10 New Year’s Resolutions for Travellers
Another year has rocketed by and New Year’s 2015 has snuck up on us – just like New Year’s tends to do every year!
We’ve put together a list of the top 10 New Year’s resolutions for travellers to give you some inspiration for a rewarding and travel-rich 2015. What would you add to this list? Let us know what your number one resolution is in the comments below!
Book a trip to volunteer overseas
Combining volunteer work with travel offers a rewarding, culturally immersive way to make a real difference. We recommend taking some time to research nonprofits that seek to fill specific volunteer roles that align with your skills and interests. Often it can pay off to avoid mainstream options and instead select a smaller grassroots organization. Caitlin Boros describes her firsthand experience with The Olive Branch for Children in Tanzania here.
Organize those photo albums
We’re all guilty. Cameras, computers and USB sticks full of unsorted, unlabelled photos in the thousands. We know it can be daunting to handle such an unwieldy collection, but the sooner you do, the easier it will be. Buy a large external hard drive as a central storage hub and make it your goal to get rid of at least 50% of those duplicates before transferring any. Organizing your folders by date and location will help you find exactly what you’re looking for later on.
Fuel your inspiration with a travel magazine subscription
We’ll admit it: we’re print lovers. There’s just no substitute for leafing through the glossy pages of a travel magazine, and the excitement opening your physical mailbox to find one waiting for you. One of our all-time favourites is National Geographic Traveler, which combines astute observation and storytelling with award-winning photography.
Create a physical memento of your next big trip
Don’t relegate those life-changing travel memories to the dark abyss of your jumbled hard drive. Next time you travel, make a mental note to actually print your favourite shots and save some token objects along the way (train tickets, napkins, gift bags, etc.). If you don’t trust your scrapbooking skills, you can easily create your own professionally printed photo book on blurb.com/booksmart. This year, share your memories intimately and tangibly with friends and family, and reminisce in a way that feels more real than staring at a computer screen.
Learn a new language
Travelling offers the perfect chance to immerse yourself in a new language and culture. Practice before you set out: buy a dual-language dictionary, phrase book, or conversation exercise book. Armed with the confidence to converse in the local language is the best way to experience what all the tourists are missing. Perfect your new skills by joining an ongoing language course once you return home. If you’re struggling to decide which language to learn, check out MIT’s interactive visualization of how languages are interconnected.
Try out a new medium to document your adventures
If you’re a writer, pick up a camera. If you’re a photographer, why not try video? Or podcasting? On your next trip, dabble in a medium that is not your forte. Experimenting with new creative ways to capture your travels can help you expand your perspectives and discover new ways to experience and remember the world.
Help preserve the world you love
If you care an ounce for the planet you live on, consider donating (time or money) to a nonprofit to support conservation and sustainability this year. The Waterkeeper Alliance advocate for swimmable, drinkable, fishable waterways all over the world, and the well known World Wildlife Fund supports conservation of both species and natural environments. If preserving history and culture is important to you, check out Anew Traveller’s UNESCO mission.
Use those Air Miles you’ve been saving
Don’t have the funds for that big trip you’ve always wanted to take? Consider putting your hard-earned points towards a trip that would be financially prohibitive otherwise. You’ve worked (read: spent) diligently in order to clock up those points – you deserve to treat yourself!
Embrace spontaneity strategically
Some of the best and most memorable moments happen when we’re least expecting them. Introduce some strategic spontaneity into your routine this year to ensure you’re leaving room for unplanned experiences. Book your trip without a fixed itinerary or make your plans flexible enough to change if an exciting new opportunity presents itself. Often, following your nose off the beaten track is where you will make those travel memories that last a lifetime.
Learn when to lower the camera lens
We live in a world of hyper-documentation where we can miss the experience in front of us in service of trying to capture a way to remember it. This year, learn to recognize those times when you should lower the lens and fully engage in your environment. In the words of John Mayer:
Didn’t have a camera by my side this time // Hoping I would see the world with both my eyes…
Happy New Year from all of us at Anew Traveller!
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