5 Tips to Travel Abroad

Tips to Travel Abroad:

1. Keep an open mind

Learn how to value other customs and lifestyles that are different than yours. Listen to opinions you disagree with. Don’t assume that only your way of thinking is valid. Try to understand, to be compassionate, and to put yourself in other people’s shoes.

Accept other possibilities, opportunities and people. You’ll end up learning a lot.

2. Try Not to Go to the Typical Tourist Attractions

Explore places that are difficult to reach. Camps and beaches that aren’t typically visited and packed with tourists. When you travel abroad, visit what you really like, take the time to walk around the city to simply get lost in the pedestrian passages and local markets. Don’t be a part of those who think that going to Paris and not seeing the Mona Lisa is like not having gone to Paris at all.

Make your trip a unique experience for you, and make sure it has specific goals to explore your own interests and yearning to learn.

3. Say Yes Like Never Before

Going out of your comfort zone will help you enrich your life. I know that some of us have the need to plan everything out with zero possibility of going to places you wouldn’t typically visit. However, it’s very hard to have everything planned when abroad, everything is entirely new there!

Say yes to invitations to eat at somebody’s house, to take part in sharing traditional food, culture, and places you know nothing of. When you travel abroad these unplanned situations are precisely the ones that end up being some of the best adventures on the trip. In these articles, you’ll find useful phrases in Italian and filler words in Spanish for traveling and socializing to meet new people and make new friends.

4. Identify Different Cultures

It’s important to learn to identify and respect differences in the cultures you experience abroad, even if they may be quite hard for you to accept. Be careful of your body language and gestures, and don’t assume that all cultures shake hands when people greet. Some cultures/persons are very aware of their personal space and feel uncomfortable when shaking hands, hugging or kissing when greeting; some might even feel uncomfortable when you talk close to them.

For instance, don’t take it personally if a Colombian shows up one hour late to your meeting place. They simply don’t view this as an insult, and it’s very common for them to arrive late.

5. Keep in Constant Contact With Your Family and Friends Back Home

Send emails to your parents and loved ones. Keep them up to date with everything happening in your life and tell them when you arrive to your destination or when you are thinking of coming home.

Remember your closest friends and surprise them by sending a postcard with a scenic background that meant a lot to you during your trip. Go to local markets and buy handmade products to bring back home to your parents and friends, these make great gifts and help the local economy.

We’d like to know more of your experiences when traveling abroad! Each person’s travels are different and unique, as well as the lessons they have learned along the way. If you have any other tips for getting the most out of your travel trips, please feel free to share them with us in the comment section below!