*This article is free from all forms of artificial intelligence chatbot utilization*

We all love a vacation, right? An escape from the mundane and a glorious break from the fucking stress and anxiety of the day-to-day rat race. 

Let’s be honest- in this modern life, we don’t just love vacations, we need them to stay somewhat sane.

A tourist usually hits the sightseeing highlights via organized tours/experiences, sleeps in chain hotels, eats familiar food from home, captures photos of cultural stereotypes, and loads up on souvenirs that were actually made in China.

However, there is an alternative (and generally cheaper) way to vacation that not only checks the boxes of creating memories, finding relaxation and having fun, but also simultaneously enhances our mind and upgrades valuable life skills to deploy back home.

 

First things first: What is culture-focused traveling?

Culture-focused traveling, also known as adventure travel, is a conscious effort to immerse into the local lifestyle as much as possible during our short visit.

This usually involves spending money at local restaurants or street food instead of eating at the inflated tourist traps, and choosing more communal lodging options rather than generic chains. 

This experience shops at local markets, learns the public transit, and asks the locals of what they like to do, to see, to eat, and so on.

With that definition, here are 3 ways that culture-focused travel enhances the most valuable life skills for success back home:

 

 

Slight changes in booking can open up incredible social opportunities

When it comes to lodging, research areas of your international destination or even domestic location that seem intriguing to your particular interests. Then book at least 50% of your vacation at a hostel or airbnb or guesthouse.

Hostels have long outgrown their ridiculous stereotype of being a hub for abduction and a place to party until you shit yourself.

In most developed countries today, hostels have evolved into modern, trendy establishments that offer a variety of options catering to all ages from shared rooms to private rooms. 

Choosing half of your stay at a multi-room airbnb or guesthouse or hostel will intersect your journey with other travelers from all over the world.

This engagement is incredible! You will learn so much before even leaving the grounds of your sleeping headquarters.

Not only will you expand your global networking but you may even form some close friendships.

Be sure not to pre-book too many activities and experiences before leaving for your trip. Leave open a few “flex” days or partial days because your new lodging acquaintances may recommend something worthwhile.

Even better, they may be heading somewhere that sounds amazing and you’re invited to join!

Choosing to book at least part of our trip at a communal lodging environment strengthens our communication skills and worldview in ways that will benefit our day to day social interactions back home.

And by not pre-booking too many tours or experiences beforehand opens the door to exercising adaptability, discipline, yet also spontaneity, which are very attractive merits to potential employers and life partners.

 

 

Seek local advice and impress yourself

No one knows their city better than those dwelling there. But locals tend to stay away from heavy tourist areas.

Research districts or neighborhoods just outside the touristy zones and wander into their lifestyle.

Pop into a local bakery or coffee shop. Maybe ask someone there of a good place to eat in the area. Locals love a foreigner that takes an interest in their interests. Find a transit station and ask a local what route will get you to your lunch destination. Once at lunch, ask your server where they like to go to socialize with their friends.

Do you see how this domino effect works? 

Now it’s true that today many of these answers or solutions can be solved on a smart phone. But if you limit the technology as much as you can and just simply ask, several things naturally begin occurring:

• You’ve broken any walls of self-doubt and fear and stretched your communication skills to a new frontier. Even if a language barrier is present, you’d be surprised how few of words can get the information you need.
• You’re deciphering street signs in a different language. You’re analyzing subway routes and distances. You make a wrong turn maybe, but you ask a friendly face and find your way again. You’re piecing together a lot of new information in real time. Our problem solving skills go on steroids in moments like these.
• You’re trying new foods. You’re moving through an unfamiliar environment. You’re experiencing incredible hidden gems (perhaps from your lunch server’s suggestions) on side streets and alleys. Our adaptability and resilience skills hit a threshold that triggers pride and a lasting addiction for autonomy. 

 

Switching from a tourist to a culture-focused traveler not only provides opportunities to impress ourselves, but to truly create a standard of self-confidence that will inspire our world back home.  

 

 

Experiencing collectivism becomes the ultimate souvenir 

The more that we can immerse into someone else’s lifestyle and culture the more that we see that despite being from different worlds, we are not so different from each other.

Stepping outside of the tourist bubble reveals familiar realities of homelessness, inequality, racism, political tension, pollution, crime, and other universal social issues.

In conversing with locals it quickly becomes clear that just like us, they simple get up everyday and go to work to keep a roof over their head, food on the table, and to provide the best existence they can for those that they love most.

This cross-cultural vulnerability shows the unbreakable bond of collectivism between our species.

In addition, this beautiful connection ignites arguably one of the most valuable soft skills to implement into our daily life back home- empathy.

You may find that conversation with a local resident or even with someone from your communal lodging might sound similar to this:

“Oh wow, I always thought that your country (or city, or culture) was more like ______ . I didn’t realize I was way off.”

or…

“I hear about a lot about ______ in our media back home about this country (or city), but what is it really like?”

These are small example of the kind of engagement that occurs as a culture-focused traveler. Any prejudice or assumption gets eliminated. There is almost a guarantee that along with beefing up your empathy, you’ll witness your critical thinking skills grow and your worldview substantially expanded. 

This undoubtedly molds a more fine tuned version of you to navigate your diverse society back home. 

 

 

You may be thinking, “How can culture-focused traveling just a few days, a week at most, change me that much?!“

These short trips simply awaken dormant personality traits.

Each time that we culture-travel we apply anti-rust grease to our skill sets. Each vacation becomes a trip to an open-ended gym for cognitive exercise. 

Studies show that the most important merits (also known as soft skills) to potential employers, life partners, and organizations are resilience, critical thinking, problem solving, adaptability, teamwork/communication, empathy, and discipline.

Traveling for work builds discipline and teamwork/communication.

Traveling as a tourist will tone adaptability and maybe a little of critical thinking.

But traveling as culture-focused visitor most definitely boosts resilience, critical thinking, problem solving, adaptability, teamwork/communication and empathy.

So the next time that you plan a domestic or international vacation, give the latter a go and invest in yourself in a way that keeps giving long after the suitcases are unpacked.