THE THOMS SUNDAY TRAVEL SECTION
People often ask me what are the unusual questions I get from guests. I rattle off, “What time is the midnight buffet?” and “Do I have to go in the water on the snorkeling tour?”
I expect these when people are new to a place.
It is different when the person is a travel “professional”. Or at least, I think it should be.
Recently, in one of my travel forums, a travel writer was asking an interesting question. Do you ever get somewhere and it turns out not to be what you expect?
My answer is “very often”. Perhaps because of flowery descriptions or my flowery imagination.
I was expecting some very intelligent replies, and there were many of those.
However, a few “travel professionals” make comments lambasting people, places, and things.
Maybe it’s the Initial Expectation.
A travel writer states: Thailand was always on my bucket list so I came here for six months. I hate it.
Personally, I don’t want to go anywhere for six months.
I will get to the four-letter word in a minute.
Upon further questioning, it turns out this “professional” did almost no research into Thailand outside of flights and hostels.
If I am going anywhere for more than six hours, I have at least a page of notes. This way, I have an idea of what to expect.
What Did You Expect?
People can over expect. A big part of that is due to the marketing departments of travel companies and destinations.
I live in Fort Lauderdale. Have you ever seen an advertisement for Fort Lauderdale with torrential tropical rain coming down? No? We get rain, often.
Do you see people with 3rd-degree burns on their face and sweat pouring off their forehead? We have them.
What you see are the white sand beaches and lush palm trees gently blowing in the wind.
We do have those, but it’s just a part of what Fort Lauderdale is.
I can go to the beach and find a visitor under their thatched umbrella, banana daiquiri in their hand.
Before long, and after another daiquiri, they will utter those immortal words, “I could live here.”
Really? Do you think all we do is sit around on the beach and drink all day?
I rarely have daiquiris before noon.
Another Day in Paradise
And some do move here. And quickly realize that we have bills, and leaking faucets and stubbed toes just like anywhere else.
So understand that a travel advertisement is to sell you on a destination, or form of travel. Remember a photo is just one moment out of 86,400 seconds in a day.
I am not saying it is false advertising just that it may give you expectations it cannot live up to 24/7.
In the 70+ times, I have been to Jamaica, I have always had the same outcome. A guest (well several) will get in my face and scream “Why did you bring us to the $@#!!! Island?”
The answer is “Because after watching the splashy colorful TV adds you say, “Let’s go to Jamaica”.
Usually, it turns out, they are trashing the entire island (country) because of some people peddling outside the port.
Did they listen to my port talk mentioning the peddlers and how to handle them? No.
Did they get out and see a waterfall, or taste jerk chicken or have a Jamaican rum drink? No.
ALL places have good things and bad things. ALL places.
I am not saying go walk into the worst neighborhood wearing diamonds. But, understand there are bad areas or things in every destination.
Learn about the good and the bad so you can plan accordingly.
And don’t let one bad thing tint everything.
Maybe it’s the Timing
A travel writer states: Alaska sucks It was raining almost the entire time I was there.
Alaska’s inside passage gets a lot of rain. And although it seems there are more sunny days in June, July, and August, there is also rain. In fact, I have been on cruises in May and September with seven days of nothing but sunshine. And cruises in July and August with nothing but rain.
One cruise in July, we had to cancel over half of our excursions due to weather. And it was not uncommon to skip Sitka, and its little harbor entrance, if the seas were too rough.
So the weather is never a 100% guarantee. Wait a minute. Strike that. Reverse it. Weather is a 100% guarantee, it’s sunshine that’s not.
Interesting tidbit: You don’t want full sun on a glacier. It causes glare and after a while, everything is white. On a cloudy, or even rainy day, the blue of the ice is much easier to see. And don’t worry about the animals and marine life, most of them are waterproof.
Another Hundred People
A travel writer states: I went to the Olympics. I hate London, there were too many crowds.
Grrrrr, there’s that four-letter word again.
London is a very popular city year-round. Even with bridges falling down, and knowing a foggy day may leave you low, people go.
That you cannot control. However, there are times you should avoid certain places if you suffer from Enochlophobia, (fear of crowds).
ANY city while it is hosting the Olympics. London if there is a royal wedding or funeral.
Avoid any city famous for their New Year’s celebration. Realize that in Asia, many of these do not take place on the last day of December.
Skip Disney-anything the week between Christmas and New Years and the Mediterranean in August.
Maybe It Is The Location
A travel writer states: I went to Brazil and it was nothing but third-world.
First, Brazil is not a third-world country.
They do have high poverty rates, economic instability, and lack of basic human resources, in some places, but not everywhere.
But if we are going to avoid a place for any of those reasons, our world just got much smaller. Lets exclude most of the Caribbean, Central, and South America. Add most of Africa and much of Asia to the list.
What an awful thought.
I travel to learn and experience.
If everywhere was like the United States, it might get pretty boring.
