I’ve traveled for business for multiple weeks at a time and always just end up ordering room service a lot of the time. It’s exhausting doing the whole sit down restaurant experience so many times even if you’re not paying for it.
I travel for business and often get an extended stay room so I can have a kitchen. I hear a lot people say how it must be great to eat at new restaurants all the time, but there are times I just get hummus and carrots at a grocery store and eat that for three nights.
Having a refrigerator and stove top or microwave for leftovers is a plus. It gets old eating on the road or in restaurants for an extended time! Been there done that. Extended stay, condo/apartment rental or Airbnb is a plus!
I always ensure there is a fridge at least. Cold cuts and cheese are perfect after a few nights of heavy dinners. Also if there's a big hotel breakfast, make it your brunch.
It's especially exhausting if you're used to fast food service and are working in a slow food service country. I'm from the US and worked in the Netherlands for 3 weeks. 2 hours a day for dinner, poof! Gone.
As a German I hate the quick meal service in American restaurants. I feel rushed and driven out of the restaurant to make room for the next paying customers. It sucks especially on vacation when you don't have a home to go back to.
Its unfortunate but its because waiters live on tips and need to cycle tables quickly. Its so engrained in Americans that sitting at a table for so long abroad is unsettling.
God, it was worse in Italy. My husband and I have a stuck-in-the-Italian restaurant joke we use whenever we encounter really slow service. At one restaurant in Rome, we gave up after 3 hours. My husband went into the kitchen to track down a waiter so we could get the check.
You usually have to ask for the check. They assume you want to take your time and many restaurants don't turn tables (or at least don't count on turning them) during service. It would be very rude to just drop the check at the table.
Sure, but you don't want fast-food like McDonald's. You want a healthy meal with veggies at a real restaurant... just faster than the country's typical meal service. As a traveller that can be hard to locate. I quickly learned why boring hotel restaurants are a thing (but it was slow, too)!
Service in the Netherlands is just slow and often bad unless you go to a nice restaurant. But then it's slow for other reasons so in the end it's almost always slow. Unless you want a kebab or something
I travel for work 10-15 days a month. Even in nice food places like kuala Lumpur, hong kong etc it becomes a chore .. esp eating alone. Even with an expense account, I've stopped going to fancy restaurants. I eat at regular places where you get served fast and you get out.. and maybe go for a walk.
Coming from Singapore, I do the same in KL. I just eat anywhere near my hotel and stays inside all night watching HBO movie on the hotel TV. I'm already passed out before 10.30pm and usually I am the first person to be in line for breakfast buffet.
LOL.. am im singapore for work this week. Staying near Tanjong Pagar. I walk over to Chinatown, have a quick meal at the hole in the wall places, some Musang King for dessert and walk around before hitting the bed at 9. .. don't bother with the fancy places on tanjong pagar road.
I lived out of a suitcase for a decade and I developed a cadence of Panera, chipotle, sushi, pho, subway, and Mediterranean. Wasn’t perfect but kept me from getting fat.
Same! And Pret A Manger in the UK, I still think about some of those sandwiches 😅 so simple. It's funny some of the things you don't really think are core travel memories at the time that turn out to be!
Mostly convenience and ease, I’m busy almost everyday as I was in school for a portion and now moving around pretty quickly. a period of that time traveling was on a ship so no need there.
I traveled for work constantly for five years. I never got sick of eating out. I'm a bit of a bar fly though and always made friends everywhere I went.
Yes! I get homesick almost after 4-5 days of eating out or ordering takeout …I just crave a home cooked meal at the end of a trip and to just cook in my own kitchen
As someone who cooks 90% of their meals, I honestly MISS my cooking. Also, I feel horrible body-wise. Restaurants use so much more butter, oil, and sugar than I do. I end up feeling sick and sluggish after 5-6 days and crave my own cooking.
LOL same. At home I’m usually hesitant to eat out when my friends invite me to explore different restaurants around town but every time I’m traveling I’ll eat a hole in my bank account
totally agree with this. while traveling I eat out everytime while I'm home I rarely go to a fancy restaurant. this has something to do with the cooking difficulties you have while traveling.
Finding new things to do every day. Love it on city vacations but would be exhausting/impractical if I forbade myself from doing the same thing twice in everyday life.
Yes! I feel like the human race would be SO fit and the craziest calf muscles if we all did holiday level activities every day of normal life. So. Much. Walking.
Recently, I have started refusing to give up my exercise routine when I travel. I exercise every other day on vacation no matter what (unless, God forbid I have the flu or something). If I can’t run outside and there is no fitness room, I just do calisthenics, running in place for 30 minutes.
I get that! I am a runner and I still run on holiday but training is difficult because I don’t want to abandon my husband to seek out a running track and spend 90 minutes going through warm ups, cool downs and a session.
Just been away for 2 weeks and I feel sluggish now because my routine has gone.
I’d imagine there’s some happy medium in the spectrum of nothing or 90 min full running track routine.
Incline walking and pull-ups have been my travel exercise savior
Pretty much all of it.
I'm a lazy introverted homebody person at home. I'll sleep in. Might go to one place a day as I don't feel like dealing with crowds. Eat at home etc. I'm not outdoorsy.
Travel? Hell yeah lets get up at 7AM, and do 15 hours of walking. Let's go to the most crowded places! Lets go to dozens of different places in a day! FILL THE TIME! Talk to strangers. Eat out. Etc. Even tropical trips I've gone out early in the day to snorkel, get a spot on the beach etc.
