Travel is something a natural traveler wants to do, and loves to do, so travel is natural to us.
We want to smile with new people to see if smiles differ from place to place. We want to feel the wind from a different country as it touches our faces. We want to see the different shades of the sky at all hours, in all different places and so much more!
To me, that’s a natural traveler.
The thing I want to raise here, is a bit different from the above idea and my thoughts on what a natural traveler is.
What would you call people who travel purely for instagramable photos?
I’m seeing more and more photos appear of people who will purely travel somewhere to take photos, and these photographs have clearly been staged.
In every photo I see, it is too fake, it is so dang obvious the people involved have just yelled “stop, let me get my hat which has “vacay” embroidered on it and I will stand here on this jetty in the Maldives and try to get 400 likes on Instagram, just the like other person’s photo posted 5 minutes ago”
I mean really? “Vacay” written on a hat? Who even does that or needs that for any traveling purpose or thinks that’s cool and is actually going to be great and stick around in a fashion sense to gain more likes?
Travel, to me, is about loving each moment freely, experiencing all a place has to offer, not worrying about packing a hat that has “vacay” embroidered on it, which I think is totally ridiculous as a natural traveler.
I feel travel is losing its meaning in a way, and that people are looking at travel for a whole lot of new reasons, for example, to take extremely staged photos purely for self ego and gaining likes.
Travel appears on Instagram to be more about, trying to get the best photo, to gain more likes. Not traveling to get the best experience.
It appears by looking at photos, a natural traveler will take clothing and items that are needed for comfort and practicality while traveling, you will see if you search on Instagram, what a “gaining likes” traveler will pack; the vacay hat and fancy dresses to wear on a jetty amongst other unpractical items.
On the photography side of things, I think seeing natural photos of people who are free and genuinely living in that moment, are the most memorable photographs, they bring life ,happiness, pure joy and absolute freedom to the photograph.
Staged, stiff and fake photos I feel, don’t leave any lasting impressions and there is an obvious difference between staged and free photographs, the results of staged photography have quite an appalling effect actually.
It brings me to the close, when you’re 70, looking back on your life, are you going to love the memories and photos you have taken? Are you going to say yes, I traveled and lived freely, lived in the moment, with and without a camera in my hand, are you proudly going to show grandchildren your amazing photos of the paces you have been without the need to be holding a hat that says “vacay”?
Now, if anyone that reads this, is a “gaining likes” traveler, please let me know, I would love to discuss this further with you.
Or if you agree with me please let me know too.
Sar Wanders 
Good post and very true. I read a lot of travel blogs and even though I travel quite a bit myself and love to capture the moment with my camera, I feel like I am the only one who does not have an Instagram, twitter, Facebook or snapchat account.
Can I actually say, that I have never even looked at Instagram and I don’t even know what snapchat is about or does that make me sound odd?
I go on vacation for myself and to spend quality time with my husband and if I have a good story and pictures to share I will do so. I do it for the love of traveling, not for the ” likes”. So, I get it what you are saying and good for you, for recognizing it and saying it out loud. 👍🏻
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I also agree with you on the clothing part. I admire people who are able to pull it off to look chic and fashionable on vacation. I am not one of them. I know to see and to experience a place you have to be on your feet a lot and as a photographer you “need” to wear comfortable shoes. For me Jeans, shirt and sneakers are the way to go. I might not win the fashion statement with it but it is comfortable and practicable and most of all it’s “me”.
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Here is a confession. When I travel I get so caught up in what is happening that I don’t remember to take photos, even when the camera is in my hand. It is just too much of an intrusion on the moment.
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And I think that’s the way it should be, immersing yourself completely in the moment!
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Haha not odd, it’s actually really cool! I don’t have twitter and I too don’t know how to use Snapchat haha! I’m glad you and your husband travel like me, I honestly think real travel is getting lost 😦
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Their loss, not mine.
Keep traveling, I know I will. Including comfy shoes, sweatshirts and taking pictures for me, not others.
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Very well said! Sometimes I find myself getting caught up in social media. I find myself thinking “How many likes would this get if I posted it?”
And then I step back and take a look at myself, and I look at where I am, and wonder why social media is on my mind at all. I feel poisoned by social media. It is ALWAYS on the back of my mind, and I absolutely hate it.
I also think this spans across to more than just traveling. Things as simple as going out with your friends, dinner with your family, we want to instagram it all. We live in such a vain society. We’re so full of ourselves, and we want people to see just how absolutely wonderful we are. We do that by flaunting around our money, our luxuries, our relationships. We can’t genuinely enjoy things, unless other people see that we’re enjoying it. We need validation.
Thank you for this post. I think I’m going to start leaving my phone at home now.
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Exactly lol! I shall. Do you have any more trips coming up? Haha and I will do the same 🙂
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It has taken over our way of life hasn’t it! I do exactly the same as you, reassess the situation and the importance of the photo/taking the photo. And your 100% right. I mean, when you people watch, nearly everyone is walking down the street on their phones, etc and once again you are right when you said we feel like we need to flaunt our good blessings and life in general for validation, thanks so much for sharing your thoughts on this topic. It makes me glad to see I am not the only one who thinks like this 🙂
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We are in Chile right now but going back today.
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So true! I don’t understand the need to take a pic of every little thing while on holiday! LOL at the ‘vacay’ hat .. haha!
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