“Once a year, go someplace you have never been before”
- His Highness Dalai Lama
Following these quotes have surely raised my aspirations for travel.
But all I can see is the traveling scenario changing with rapid changes around us, particularly factors such as Global Warming, increased digitalization, augmented artificial intelligence reducing traveling times and providing better stay options at reasonable costs, and a myriad of other options that I can assume if I wish to travel.
What I personally noticed while taking on my traveling adventures is that the traveling business has surely seen a few groundbreaking developments in recent times. And we, as responsible citizens with our travel aspirations, should mold ourselves along with these travel trends in order to have the best of our traveling experiences- creating lasting memories and keeping our environment into consideration.
So let us dive straight into the top travel trends for 2019 that you must follow for a totally different yet satisfying and enthralling experience.
With the global climate changing drastically, people are getting more and more conscious about their travel choices. Green travel is being promoted everywhere. The juxtaposition of responsible traveling along with maintaining a great and healthy environment around has seen tremendous growth and will continue to make its mark in 2019.
With cities like Leh Ladakh which have really seen a plethora of tourists jamming the small town with limited resources, and their growing concerns, especially in regards to water, it has truly become a necessity for people to take their vacation a bit seriously and responsibly with the changing environment.
All we need is a basic understanding of the place that we are supposed to visit, its culture and the locals living there, and try to learn as much as possible from them.
To have a great experience, try and avoid
Taking your traveling as more of a learning experience rather than just leisure is surely the trend of 2019.
Solo Sabbaticals
Well, what can be seen as an increasing trend this year is people opting for sabbaticals just to travel a few places away from their homes and by extension-work life. Sabbaticals surely mean a break from your monotonous daily routines. Booking a nice Airbnb or a cost-efficient guesthouse in a particular city (like a city break) and living there as a part of the city- trying to learn its culture rather than roaming around as a tourist, seems to be the proliferating trend this year.
And what's more is you can see this trend followed by the millennial crowd who really believes in the art of creating unique experiences through their travel, rather than just touching down on places.
Major cities in India like Jaipur, Udaipur, Northern and Northeastern states of India, Hampi, Goa, Pondicherry, and also a few other cities, have clearly become a sabbatical abode for many people preferring and flooding dorm stays and home stays, rather than luxury travel settings.
Apart from that, many youngsters prefer solo travel trends to explore cities out of India as well.
A Bespoke Travel Experience
With everything going digital around us, how can you expect travel to stay behind?
With technologies such as AI (Artificial Intelligence), voice recognition, virtual reality, et al, many travels, and tour brands are taking the travel experiences to the next level by customizing packages as per the individual’s personal choice. Be it the number of days, location, hotel types, flight inclusions, meals customizations, itinerary, etc. everything you will get customized and tailored to suit your travel needs.
These technologies really are smart enough to provide you with recommendations based on your past travel experiences or perfectly curated holidays, just as you want them to be. And with companies focusing more on better user experiences, you can definitely expect bespoke travel experience this year.
A Place Less Travelled
“Off-beat” travel seems to be the new trend this year, and this recent trend surely has caught everyone’s heart. With so many popular places getting rather “Touristy” and over-crowded, people now want some relaxation on a secluded island, or a beach, or any Off-beat place away from the noise and crowd. For example, instead of heading for the ever famous towns of Shimla in the Himachal Pradesh, people would rather opt for the small town known as Auli, in the same state, less known and less traveled, in search of peace and relaxation.
So if you are someone who wants to avoid the touristy destinations, you can surely try finding for a few top off-beat ones, and I’m sure you would find plenty of them online.
Weekend Gateways
Tired of the daily/weekly routine? Want to take a break from the monotony? Weekend getaways are surely trending these days with nobody having much of a time for that “Perfect holiday”. Taking your time off from your busy schedule, spending some quality time with your near and dear ones, probably would be at the top of your mind.
That’s when weekend getaways provide you with the much-needed respite from your daily hustle-bustle. The Internet is flooded with too many places these days providing you with options nearby your city (approx.. 2-3 hours away) so that you can spend a day or two there, get your dose of relaxation and return with a refreshed and rejuvenated mind, to start your week all over again.
Well, having said that, you can pick any of the aforementioned travel trends this year suiting your requirements and making the most of your travel experiences to cherish these memories for a lifetime.
Hope you find these travel trends useful for 2019!