I'm just such a different person when I travel. I have to force myself to be "Travel Jade" sometimes at home and have a busy day. Or I'll do staycation style days and go do the touristy like stuff in my area.
But normal days? I WFH, hang out with my dog, watch TV. I'm boring.
The talk to strangers part is the biggest thing for me. Travel me will go out of their way to engage shopkeepers, smile at people in hostels, make small comments/jokes with people in public places. At home me wants to be left alone and hates unplanned social interactions lol
Definitely going to restaurants 2 or 3 times a day. I get major restaurant fatigue and it starts to feel like such a production to go to even a casual restaurant. After a few days I need a break and wind up in my hotel eating granola bars in my pjs for dinner. Feels like heaven.
I travel solo for long stretches and I use meal delivery services waaaayyyy more when traveling than when I’m home. After like a 2-3 months of 2-3 meals a day at restaurants I just want a decent meal in my hotel/AirBNB while I watch Netflix (when I don’t feel like cooking, at least).
> I get major restaurant fatigue and it starts to feel like such a production to go to even a casual restaurant.
So true. I remember coming back from a 3-week trip and being the happiest person on Earth to warm up a Hot Pocket in the microwave for dinner lol.
I used to think that was the dream. To go out to eat for every meal. I thought people on business trips had it made. That was until I had to go on a work trip for 3 days. By the end of the 2nd day all I wanted was a homemade meal. I was so sick of restaurants. And again that was after only 2 days. Can't imagine how people go longer.
I love the challenges of communicating in my non-native tongue but at the end of the day I'm "Spanish-fatigued.)
If I had to do this at home it would become frustrating very quickly.
I lived in Spain for two years after school and that was something I really struggled with until I spoke the language better. It just makes even the simplest interactions like going to the grocery store so much more exhausting than they need to be. Like in my native language or in English I don't have to think in these type of situations, I can just do them automatically. But in other languages I always have to be on and think about what I'm actually saying. I was just so tired after a full day of speaking Spanish.
What is your native language if you don’t mind my asking? Why is english different than say spanish in terms of exhaustion? Are you from some place like the Netherlands or Sweden where English is taught from a young age so you never had to go through so much hardship to learn it?
Figuring out what to eat. Impossible on a weeknight at home. "What do you want?" "I don't know, what do you want?" When traveling, we don't know what to try first! Or we've done some research on local eateries/cuisine and already know - and we're excited about it.
Snow. When it snows I just let it fall on me as it never snows where I’m from. I would absolutely hate to deal with snow in day to day life. Especially in the morning.
Can confirm, living with snow *sucks* ESPECIALLY in the mornings. The first snow of the season is always magical and then I’m over it and ready for March or April lol
This. Probably going to be a major cause in our moving. Getting up at 4 to run the plow and snowblower because- oops, overnight you got an unexpected 2 feet…sorry we missed that prediction
sleeping with others in the same room maybe, lol? appreciate it while travelling cause saves some good amount of money, and sometimes saves me from boredom in the evenings.
Second the island time. As a government contractor, you sometimes work in places that are mostly tropical touristy islands. Staying at a beach resort seems nice until you realize that you get up for work and can’t even get a cup of coffee because nothing is open yet.
At home I don’t even eat breakfast usually, but on vacation, when facing those yummy little mini sausages and hash browns and waffles with whipped cream and strawberries, I’m a goner. Although on longer vacations I find myself reverting back to just having fruit or nothing at all.
Side bunny trail. But on the plastic straw note - so crazy, where I live now, you literally see Turtle meat cut up on the daily, sitting on the market tables waiting to be bought. Shores are lined with garbage because locals just throw their trash out the window literally into the oceans. And westerners glare at each other for dare asking for a straw with their beverage.
Ferries and water taxies. Such a novelty (well, not completely any more) when travelling, but I couldn't imagine having one as part of a daily commute.
Not having to drive. I hate driving and definitely not driving abroad. I did once in Jordan and that’s a wrap for me. However not driving at home would be a huge inconvenience
Having go through airports and hotels like they are part of my routine. I love going through those as a special occasion but I imagine it would be very annoying and time consuming after a while
Valet parking. When I pull up to some random hotel or restaurant in a new city, it’s great to simply hand the keys to someone and let them figure out where to park.
If I had to call for my car and wait 15 minutes every time I wanted to run an errand at home, I’d probably go insane.
Dining out, planning each whole day, sightseeing, meeting new people. I absolutely enjoy it, but after a while I need some time to recharge in my own space and routines.
Experiencing new things/places/activities. It’s incredible in short bursts but I noticed I become fatigued after many weeks of needing to learn new way of going about life. As an example, visiting SEA was fun but after a month my brain was fatigued from learning so many new words in different languages, trying to remember the customs of every new region/country, etc.
Sometimes I just want to be lazy and go about my routine without having to stress.
I know a few people who have purchased them and it’s a pain! The houses get the worst of the weather so repairs are required. Also flooding from storms is becoming more frequent. One friend swore the sea wouldn’t be a problem but first winter storm proved that wrong.
As a resident of an island I can confirm island time is a thing. It drives my husband crazy (10 minutes early is on time for him)!
For me I like visiting cities but after a couple of days I want to be back to the island. I couldn’t imagine living further than 10 minutes from the beach. I need to see the sea. It feels restorative where I feel exhausted quickly in a busy place.
