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There’s a snobbery around travel which irritates (and at times, angers) me. Of course people are entitled to opinions, we’re all different, we all have places we want to go and things we want to see and do, but does this give us the right to criticize how other travel? Can we really distinguish between being a tourist or traveller and does it really matter?

 

Tourist or Traveller (and why I don’t care)

After asking some questions on Facebook I concluded that there are some significant areas where people had definite opinions on whether someone would be defined as a tourist or traveller.

Tourists                                                      

Stay in hotels                                                                               

Pack suitcases                                                                             

Visit famous attractions                                                                

Eat a popular restaurants                                                             

Visit as part of groups                                                                   

Use an organised itinerary

 

Travellers 

Stay in hostels

Pack backpacks

Go off the beaten track

Eat street food

Become their own tour guide

Avoid all guidebooks

 

For me, travel is about experiences, it’s about seeing beautiful landscapes, wandering unfamiliar streets, trying new food, getting away from my daily routine, and learning a little bit more about myself and the world. 

tourist or traveller
Photo Credit: Kenny Luo

So why the snobbery?

I never went abroad as a child, I never took a gap year, I’ve never been inter-railing or been on a road trip. Travel just wasn’t on my list of priorities. I spent most of my twenties believing that a job and house were essential to making my life a happy one. I was wrong. The moment I began to travel solo I realised that this was what I’d been missing.

Travel is about seeing the beauty of the world, experiencing something new and different, and creating memories that last a lifetime. 

It doesn’t matter whether you want to lie on a beach getting tanned, wander the streets of Paris taking a dozen photos of the Eiffel Tower, take part in an extreme sport in some obscure part of the world, you have the right to travel wherever and however you like without being judged.

Who is to say that one person’s way of seeing the world is better than another?

 

What is the difference?

According to Oxford Dictionaries the definitions are:

Tourist: A person who is travelling or visiting a place for pleasure.

Traveller: A person who is travelling or who often travels.

Holidaymaker: A person on holiday away from home.

 

So I hate to tell you, dear travel snob, but if you are leaving your home, visiting a destination, enjoying your time away, taking photos, and relaxing, this makes you a tourist, a traveller and a holidaymaker. 

Is this a bad thing? No of course not.

There is no real or authentic way of travelling the world. It doesn’t mater how long you spend in a place, you will never truly know everything about it. You cannot simply tick places off a list and claim to have “done” them. 

Staying in a hostel rather than a hotel doesn’t mean you had a more genuine travel experience, heading to a McDonalds and chowing down on a burger doesn’t mean you failed or that because you jumped in a taxi you’ve made some huge mistake. 

Go where you want, do want you want, stay for as little or as long as you want.

Be a tourist. Be a traveller. Be a holidaymaker. 

Travel the world your way and enjoy it.

 

Do you call yourself a tourist or traveller, or do you not care?

Let me know in the comments.

tourist or traveller

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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22 Comments

  1. Well said! It’s about the experiences you have when you’re out seeing and doing what interests you. Who cares what it’s called if you’re enjoying yourself 🙂

  2. Great post! I think it’s ridiculous to try and judge people based on their travel habits. From the list above – I am a combo of a tourist and a traveler. There is not set idea of what should be what.
    However, in my opinion, I feel like those who don’t see the big attractions because they are “too mainstream” are silly. I feel like if a city has an icon.. you should see it. Because anytime anyone asks you about that place they will ask about that icon, and to say “well, I didn’t see it because it’s what everyone does there” I feel most people’s reaction would be “what?”
    But, travel and do what makes you happy, not because of what other people think, or because what you think traveler is or isn’t.

  3. Haha, I love this! Funnily enough, I never really used to notice the difference, whereas now I do – but it doesn’t actually matter. And I think there’s a third difference – I have friends who have been to several countries, yet always stayed in resorts and never left their hotel or tried local food. Is that really travel? But I totally agree with all your points, who cares if you travel on tours or stay in hotels? How is staying in hostels really any better? It’s a personal preference, not a “better way to travel”. I am somewhere between both, and therefore I am both. I don’t care, and I don’t judge others for their choices.

    1. Author

      Glad you liked the post. There’s nothing wrong with finding your own travel style as long as you don’t judge people for theirs.

  4. I don’t care either and I hate snobbery altogether. People need to leave this alone it’s ridiculous. Thanks for the post.

  5. That traveler vs. tourist debate is ridiculous, especially when carried out with a certain holier-than-thou attitude.
    I am neither – I am me, not willing to carry a label, traveling as often as possible, from my home base to other places. I stay in Airbnbs, BnBs, hotels or motels, haven’t set a foot in a hostel in decades (except when on a class trip, comes with the job), use whatever backpack, duffle or roller bag I love most at that time, eat wherever and whatever I looks best to me. Why people feel the urge to put themselves into a certain category is beyond me. If “traveler” means you have to avoid hotels and restaurants like the plague, you’ll most certainly miss out on great places.

  6. Great post! By definition then, a tourist would be one type of traveler, but do we really not travel for pleasure..I guess maybe for work. But in a sense, they’re the same thing so yes, we should cut the snobbery.

    1. Author

      We all have different reasons for wanting to travel, we all enjoy different places and activities so I agree snobbery shouldn’t be a part of it.

  7. Interesting article, very relatable. I think it is great fun to mix up tours, exploring on your own, eating street food, the culture of hostels, and staying at the best place in town. One of the things I love about Southeast Asia is you have the freedom to do just that. In Kuala Lumpur we got the nicest room we could find near a market (for $50/night) and enjoyed a little luxury, while eating all of our meals at the market. For breakfast we went down and got food wrapped in newspaper or banana leave from the vendors selling to commuters out of tupperware containers. Breakfast was less than $1 and delicious!

    1. Author

      Thanks, I’m glad you enjoyed the post.
      I haven’t been to South East Asia but it sounds like you had an amazing experience. which is what matters.

  8. Nice read! I totally agree, if you want to go somewhere, it shouldnt matter whether you are there as a tourist or not. Thanks for that

  9. Well, my own definition of “tourists” is something like: a person who tries to squeeze 10 countries in 10 days just for ticking off countries from their lists and then screams DONE! I dont care if they stay in hostels or hotels if they visit iconic places or not but sorry I cant take them seriously as travellers haha! Of course who am I to judge , if they are having fun it s their life after all, I just feel that they do it just for the sake of going abroad/ bragging! Thanks for rising this topic!

    1. Author

      Glad you enjoyed the post.
      I hate feeling judgemental over how people travel but I do agree with regards to whizzing through places simply to tick them off.

  10. Facts. All facts. It’s funny…part of being human, it seems, is to label and define in order to better understand both yourself and the world around you. It happens everywhere…and the biggest definitions are political and controversial (race, gender, religion, color, creed, orientation, etc…) But what continues to amaze me are the divisions we continue to create…such as tourist vs traveller. As if there is a cultivated difference. As if one is better or more elevated. Smh. I’m a woman who travels. Period. I go to new places, explore tourist traps for fun, eat locally, and LOVE hotels. That doesn’t make me any better than the woman who meets new hostel mates, collects food truck meals for fun, and goes back backing for months at a time. Hell, I want to meet that girl too. Lol. But, she’s still a woman who travels like me. We both have a story to tell.

    Okay, rant over. All that to say YES! I agree with this beautifully written post. Much needed truth in this travel blog space.

    1. Author

      Thank you so much. Yes. There are so many ways in which we judge and persecute each other – travel should not be one.

  11. I agree with this. I think as long as you’re exploring a place respecting the surroundings, it doesn’t matter what you do. Great photos by the way! I appreciate the positive attitude

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