39 signs that you are a travel addict
My earliest travel memory, apart from a safari in Kruger National Park, was when I was seven years old. I travelled with my family from South Africa to India, on my first international trip. That trip instilled a love of travel within me, which has never left me. I am a self-confessed travel addict. Are you one too? Read the signs below and see if you recognise yourself.
You know that you are a travel addict when…
- You are busy planning your next trip whenever you’re not traveling – and sometimes even while you are travelling.
- You look for money in your house and can only find foreign currency.
- Your bucket list is always growing, no matter how much you travel.
- Thinking about all the places you haven’t been to makes you feel anxious
- You know the current time, exchange rate, and seasons of at least 20 other countries at any given point in time.
- Words like DXB and INR mean something to you. (DXB is the airport code for Dubai International Airport and INR is the currency code for the Indian Rupee).
- Your fridge is covered with international magnets from your travels.
- Your phone memory is full of travel apps, travel photos and travel videos.
- Your computer hard drive keeps filling up - because of your travel photos and videos.
- Your drawers are filled with old plane tickets, boarding passes and other travel memorabilia.
- You collect travel brochures from travel expos, travel agents etc
- You have maps on your wall instead of paintings.
- When you open the newspaper, you head straight for the travel section.
- You’d rather spend money on travel experiences instead of possessions.
- You try to connect to a new wi-fi and a long history of your previously used wi-fi connections around the world comes up.
- You love looking (wistfully) at travel photos on Instagram every chance you get and you only follow travel-related accounts.
- You try hard not to start every sentence with “When I was in…
- Travelling and seeing new places is the one of the very few things in life that excite you.
- You don’t mind if your return flight home gets cancelled or delayed because its an excuse to extend your trip.
- You dream about travel when you’re sleeping.
- You subscribe to at least 30 different travel newsletters.
- Everyone you know is always asking you where you’re going next (and you usually ask yourself that too.)
- You always need a trip to look forward to.
- You fill up passports before they expire.
- You know the visa requirements of other countries, specific to your passport.
- You have stashes of travel-sized shampoos, conditioners, shower gels and body lotions.
- Every time you look for a pen in your house, you find a hotel pen.
- You see aeroplanes in the sky and wish you were on them.
- You consider home-schooling or world-schooling your kids so that you can travel out of school holidays.
- You’re constantly looking up school holidays to schedule your trips.
- You don’t get homesick because home is not where your heart is but the place you go to when you have nowhere else to go.
- You work to fund your next trip.
- Other people have hospital funds, you have a travel fund.
- You choose your credit card based on their air miles loyalty program.
- You have loyalty memberships with at least 10 different airlines and 10 different hotel groups.
- You start getting restless if you haven’t been anywhere for a few months.
- People are always asking you for travel advice.
- Your latest gadget is a translator to help you on your travels.
- You have a travel blog where you talk about your travels and relive your previous travels.
How many did you tick off? Do you have any to add? Let me know in the comments below.
Sara Essop is a travel blogger and writer based in South Africa. She writes about family travel and experiences around the world. Although she has been to 49 countries thus far, she especially loves showcasing her beautiful country and is a certified South Africa Specialist.
A true list of reasons! Would love to visit SA one day 🙂
South Africa is beautiful. Hope you get to visit soon.
It did not take me long to acknowledge that I am indeed a travel addict. I checked off so many of these signs. I have credit cards for both airlines and hotels!
What can I say. Just returned from Rome/ Italy. Awesome two weeks. Already busy planning my next trip. Can almost tick off 30. Measure life by countries, not years.
That sounds amazing! Join the club 😀
Yes definitely! Great article.
You forgot to add one more,you have anxiety that covid has borders locked and so many countries are locked.
Haha, that's true. Travelling in Covid times is too stressful. In my defense though, I wrote this before Covid! 🙂
We relate to most of these!
Welcome to the club. I "suffer" from these symptoms too 😀
I have all the signs and I hear thankfully there is no cure!
Nope there's no cure. Unfortunately, this makes the withdrawal symptoms worse when you can't travel! 🙂
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I met 30/39- it’s official I’m a travel addict!
Congratulations and welcome to the club! 🙂
#4 is me to a T! Along with many many others. Great list, it made me smile.
Thanks Jamie. The anxiety is getting worse with lock down and not being able to travel!
I ticked of 30 🙈 Missed a few cuz I don't have kids yet Haha!
" Checked yet another box on the forever growing bucket list" is how I usually start a sentense when I've done something new and exciting, so that one I could really relate too!
Ha ha I match most of it..I am truely a travel addict .certified ,😁😁
Haha, join the club 🙂 I think we realise it even more when we can't travel.
24 out of 39 😃 Number 4 especially resonates with me - there are so many places to see and cultures to experience, yet I feel anxious about not having enough time to travel everywhere I would love to go. Having at least two trips organised between travels is a sine qua non for me. A great blog - thank you!
Thanks Joanna. We're birds of a feather 🙂
29 😀
🙂
OMG checked out almost all of the signs here! loll Quite on point! I'm definitely addicted to traveling. I might need help with regulating this addiction! I'm serious though. Do you have tips on how to effectively save money for trips? Planning ahead to avoid overspending really sounds like a great technique for balancing things out. If you have blogs about it would love to read it. Anyway, this is such a relatable one! Looking forward to reading more from you xoxo
Hi Krisan. Haha , join the club. Yes, money is the biggest issue. I have this post on saving money. Hope it helps
https://inafricaandbeyond.com/11-ways-to-travel-without-breaking-the-bank/
Interesting post you have here! I went through each question and there's no doubt that I'm definitely addicted to traveling. Hahaha! Well according to this questionnaire at least. But I'm pretty sure it's a correct analysis. Number 31 is definitely something I really feel for. Home is no longer the place where I grew up in or was born in to but where my heart is. This list was fun to go through, thank you for sharing!
Wonderful post.
Yes, 17 is a tough one ! I like 33 too !
Great list! Number 3 is me all over! I keep finding places that I add to my list and it's getting bigger and bigger everyday!
Haha. I just loved these signs and for once am happy that I do have travel addiction. While I have many ticks from this list, points on the number 14, 17, 19, 37 ans 39 truly stand out. Your post made me reflect. Thanks 🙂
Thank you for this article! I could honestly recognise myself in almost each aspect. Especially number 23 - I literally start getting depressed if I don't have a trip to look forward too, it feels like something's missing. And as a broke student, I literally only work so I am able to 1. buy food to survive, and 2. travel!
Hahaha this is so me! I’m definitely always planning my next trip and my travel wish list keeps getting longer and longer with everyone I meet who shares their experiences!!
I love traveling but doesn’t look like I qualify as an addict 😀 🌸
I tick off most of these so I guess I’m officially diagnosed as a travel addict! I have at least 10 currencies on the go at any one time, always have at least 1 trip (usually 2-4 booked), make a beeline for the travel section of the newspaper, and even started a travel blog (www.theadventurousflashpacker.com). I think I’ll need to add a translator to my travel gadgets!
Oh, dear, I think I have an addition - a travel addiction, but one that I don't object to, LOL!