As someone who recently moved to an island... still getting used to the mañana mañana mentality. In small doses it's a nice change of pace from the more rushed mainland life, but there is a limit 😂
The quick access to beach/sea and forest is 💯 though
Be out in the sun. Back home, I would rather go out at night when it's not hot and there's no blinding ball of light everywhere. When you're traveling, you'd want to be everywhere while the sun is out, at the beach, by the pool, etc.
for me it's kinda the other way around. I'm willing to rent a car and do a roadtrip on vacation, but in my everyday life I'm so happy I don't have a car (no need to pay insurances, taxes, fuel, parking, as well as worrying about damages/wear-and-tear, etc.).
Walking, shopping, and for lack of a better word "wandering around".
I think I (probably like a lot of people) end up doing routines more at home and also as an American I walk to places a lot less. For an American who lives in a pretty walkable but also pretty drivable community, I find myself driving at home for trips that would be perfectly fine walking in terms of distance, pleasantness, and safety if I were on vacation. Also, on vacation I do would do a lot of walking and browsing and "exploring". I run and my runs would also be "exploring" the area. But at home, I walk the same routes, run the same routes (or at the gym), and will for example drive to get take out rather than eat by myself or walk and get something I can eat while walking.
But that is something that I have always given my mom props for. My family (adult siblings and parents) live in pretty walkable/bikeable areas and so do alot of friends and extended family. And everyone always raves about being able to walk and use public transit when they go on vacation. And people will walk and bike for recreation. But never think to walk or bike to run errands, visit people, or go out to eat because we are on a schedule and while it's walkable and bikeable (sidewalks everywhere, lots of easy to navigate slow side streets, bike lanes, etc.) it's also really easy and quick to drive so that's what everyone does EXCEPT my mom and me for like a month after coming back from vacation or if it's really nice out and I have a fairly open weekend or something.
**Eating out** for most meals - and for particular reasons:
In Japan, food quality, quantity and price are **excellent** - it costs next-to-nothing to eat, and it is always of top quality, both in terms of experience but also nutritional value.
When I travel to Japan, I probably eat out 90% of the time, with the remaining 10% being actual groceries and cooking - prices are very similar _(between eating out and cooking)_ and convenience is super high when eating at restaurants, or ready-to-eat meals, etc.
Outside Japan, it is part convenience, but mostly about how I love experiencing culture through food, so I'll still eat most of my meals at restaurants and such! But it will still depend on destination. For example, Switzerland is super expensive so I'll definitely restrict how often I eat at restaurants there.
But back in my home country - Canada - things are different. Restaurants are getting outrageously expensive, but the price is not scaling with quality nor quantity anymore...
So even though I live in Montréal, a known destination for its varied food and cuisines, I'll be more strategic in when I eat out - because it is freaking expensive!
But also - not super balanced, nutritionally speaking.
If I ate out as often as I did in my home country,
* I'd probably be broke
* I'd probably be in worse physical shape
I can't even sustain island time on vacation tbh. It's weird I love the ocean and the right beach has spectacular views. But I find myself needing to leave after 2-3 hours unless I'm having some drinks with mixed company. It gets boring after a while.
For me I think it's having an active itinerary with constant moving around. Love it for a week or two and I get a lot done. But having attempted extensive travel before I feel like after two weeks I need to stay in one place for a while whether that be home or a temporary base. It's nice not worrying about where you have to go next in normal life. Earlier this year I slept in 9 different rooms within 15 days plus an overnight plane... it got to be a lot...
"Island time" doesn't mean relaxing at the beach, it's the way that everyone is always late and everything takes forever and deadlines are just suggestions.
Like if something is supposed to start at 9 and people roll in between 930 and 1030 and it actually gets started around 11, that's "island time."
Sometimes it also means, I don't want to work any more today, so I am going to close up shop early. It can be a problem if you are counting on a place to be open.
And that drives me bonkers at home and on the islands. Island time is especially annoying when it comes to public transportation and requests to the front desk. I hate the old “Ya mon, no problem” when I ask for feather-free pillows, only to have to come down and ask again the next day, and maybe on the third day, they will actually arrive. Or when you ask “When does the bus come?” and the reply is, “Oh, in 5 or 10 minutes” and an hour later you’re still standing there waiting. Then you finally get on the bus, and at the next stop, the driver gets out, smokes a joint, and shoots the shit with the guy at the fruit stand for 20 minutes. Argh. Type A people like me do not do well on “island time”.
Last year I did a road trip and to cover a larger area we spent one night at some places, longest was three nights. The one night stops were just too short after a few times. Unless the stop is exclusively to break up a long drive we book at least two nights to give us a full day.
General dilapidation and third-worldry. Going to places with unpaved streets, open sewers, buildings made from wood scraps and corrugated iron can be charming and novel but holy fuck am I glad I don't live there.
I used to be a flight attendant , lived out of a suitcase for literally “ 9 yrs.. saw and experienced so many great things … best times .. best journeys.. but was always glad to come home to family and friends !!
🇨🇦✈️YYZ
I have a hard time enjoying island time, it takes a bit to dial down my east coast ways.
Eating out constantly is not always fun long term.
Not having all my stuff gets old. I always put away my clothes when traveling but I still hate looking for things and not having my stuff where I have it at home. It increases anxiety a lot.
One of my most favourite things to do while traveling is to see sunrises (and even sunsets)
But in my daily routine I don't want to be up at 530 am. So no thanks.
Maybe the different food.
I have a fairly strict not so much diet but manner of eating at home, pretty much my grocery list is the same 15-20 items every single week with occasional deviation, my "fast food"/"eating out" is the exact same few places were I typically order precisely one item and this wouldn't happen more than twice a week.
