding the weather-factor effect: While I enjoyed our trip to Lyon for my birthday, during which we took several walking tours, December comes in cold and damp in Lyon. I appreciated the city, yet I didn’t really enjoy it until we went back eighteen months later, in summer. (Even in a July rainstorm, I found the city positively charming on that go-around—an entirely different sentiment than plain appreciation.)

Another example? Let’s discuss Ghent, in Belgium. Even in the chill of early February (and while suffering from a head cold), I adored Ghent. However, you’ll find it nearly impossible to make unhappy someone who loves medieval and early Renaissance European history in one of the most important European cities during that time. (A once-in-a-lifetime Jan Van Eyck exhibit taking place during the trip didn’t hurt, either.)

Yet Arnaud didn’t love Ghent as much as I did, even if he appreciated the art exhibit more than he’d expected. He has since several times said he won’t go back to Belgium without warmer clothes.

Recommendations: Do your best to travel to places when you’ll have a likelihood of ideal weather, based on researching normal weather patterns in the region. And always have a few ideas in mind for things to do and to see when the weather doesn’t cooperate with your mental picture—as you can’t always avoid experiencing a weird cold front in July in a summer-vacation hotspot (as we had in La Rochelle).

Carefully Consider Your Location or Base of Stay in the Region

Everyone I talk to loves the Luberon region of Provence in France. Famous writers and authors have even penned entire series of books about living there. (I’m looking at you, Peter Mayle.)

However, the Luberon didn’t charm me.

Blame our choice of Menerbes as a base of stay. The tiny town went to sleep a long time ago and had little to offer. Or toss the fault to the AirBNB we chose, which had nothing comfortable on which to sit or rest, even to sleep: The apartment had only hard surfaces, including the mattress, and little by way of comfortable outdoor furniture to lounge or eat (and no view via which to admire the Provence countryside).

Given that the attraction of the area is, well, the landscape and enjoying it, our choice of AirBNB killed my Luberon experience.

The view from the dirt outside the place we stayed in Menerbes, in the Luberon, France. A nice landscape, but we would have had to sit in the dirt to look at it. August 25, 2019.

In Florence, Italy, we stayed in an AirBNB on a very busy street with reverberating scooters zipping by all night that was far enough away from anything of value (i.e., restaurants, bakeries, groceries) or of interest (i.e., all the major things to see) that we didn’t get a single good night of sleep and couldn’t go back to the apartment easily during the day without chopping a chunk out of our limited time in the city—not to mention the hike we needed to take anytime we wanted food or supplies for the place.

Final example: We would have liked our visit to the Bordeaux region of France a lot more if we hadn’t stayed in the city of Bordeaux. The city has a lot less charm and attraction than the smaller towns in the wine-growing countryside, which would have made for a more charming and relaxed vacation.

Recommendations: Yes, a hotel or a rental apartment with a high level of comfort or in a well-placed area will cost you more. However, paying more (if you can afford it) will give you an immeasurably better experience. As most of us only visit places once, it makes sense to set up everything for success as best we can. When it comes to cities and tourist areas, look for central locations near major areas of interest and with easy access to necessities such as cafés, groceries, and pharmacies. If you want to relax in the countryside, the place where you choose to stay needs a comfy setup. For, you know, relaxing. Keep in mind what you plan to do on your trip and find a place to stay that accommodates your ideas and that has the conveniences and amenities you need to make the trip successful.

Changing Your Location Doesn’t Change Your Emotional State (Usually)

A while back, the U.S. sketch show “Saturday Night Live” featured a fantastic—and fantastically on point—skit with Adam Sandler as a tour operator for Italian vacations. If you haven’t seen it, you should:

It’s true: Just being somewhere else won’t suddenly change the fundamental “you” of you and can’t miraculously erase whatever you’re going through psychologically or emotionally at that moment.

For my planned solo trip to Belize, a friend suffering a major heartbreak and needing a change of scenery asked to join me at the last minute. During the go-go-go adventure portion of the trip in the jungle, she held together okay. However, when we transitioned to the laze-on-the-beach portion of the trip, she was an emotional wreck and couldn’t enjoy the experience (and made it less than ideal for me, too).

Similarly, I’ve had two occasions—one with a friend and another with a romantic partner—where conflicts in our relationship deeply affected the vacation.

My memories of Glacier National Park will forever be colored by a shouting match on one hiking trail followed a few days later by my telling my friend over a plate of sweet-potato fries that I’d leave on the next flight if she kept up her behavior. As for the romantic trip that didn’t turn out to be romantic, that’s another story.

In short, while you will still be the same you while on vacation, your relationship (friendship or otherwise) will still be your relationship while on vacation, too.

Recommendations: You’ll do better to sort your emotional and psychological baggage before you spend time and money on travel. However, based on my experience with my heartbroken friend, if you feel you must get away from home amidst major emotional upheaval, plan to stay as active as possible; the initial stages of grief, trauma, or stress may not be the time to sit alone with your thoughts on the beach for too long, for example.

Take Time for Travel Contemplation

We easily make snap judgements about everything we encounter (including people). Though theories indicate that quick assessments can help us survive in the wild and can help reduce the cognitive load of constant contemplation, giving us more thinking space for higher level processes, deciding whether we liked a travel experience doesn’t count as an extreme circumstance that requires rapid appraisal.

When it comes to reviewing most travel experiences, you have time for contemplation.

