More and more travelers want to make real connections with local culture, and they’re doing it by slowing down. Slow traveling leads to richer, more connective, and authentic travel experiences.
Slow travel means taking time when you travel to experience one place for longer, experiencing more of the local culture first-hand, rather than in a quick tour.
Slow traveling involves first-hand interaction with people who live there by making personal connections with them rather than an interpretation of an experience through a third-party guide.
Slow travel highlights supporting the local economy, eating local foods, and even staying overnight with or dining with residents.
Slow travel tends to be independent travel or in small-group slow travel tours, off-the-beaten paths, or away from heavily traveled tourist zones.
Europe has become a popular destination for slow travel experiences of all kinds including slow food tours, camping, glamping, and other slow travel opportunities, though it’s catching on around the world.
Certain destinations lend themselves to traveling slowly if they are remote and/or away from heavily traveled tourist zones.
For example, Costa Rica has become one of the world’s most popular ecotourism destinations, but to travel slowly you might try a road trip to the northern Volcano region or a visit to the remote Osa peninsula where few travelers other than nature lovers venture.
A cultural homestay is a great way to be creative with your accommodations for a slower travel experience. Just as cycling tours through any destination are a great way to slow down and experience a place, peddling from town to town, neighborhood to neighborhood, or out in the countryside.
It not only connects you to nature for a while, but it puts you in a much better position to meet some locals, maybe chat for a while, or just see them going about their day.
We all love bringing home a tangible reminder or two of our travels, the reminders of the adventures we’ve had and the chances we’ve taken.
Buying locally-produced products and other items to take home is part of being a slow traveler.
Florence is known for the exquisite leather goods they have produced for centuries, and you can be immediately drawn to the leather vendors in the popular San Lorenzo market.
Slow travel gives you better access to the local people and opportunities to see the world through their eyes. One is more likely to see parts of town where locals live when they travel slowly.
Interacting with people at the market, on their way home from work or school, or simply strolling in quieter neighborhoods offer glimpses into the way people live.
Spending more time in one place leaves you feeling more aware, conscious, and purposeful in your travel. You get to know a place much better than if you stayed just a short time. Slowing down renews your mind and spirit in ways you might not expect and enriches the experience you have.
Tags: Travel, travel slowly, slow travel