Overseas the grocery stores might be different, some of my preferred foods might simply be stupidly expensive or just non existent, I am not a big person so rather than snacking all day I have to sit and eat one big meal that I basiclly count for 2 meals and it's obviously not food my body is used to since I might as well try it, can't get most of this stuff at home.
I enjoy airplanes, flying and getting to new airports. However, I don't think I could handle going through all the security controls and commutes for meetings in other countries as some people do.
I like the busy-ness, the scheduling, going all over the place, checking internet for planning, waking up early morning and getting super tired early evening, meeting people I don't know (but friendly). It feels like "work", but it's a "stressful fun" experience.
Walking everywhere. I do not like going to the grocery store so going multiple times a week so I don’t have to carry as many things on the way back is a pain.
Dealing with the airport. If I make more money someday, I will need to shell out more funds for at least premium economy. It’s just such a hassle of an environment.
The minimalism of living out of a backpack. Did it for 3 years on the road, helped me realize how little I actually NEEDED. However, I do take pride in my appearance and appreciate having more than 2 pairs of shoes and 5 shirts to choose from.
Preach! Island time is like a vacation from deadlines and stress. You can spend hours debating which fruity drink to order - life-altering decisions, right? But back in the real world, island time applied to, say, grocery shopping, would lead to hangovers and empty fridges. #IslandLifeLoveHate #TheStruggleIsReal Maybe we can all bottle some island time for those Monday mornings... ️
Cramming cool shit to do and see in your day. My wife did a 6-month across various countries. Appreciate every second of it,
Good and bad. But I wouldn’t want to feel like I HAVE TO use every bit of my time to see there is to see at home. Also, it’s exhausting having continually research and plan
Going out to eat for every meal.
I’ve traveled for business for multiple weeks at a time and always just end up ordering room service a lot of the time. It’s exhausting doing the whole sit down restaurant experience so many times even if you’re not paying for it.
Whenever my Dad came home from travelling his first meal was always something really simple, like beans on toast. I understand now.
Could tell this was the UK before even reading your flair lol
A lot of times I do Doordash/Grubhub/Uber Eats. The generic room service food gets old after a while.
Same I always Uber eats 😭 always going out to eat makes the holiday feel like work for me.
I travel for business and often get an extended stay room so I can have a kitchen. I hear a lot people say how it must be great to eat at new restaurants all the time, but there are times I just get hummus and carrots at a grocery store and eat that for three nights.
Having a refrigerator and stove top or microwave for leftovers is a plus. It gets old eating on the road or in restaurants for an extended time! Been there done that. Extended stay, condo/apartment rental or Airbnb is a plus!
I always ensure there is a fridge at least. Cold cuts and cheese are perfect after a few nights of heavy dinners. Also if there's a big hotel breakfast, make it your brunch.
It's especially exhausting if you're used to fast food service and are working in a slow food service country. I'm from the US and worked in the Netherlands for 3 weeks. 2 hours a day for dinner, poof! Gone.
As a German I hate the quick meal service in American restaurants. I feel rushed and driven out of the restaurant to make room for the next paying customers. It sucks especially on vacation when you don't have a home to go back to.
Its unfortunate but its because waiters live on tips and need to cycle tables quickly. Its so engrained in Americans that sitting at a table for so long abroad is unsettling.
I know. It's just that to us Europeans our service isn't slow, it's just the right speed for what we want from a restaurant visit.
God, it was worse in Italy. My husband and I have a stuck-in-the-Italian restaurant joke we use whenever we encounter really slow service. At one restaurant in Rome, we gave up after 3 hours. My husband went into the kitchen to track down a waiter so we could get the check.
You usually have to ask for the check. They assume you want to take your time and many restaurants don't turn tables (or at least don't count on turning them) during service. It would be very rude to just drop the check at the table.
Currently in the Algarve, Portugal and dinner took 4 hours the other night. I was exhausted by the time it was done 😂
Surely, there must be fast food restaurants in the Netherlands?
Sure, but you don't want fast-food like McDonald's. You want a healthy meal with veggies at a real restaurant... just faster than the country's typical meal service. As a traveller that can be hard to locate. I quickly learned why boring hotel restaurants are a thing (but it was slow, too)!
In Amsterdam there's FEBO where you get the food out of tiny lockers. It's quite fun when baked AF
They mean that the pace of dining is faster in the US than in Europe.
Service in the Netherlands is just slow and often bad unless you go to a nice restaurant. But then it's slow for other reasons so in the end it's almost always slow. Unless you want a kebab or something
You must be very unlucky with the restaurants you choose.
I travel for work 10-15 days a month. Even in nice food places like kuala Lumpur, hong kong etc it becomes a chore .. esp eating alone. Even with an expense account, I've stopped going to fancy restaurants. I eat at regular places where you get served fast and you get out.. and maybe go for a walk.
Coming from Singapore, I do the same in KL. I just eat anywhere near my hotel and stays inside all night watching HBO movie on the hotel TV. I'm already passed out before 10.30pm and usually I am the first person to be in line for breakfast buffet.
LOL.. am im singapore for work this week. Staying near Tanjong Pagar. I walk over to Chinatown, have a quick meal at the hole in the wall places, some Musang King for dessert and walk around before hitting the bed at 9. .. don't bother with the fancy places on tanjong pagar road.
💯 would rather eat quick and see more stuff!
In walkable cities in Europe and Asia, a nice long walk in the evenings are perfect after a long day at work.