And so, before you decide whether to put a destination in the “good” or “bad” bucket—and especially before you recommend it to others or tell them to stay away—try your best to parse out the extenuating circumstances to develop the clearest eyed view possible.

And if you can avoid or change these three factors that can highly influence your own travel experience, do so.

In hindsight, do you have a spot you’d like to revisit in a different season, different mood, or different base of stay?

The Ivy Coach Daily

• College Admissions
• College Essays
• Early Decision / Early Action
• Extracurricular Activities
• Standardized Testing
• The Rankings

Why You Should Avoid Writing About Travel in College Essays

Previously Published on October 15, 2016:

We at Ivy Coach are in the business of correcting misguided topics chosen for the many college application essays , including the Personal Statement , and one of the most misguided topics we see over and over again involves writing about travel. The student who writes about an impactful travel experience, service trip, or vacation has given a death sentence to their college application. The bottom line?  Steer clear of the travel essay at all costs.  Let’s break down why this topic works against students seeking admission to a highly selective university.

Elaborate Travel Experiences Convey Wealth. Writing About Them Conveys a Lack of Perspective.

Any way you swing it, world travel requires extensive means. This is true even for foreign service trips, volunteering experiences, or returns to a country of familial origin. No matter the nobility of your purpose, or personal significance of your trip, writing about a travel experience shows admissions officers that you’ve had advantages that many others in the applicant pool haven’t had. Even if you’re able to write eloquently and persuasively about a trip you took last summer, you’ll still come across as out of touch and wealthy.

But what’s the problem with conveying wealth? We’re glad you asked! Admissions officers have a responsibility to curate socioeconomically diverse classes. Applicants who come across as wealthy are less diverse and therefore less admissible. This is not to say that wealthy students are not overrepresented at highly selective colleges and universities. The  data  bears this point out. But the difference between the wealthy students admitted to the Ivy League and the wealthy students rejected lies in one simple distinction: some downplay their wealth on the application, and others showcase it. 

Writing about travel, no matter the humility of your intentions, immediately throws your application in with all of the other wealthy, unlikable students who have made the dire mistake of highlighting their socioeconomic status. Furthermore, admissions officers aren’t typically loaded themselves. Why would they root for the student who has had access to experiences they couldn’t dream of when there are plenty of low-income students worthy of consideration. When a student boasts about a trip that costs a sixth of their annual salary, admissions officers aren’t exactly inspired to root for them.

It’s not that admissions officers don’t presume a student from a top boarding school might be wealthy, but that, on its own, doesn’t lead them to root against the applicant. However, when the applicant boasts of their travels, they motivate admissions officers to root against them.

You  Should be the Subject of Your College Essay, Not Some Place

There’s yet another problem with this caustic essay topic. It’s difficult to convey the particularities of what makes you tick, and where your passion lies, when half your essay is waxing rhapsodic about a place you were lucky enough to visit. The Italian countryside might be beautiful, but admissions officers already know this! What they don’t know is why you were inspired to start your own business. Or conduct experimental research. Or revolutionize your artistic discipline. Do you see where we’re going with this?

Your essay topic should showcase your singular admissions hook, meaning the specific pursuit that you are incredibly passionate about and will continue to carry out once on campus. Unless you’re planning on engineering a transportation device that can bring exotic locations to the doorstep of elite American campuses, your essay about your travel experiences doesn’t tell admissions officers much about how you plan to take advantage of the resources and opportunities that their university has to offer nor does it share what you’ve contributed to your local community.

Effective essay topics are framed around a singular hook that presents an applicant as likable and are filled with individual flair. Travel writing might titillate bored agoraphobics, but admissions officers are used to much more compelling — and deeply personal — fare.

How Ivy Coach Helps Students Pick the Most Effective Essay Topic

College essays are Ivy Coach ’s bread and butter. We know exactly what plays well with admission officers, and what to avoid. After all, our  team of expert consultants  is composed of former admissions officers from America’s elite universities.

If you’re interested in optimizing your child’s case for admission to a highly selective university, and helping them craft the most compelling essays possible, fill out our  complimentary consultation form , and we’ll be in touch.

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How to write an essay about traveling experience

Writing college essays about travel is no rocket science. You just need to be aware of how you must use your skills. Following all of the tips mentioned above will ensure that your draft is perfectly formatted, well-organized, and error-free.

Write my essay is a common plea among students, especially when faced with the intricate task of composing travel narratives. According to more than one professional paper writer online , writing traveling essays can be fun yet challenging. You may want to include a lot of information. But be careful, you may lose track of your essay direction. If you want to craft a perfect travel essay, you need to follow the basics of an essay. How? Follow these tips.

Use a capturing introductory section The thing that hooks your reader is, of course, the first few lines of your write-up. When writing a travel essay, students may begin with cliche or boring statements, such as:

• Traveling is an important part of life.
• Traveling plays an integral part in making us feel relaxed.

The statements mentioned above indicate nothing new; instead, they indicate that you don’t have something interesting in your write-up. If your first few sentences are not interesting enough, the reader will anticipate the same for the rest of the piece. Thereby, it is essential to start with something that catches their attention or interests them. For instance, to introduce your travel write-up, you could write:

• Having a routine helps me stay focused and productive. But, breaking that routine and traveling helps me experience life at its best.
• I firmly believe investment in travel is an investment in yourself.
• Travelling has not only helped me experience life in different ways, but it has turned me into a storyteller.

