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2025 – THE YEAR OF SLOW TRAVEL

As slow travel is gaining popularity, I want to share with you what slow travel is about and what it is not, so that when you’re ready you’ll know exactly how to do it too!

Twenty something years ago – as a spouse, a housewife, a mother to three young boys, and someone holding down two part time jobs to fit in with school hours – I couldn’t have found the time to travel slowly.

In fact, if you’d asked me what slow travel was about, I wouldn’t have had a clue.

Back then, at best, I’d be hoping for a quick holiday somewhere sunny for a week or two.

Knowing that I’d probably spend it with one eye gazing longingly on a pool side sun lounger while the other was shrewdly deciding if the kids needed another application of sunblock.

But then – life accelerated – and our beautiful little boys had suddenly become handsome independently minded young men. And, when they flew the proverbial nest, we decided to fly the nest too.

In our mid-50’s, my husband and I retired from our ‘normal life’ to facilitate an opportunity to travel extensively.

Not being particularly wealthy or having much in the way of savings – see my post on how we afford to travel the world – we decided to sell our house, our cars, and all our worldly possessions to afford our adventures around the world.

Not that I’m saying YOU might do the same – as you could have other ways to facilitate travel – in retirement or a travel sabbatical or a midlife gap year.

But this, my dear fellow wanderlusters, is how we discovered The Joy of Slow Travel and we’ve been doing it now for the past ten years of travel!

“Over the past ten fabulous nomadic years, we’ve taken planes, trains, boats, buses and tuk-tuks, to make our way slowly across more than sixty countries and continents and seas and oceans to end up wherever we happened to find ourselves next.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

• 2025 – THE YEAR OF SLOW TRAVEL
• LIFE IN THE FAST LANE
• THE JOY OF SLOW TRAVEL
• FOCUSING ON THE JOURNEY
• MY TOP 10 DESTINATION IDEAS FOR SLOW TRAVEL
• SLOW TRAVEL IS NOT…
• SLOW TRAVEL IS…
• MY TOP 10 TIPS ON HOW TO SLOW TRAVEL
• THE BENEFITS OF SLOW TRAVEL
• THE DOWNSIDE OF SLOW TRAVEL
• SLOW TRAVEL IS NOT A NEW WAY TO TRAVEL
• SPEED OF TRAVEL CHANGES THE WORLD
• FLYING AROUND THE WORLD
• ACCELERATING INTO THE 20TH CENTURY
• TRAVEL NOW

LIFE IN THE FAST LANE

FOCUSING ON THE JOURNEY

I’d say the concept of slow travel could be described as more of a journey than a holiday vacation.

Because, if you’ve only got a window of a few days or a week or two weeks to travel, then you will want to do things or not do things and perhaps focus on your needs as opposed to your wants.

You might need to relax and so a holiday for you might involve a beach destination, a hotel, a pool, and even a cocktail or too while reading a book and working on your tan.

Alternatively, if you don’t like beaches or lounging, then you might choose a cabin in the woods in which to catch up on sleep and to read and from which to take a hike.

If your penchant is to take cultural break, then you might prefer to spend your days sightseeing and having long lazy lunches in a local café to relax and unwind from your normal stresses.

Which type of holiday vacation would you choose?

And, if you had the time to slow travel for an extended time instead, where would you go first?

Just below, in the next part of this post, I’ll be listing My Top 10 Destination Ideas For Slow Travel.

I’d love to know where you’d choose so do please leave a comment in the box at the end of this post!

Vietnam: Da Nang to Hue by Train via Hai Van Pass #vietnam #vietnamtravel #trainjourney

MY TOP 10 DESTINATION IDEAS FOR SLOW TRAVEL

SLOW TRAVEL IS NOT…

But first, it might be best to explain what slow travel is NOT.

Slow travel is not about rushing to tick off tourist attractions from a checklist.

It’s not about following a strict schedule where every hour of the day is planned out.

Slow travel is not always about staying in the most luxurious hotels as it promotes simpler, more eco-friendly choices, like staying in locally run accommodations and homestays.

