When it comes to travel snobbery, nothing beats the ol’ Traveller vs Tourist debate…which camp do you fall in? Can you claim allegiance to both? Does it really matter? Travellers are better than tourists right?!? Tourists are the ones with bum bags (fanny packs for those weirdos out there who require a translation), tube socks, hold a map and have cameras hanging around their necks…right, wrong?!?…or are they the ones in the floppy hats and dresses that are constantly twirling around the world on instagram?! I’m totally confused.
So I put the Traveller vs Tourist question out to some of my favourite bloggers and asked for their opinion on the whole debate and to find out how they label themselves!
Anna from Penelope & Parker Travels
I think that I must be a tourist and not a traveller. I think a traveller is ‘on the road’ for longer and has taken a decision to travel as much as they can. A tourist is someone making the most of their annual leave entitlement and seeing somewhere new on short term adventures. But I think there are different types of tourist too. I am the sort that does research, plans my own trips, seeks out hidden gems and seeing as much of the ‘real’ country as possible. I’m a bit of a tourist snob – I am more than happy to walk around with a guide-book or map but I like to see somewhere quiet so early starts to avoid the crowds are de rigeur. This type of touristing is very different to the people I see on holiday and cringe about – the type that don’t want to embrace a country’s culture, give something back by going local or see anything more than the grounds of their hotel.
Tanja from The Red Phone Box Travels
What am I? A traveller or a tourist? I proudly embrace both labels but at the same time I prefer to call myself a traveller, not just a tourist. Why? Let me explain it briefly. I love travelling. Travelling is almost essential to me as much as breathing. You cannot live without breathing, right? And so I cannot imagine my life without travelling. I spend my money, my time, my thoughts, my feelings on travel. There’s never a second choice for me: travel always wins.
In my mind tourists are those who enjoy travel and who usually travel with a group, through a travel agency. They rarely investigate hotel deals or spend hours searching for the best airline fares nor do they make a plan of what they are going to do/see/eat/experience in a city/country on their own.Travel is an occasional pastime for them and even though they love it they don’t necessarily choose it over a new kitchen or other worldly possessions.
Therefore I think of myself as a traveller. But at the same time I’m also and will always be a tourist. Whether I’m visiting a city/country for a weekend, a week, a month or even for a longer period I’m only there briefly, passing through and no matter how much I try to fit in I’ll never be a part of that city/society because I have a home to go back to. I’m not moving to another country; I’m just visiting it. And that’s what tourists do. They visit another country/city to see its highlights and hidden gems for enjoyment purposes only. And to learn of course. At least some of them do.
So I am a traveller and a tourist.
There seems to be a strange crevasse between the labels “traveller” and “tourist” – does it even really matter as long as you’re happy? After all both labels suggest a yearning to experience and immerse themselves in a world different from their own. We have discovered that we love a combination of both – see all of the main sights and interests, then catch a bit of sunshine exploring the secrets at the end of winding lanes.
Traveller or tourist? Personally I answer to both. I don’t consider one ‘better’ than the other in any way – anyone with a love of travel is a good guy in my book!
I consider myself a traveller because I like to travel often and immerse myself in a new place by trying local food, exploring away from the main sites and talking to the locals. But I’ll also almost always have my phone in my hand ready to take photos and have a guidebook popping out of my bag – the signs of a tourist, many people would say!
And yes, as much as I love just soaking in the ambience of town or city I also have a limited amount of time and want to see the main sites – so in that sense I consider myself a tourist too. These ‘tourist traps’ are popular for a reason you know!
I get that term tourist can have negative connotations to it these days – thanks to low cost travel more people than ever before are in a position to visit new places, which means the most popular, beautiful sites can be inundated with visitors. I totally understand that for locals that can be frustrating (I regularly get people rage myself!) but we must remember that these are people interested in learning about a new destination’s history and culture. And that’s a good thing.
So, tourist or traveller, call me what you will. It’s not going to change how or why I travel, so stick whatever label you want on me, I won’t notice because I’ll be too busy out exploring our wonderful world…
Personally I really hate the ‘be a traveller not a tourist’ mentality. In fact, I’m not really sure what people really mean when they say that. Travel is such a subjective thing and to shame people for not travelling the same way as ourselves completely defeats the object of travelling in the first place to me. Whether you stay in that 5* chain hotel or spend a night with a host family, visit the guidebook top ten or shun the big attractions altogether the only thing that matters is that you’re having the best experience you can. As long as I’m doing my best to travel responsibly, learn a little of the local language and respect the culture I’m have absolutely no shame labelling myself as a tourist!
