Travel Expectations vs Reality: How to Avoid the Disappointment
Life isn’t always rainbows and butterflies, and so is travel. Many of you may be fooled by all the glittery pictures travel influencers post to the gram, but do you really think this polished life is realistic? Many of these moments are actually staged. So, when comparing travel expectations vs reality, you’ll definitely be disappointed over and over again, but we’re here to tell you how to get over it, or even better, avoid it.
Is everything you see on Instagram fake?
Well, not necessarily. We mean, no one will deliberately show you their flaws or bad days – people want refreshing content. But people also want content that resonates, that’s why the most successful travel influencers and creators are those who aren’t afraid to show the good, the bad, and everything in between.
Nobody leads a perfect life, nobody wakes up with full make-up, and nobody wanders around neither a desert nor a city in an evening gown! The creators that look just like us are the ones that we relate to, and end up trusting the most. Yet, unfortunately, that other polished content is still visually appealing that we can’t turn a blind eye to.
Travel Expectations vs Reality: Things That Will Disappoint You
Tourist crowds
The number one disappointment on any trip is always the crowds. Popular destinations are, of course, a magnet to tourist crowds. So, good luck trying to get to the top of the Eiffel Tower because there will be a long queue. And good luck taking a dreamy photo in Santorini without having hundreds of tourists in the background. Unless you have mad Photoshop skills.
What to do in this case?
To avoid standing in lines and wasting your day, cut the line short by booking your tickets to popular touristy sites in advance if there’s an online reservations platform. As for the crowds, well, your only way out of this is to wake up super early and beat the tourist flocks.
Overrated anything
Another major buzzkill when it comes to travel expectations vs reality is hands down when somewhere/something is overrated. Be it a landmark, a destination, a dish, or even a painting.
What to do in this case?
This is really hard to figure out before actually visiting because tastes and preferences are quite subjective. For instance, not because Mona Lisa wasn’t someone’s cup of tea, that you won’t like it. Your best bet is to do your research in advance, which you should be doing anyway – just always read the reviews and see what other travellers are saying. And if you end up visiting anyway, you’ll get to decide for yourself.
Heavily edited pictures
Unfortunately, a lot of travel influencers, edit their photos heavily which often makes so many places become overrated. As a result, travel expectations vs reality would lead to your disappointment as a traveller when you finally tick off this dreamy destination you saw on Instagram off your bucket list. It’s not that places aren’t always “that” beautiful, but editing software has the power to fool people behind their screens.
What to do in this case?
There’s not much to do about the influencers sadly. Again, good research prior to your trip is your best chance at deciding whether or not this destination deserves a spot on your list. Just like there are creators that are so absorbed in the idea of polishing everything, there are others who don’t. So many other creators out there post content that is raw and unfiltered – whether about their lives, their businesses, or content and hence, their trips. With lots of research, you’re most likely going to stumble upon content that reflects the reality of these places.
Travel mishaps
As we previously mentioned, people by nature tend to share the good stuff only on social media. Because let’s face it, nobody wants to hear horror stories or read about things gone south – most people use social media as an escape from their daily life troubles. However, it’s also very important for travel creators to share the mishaps and hurdles of their trips – it’s part of their influential responsibility. Too bad not everyone does that!
What to do in this case?
For starters, it’s crucial for you to at least understand that it’s completely normal to have travel mishaps – everybody does. There will be times when you don’t enjoy your trip, or when you’ll be disappointed by certain destinations. You might even miss a flight, lose your luggage, or fall ill on a trip. A lot of things can go wrong really. The first step here is for you to accept that it’s normal and it’s going to happen every once in a while.
Also, make sure to invest in travel insurance before your trip. You can’t imagine how much trouble it could save you. And of course, this one goes without saying, DO YOUR RESEARCH! By doing good research while planning your trip, you’ll also learn a lot about the common travel mishaps of certain destinations, like common pickpocketing tricks or rip-offs. This will prepare you for the trip and help you avoid so much trouble.
Lastly, another important thing to do that will play a major role in influencing your travel expectations vs reality is to follow genuine creators. By that we mean follow travel bloggers and creators that are keen on reflecting the reality of their trips and sharing everything honestly. This will not just impact the way to take in content, but will also make a difference in your research.
We really hope these tips help you enjoy your upcoming trips and not fall for tourist traps. We also recommend you check out this read about being a traveller rather than a tourist to have an even more authentic experience.