These statements indicate that you have something interesting to tell in the body. However, if you’re feeling stuck and asking around, “who can write my essay “, taking help from a writing service could be the best solution.

Follow a standard essay structure This is one of the crucial tips to keep in mind. No matter what your topic is, you need to follow a standard structure. Travel essays are mostly like personal essays, but it doesn’t mean you can write a personal essay as you wish. Hence, make sure you follow this structure:

• Introduction (Include a thesis).
• Body (Divide your body into a logical paragraph).
• Conclusion (Sum up the draft and leave the reader with food for thought).

Following this structure will help you organize your thoughts and ideas and maintain cohesiveness. Your paragraphs must be well-connected. Besides, make sure you don’t repeat any of the information. A good body of essays about traveling has two to three paragraphs. In the first paragraph, introduce the place where you traveled and the person you traveled with. Also, mention what your feelings and expectations about this trip were. In the second paragraph, include an exciting experience you had there. In the third paragraph, you can write what you learned from this experience. Also, you could mention if this trip met your expectations. Following these steps will help your piece look structured and your thoughts organized. As a result, you’d be able to achieve cohesion in your writing.

If you want to craft a perfect travel essay, you need to follow the basics of an essay like this one about “ Sarajevo Tours ”.

Outline To follow a proper structure and keep your ideas organized, outlining the essay is a prerequisite. Do you want your travel experience essay to be perfect? If you’re nodding your head in yes, don’t forget to create an outline. Having an outline helps you stay on track and not miss anything important. Your outline should include the following:

• Thesis to be included in the introduction.
• Experiences that you will be sharing (key points, people you traveled with, place you traveled to, and any other relevant information).
• Concluding thought.

Use the 1st person perspective When sharing your personal experiences, you must use the first-person perspective. You cannot tell your story from a third person’s perspective. Avoid writing like a novel writer even if you are tempted because this is a personal essay. Your reader must feel that you are telling the story. Writing in the first-person point of view makes the writing personal. Besides, it creates a connection between the reader and the writer.

Keep it simple You may want to use flowery language and include a lot of information, but that’s not necessary. Your teacher or examiner is only interested in how well you can convey your story. Besides, they also focus on the fact that your write-up is well-structured. Your experience may not be something very unique. Your travel destination may not be too dreamy. But, what counts is how you demonstrated it. Therefore, describe just one experience, that too in an organized way. Moreover, make sure you’re not showing off your vocabulary. Using too many difficult words may interrupt the flow of reading. Also, using relevant vocabulary is a great way to impress the reviewer, such as:

• Globetrotter.
• Destination.
• Sightseeing.

Avoid clichés and formal  Avoiding cliches is highly crucial if you want your essay to be catchy. Spend a reasonable amount of time brainstorming ideas. Think carefully about how you will start each paragraph. Ask yourself these questions:

• Does it sound interesting?
• Is it engaging?
• Does it have unique information?
• Is my language repetitive?
• Do I sound too formal?
• Will it connect with the reader?

Basic self-questions like these will help you improve your content and remove cliches. Remember using too common phrases is a big turn-off for the examiner. You have to showcase your best language knowledge to them. This is one of the critical ways to score high grades.

Proofread and edit Once you’re done inscribing your draft, ascertain that you proofread and edited it. Re-read the entire draft at least three times and look for:

• Spelling mistakes.
• Grammatical errors.
• Punctuation errors.
• Incorrect sentence formation.

After checking your document thoroughly, have someone else read it. Sometimes, it is normal to overlook some mistakes such as punctuation errors, incorrect sentence structure, incorrect vocabulary, typos, etc. When you ask someone else to read it, they read from a different perspective. Their personal feelings are not involved in the writing. Therefore, they read it in their own voice. As a result, they are capable of giving valuable feedback. They may notice some errors in your writing that you have missed. Also, they would be able to tell you if you succeeded in creating a unique voice as a writer. And if you successfully conveyed what you were trying to convey, also, if your essay is precisely what it needs to be, edit your draft as per their feedback, and you’re good to submit.

To conclude, writing college essays about travel is no rocket science. You just need to be aware of how you must use your skills. Following all of the tips mentioned above will ensure that your draft is perfectly formatted, well-organized, and error-free.

Main photo by Tirachard Kumtanom from Pexels

Stavros Andriopoulos

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IHG Hotels & Resorts accelerates Garner expansion with four additional signings across Europe

The GDS-Movement and BeCause partner to accelerate sustainable tourism 

Quito Airport Sustainability Conference: A high-level meeting to discuss today’s challenges and their future impact

Accelya’s FLX Platform to deliver retail and distribution transformation for Air Transat

ISON Travel chooses Sabre to power global expansion and enhance pperations

Ajman Tourism Development Department explores prospects for tourism cooperation in China

Patch Marketing launches Octoplus channel management solution for venues

Marriott International announces global launch of Connect Responsibly with Marriott Bonvoy Events

Minut rolls out AI-powered marijuana detection to ensure high standards in rental properties

Six Senses introduces Six Senses Lake Como and Six Senses Milan

Six benefits of using private luxury transportation for your travels

airBaltic reveals November 2024 destination trends from Riga

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Honeymoon bliss in the Galápagos islands, the perfect mix of nature, luxury, and adventure

Regent Santa Monica Beach now open, marking the brand’s return to The Americas

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Scotland top choice for international visitors

