Vacationer or Traveler?

My mother and I vacationed a lot when I was growing up. In photo albums through the house there are photos of us standing in front of old buildings in other places. I remember waiting in lines and sleeping in hotels from Pennsylvania to Virginia but the memories are fuzzy like waking from a dream, aware that something happened but not sure what. I went and did but the whole experience, those foreign places and their people, didn’t “touch me” I left unchanged. I vacationed.


There is a distinct difference between travel and vacation and it has nothing to do with money. Despite how many perceive the two it begins with the mindset of the individual, what do you want from your time in a foreign place?

Traveling and vacationing each require something different of the person. The vacationer can be seen wearing earphones, speaking only with hotel staff, wearing the clichéd socks with sandals and fanny pack. The vacationer wants to experience another place but in a bubble. They desire to escape the daily grind by visiting the sights extolled by vacation planning sites and travel guides. The end result is a few days away from home and a hard drive full of photos of friends and buildings.

But for the traveler the experience is everything. The journey of the traveler is an emotional rollercoaster filled with laughter, a few choice words, and growth. After in-depth research the traveler picks his location, before she has even left the house the journey has begun. The traveler learns the how and why of the locals, the special and influential places, and about the special mystery that every town possesses. He escapes group tours in favor of exploring local haunts, trying questionable food, and risking missing the bus. When the traveler returns home she is full of stories that make friends jealous.

Until I was 14 years-old I traveled every summer to Alabama to be with my Granny. I spent the summer filled with every emotion my child’s heart could handle, the anticipation of my Granny’s cinnamon rolls, the oppressive sticky heat of the summer, the boredom of hanging laundry on the line, the wonder of watching ice cubes fall from the sky, and the crushing feeling of being teased for being different. The experience touched me, it changed me, and I traveled.

What are you Vacationer or Traveler?