How do they get water in this arid land? Why do they only have electricity for a few hours a day? How do people survive in a place without drive-thru and Uber Eats?
We do a lot of great things in the United States, but other countries do some pretty neat stuff. Some do it differently and better than we do.
Go, explore, learn about others.
If nothing else, you may just appreciate your country a little more.
For the travel writer who states: The problem with Paris is that Parisians live there…
The problem is not the people, nor Paris or even France. I wish I could revoke their passport and keyboard.
The Hall of Mirrors
Other travel writers use the terms: way too many self-absorbed people, greedy shopkeepers, too many tourists. When they apply these comments or labels to everyone, doesn’t that include them?
One of the most bittersweet comments I get in my travels is when someone asks where I am from. When I reply, the United States, they either give me a smile or a look of shock. No, really. Where are you from?
Why don’t they believe I am from the USA? The answer is almost verbatim every time. You’re not nasty like the other ones who visit here. OUCH!
How dare they lump us all together like that. Not all Americans are nasty.
Is saying “Paris is full of Parisians”, or “The Greeks only speak Greek” much different?
Sometimes you don’t need a four-letter word to hurt someone. A blanket statement will do nicely.
Try a new place and find what’s good. Sometimes that may take a lot of positive thinking.
Sometimes, all it takes is stepping off the airplane.
If nothing else, you will be able to talk intelligently about the location.
And you get to leave.
HATE is a Four-Letter Word.
I try not to hate anything, anyone, or any place. This is a challenge I restart many times a day. It is usually the worse four-letter word I use.
Are there places I don’t like as much as others? Absolutely.
But I am thankful for the opportunity to visit and find out for myself. And if there is a problem with a place, I try to find out what is the cause.
Am I in a bad mood? Is my suitcase missing? Is the nearby volcano erupting? These really are not the fault of the destination. Don’t take it out on the destination.
Other Four-letter words.
From the same travel forum, I found, even more, negative comments. I hate the beaches, the local food, the lack of nightlife, and my favorite, the hotel I chose for myself.
Do they hear what they are saying?
You don’t like beaches? Maybe the Caribbean is not the best choice.
I’m pretty sure I have never hated a hotel I chose. Rooms may be smaller than they appear in brochures. The free parking may be on a street with 4 AM street cleaning the night you want to park. Or maybe their definition of continental breakfast and mine vary. But, I never let a hotel ruin my vacation or a destination.
I love local food. It is a major part of the immersion process.
I like looking at beaches, usually at sunrise or sunset. Get more of these four-letter words in your life.
In the end, not everyone is going to like the same thing.
Something that you just love, someone else may… (you know, that four-letter word starting with H).
If I look, I can find people who don’t like mom, apple pie, or the Fourth of July.
Be careful about the four-letter words you use when talking about travel. Well, anything.
Thank goodness, the group of travel writers above is a very small percentage, but I would like to see it smaller.
I’m going to start with myself.
I hope you can find GOOD four-letter words in other places.
PLEASE scroll down to the “Please Leave a Reply” section at the bottom and tell me your thoughts on:
“Do you ever get somewhere and it turns out not to be what you expect? What did you do?”
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“Cephalonia Greece” Continued on Page T3 “Peloponnese Wine” Continued on T11
Thank you for reminding me that perspective is so important when traveling, or when planning to travel. Balancing expectations (plus cost) is tricky for anyone hoping for that “perfect” airbrushed travel experience. I’m glad you addressed these points today – an important message for all travelers and relevant for all destinations and experiences!
Excellent article! We love to travel and agree that while everything looks fabulous in a brochure, reality is sometimes different but that doesn’t make it ‘bad’ (no 4-letter word here). Managing expectations is key to a good trip – weather, hotels, locations, activities, etc. Thank you!
Perhaps the “haters” have traveled too much. Each trip is an experience that adds to one’s overall being. Weather, low rivers, odd traveling comrades, crowds etc. are a part of that experience. I love the opportunity, and feel blessed that I can learn about places I have only read about. Iceland was a wonderful experience. Thanks cuz for this morning’s cup of coffee. Best part of Sunday morning wake up.
Your words bring up a host of lessons that I continue to learn about destination expectations. One of my biggest surprises was Istanbul. I knew nothing about this city except some of the architecture that I had admired. After I was there a few days, my eyes were opened to how warm, modern, industrious and family oriented were the people. My impression permanently changed the way I think about that city, and opened my mind to not pre-judging a people or culture. Travel does change you.
Absolutely one of your very best posts! I, too, have cringed at the behavior of my countrymen abroad. If you’re going to travel, be prepared to wait, stand in line, take your turn, say please and thank you, accept with gratitude the snack that is offered, be ready to go at the appointed time, chat politely with the person next to you–hey! This sounds a lot like “Everything I Need To Know, I Learned in Kindergarten”! Perhaps some folks need to go back to ‘human school.’ Thanks for another thoughtful Sunday morning message.