Mallorca hosts 2024 Global INSTO Meeting and III Sustainable Destinations Summit

Rental car customer loyalty hinges on trust, J.D. Power finds

The Conscious Travel Foundation launches online auction to support the work of its Community Impact Fund

TIS2024 will offer innovative strategies for improving tourism competitiveness through technology

Embraer reached a new US$ 22.7 billion backlog record

Premier Resorts & Management opens Renaissance Hotel on Daytona Beach oceanfront

CTO announces theme and Social Media showcase for Caribbean Tourism Month 2024

Africa’s travel and tourism innovators celebrate at World Travel Awards VIP reception

Belfast International Airport achieves Level 3 Optimisation, strengthening its commitment to sustainable operations

Davidson Hospitality Group partners with Alliance for Hospitality Equity & Diversity

Railbookers announces return of “Around the World By Luxury Train” in 2025

Destination DC announces expanded Washington, DC Special Agent Academy

BMA House hosted 7th Global Good Awards, celebrating sustainable leadership

ASM Global appoints Middle East Venue expert for KAFD Conference Center, Saudi Arabia

ICAO: International air travel liability limits set to increase, enhancing customer compensation

Alexander Hotel announces prestigious luxury affiliations

First phase of modernized check-in area at Miami International Airport unveiled

Emirates consolidates commercial portfolios to prime for global growth

Austria, Slovenia, and Croatia jointly focus on slow travel appeal in the US market

Hill Robinson Spain launches new office

Japanese Hoshino Resorts brings Onsen Ryokan to U.S., selects Sharon Springs, NY

142 direct winter destinations from Brussels Airport during the winter season

Malta to host Europe’s first urban long distance mountain biking event

Azamara Cruises returns to Alaska in Summer 2026

Unique approaches to travel industry sustainability forthcoming at “A World for Travel” event

The Ritz-Carlton, Boston appoints Joe Mauro as new Director of Sales & Marketing

Travel Compositor expands leadership team with new CCO and Brazilian Sales Manager

Cycling jerseys with UV protection: how to stay safe from the sun

Making the most of your family time in Sevierville

Make a big impact: Eye-catching banner printing

Global travel advisor Gennady Podolsky highlights ten memorable New Year’s Eve experiences

Visit Nebraska opens grant cycle and promotes marketing opportunities

Rwanda: Twenty years of gorilla conservation efforts

How can i remove vocals from a song

AURA AERO Inc. selects Volusia County for 500,000 sq.f. manufacturing and assembly plant in Florida

Atlanta multifamily property The Upton announces nationwide call for artists in residency

The world’s most glamorous casino destinations

Best diabetic supplies online: Border free health offers a lifeline for diabetes management

Hilton and Universal Pictures debut one-of-a-kind suite inspired by “Wicked” characters

How autoflower seeds can fit into your travel lifestyle

CAA Board of Directors selects next Executive Director

How to prove liability in a slip and fall personal injury claim

HomeToGo releases 2025 Travel Forecast, revealing five vacation trends

Coach passengers spend £8.3 billion a year in Britain’s tourist hotspots

WEILL client hotels awarded 20 Michelin Keys

Club Med appoints new VP of Marketing and VP of Sales for North America

ASM Global appoints events expert to grow Middle East venues 

Wendy Wu Tours partners with TProfile to revolutionise specialist touring content for travel agents

Brussels Airport achieves Level 4+ in ACI Europe’s Airport Carbon Accreditation programme

Kaelis partners with LOT Polish Airlines to inspire infants and young travellers’ imaginations

Explore Worldwide launches new small group tours

Etihad Airways is now available on the APG Platform, APG’s NDC portal

Maui’s Grand Wailea announced partnership with Nobu, restaurant launching Summer 2025

RoomRaccoon partners with Pxier to enhance hospitality offering

Renowned Antuguan resort, Hermitage Bay re-opens after extensive renovation

Rio de Janeiro’s room rates jumped to eight-year high thanks to Rock in Rio

PriceTravel Holding appoints Mikael Hellstrom as Head of Sales for USA & Canada

limehome accelerates UK expansion

Paris 2024 Olympics and the latest innovations in AI, cybersecurity and sustainability to be featured at TIS2024

Wyndham Grand Clearwater Beach announces new culinary leadership

GDS-Movement reveals the winners of the 2024 GDS-Awards

UFI releases latest edition of Euro Fair Statistics

New study shows airports and air connectivity power 5% of European GDP

Emirates cabin crew to step into the virtual world for safety training

Vibe and Mize: new dynamic partnership transforming online booking with AI-driven fintech solutions

GUEXT commences today in Madrid, hosting over 130 companies

SAS and Scandic enter strategic partnership to enhance customer experience and loyalty benefits

Avoya Travel announces technology and commission enhancements at 2024 conference

Jun 14 Writing the Perfect Travel Essay for Students1

Writing travel essays.

Writing college essays about traveling is a straightforward process for most students. As long as you can creatively connect the thrilling events in the correct order to give great flow, then everything else will flow effortlessly. The most important thing here is to know how to use your skills. You must be excited to compose a travel essay. After all, you’re about to have fun while completing this assignment. 

Remember when you had to google a reliable service to write my college admissions essay for an affordable price? Luckily, not all essays demand that great extent of preparation and a professional approach.

Meanwhile, you simply can check https://uk.assignmentgeek.com/write-my-dissertation.html to be more free while studying and especially traveling

But you have to be careful. Remember that you have a lot of information, and you can't write everything due to the number of words set by the instructor. That's why you should be careful to avoid losing track of the essay. Here are tips on writing the perfect traveling essay for students.