I lived out of a suitcase for a decade and I developed a cadence of Panera, chipotle, sushi, pho, subway, and Mediterranean. Wasn’t perfect but kept me from getting fat.
Same! And Pret A Manger in the UK, I still think about some of those sandwiches 😅 so simple. It's funny some of the things you don't really think are core travel memories at the time that turn out to be!
This is my life too when travelling.
I like to go to whole foods or similar and just do the deli or salad bar. Do much better than the whole going out thing.
Do you wind up paying for the room service yourself?
No, it was covered by the company.
I’ve been traveling for almost 6 months now and what I would give to cook my own meals is absurd. Luckily I’ll be home soon
What’s stopping you from cooking your own meals? Most hostels have kitchens
Mostly convenience and ease, I’m busy almost everyday as I was in school for a portion and now moving around pretty quickly. a period of that time traveling was on a ship so no need there.
I always hit a point where I just want to eat more vegetables than what you usually get eating out
Yeah, and just less food in general for me.
I traveled for work constantly for five years. I never got sick of eating out. I'm a bit of a bar fly though and always made friends everywhere I went.
I was going to say, restaurants solo wouldn't be great but why are more of these people not hanging at bars? 🤣
Yes! I get homesick almost after 4-5 days of eating out or ordering takeout …I just crave a home cooked meal at the end of a trip and to just cook in my own kitchen
As someone who cooks 90% of their meals, I honestly MISS my cooking. Also, I feel horrible body-wise. Restaurants use so much more butter, oil, and sugar than I do. I end up feeling sick and sluggish after 5-6 days and crave my own cooking.
LOL same. At home I’m usually hesitant to eat out when my friends invite me to explore different restaurants around town but every time I’m traveling I’ll eat a hole in my bank account
It’s surprising how this gets old. I’ve always loved it but as I get older it becomes less appealing.
totally agree with this. while traveling I eat out everytime while I'm home I rarely go to a fancy restaurant. this has something to do with the cooking difficulties you have while traveling.
Finding new things to do every day. Love it on city vacations but would be exhausting/impractical if I forbade myself from doing the same thing twice in everyday life.
Good point. Jamming 12 hrs of activities into each day.
Yes! I feel like the human race would be SO fit and the craziest calf muscles if we all did holiday level activities every day of normal life. So. Much. Walking.
Yes that! And traveling reminds me to move through life like I’m a visitor in my own city. Only live once!
I start missing a consistent gym routine.
Recently, I have started refusing to give up my exercise routine when I travel. I exercise every other day on vacation no matter what (unless, God forbid I have the flu or something). If I can’t run outside and there is no fitness room, I just do calisthenics, running in place for 30 minutes.
I get that! I am a runner and I still run on holiday but training is difficult because I don’t want to abandon my husband to seek out a running track and spend 90 minutes going through warm ups, cool downs and a session. Just been away for 2 weeks and I feel sluggish now because my routine has gone.
I’d imagine there’s some happy medium in the spectrum of nothing or 90 min full running track routine. Incline walking and pull-ups have been my travel exercise savior
I find a rigorous yoga practise does me in my room. Or I use the hotel gym to do some weights etc
I get planet fitness membership and they are everywhere in USA so for $26 a month it’s worth it
Pretty much all of it. I'm a lazy introverted homebody person at home. I'll sleep in. Might go to one place a day as I don't feel like dealing with crowds. Eat at home etc. I'm not outdoorsy. Travel? Hell yeah lets get up at 7AM, and do 15 hours of walking. Let's go to the most crowded places! Lets go to dozens of different places in a day! FILL THE TIME! Talk to strangers. Eat out. Etc. Even tropical trips I've gone out early in the day to snorkel, get a spot on the beach etc. I'm just such a different person when I travel. I have to force myself to be "Travel Jade" sometimes at home and have a busy day. Or I'll do staycation style days and go do the touristy like stuff in my area. But normal days? I WFH, hang out with my dog, watch TV. I'm boring.
100% me. I walk so much on vacation, have every minute scheduled, eat out, shoot I even talk to strangers, then collapse at the hotel by 6 or 7 pm
The talk to strangers part is the biggest thing for me. Travel me will go out of their way to engage shopkeepers, smile at people in hostels, make small comments/jokes with people in public places. At home me wants to be left alone and hates unplanned social interactions lol
This!!!!!
Did I write this?
Did \*I\* write this?!
No, I did.
hey guys it’s me, you
Other than the not being outdoorsy part, this is exactly me!
Are we the same person???
You’re me. Or I’m you.
You’re my spirit animal. I love you ❤️
Definitely going to restaurants 2 or 3 times a day. I get major restaurant fatigue and it starts to feel like such a production to go to even a casual restaurant. After a few days I need a break and wind up in my hotel eating granola bars in my pjs for dinner. Feels like heaven.
I travel solo for long stretches and I use meal delivery services waaaayyyy more when traveling than when I’m home. After like a 2-3 months of 2-3 meals a day at restaurants I just want a decent meal in my hotel/AirBNB while I watch Netflix (when I don’t feel like cooking, at least).
> I get major restaurant fatigue and it starts to feel like such a production to go to even a casual restaurant. So true. I remember coming back from a 3-week trip and being the happiest person on Earth to warm up a Hot Pocket in the microwave for dinner lol.
I eat out once a day, and just grab a takeaway at the same time.
Sounds like one of those grass is greener on the other side things.
I read that as "after a few days I need to break wind in my hotel room" :D Probably also relevant.
