Who is a Traveler?

Who is a Traveler?

Introduction

If travel is the “movement from one place to another,” then everyone is to be regarded as a traveler. It does not necessarily mean that this definition is wrong. So, who is a traveler, and who is not a traveler yet moves from one place to another? To some people, the word “traveler” and “tourist” have the same meaning. However, to other people, the terms have different meanings. Let’s take a look at this.

Definitions

Travel is a multi-dimensional word. The more you think about this term, the more its meaning seems to broaden. In its simplest sense, a traveler is someone who goes anywhere. Funny, right?

With this definition, even going to the grocery store is a form of traveling. To make it more understandable, we will look at who is considered a traveler. After that, we will study who is not considered as a traveler but moves from one place to another.

Who is a Traveler and their Characteristics?

One main characteristic of a traveler is that the person makes lots of journeys or travels a lot. Generally speaking, when a traveler goes to a place, they engage themselves in the local culture of the people. It means that rather than standing out, they interact very well with the locals and learn the new experiences of the place. Travelers tend to explore the less-traveled areas, and they enjoy visiting new locations. Rather than taking a break and relaxing from the monotonous systems of their lives, they live in a place and tend to be deeply engrossed with the environment.

The following are some of the people who are said to be travelers:

• Traveler 1 – works in country A but travels all lives all over country B, C, and D.
• Traveler 2 – Lived in country A for more than 20 years, but has toured five different countries. In the latter countries, he has stayed there for months, weeks, or days. This traveler works or does his business around different countries.
• Traveler 3 – this traveler grew up in country A, studied in country B, and took his career practices in countries D and E.
• Traveler 4 – traveler four and his partner are initially from country A but have spent a more significant part of their lives in country B. The two travel around different countries. When they get tired of living or working in one country, they relocate to another country.
• Traveler 5 – this traveler loves taking vacations in different countries. The holidays take 1-3 months, and they are usually for the sake of pleasure. In a year, the traveler goes or two vacations.
• Traveler 6 – traveler 6 is a backpacker. He takes gap years, sabbaticals, or round-the-world tours. He considers himself as an “elite traveler” and travels in circles or different reasons.
• Traveler 7 – this traveler loves living in unfamiliar places, especially for career opportunities. When out for these career opportunities, traveler 7 interacts with different cultures and languages. From these interactions, this traveler loves different cultures and travels from year to year to live in different countries for quite many days.

Who “Travels” but is not considered as a Traveler

One characteristic of a trip is that it changes the perspective of the participant. Without traveling, you will not be exposed to the diversity of the world that can change your perspective.  In this type o traveling, the journeys do not entail long walks. They are short journeys and do not take very long periods. Not all travelers are tourists, but all tourists are travelers. In this second type o traveling, the connotation is somewhat different. It may not be common to say that you are a traveler when you are out to purchase groceries. It also refers to someone who travels to another place temporarily just or the sake of enjoying a new location. The following are the characteristics of these types of travelers:

• He/she does not have a traveling schedule. He only has broad concepts of the tour in their minds without much attachment to them.
• He/she has regular homesick and cannot stay in a place for a long time. They are attached to their birthplace and prefer the culture of where they originate.
• They are not usually attracted to great attractions. Even though they can see vast and popular attractions in the country they have visited, this is not a priority to them.
• They do not appreciate spending too much cost on their travels. They prefer spending less and only what they had budgeted for. They prefer to go on a trip if it is cheap or free.
• They go around a place by taking buses, taxis, bicycles, or trains. They rarely fly around.
• They are not too quick at making friends. They are not very social and prefer keeping their relationship with the locals very formal and official.
• They would rather stay in inexpensive hotels and guesthouses, rather than going for the 5-star hotels and restaurants. They prefer staying indoors rather than outside. These travelers do not travel to other countries frequently. They also prefer traveling alone and not in groups.

Conclusion

It can be argued that these two types of travelers are different, basing on their different characteristics. In both cases, the travelers always have fun an enjoy experiencing the diversity of different cultures. It is a matter of preference to be either of the two. If you love moving from one country to another and staying there for long periods, you are a tourist. They love photo-heavy vacations and sightseeing. All in all, the main difference between these two types of travelers is the frequency of their travels and the time they spend in the new place or country.