Travel Writing Essay

Exploratory Glory YouTube Channel

Using a Capturing Introduction

The introduction is the part that hooks your reader. And of course, these are the first few lines of the write-up. Avoid boring cliches or statements like trying to describe what's traveling. There is nothing new here you are trying to indicate. This is a clear indication that you have nothing interesting to talk about. So, it's vital to start with something that catches the reader's attention.

How do you write an interesting introduction about traveling to places like Pig Beach, Mexico ? You can begin with startling statistics or narrate unusual experiences you encountered while traveling. Still, you can

take a stance on something interesting about traveling. Tell the reader how interesting traveling can sometimes be.

Sometimes you can be stuck on how to write a captivating travel essay. In this case, you can try checking out travel essay examples and see the level of creativity in those essays. It will motivate you to write a great essay about the trip. You can also search the internet for an essay guide about traveling and follow it keenly when writing. Whenever you face challenges with managing your time effectively due to other assignments, you can find essay writing service Canada on Ca.EduBirdie. The professionals on this platform will write a quality essay that's captivating to read due to their vast experience.

One great way to keep up with your exam and essay knowledge is to try out ExamSnap so you can be ready for anything your teachers through your way.

Maintain the Standard Essay Structure

As stated above, you might have a lot of unique experiences to tell, but you have to follow the standard essay structure. This is the most crucial tip that you should always keep in your mind. You will easily earn marks for following the structure! The structure of the standard essay includes the introduction, body, and conclusion.

Following this structure keenly will help you organize your thoughts and ideas to maintain a high level of cohesiveness for your essay. Paragraphs must be connected, and ensure you don't repeat any information. A good body of a traveling essay should contain about 3 to 4 paragraphs. Each paragraph must have a unique idea that you are trying to explain.

Create An Outline

Do you want to keep your essay organized and in good structure? Creating an outline is the first step to writing a perfect traveling essay. This will help you stay on track and avoid missing any vital information. The outline should include a thesis in the introduction, key points, and concluding thought. The thesis should sum up the central point of the traveling essay.

It's normally written at the end of the introduction. This statement should give a reason that supports the main idea of the essay . Key points are the experiences that you went through while traveling. Is there any unique feature that you saw? If you nod your head in confirmation, you should describe it creatively.

Keep the Essay Simple

There are various benefits of being straightforward with your essay. Sometimes too much flowery language is not necessary for an essay. What matters is how you are presenting your points. Most instructors are highly interested in how you convey your message and not too much unnecessary information. Keep in mind that you don't have the luxury to talk about all the experiences you went through.

Your experiences might not be something unique to the instructor. Still, your travel destination may not be too dreamy! But you can present them nicely and earn good marks. So, describe just a few experiences in an organized manner, ensuring you don't sound like you are showing off your vocabulary . Too many difficult words interrupt the reading flow, and the reader may not even understand what you are trying to say.

Traveling is a thrilling part of everyone's life experience. This experience can be a potentially fascinating topic for your essay. Writing this essay requires minimal creativity if you follow the tips above. That's why there is a need to think through the ideas while writing your traveling essay creatively. If you are not careful enough, you will make unnecessary dull cliches in a bunch of disparate places and nothing new. 

Author’s Bio

Sven Eggers is a prolific academic writer who impresses everyone with his accurate and well-researched writing and editing work. He’s been doing essays and dissertations right from his college days which gives him a competitive advantage. He relaxes in his free time by reading novels, watching sunsets and swimming in the ocean. 

More Articles on Travel

Writing college essays about traveling is a straightforward process for most students. As long as you can creatively connect the thrilling events in the correct order to give great flow, then everything else will flow effortlessly. The most important thing here is to know how to use your skills.

Do you have a holiday or trip abroad planned soon? To enjoy the sun in Cancun , for a meeting in New York, or to visit your family in Australia? Then you probably have a lot of planning to do. You have to reserve the tickets, make arrangements for your stay, pack your luggage, find someone to water your plants while you are gone, and you have to arrange the transport to and from the airport.

The Philippines is eager for foreign tourists to return to the Southeast Asian country. With the number of COVID infections getting under control, the country is wanting to roll out the welcome mat for visitors and waive quarantine requirements

Writing the Perfect Travel Essay for Students

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Travel: Personal Experience

One of my passions is travelling. Travel involves visiting new places and meeting new people and having varied experiences. I come originally from Romania and have travelled to UK and US. I remember the quote by Samuel Johnson: “All travel has its advantages. If the passenger visits better countries, he may learn to improve his own. And if fortune carries him to worse, he may learn to enjoy it”. I have had the luck of visiting better countries and I believe my travel experiences have taught me a lot about human life and helped me expand the way I see things.

When I first travelled within Romania, it opened my eyes to how other people live. I saw how people lived happily even though they did not have much money or luxuries. It taught me that to be happy, money is not the only thing. I must have an attitude to be happy with what I have. It also taught me to accept people from different races and colors. When I travelled abroad, I saw new cultures and different lifestyles.

It was very exciting and adventurous. I learnt to enjoy these new experiences, to become part of these varied cultures by taking their food, wearing their dresses, etc. This has created in me the awareness that people all over the world are basically the same but they are different in the cultures – have different ways of talking, singing, enjoying, dancing, writing, building, dressing and conducting business. I have acquired a more global perspective of the world we live in. My knowledge has thus expanded because of my travel.