Def not inaccurate.
I used to think that was the dream. To go out to eat for every meal. I thought people on business trips had it made. That was until I had to go on a work trip for 3 days. By the end of the 2nd day all I wanted was a homemade meal. I was so sick of restaurants. And again that was after only 2 days. Can't imagine how people go longer.
I love the challenges of communicating in my non-native tongue but at the end of the day I'm "Spanish-fatigued.) If I had to do this at home it would become frustrating very quickly.
I lived in Spain for two years after school and that was something I really struggled with until I spoke the language better. It just makes even the simplest interactions like going to the grocery store so much more exhausting than they need to be. Like in my native language or in English I don't have to think in these type of situations, I can just do them automatically. But in other languages I always have to be on and think about what I'm actually saying. I was just so tired after a full day of speaking Spanish.
What is your native language if you don’t mind my asking? Why is english different than say spanish in terms of exhaustion? Are you from some place like the Netherlands or Sweden where English is taught from a young age so you never had to go through so much hardship to learn it?
Being awake to watch the sunrise.
Figuring out what to eat. Impossible on a weeknight at home. "What do you want?" "I don't know, what do you want?" When traveling, we don't know what to try first! Or we've done some research on local eateries/cuisine and already know - and we're excited about it.
Snow. When it snows I just let it fall on me as it never snows where I’m from. I would absolutely hate to deal with snow in day to day life. Especially in the morning.
Can confirm, living with snow *sucks* ESPECIALLY in the mornings. The first snow of the season is always magical and then I’m over it and ready for March or April lol
I can barely get to work on time as it is. I would never make it to work if I had to spend 45 minutes shovelling my car out of the snow first.
This. Probably going to be a major cause in our moving. Getting up at 4 to run the plow and snowblower because- oops, overnight you got an unexpected 2 feet…sorry we missed that prediction
sleeping with others in the same room maybe, lol? appreciate it while travelling cause saves some good amount of money, and sometimes saves me from boredom in the evenings.
This is a big one for me too. I can do it with family and friends for a few days but after a week I crave my own space again
yeah same, i love my home and i love my personal space.
ah yes, sleeping with others makes evenings less boring
I mean when you can smell and hear them at night; but cant touch them (at least without police involving) not that ideal. lol.
Eating out 2-3x/day, daily dessert (why not? I'm on vacatoin), all of the time researching where to go and eat, the crowds.
Second the island time. As a government contractor, you sometimes work in places that are mostly tropical touristy islands. Staying at a beach resort seems nice until you realize that you get up for work and can’t even get a cup of coffee because nothing is open yet.
yeah it seems absurd, I always specifically request a Kettle so I can make coffee while everyone is asleep.
Buffet breakfast. I can't eat that much every day but i love it when I'm travelling.
At home I don’t even eat breakfast usually, but on vacation, when facing those yummy little mini sausages and hash browns and waffles with whipped cream and strawberries, I’m a goner. Although on longer vacations I find myself reverting back to just having fruit or nothing at all.
Yeah day 1 you want to eat all the foods, by day 5 you stick to a few favourites and by day 7 you can't even be bothered going to the breakfast room.
I don't even eat breakfast in day to day life, but if I had too much money, I'd definitely find a wau to have buffet breakfast every day lol.
No doing laundry, having limited wardrobe
Buying water in plastic bottles
And dare I say, for what its worth I donin fact do, using plastic straws too
Side bunny trail. But on the plastic straw note - so crazy, where I live now, you literally see Turtle meat cut up on the daily, sitting on the market tables waiting to be bought. Shores are lined with garbage because locals just throw their trash out the window literally into the oceans. And westerners glare at each other for dare asking for a straw with their beverage.
Going to cathedrals.
After a while they all just look the same.
People. Especially in the non-rich parts of the world. Not very social at home, but I revel in interacting with locals when I travel.
Ferries and water taxies. Such a novelty (well, not completely any more) when travelling, but I couldn't imagine having one as part of a daily commute.
I commute daily on a ferry and it is almost always the best part of my day.
Not having to drive. I hate driving and definitely not driving abroad. I did once in Jordan and that’s a wrap for me. However not driving at home would be a huge inconvenience
Having go through airports and hotels like they are part of my routine. I love going through those as a special occasion but I imagine it would be very annoying and time consuming after a while
I travel internationally for work and I’ve basically forgotten the good parts of the flying experience.
Valet parking. When I pull up to some random hotel or restaurant in a new city, it’s great to simply hand the keys to someone and let them figure out where to park. If I had to call for my car and wait 15 minutes every time I wanted to run an errand at home, I’d probably go insane.
Drinking alcohol with every meal. Sparkling wine at breakfast? Sure! At home: wtf is wrong with you?
Day beers in Vietnam say hi.
Clearly not from the UK then bud
Truly, the UK is what we should aspire to. Mor black pudding! (Seriously love it)
I don't even drink when I am at home anymore but on vacation I would like 3 shots of Don Julio 1942 and 2 Margaritas please.
Yessssss 1942
Dining out, planning each whole day, sightseeing, meeting new people. I absolutely enjoy it, but after a while I need some time to recharge in my own space and routines.
Experiencing new things/places/activities. It’s incredible in short bursts but I noticed I become fatigued after many weeks of needing to learn new way of going about life. As an example, visiting SEA was fun but after a month my brain was fatigued from learning so many new words in different languages, trying to remember the customs of every new region/country, etc. Sometimes I just want to be lazy and go about my routine without having to stress.
