travel | let go of your travel fears

Amara Amaryah | travel + books + poetry, always poetry. a platform for story-telling, visuals, positive self-talk and empowerment | let go of your travel fears- just go!

hello loves

today i’m debunking and deleting and stepping on all of our travel fears. in my last post i wrote about english tourism week and local travel. today i am addressing some of the anxieties or precautions that stop (some of) us from booking the trips. what is stopping you from travelling local? travelilng solo? as the resident wanderlust advocate in many of my friendship groups, i hear a lot of excuses. sometimes i catch myself giving them too. this post will try and speak to those travel fears that stop us from getting up and seeing this beautiful world.

travel fear 1 | “i don’t have enough money”

yes you do. or maybe you actually don’t. the cute reality is, you still do. take yourself to the next city. living in birmingham, common bus fare will take me to neighbouring cities like coventry, wolverhampton or west bromwich. a day trip to another city awaits. go and visit free museums and galleries or walk around the nature park. maybe even spend a few pennies in a nice cafe or just pack your own lunch if you’re not playing.

there are loads of resources to help you book a flight on a budget. debbie from wanderlust calls has a post on doing bougie travel on a budget. you can also check out day trips which, in my opinion, are amazing ways to get a bitesized feel of a city on a budget. we visited belfast in a day and it was the best thing. another low-budget option is organised travel group trips. Travel Eat Slay and Black Travel Creators recently organised a trip to Coppenhagen and Nice for around £28 – £35.

travel fear 2 | “i can’t travel without an itenary”

i feel like a lot of people feel that they need to have an itenary to travel. i actually think travelling has nothing to do with your plan or itenary. trust yourself. trust the day. i’m learning to pay attention between the difference between travel and tourism. just because you have a set destination doesn’t mean you can’t be open to whatever the day presents.

the key is being flexible. develop a relationship with yourself and don’t be too precious about the ‘plan’. this has actually helped me enhance my sense of direction and forced me to pay attention to my surroundings. it has also helped me save money whilst travelling and actually look for ways to be present. whilst in lisbon, this thinking led us to a street party which we’ll never forget.

travel fear 3 | “travelling for the gram”

travelling for the gram isn’t a bad thing. do what you need to do. but, understand that you can’t be in the moment and constantly thinking about how your trip is coming across on the gram. it feels like we’ve lost our sense of privacy and ability to be present. in my recent trip to budapest i got into the habit of uploading my pics/videos only at the end of the day. at the moment, i am actually not on instagram just because i need space from a world of constant content, upload and sharing. it’s not healthy to be online at all times for all to see. remember this trip is for you. silence the travel fears that tell you that people need to know that you’re living your best life. you are. this trip is for you and the gram can wait.

travel fear 4 | “sis i can’t travel solo”

i think you can (sweetie). i do understand that solo travel isn’t for everyone. but i recommend that you take yourself somewhere alone, atleast once. my first solo travel trip taught me so much and i can’t wait for my next one. you can read about my tips + lessons but i think solo travel gives you a chance to impress yourself. it gives you a confidence in self that is so crucial for your travel experiences.

travel fear 5 |”it’s too dangerous to travel to ___”

of all the travel fears, this is the one. it is a complicated little world that we live in and sometimes the fear is valid and at other times we have to test it. who is controlling the narrative of the country you’re afriad to visit? do they understand the culture? do you? i think, as with all fears, you should seek intuition, pray about it and do what is right for you. i stress this because we don’t all have the same experiences. i travelled solo to budapest as a young black woman and felt safe the whole time. i came back to some horror story experiences from other young black women. we will experience places differently but do listen and be aware.

also, you cannot avoid danger. instead, travel smart, be aware of your surroundings and keep family updated of your movements. there are small things you can do to travel safely. you can’t travel scared though. i truly think this attracts negative situations. don’t go anywhere you are not ready to go to. people already will know that you’re a tourist, don’t let it be clear that you are uncomfortable, fearful and travelling in this new place anyway. go where you feel you should be and go with God.

travel fear 6 | “how do i keep up a selfcare routine?”

this is a big one that people forget about. as someone who has specific selfcare routines i always consider this before travelling. travel fears around selfcare can be rectified in the packing stages. i usually travel on the weekend which means my sabbath routine is always disrupted. i plan around that. maybe pack a journal and wake up a few minutes early to ground yourself before the day. travelling with a bible (or sacred text) might be clunky. download whatever app you need. another simple thing to do is create affirmations for the trip or start the day in gratitude. it is hard to maintain a healthy selfcare routine away from home but it isn’t impossible. if travelling with someone, buddy up. make it a thing and encourage eachother.

hopefully those travel fears have lessened. why not continue the conversation beyond this blog post? know someone full of travel excuses? share this post with them and talk it out (respectfully!). there is so much to see in this world, don’t let travel fears interrupt your wanderlust.

thank you for reading what i write. remember to subscribe for travel posts and mid-week motivation.

Amara Amaryah

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