Self-confidence is another quality that I developed as a result of travelling. Whenever I travel, I had to be responsible for my own luggage, tickets and documents. I had to be careful in taking flights and cabs. When I was in my home country, I used to be shy to talk to new people. But during my travels, I learnt to talk to strangers and ask for help whenever I needed it. This gave me the confidence that I can make new friends. Also, new places sometimes had new customs that I had to adapt to.

Travel is the time I use to read and listen to music. This also gives me the time to reflect deeply on my life’s goals and where I am right now. It is an ideal opportunity to break free from a routine lifestyle. I feel very much relaxed during my travel and enjoy seeing new scenes and landscapes. It gives me time to discover more about myself. For example, when I was in Los Angeles, I saw a rock music performance at a club where everyone danced. I had not danced earlier at clubs. But when I joined the fun, I was surprised to realize that I enjoyed the experience a lot.

Travel also gives me a sense of being free and independent. It makes my mind open to new experiences all the time. Even during a flight, I get to taste new food, hear a new language, see new ways of dressing and listen to new kinds of music. This is very exciting and I thoroughly enjoy my life during these moments.

Through my travels, I have made many new international friends. Conversing with them has helped me understand their cultures better and I also have opportunities of improving my English which is now very important when travelling in UK and US. Moreover, as I intend to study in United States, it is good to improve my language skills before I begin my studies. Travelling to the United States has also helped me absorb their local culture and understand the value of hard work.

Above all, whenever I return to Romania after my travels, it helps me appreciate my home country a lot. I value Romanian culture and the warm way in which people relate to each other. I can appreciate it all the more when I travel abroad. Thus, my passion for travel while giving me fun, dreams and confidence, has also educated me, helped me embrace new cultures and new communication skills, adopt a more global perspective, improve my English and given me lots of good friends and wonderful memories. It has made me a richer person internally.

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Bibliography

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Preparation starts here, descriptive essay on a bad journey, a bad journey: descriptive essay writing.

“Travelling is a sort of educations among the younger people”, said Bacon. Perhaps, he had a disappointing journey in his mind. For it gives more experience and enables to develop more courage. Hazlitt, in one of his essays, says that a journey becomes enjoyable if one hopes to get a good meal and a good rest after a tiring journey, and adds that traveling hopefully gives the maximum happiness perhaps he had no experience of a disappointing journey which is more instructive.

It was a day of disappointments. And being an optimist I did not attach much importance to bad omens. First of all the auto I hired to the railway station rattled noisily and emitted more smoke than an ordinary vehicle can. But I had limited time at my disposal, so I decided to travel by it.

After a short distance I was panting like an extremely tired person and came to a sudden stop. It was the first disappointment. Somehow I reached the station jumping into anther auto but I found a long queue at the ticket counter. There were only a few minutes for the train to leave, yet there was no hope of reaching the ticket window. This was the second disappointment. I decided to travel without ticket and pay the fare.

Boarding the train was itself an ordeal. Despite my healthy body I was sandwiched and my luggage was mercilessly trampled upon. Still I managed to wriggle into a corner. There I found some persons smoking cigarettes. And I could not rather stand that smell nor could I move an inch. I covered my nose with my handkerchief, but the bad smell was choking me.

As expected the ticket checker came and I willingly told him about my inability to buy the ticket. He looked him about my inability to buy the ticket. He looked at me with strange eyes and all passengers stared at me. The ticker checker was not going to allow me to travel but I protested and told him that if a passenger was prepared to pay the fine, he could be allowed to travel. After much discussion, I convinced him and heaved a sigh of relief.

As I reached my destination, I was thanking god. I was thinking that I would meet my uncle and aunt with a broad smile and their hospitality would make me forget the ordeals of the journey. I was dreaming of it, while the rickshaw-puller was pulling the vehicle in a half sleep manner. To my great disappointment, I found that my uncle and aunt had gone to Chennai for a month and the house was locked. This was the greatest disappointment. I did not have much money for return trip. I did not want to recall this disappointing journey further because that makes me extremely sad. That was A Bad Journey.

25 Thesis Statement Examples

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Dr. Chris Drew is the founder of the Helpful Professor. He holds a PhD in education and has published over 20 articles in scholarly journals. He is the former editor of the Journal of Learning Development in Higher Education. [Image Descriptor: Photo of Chris]

Learn about our Editorial Process

A thesis statement is needed in an essay or dissertation . There are multiple types of thesis statements – but generally we can divide them into expository and argumentative. An expository statement is a statement of fact (common in expository essays and process essays) while an argumentative statement is a statement of opinion (common in argumentative essays and dissertations). Below are examples of each.

Strong Thesis Statement Examples

1. School Uniforms

“Mandatory school uniforms should be implemented in educational institutions as they promote a sense of equality, reduce distractions, and foster a focused and professional learning environment.”

Best For: Argumentative Essay or Debate

Read More: School Uniforms Pros and Cons

2. Nature vs Nurture

“This essay will explore how both genetic inheritance and environmental factors equally contribute to shaping human behavior and personality.”

Best For: Compare and Contrast Essay

Read More: Nature vs Nurture Debate

3. American Dream

“The American Dream, a symbol of opportunity and success, is increasingly elusive in today’s socio-economic landscape, revealing deeper inequalities in society.”

Best For: Persuasive Essay

Read More: What is the American Dream?