Jessi from Two Feet, One World
I really struggle with the traveller vs tourist debate – can I just call myself an adventurer instead? I hate the vainglorious idea of labelling oneself as a “traveller” with the attendant notions of slipping effortlessly from culture to culture, finding amazing spots down back alleys, dealing with all manner of transport issues with ease. But nor can I identify as a “tourist” wholeheartedly, with the picture of a loud, iPad-toting, chain restaurant eating visitor that it denotes to me.
In reality, these are just two extreme stereotypes. In actual fact I think what everyone calls themselves will be personal and down to their perception of the term they use. I like to think of myself as an adventurer who makes an effort to discover the culture of a place (often first through food!) and learn what I can about the history and politics of a destination in the time I’m there. But you won’t find me turning up my nose at an activity or landmark, just because it’s known to be a “tourist attraction” – often these places are popular for a reason, because they’re awesome! At the end of the day it’s a waste of time worrying too much about labels… I think it’s better to just enjoy your travels, however you define them.
Traveller or tourist? I think I’m somewhere in between. While I couldn’t possibly visit a place without seeing the iconic sites associated with it, I equally can’t face long queues, crowded places and over-priced restaurants serving bad food. For me, that’s the great thing about luxury travel, you can get insider access to the top tourist attractions and avoid all the pit falls associated with them. For example, being the first to enter Macchu Pichu before the coaches turn up, entering the Vatican in the evening once everyone else is gone and private behind the scenes access to the Sydney Opera house. Luxury travel also affords the opportunity for private guides, giving you insider access to local knowledge rather than being stuck in a huge tour group where you can’t hear the guide or ask any questions!
In terms of restaurants, I strictly avoid the one on the main streets. It’s the ones off the beaten track that are the most special, often found by local recommendation, blogs or the hotel concierge in the know.
Ah, the traveller vs tourist debate. If you ask me, they’re just two words that mean the same thing; if you ask the travel blogosphere, there’s a huge divide. Firstly, I wish we could stop coming up with these artificial constructs to beat each other over the head with, because the last thing that blogging needs is more cliques.
I am a sufferer of extreme sonderlust, so when I travel somewhere I love to pretend I live there. I like to visit supermarkets, eat local food, get around like locals do (whether that’s metro, ferry or tuk tuk) and generally try to avoid the crowds at the major sights.
All that said, I’m never under the illusion that I actually blend in. I never think I’m going to be mistaken for a local, nor even that my experiences would even approach what life as a local is like. I am most certainly a tourist – I’m even a tourist in my own backyard on a regular basis.
I’m increasingly coming to the conclusion that this whole “I’m a traveller not a tourist” thing is just a way for people to make themselves feel better about their privilege. Oh, well, yes I might have a lot more money and opportunity than the people whose country I’m snapping away at with my expensive DSLR. But it’s ok; I’m a traveller. I understand their culture. I empathise with their lives. I donate to charity, don’t you know.
Because you never hear of travellers in developed countries, do you?
The whole traveller vs tourist debate annoys the hell out of me. I see myself as a tourist and I’m happy with that label as the shoe seriously fits! Mostly all my trips are to see some exotic tourist attraction and that’s why most of us travel; albeit a very small majority that may just travel to buy shoes in France or head to Italy to buy their favourite gluten free pasta. I should point out that I do go vintage occasionally and pull out the old paper map (normally when I don’t have free 3G abroad) and there’s no shame in it…locals have approached me to point out things that they consider a local gem when they see the map (my wallet didn’t get stolen!) and you can normally spot me wearing jeans, a t-shirt, a sunhat and birkies…my appearance screams tourist but I don’t give a toss as that’s what I am, I’m comfortable and I’m happy!
For me the traveller label fits someone who is very intrepid, they travel on foot for months on end, are in complete harmony with their surroundings and have no fixed plans…and yeah, they live without a wifi connection…I don’t believe a traveller even exists these days, the world is way to connected.
While I think to myself that a traveller has no need to share their photos; a tourist feels the need to upload every photo to all their social media channels to holiday spam their family and friends…and unfortunately everyone shares these days so we’re all tourists of the world! I don’t believe a traveller is any better than a tourist…we are all trying to experience the world in our own unique way.
So come and share your thoughts on the great travel snobbery debate – are you a traveller or a tourist? Thank you to the ladies above for participating in this post…your opinions were all fabulous!
xx
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