Should You Travel Now Or Later?

At some point in your life you have to see deep snow.

You have to see the beach, the plains, high mountains, and rolling hills.

You have to experience different cultures, try exotic food, swim in the ocean, and hike the countryside.

Travelling the world outside of your own and having new experiences is what life is all about. It gives you a new perspective and a better sense of the difference in the world around you.

The issue for many, however, is when to spend time having these experiences. Is it better to travel when you’re young and without major responsibilities, when you’re middle aged and have more money, when you have kids to share your experiences with, or when you’re old enough to appreciate it?

The answer is different for everyone.  

Adventure

If you are looking for adventure then your decision to travel now or later can vary depending on the type of person you are and what adventure means to you.

Travelling abroad, jumping from hostel to hostel and eating food you’ve stowed away in your pack is quite the adventure but might be better suited towards young people without children.

If your idea of adventure is travelling through Europe and skiing the best slopes, your pocketbook might need the cushion of someone that is middle aged or older.

Adventure can mean many things but if it requires physical stamina and the ability to couch surf, it’s probably best to do it when you’re young.

Comfort

If your idea of travelling involves luxurious hotels, resort pools, and expensive locations, you’re better off planning that stuff for later in life. Travelling itself can be costly when you consider your lodging, flights, food, etc so while this style of travelling is a great way to experience new surroundings, you might want to wait until you have some extra income. 

That is unless your idea of comfort is sleeping in a hostel or a bus, then by all means, do it while you’re young.

If you are retiring and looking to travel, you are in the majority as travelling is one of the most popular bucket list options for those over 55. 

As a parent you might want to consider your “comfort vacation” during this time frame as well. You might not be able to spend a lot of time relaxing, depending on the age of your children, but as a family you can still enjoy time together at a resort or doing different excursions.  

Finances

Your decision to travel now or later will likely have a lot to do with what you can afford. Obviously there is a push to wait for when you can afford to travel. This is not always true, but budgeting will always be necessary, no matter when and where you plan on taking your adventures.

Your travel style has a lot to do with how much you spend. Fortunately, there are many ways to travel without a lot of money. The catch is that you have to sacrifice many amenities and comforts to do so, which is why it’s more common for younger travellers to do it the frugal way.

Responsibilities

There’s an on obvious perk to travelling young or old: Less responsibilities.

Before college you might not have school, a mortgage, children, a spouse, or even health insurance to worry about. After you retire you won’t have a career, kids, or as many social functions to attend to.

Travelling without any major responsibilities is the ultimate way because not only does it ensure that you’re not neglecting anything important to see the world around you, it also takes away any added stresses when travelling can be stressful in itself.

Of course, you don’t have to be in college or retired to travel either. Many parents travel with their kids and many of those with careers see the world as well.

Just be sure to take your adventures when you aren’t neglecting something important and this could determine your time frame for you.

Education

Travelling teaches you so many things.

You experience different languages, other customs, laws in other countries, and a world beyond your own. You will start to compare and contrast the places you’ve seen and make opinions and decisions based on your own experiences. You’ll be more well-rounded, worldly, and knowledgeable about the world as a whole.

So a really good way to determine when you should see the world is first deciding what you’d like to get out of your travel experience.

You see the beauty of travelling and exploring new places is that you get to decide how to go about achieving these things. There’s nothing to say that you can’t retire and couch surf across Europe or that college students can’t save enough money to travel to a resort location for a relaxing getaway.

Your decision to travel now or later needs to be about what is most important to you and when you feel that you can achieve the adventures you want to have in life. The most important thing is to experience them at some point, when you experience them is secondary.

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