4. Social Media

“Social media has revolutionized communication and societal interactions, but it also presents significant challenges related to privacy, mental health, and misinformation.”

Best For: Expository Essay

Read More: The Pros and Cons of Social Media

5. Globalization

“Globalization has created a world more interconnected than ever before, yet it also amplifies economic disparities and cultural homogenization.”

Read More: Globalization Pros and Cons

6. Urbanization

“Urbanization drives economic growth and social development, but it also poses unique challenges in sustainability and quality of life.”

Read More: Learn about Urbanization

7. Immigration

“Immigration enriches receiving countries culturally and economically, outweighing any perceived social or economic burdens.”

Read More: Immigration Pros and Cons

8. Cultural Identity

“In a globalized world, maintaining distinct cultural identities is crucial for preserving cultural diversity and fostering global understanding, despite the challenges of assimilation and homogenization.”

Best For: Argumentative Essay

Read More: Learn about Cultural Identity

9. Technology

“Medical technologies in care institutions in Toronto has increased subjcetive outcomes for patients with chronic pain.”

Best For: Research Paper

10. Capitalism vs Socialism

“The debate between capitalism and socialism centers on balancing economic freedom and inequality, each presenting distinct approaches to resource distribution and social welfare.”

11. Cultural Heritage

“The preservation of cultural heritage is essential, not only for cultural identity but also for educating future generations, outweighing the arguments for modernization and commercialization.”

12. Pseudoscience

“Pseudoscience, characterized by a lack of empirical support, continues to influence public perception and decision-making, often at the expense of scientific credibility.”

Read More: Examples of Pseudoscience

13. Free Will

“The concept of free will is largely an illusion, with human behavior and decisions predominantly determined by biological and environmental factors.”

Read More: Do we have Free Will?

14. Gender Roles

“Traditional gender roles are outdated and harmful, restricting individual freedoms and perpetuating gender inequalities in modern society.”

Read More: What are Traditional Gender Roles?

15. Work-Life Ballance

“The trend to online and distance work in the 2020s led to improved subjective feelings of work-life balance but simultaneously increased self-reported loneliness.”

Read More: Work-Life Balance Examples

16. Universal Healthcare

“Universal healthcare is a fundamental human right and the most effective system for ensuring health equity and societal well-being, outweighing concerns about government involvement and costs.”

Read More: The Pros and Cons of Universal Healthcare

17. Minimum Wage

“The implementation of a fair minimum wage is vital for reducing economic inequality, yet it is often contentious due to its potential impact on businesses and employment rates.”

Read More: The Pros and Cons of Raising the Minimum Wage

18. Homework

“The homework provided throughout this semester has enabled me to achieve greater self-reflection, identify gaps in my knowledge, and reinforce those gaps through spaced repetition.”

Best For: Reflective Essay

Read More: Reasons Homework Should be Banned

19. Charter Schools

“Charter schools offer alternatives to traditional public education, promising innovation and choice but also raising questions about accountability and educational equity.”

Read More: The Pros and Cons of Charter Schools

20. Effects of the Internet

“The Internet has drastically reshaped human communication, access to information, and societal dynamics, generally with a net positive effect on society.”

Read More: The Pros and Cons of the Internet

21. Affirmative Action

“Affirmative action is essential for rectifying historical injustices and achieving true meritocracy in education and employment, contrary to claims of reverse discrimination.”

Best For: Essay

Read More: Affirmative Action Pros and Cons

22. Soft Skills

“Soft skills, such as communication and empathy, are increasingly recognized as essential for success in the modern workforce, and therefore should be a strong focus at school and university level.”

Read More: Soft Skills Examples

23. Moral Panic

“Moral panic, often fueled by media and cultural anxieties, can lead to exaggerated societal responses that sometimes overlook rational analysis and evidence.”

Read More: Moral Panic Examples

24. Freedom of the Press

“Freedom of the press is critical for democracy and informed citizenship, yet it faces challenges from censorship, media bias, and the proliferation of misinformation.”

Read More: Freedom of the Press Examples

25. Mass Media

“Mass media shapes public opinion and cultural norms, but its concentration of ownership and commercial interests raise concerns about bias and the quality of information.”

Best For: Critical Analysis

Read More: Mass Media Examples

Checklist: How to use your Thesis Statement

✅ Position: If your statement is for an argumentative or persuasive essay, or a dissertation, ensure it takes a clear stance on the topic. ✅ Specificity: It addresses a specific aspect of the topic, providing focus for the essay. ✅ Conciseness: Typically, a thesis statement is one to two sentences long. It should be concise, clear, and easily identifiable. ✅ Direction: The thesis statement guides the direction of the essay, providing a roadmap for the argument, narrative, or explanation. ✅ Evidence-based: While the thesis statement itself doesn’t include evidence, it sets up an argument that can be supported with evidence in the body of the essay. ✅ Placement: Generally, the thesis statement is placed at the end of the introduction of an essay.

Try These AI Prompts – Thesis Statement Generator!

One way to brainstorm thesis statements is to get AI to brainstorm some for you! Try this AI prompt:

💡 AI PROMPT FOR EXPOSITORY THESIS STATEMENT I am writing an essay on [TOPIC] and these are the instructions my teacher gave me: [INSTUCTIONS]. I want you to create an expository thesis statement that doesn’t argue a position, but demonstrates depth of knowledge about the topic.

