Need travel resolutions you can actually keep and want to keep this year? We’ve got you covered. Make 2020 the most adventurous yet!

1) Instead of feeling guilty about not unpacking, make a plan to keep a travel bag together. Wash your laundry, etc. and then pop it and your toiletries back in the bag. Find a sweet cheap flight and you have to leave shortly? You’ll be ready.

2) Make a point to travel sustainably. Remember your reusable water bottle this time. Pay attention to your carbon footprint and compare travel methods.

3) Take fewer pictures. No joke. If you travel frequently, give nothing to social media. Eat, drink, sight-see and share nothing but stories. So often now we run into people just frantically doing things “for the ‘gram”. Enjoy yourself for YOURSELF and see what a difference it makes.

4) Solo travel. If you’ve never done it, this is the year to do it. If you can go to a new grocery store in a neighboring city, you can go abroad alone. Simple as that.
5) Avoid trinket souvenirs unless you absolutely find them vital. All too often, they end up collecting dust and taking up space. Bring back food items, things to use (like cool knives), or things people can work with or make for a more memorable souvenir than a mini spoon or magnet.
6) Travel in a new way. Always on flights? Consider a train or a boat, or even a bus! It’s a whole other world out there traveling via plane from Seattle to Chicago than by plane. You can guess which one was more comfortable and scenic.
7) Pack lighter. Pack so light, the customs agent reminds you to pick up your bags before proceeding through the checkpoint. And then you get to impress them with how light you travel with your shoulder bag. Let’s be honest, how many pairs of leggings do you need on a trip? It all can fit into a shoulder bag.
8) Get out of your comfort zone and remind your brain it’s vibrant, alive, and active. Afraid of foreign public transport? Get on it. Super fastidious about planning every moment of a trip? Rip up your schedule and meander. You never know what opportunities may arise.

9) Get to know local foods in one of the best ways possible…visit a grocery store! That way, you’ll find out that hummus is actually not a Greek food, nor sold in stores, whereas some restaurants might try to convince you otherwise….

10) If you always vacation, try traveling. Always travel? Try a vacation. Learning the difference between the two will enrich the experience. You know the feeling, arriving home, sweaty, and exhausted and a friend goes “must be nice to be on vacation so much” and you look at them like they’re crazy because they have NO idea how hard you’ve been going. On the flip side, getting into “vacation mode” can take some doing. Forcing yourself to be catered for, being in one place and sitting on a beach or skiing or whatever can seem boring for some, but it forces you to slow down. I know that’ll be one of my top resolutions for the year.

What are your personal goals this year? Let us know in the comments!