When I first started expressing a want to travel full time, I got a slew of people responding with “but you can’t just be on vacation all the time,” and it got me thinking. And the truth is, my life is not a vacation—far from it! Just because you are in a different place than your “home” doesn’t necessarily mean you’re vacationing. This idea was solidified when I visited Thailand with GIVE Volunteers, and my guide, Mike, asked us what the difference was between a vacation and travel during a discussion of responsible tourism.
Because the thing is, there are vast differences in these types of tourism. What I do on the day to day is extremely different than what I used to do as a teenager when my family and I would take a week long trip to Hawaii in the summer. And there’s nothing wrong with either type of tourism—they’re just different, and they’re for different people.
Glacier National Park, MT, USA
What is a vacation?
Many people confuse any type of travel with being on vacation because that’s what’s become normal in the classic 9-5 lifestyle. For many people, the only times they get to travel at all are for vacations: breaks from work and the normal life they live at home. A vacation is just that: a break. During a vacation, many people will get a resort hotel room, and center their trip around relaxing. Or, some people will take to adventure sports, exploring, cooking classes, museums, etc, but the thing is, it’s still their way to unwind and relax after a year of working hard.
Ba Kao Lam, Thailand
Why is full time travel not a vacation?
When you travel full time, your whole life becomes exploring new places. It becomes as normal as the hobbies you would have at home, like hiking, beachgoing, or yoga. The difference is that, we are doing these things in new locations all the time. For my personal full time travel lifestyle, travel also includes working multiple jobs from my computer (this platform being one of them), cleaning my house (well, van), walking the dog, grocery shopping, and all those things you do at home. The only thing is that we’re getting groceries from different stores as we move along, and walking our dog on different trails every day. We aren’t taking a break from anything—life is still happening as normal, just on the road.
Sop Chem, Laos
The Realities of Vanlife
I wrote a whole piece about this recently, but the thing is, people tend to romanticize traveling full time as a dream lifestyle, but I think the reason for that is that they associate travel with vacations. The reality is, I sit down for hours a day, working on projects for my personal platform, and for clients, to be able to fund this lifestyle from the road. It’s not easy, and it’s certainly not glamorous, but I also wouldn’t trade it for the world.
Conscious Travel
There has also been a lot of talk recently about responsible tourism. This is something I’ve talked about a lot on here, but I think the thing is, when you think of exploring a new place as purposeful travel versus a passive vacation, you might find yourself traveling more consciously, truly learning about the places you’re visiting, and making a connection with that land. Of course, you can do this while vacationing too! All I’m saying is to leave the resort for a bit, try to experience a new culture, and remember, travel is the best way to connect with the world.