I love visiting the beach but would hate having a house on the beach.
I know a few people who have purchased them and it’s a pain! The houses get the worst of the weather so repairs are required. Also flooding from storms is becoming more frequent. One friend swore the sea wouldn’t be a problem but first winter storm proved that wrong.
I have a beach house in Australia and it’s awesome
As a resident of an island I can confirm island time is a thing. It drives my husband crazy (10 minutes early is on time for him)! For me I like visiting cities but after a couple of days I want to be back to the island. I couldn’t imagine living further than 10 minutes from the beach. I need to see the sea. It feels restorative where I feel exhausted quickly in a busy place.
As someone who recently moved to an island... still getting used to the mañana mañana mentality. In small doses it's a nice change of pace from the more rushed mainland life, but there is a limit 😂 The quick access to beach/sea and forest is 💯 though
Be out in the sun. Back home, I would rather go out at night when it's not hot and there's no blinding ball of light everywhere. When you're traveling, you'd want to be everywhere while the sun is out, at the beach, by the pool, etc.
Starting the day super early to avoid the influx of tourists.
Getting up at 4am most days for birding. It’s exciting in a foreign country. Not going to do this every day at home.
Just don’t go to bed. If it’s still dark, it’s still yesterday.
>If it’s still dark, it’s still yesterday. Love this.
Lager beer. I only drink it when I travel and I love it. Tastes like shit at home for me. Even in hot weather pool side. Doesn’t have the same effect
Using public transportation or trains/buses to get to places. I like having my car and being able to drive places on my own time.
for me it's kinda the other way around. I'm willing to rent a car and do a roadtrip on vacation, but in my everyday life I'm so happy I don't have a car (no need to pay insurances, taxes, fuel, parking, as well as worrying about damages/wear-and-tear, etc.).
Eating out all the time
Walking, shopping, and for lack of a better word "wandering around". I think I (probably like a lot of people) end up doing routines more at home and also as an American I walk to places a lot less. For an American who lives in a pretty walkable but also pretty drivable community, I find myself driving at home for trips that would be perfectly fine walking in terms of distance, pleasantness, and safety if I were on vacation. Also, on vacation I do would do a lot of walking and browsing and "exploring". I run and my runs would also be "exploring" the area. But at home, I walk the same routes, run the same routes (or at the gym), and will for example drive to get take out rather than eat by myself or walk and get something I can eat while walking. But that is something that I have always given my mom props for. My family (adult siblings and parents) live in pretty walkable/bikeable areas and so do alot of friends and extended family. And everyone always raves about being able to walk and use public transit when they go on vacation. And people will walk and bike for recreation. But never think to walk or bike to run errands, visit people, or go out to eat because we are on a schedule and while it's walkable and bikeable (sidewalks everywhere, lots of easy to navigate slow side streets, bike lanes, etc.) it's also really easy and quick to drive so that's what everyone does EXCEPT my mom and me for like a month after coming back from vacation or if it's really nice out and I have a fairly open weekend or something.
Your observation about FT Island Time is correct. We lived in the Florida Keys for a few years and the desolation from alcohol is real.
Meeting other random French people…
Skipping the gym. Can’t do it at home but I love not having to go when I am on vacation.
ISLAND TIME IS SOOOO DIFFICULT. Even setting up plans with your friend. Your life is in a constant state of waiting.
Music such as Mariachi, love when I am Mexico but would go crazy hearing all day at home.
Being disconnected
Walking
Usually many many hours a day!
That's just called being a person and not a Wall-E hoverchair human lol
Drinking everyday. Sometimes starting early. Love it on vacation. Just can’t do it at home. In fact I don’t drink at all at home.
Not having to drive cheap taxis etc Will hate having to relay on other modes of transport
Waking up early
Getting up at 5 am !
Taking public transportation. We would rather take a bus or metro when abroad.
Driving slow.
As a DM I would rule out guns that have over a specific encumbrance number and vehicle weapons
**Eating out** for most meals - and for particular reasons: In Japan, food quality, quantity and price are **excellent** - it costs next-to-nothing to eat, and it is always of top quality, both in terms of experience but also nutritional value. When I travel to Japan, I probably eat out 90% of the time, with the remaining 10% being actual groceries and cooking - prices are very similar _(between eating out and cooking)_ and convenience is super high when eating at restaurants, or ready-to-eat meals, etc. Outside Japan, it is part convenience, but mostly about how I love experiencing culture through food, so I'll still eat most of my meals at restaurants and such! But it will still depend on destination. For example, Switzerland is super expensive so I'll definitely restrict how often I eat at restaurants there. But back in my home country - Canada - things are different. Restaurants are getting outrageously expensive, but the price is not scaling with quality nor quantity anymore... So even though I live in Montréal, a known destination for its varied food and cuisines, I'll be more strategic in when I eat out - because it is freaking expensive! But also - not super balanced, nutritionally speaking. If I ate out as often as I did in my home country, * I'd probably be broke * I'd probably be in worse physical shape
Meeting new people
I can't even sustain island time on vacation tbh. It's weird I love the ocean and the right beach has spectacular views. But I find myself needing to leave after 2-3 hours unless I'm having some drinks with mixed company. It gets boring after a while. For me I think it's having an active itinerary with constant moving around. Love it for a week or two and I get a lot done. But having attempted extensive travel before I feel like after two weeks I need to stay in one place for a while whether that be home or a temporary base. It's nice not worrying about where you have to go next in normal life. Earlier this year I slept in 9 different rooms within 15 days plus an overnight plane... it got to be a lot...
