I can usually tell a fair amount about the mood of the moment from how people travel, and what’s been coming across my desk recently shows a shift in how and when many of us are planning our trips.
There’s been a growing trend of clients getting in touch within days of returning from a trip to Asia (and, occasionally, whilst still on holiday), raring to go with plans for their next adventures. There’s certainly no complaints about clients coming back to us! Indeed, that’s one of life’s brightest spots. One of the best aspects of our small company model is that we’re able to take personalised time to work around every client’s wishes in an individual way, and it’s extremely gratifying to know that we’ve delivered, and perhaps surpassed, expectations.
However, the fact that people already have so much envisioned for their next adventures, often only hours after returning from their last one, has made me wonder: do many of us now spend precious time on our much-longed-for trips planning our next ones? If so, are we really embracing the moment in the places we’re visiting?
Our busy lives don't always allow for the ideal circumstances, and the spare time we have is increasingly squeezed. Now that the global rhythms have returned to pre-pandemic speeds, there’s a familiar sense that there just aren’t enough hours in the day to do it all: ace our jobs, reduce the ‘life admin’ list, keep up with the world, let alone carve out moments for our wellbeing or travel plans. It can seem like we’re constantly running to catch up with ourselves and tripping over our own feet; either winging it, or looking ahead at the expense of enjoying the moment. We’ve lost the one silver lining that came with the Covid cloud: that daily space and time to pause, to wonder, to stop the clock.
Ironically, perhaps many of us now need to be on holiday in order to have the time and headspace to plan a holiday. I can see why it happens, but the thought does make me a little sad.
That urge to leap ahead is completely understandable for positive reasons, too, however. Anyone that knows me will tell you that I’m something of a reactionary type (!), and certainly one for living in the now. I know how much eagerness to get the next adventure in the diary immediately comes from the inspiration that travel gives us; from speaking to new people, hearing about the places they’ve been, and feeling energised to see more of Asia as soon as possible.
Can we hold onto that energy and momentum for the next adventure, but press pause for long enough to ensure we can immerse ourselves in the here and now?
Travelling through Asia, whether hiking in rural Rajasthan or sailing between Indonesian islands, is life-affirming, and worth every moment, but it needn't always be these spectacular highlights that allow us to reset and find that headspace. We can recreate a little of that holiday mindset within the everyday.
How we reset our equilibrium is a very individual thing, and we all run to different rhythms. For me, it's bike rides, sea swimming and walking: the outdoors. For others it's a good book, cooking, an empty house. A friend of mine recently messaged me saying how good he felt after a short surfing break. He recalled how it made him shift his mindset from ‘I can’t afford to do this’ to ‘ can’t afford not to do this’.
Whether it’s surfing, a weekend on a bike or an afternoon exploring an unfamiliar district close to home, just stepping away from the day-to-day grind can be enough to allow us to decompress and see things differently. A new routine, unfamiliar faces, even a short train journey.
And those future travel plans you pressed pause on while you were living for the moment? If you’re super keen to get them going again as soon as your plane touches down, we’re here to get you back to Asia again ASAP! But give yourself permission to enjoy your latest travels as fully as possible first. Hold on to that refreshed perspective that travel brings, whether that’s recreating Asia’s vibrant flavours in your own kitchen, occasionally waking up early enough to watch the sun rise, or exploring your hometown from a new angle. We’ll be here to plan your next trip whenever you’re ready.
So what’s the purpose of all this? A reminder of how crucial it is to enjoy the moment, so that we get better at allowing ourselves to do it, especially when we travel, and also an acknowledgement of how difficult that can be. If we can make a habit of regularly and genuinely prioritising our headspace, even if that’s just stepping away from our screens and phones while we drink a cup of coffee, it could do us the world of good.
We don’t always need a plane ticket to be set free, we just need more practice.
by Nick Pulley on 15th August 2024