💡 AI PROMPT FOR ARGUMENTATIVE THESIS STATEMENT I am writing an essay on [TOPIC] and these are the instructions my teacher gave me: [INSTRUCTIONS]. I want you to create an argumentative thesis statement that clearly takes a position on this issue.

💡 AI PROMPT FOR COMPARE AND CONTRAST THESIS STATEMENT I am writing a compare and contrast essay that compares [Concept 1] and [Concept2]. Give me 5 potential single-sentence thesis statements that remain objective.

• Chris Drew (PhD) https://helpfulprofessor.com/author/chris-drew-phd-2/ 10 Reasons you’re Perpetually Single
• Chris Drew (PhD) https://helpfulprofessor.com/author/chris-drew-phd-2/ 20 Montessori Toddler Bedrooms (Design Inspiration)
• Chris Drew (PhD) https://helpfulprofessor.com/author/chris-drew-phd-2/ 21 Montessori Homeschool Setups
• Chris Drew (PhD) https://helpfulprofessor.com/author/chris-drew-phd-2/ 101 Hidden Talents Examples

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Home — Essay Samples — Geography & Travel — Journey — My Travel Experience

My Travel Experience

• Categories: Adventure Journey Trip

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Words: 638 |

Published: Jun 13, 2024

Words: 638 | Page: 1 | 4 min read

Table of contents

Introduction, body paragraphs, setting off: the anticipation and preparation, experiencing the natural wonders, immersing in icelandic culture, the adventure continues: exploring the south coast, reflections and lessons learned.

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Essay on My Travel Experience

Students are often asked to write an essay on My Travel Experience in their schools and colleges. And if you’re also looking for the same, we have created 100-word, 250-word, and 500-word essays on the topic.

Let’s take a look…

100 Words Essay on My Travel Experience

Introduction to travel.

Travel is like a book with many chapters, each telling a different story. My travel stories are full of colors, sounds, and tastes from new places.

Meeting New People

When I travel, I meet people with lives very different from mine. They share their stories and I learn new things. It’s like making friends in a playground.

Seeing Nature’s Beauty

Nature is a great painter. In my travels, I’ve seen mountains like giant guards and oceans whispering with waves. Each place shows me a new picture of the world.

Learning About Cultures

Every place has its own way of living, like a unique game everyone plays. I’ve seen dances, clothes, and foods that are special to each place.

Traveling is a joyful adventure. It’s like jumping into a book where every page is a surprise. I can’t wait to see where my next trip takes me.

250 Words Essay on My Travel Experience

My first trip.

My first trip was to a beautiful beach town. The sun was bright and the waves were gentle. I went there with my family during summer break. We packed our bags with clothes, snacks, and games.

We started our journey in our car early in the morning. The roads were not busy and the trip felt quick. We played songs and I looked out the window at the trees and hills passing by.

When we arrived, the first thing I saw was the vast blue sea. It was amazing! The beach had soft sand and I could hear the sound of the waves. We built sandcastles and collected pretty shells.

Trying New Food

We ate at a small restaurant near the beach. I tried seafood for the first time. It was different but tasty. We also had ice cream which was perfect in the warm weather.

Fun Activities

We did many fun things like swimming and playing beach volleyball. I also took a boat ride with my dad. It was exciting to see the water around us and feel the breeze.

Coming Back Home

After three days, it was time to go back home. I was sad but happy with all the new memories. The trip made me love traveling and I can’t wait to go on another adventure.

500 Words Essay on My Travel Experience

Introduction to my journey.

Traveling is like opening a book with pages filled with new pictures, words, and stories. I have been lucky to experience this joy through my travels. I want to share my travel experience, which was both fun and educational, in a way that is easy for everyone to understand.

Planning the Trip

Before going on any trip, planning is very important. I remember sitting with my family and deciding where to go. We looked at maps, read about places on the internet, and talked about what we wanted to see. We chose a place that had both mountains and a beach. Then, we made a list of things to take with us, like clothes, snacks, and a camera to capture our memories.

The Journey Begins

The day we left for our trip was filled with excitement. We woke up early, packed our car, and started our adventure. As we drove, I watched the trees and buildings pass by my window. I played games with my siblings and listened to music. The journey was long, but it was also a chance to see new places outside my usual surroundings.

Exploring New Places

When we reached our destination, I was amazed by the new sights. The mountains were tall and covered with green trees, and the sea was a beautiful blue. We went hiking in the mountains, and I felt like an explorer discovering a new land. On the beach, I built sandcastles and collected shells. Every place we visited had its own story and people who lived there, and I learned a lot just by looking around and talking to them.

One of the best parts of traveling is trying food that you don’t get at home. I tasted new fruits that grew in the mountains and ate seafood that was caught in the sea that same day. Some foods were strange at first, but I found that it’s fun to try new things.

Making Memories

Every day of our trip, I took pictures and wrote in a journal. I wanted to remember everything: the sights, the sounds, and how I felt. When I look back at those photos and read my notes, I can relive the trip all over again. These memories are like treasures that I will keep forever.

Learning Through Travel

Traveling taught me so much. I learned about nature, different cultures, and history. I also learned to be patient during long journeys and to be open to new experiences. Seeing new places made me curious about the world and eager to learn more.

My travel experience was more than just a holiday. It was a chance to see the world with my own eyes and learn things that books and school could not teach me. I made memories that will last a lifetime and found out that every place has its own magic. I can’t wait to go on my next trip and discover more about our amazing world.

That’s it! I hope the essay helped you.

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Happy studying!

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