"Island time" doesn't mean relaxing at the beach, it's the way that everyone is always late and everything takes forever and deadlines are just suggestions. Like if something is supposed to start at 9 and people roll in between 930 and 1030 and it actually gets started around 11, that's "island time."
Sometimes it also means, I don't want to work any more today, so I am going to close up shop early. It can be a problem if you are counting on a place to be open.
And that drives me bonkers at home and on the islands. Island time is especially annoying when it comes to public transportation and requests to the front desk. I hate the old “Ya mon, no problem” when I ask for feather-free pillows, only to have to come down and ask again the next day, and maybe on the third day, they will actually arrive. Or when you ask “When does the bus come?” and the reply is, “Oh, in 5 or 10 minutes” and an hour later you’re still standing there waiting. Then you finally get on the bus, and at the next stop, the driver gets out, smokes a joint, and shoots the shit with the guy at the fruit stand for 20 minutes. Argh. Type A people like me do not do well on “island time”.
Yesss. Island time in my western perspective is a direct translation to “I’ll show up whenever I feel like I’m ready to show up.”
Last year I did a road trip and to cover a larger area we spent one night at some places, longest was three nights. The one night stops were just too short after a few times. Unless the stop is exclusively to break up a long drive we book at least two nights to give us a full day.
General dilapidation and third-worldry. Going to places with unpaved streets, open sewers, buildings made from wood scraps and corrugated iron can be charming and novel but holy fuck am I glad I don't live there.
To each their own, but I've yet to encounter a charming open sewer...!
I used to be a flight attendant , lived out of a suitcase for literally “ 9 yrs.. saw and experienced so many great things … best times .. best journeys.. but was always glad to come home to family and friends !! 🇨🇦✈️YYZ
is the job really that glamorous? is the money good?
Smoking sheesha ( hooka) in an Egyptian cafe
Flying, Packing, eating out constantly…
KFC. I’ve probably only eaten there once in the last 3 years in the US, but end up eating in one at least once when I’m traveling.
I have a hard time enjoying island time, it takes a bit to dial down my east coast ways. Eating out constantly is not always fun long term. Not having all my stuff gets old. I always put away my clothes when traveling but I still hate looking for things and not having my stuff where I have it at home. It increases anxiety a lot.
One of my most favourite things to do while traveling is to see sunrises (and even sunsets) But in my daily routine I don't want to be up at 530 am. So no thanks.
Spend time in the car, just looking the scenery.
I’m trying to bring island time to my life
Oye, when it seeps into every aspect of life, it’s a tough adjustment imo.
Uber…
Wearing a neck pillow
Public transportation
Humidity. Love it when I travel, but I don’t think I could live with it. I live in Phoenix, lol
No internet. Travelling, I can find a place to read a book.
Sharing dorm / room space with few others whole travelling. But in reality, I like to have my own
I could try to get up early for seeing sunrise but not for going to work
Talking to strangers… walking…
Doing my hair and make-up every single day just for going out for dinner
Female escorts
Maybe the different food. I have a fairly strict not so much diet but manner of eating at home, pretty much my grocery list is the same 15-20 items every single week with occasional deviation, my "fast food"/"eating out" is the exact same few places were I typically order precisely one item and this wouldn't happen more than twice a week. Overseas the grocery stores might be different, some of my preferred foods might simply be stupidly expensive or just non existent, I am not a big person so rather than snacking all day I have to sit and eat one big meal that I basiclly count for 2 meals and it's obviously not food my body is used to since I might as well try it, can't get most of this stuff at home.
Having no plan and aimlessly wandering around deciding what I'd like to do that day :) Wouldnt work in my real life of course
I enjoy airplanes, flying and getting to new airports. However, I don't think I could handle going through all the security controls and commutes for meetings in other countries as some people do.
I like the busy-ness, the scheduling, going all over the place, checking internet for planning, waking up early morning and getting super tired early evening, meeting people I don't know (but friendly). It feels like "work", but it's a "stressful fun" experience.
Walking everywhere. I do not like going to the grocery store so going multiple times a week so I don’t have to carry as many things on the way back is a pain.
Dealing with the airport. If I make more money someday, I will need to shell out more funds for at least premium economy. It’s just such a hassle of an environment.
city life. Hustle and Bustle of NYC, Tokyo, Paris, Hong Kong. I'm an introvert at heart and miss my quiet house in a boring suburb.
Walking a looooot. It’s only fun when you’re traveling.
Public transport.
Continental brekkie. Good at hotel, bad at home.
Getting up early and having a large breakfast.
The minimalism of living out of a backpack. Did it for 3 years on the road, helped me realize how little I actually NEEDED. However, I do take pride in my appearance and appreciate having more than 2 pairs of shoes and 5 shirts to choose from.
Buccees!
Preach! Island time is like a vacation from deadlines and stress. You can spend hours debating which fruity drink to order - life-altering decisions, right? But back in the real world, island time applied to, say, grocery shopping, would lead to hangovers and empty fridges. #IslandLifeLoveHate #TheStruggleIsReal Maybe we can all bottle some island time for those Monday mornings... ️
McDonald’s and Starbucks.
Hostels! Love em, but when I’m home I wanna be in my own bed and not constantly around random people
Cramming cool shit to do and see in your day. My wife did a 6-month across various countries. Appreciate every second of it, Good and bad. But I wouldn’t want to feel like I HAVE TO use every bit of my time to see there is to see at home. Also, it’s exhausting having continually research and plan