Many experienced and novice travelers subscribe to set of misconceptions and notions that have circulated over time. For new travelers, these common myths may prevent them from taking their first real voyage. Those hardened road warriors may find it hard to change their ways over time.
These some of the biggest misconceptions about traveling and their underlying truths.
- Traveling Is Expensive – The question I always ask to people who say this is, more expensive than what? Make the effort to find the best deals – don’t rely only on online travel agents like FareCompare and Kayak, many deals are tucked away on the airline’s own websites. Remember that flying is not the only way to travel as well. Seek out cheap domestic destinations, or visit places where the dollar is strong.
- A night out on the town including dinner and drinks can easily run you about $100, whereas an all inclusive short trip international trip with hotel, flight, and breakfast included averages $400 for 3 nights.
- Flying Is The Only Way To Travel – You can reduce the cost of most trips by accumulating some extra vacation time the smart way, then taking the extra time to travel by train, bus, ship, or a combination of them. You’ll be able to enjoy the journey without the stress of long security lines, major delays, tiny toilets and crying babies.
- Wednesday Nights Are The Best Time To Buy Tickets – Even I’ve believed in this myth for a long time. As UpgradeTravelBetter writes, most expired travel reservations are not released on Wednesday nights. In addition, the prices for held reservations are generally not that low to begin with. In the end, airlines generally do their best to push these prices on to consumers when they can.
- Buy as far in advance as you can if you have specific travel dates and use FareCompare before buying last minute.
- Traveling Must Be Bad For The Environment – You can do like the Germans do and stay close to home, or act like it when you get to that far away place. There are 33 fun ways to keep your travels green and learn about the world around you. Mix you international trips with domestic ones, be creative and use public transportation.
- Europe Is The Only Place To Go – Many new and old travelers tend to focus their plans on Europe. While the continent is a treasure of cultural, natural, and historical landmarks, it’s not the only hip place to see. There are more than 8 places in the world worth seeing and shouldn’t be scared to go to. Don’t forget all of the other continents and central America too.
- This myth goes hand-in-hand with the belief that it’s dangerous to leave your home country. Readers I leave this one up to you in the comments.
- A Trip Less Than 3 Days Isn’t Worth It – Everyone has taken a sick day from work to enjoy some personal time and 3 days is a good amount of time to see even the most far off places. Travel during the week to save money and time if you’ll be flying, look into taking the train so you can enjoy the view as you go, or meet a friend who lives in another city half way in between for an adventure.
- I’ve gone from the east coast of the US to London for 3 days, and the Philippines for 4 just as two examples. Sometimes we can’t stay longer for many reasons, you’re trip may be even more eventful as you make every moment a quality one.
There are certainly more myths and legends that we’ve all gathered and heard when we’re on the road or planning that next trip. I’ll be writing about how to enjoy long layovers and travel delays in the next few days, but I’d like to hear some other common travel myths from you in the comments.
[photo by: Daniel Schwabe]
