Travel may conjure up ideas of passports, airplanes, and cruise ships. But, it need not be so expensive or elaborate.
Travel can be a four day cruise to the Bahamas or a four hour journey to a location near to you. Take advantage of your region’s personality.
In all the world, venus flytraps are only native to the 60 square miles that encircle Wilmington, NC. We just discovered last month a tiny, lovely, free public ‘botanical garden’ featuring carnivorous plants only 2 miles from our house! Mr. Muscle and I had an interesting hour making a new fun memory together. Did I mention it was free and close?
I bet there is something similar to discover near your house! Talk with your friends for ideas or google.
We enjoy coastal things now, but when we lived in the Midwest there were all sorts of festivals (corn, strawberries, corn, blueberries, and corn) and historical places. If you’re ever on the backroads of TN and see a marker for ‘Ozone Springs’, take a few moments to investigate. It is a 100 yard walk to an 1100 foot overhang where you can watch the creekwater fall into a ravine. Very simple, free and fun.
Travel means you tap into your adventurous spirit and are curious. You are open to experience new sights, sounds, tastes, and cultures.
I don’t know about your neck of the woods, but we don’t even have to leave our county, let alone state, to experience a different culture. Go to the website, Diners, Drive-ins and Dives and find a new restaurant to go to near you. I bet you’ll find some new culture there!
Travel, in a way, is a glorified date. So, if full-scale travel isn’t on your radar, date nights should be. Don’t neglect your romance. It’s worth sacrificing time and money elsewhere to maintain your connection.
May I offer a few suggestions if you are in the market for adventure through full-scale travel?
1. Tripadvisor, Tripadvisor, Tripadvisor. I do nothing without first consulting tripadvisor.com! It is an amazing resource for truthful input from other travelers.
2. AppleVacations.com is a discount house for all-inclusive resorts. I have personally used Apple and was well satisfied.
3. Vacationstogo.com is also another discount house for everything travel that we’ve used.
4. Find a seasoned, well-referenced travel agent to guide you. I do the majority our travel bookings online, but there is nothing like the advice of my traveldiva! There are some things you shouldn’t decide on without insider knowledge.
5. Also, Debi and Tom Walter of the romanticvineyard.com have just become the proud host and hostesss of a romantic getaway, the Barefoot Cabin. It’s in Banner Elk, NC, nestled in the Blue Ridge Mountains on the other side of my state. Their purpose with the cabin is to create a retreat for couples to reconnect. Please click here to see their post for more information.
I receive no compensation for any of the above suggestions!
A few last thoughts….
Travel is also good for your family!! See www.TravelEffect.com’s Family Fact Sheet.
Travel Testimony:
I’m not sure why, but from a young age God has seen fit to put travel in my life. I come from a humble background. My parents’ decision to travel is why they were frugal in all other areas.
Vacation memories, according the above report, are some of the earliest and most cherished memories in adulthood. I can confirm this. My most favorite memory as a child, was the week we stayed in Cody, Wyoming’s dude ranch, Crossed Sabres. It was just on the border of Yellowstone National Park. I was 8 years old.
One of the days there, we rode horses into the Rocky Mountains for an overnight pack
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| My horse’s name was Yellowstone. |
trip. We pitched tents miles away from and 1000s of feet above where any car could reach. We ate beans and sang John Denver by the firelight and slept with our clothes on. Without light pollution, we could see millions of pinpoints of light from the milky way. In the morning, we had breakfast in a mountain meadow bursting with wildflowers while the snowcapped peaks framed the picture. We froze candy bars in snowmelt gurgling up from a spring. I see this picture vividly whenever anyone speaks of God’s majestic beauty.
I didn’t know back then what a lucky little kid I was. I know it now.
Mom and dad’s intentional decision made travel the focus of their hard earned savings. Sacrifices were made to be able to experience the world God created. We didn’t eat out. My clothes were beautiful, sometimes lovingly stitched by mom, but not designer. Grocery’s bought were store-brand. (Ragu in the cupboard meant we were livin’ high on the hog that week!)
In this economy, sometimes it’s all we can do to get food on the table. So, if full-blown travel is not an option even with lots of frugality, please still consider the sacrifice of time to pursue date nights and family adventures that aren’t a strain on your budget.
“Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness, and many of our people need it sorely on these accounts. Broad wholesome charitable views of men and things cannot be acquired by vegetating in one little corner of the earth all one’s lifetime,” Mark Twain.
For more ideas on vacationing, see this insightful post by Gaye at calm.healthy.sexy, 12 tips for a calmer, healthier, and sexier vacation.
Thank you so much for featuring Barefoot Cabin in this post. <3 And what a great post. I’ve always wanted to go to Wyoming and your memories of that trip sound amazing! What a gift your parents gave to you.
I’m sharing this post for sure!
Blessings,
Debi
You are very welcome, Debi! I think Barefoot Cabin is going to be a blessing to many! Travel is a gift like no other. 🙂 Thanks for sharing this.