It’s not about buying souvenirs, eating at chain restaurants, or engaging in activities that don’t align with the local culture or sustainability practices.

Slow travel might be about enjoying the journey and that might mean travelling slowly to get to your destination but it’s not necessarily about how you get to where you’re going.

But, of course, you might want to choose to take the slow boat to China.

You might want to ride The Trans-Siberian Railway slowly through eight time zones.

You could drive a car or a RV or even walk a pilgrimage to your journey’s end if that’s your plan.

BUT personally, I feel it’s also perfectly okay to head to the airport and (eventually – once you actually get airborne) fly at 500 miles an hour to your chosen destination, if that’s how you want to (save time) and get there.

I’m guilty of the latter because my kind of slow travel is more about slowing down once I’ve arrived.

SLOW TRAVEL IS…

Slow travel is a state of mind. It is about slowing down the pace and being intentional in your choices

It’s not about seeing everything but rather savouring each experience.

It encourages you to be present in the moment and mindful of their surroundings.

Slow travel means you become a “traveller” rather than a “tourist.”

It means you’ll get to see a place as a local and so you’ll see both the good and the bad.

Slow travel is about allowing for flexibility and spontaneous experiences as without a rigid schedule, you can adapt to the flow of your journey and take opportunities as they arise.

Instead of cramming multiple destinations into one trip, slow travellers will often stay in one location for an extended time – perhaps several weeks or months.

Allowing for a deeper appreciation of the environment and culture.

This might involve participating in local festivals, shopping at neighbourhood markets, dining at family-owned restaurants, and engaging in conversations with locals to gain insight into their way of life.

Staying with locals, participating in community-based tourism initiatives, or attending local events, encourage interaction and dialogue and perhaps learning a new language.

Slow travel is about contributing directly to the local economy by using local guides, choosing local businesses, artisans, and independent establishments rather than larger global corporations.

It’s also about having the time to learn about the history and traditions of a place, wandering through less-explored areas or visiting the same spots at different times of the day.

Slow travel is about reducing the environmental impact of travel.

It often involves making eco-conscious decisions, like opting for public transportation, cycling, or walking instead of flying or driving long distances.

It aligns with the idea of minimizing carbon footprints and supporting local ecosystems.

This might lead you to consider simplicity and minimalism.

Vietnam: Da Nang to Hue by Train via Hai Van Pass #vietnam #vietnamtravel #trainjourney

Slow travel is about being conscious of your consumption from travelling with minimal luggage and packing light to choosing more sustainable accommodations and avoiding unnecessary luxury.

All this aligns with a broader effort to reduce resource use and travel sustainably.

Personally, I like to mix it up by using homestays and small hotels or motels and I’m happy to book a private room in a hostel but then I also like to occasionally stay in a plush hotel for a few days of luxury and pampering.

I use (affiliate links) Booking Dotcom or Klook Hotels to find and book my accomodation most of the time.

But for longer stays I’ll book short term and then enquire locally to find a suitable rental accomodation.

Slow travel is about forming meaningful connections with the people you meet along the way, whether they are locals, fellow travellers, or hosts.

Building relationships fosters a deeper sense of belonging and respect for the places visited.

By taking your time, you can reflect on your experiences, write a journal about your journey, learn more about yourself, and develop a deeper connection to the world around you.

You might even take part in retreats that focus on mindfulness, art, or wellness.

This often leads to more meaningful and transformative experiences than fast-paced travel.

MY TOP 10 TIPS ON HOW TO SLOW TRAVEL

1. Fully Research Each Destination: Find out the entry requirements into your chosen country and find out how to apply for a longer stay visa if required. Make sure you are aware of any travel vaccines that might be required or advised. Enquire about any travel Learn something of the history, culture, customs, language, and lifestyle of the place you’re visiting.

2. Plan Fewer Destinations: Instead of rushing through multiple destinations, focus on spending more time in fewer places to allow you to experience the culture, people, and environment in a more meaningful way.

3. Stay in One Place for Longer: Instead of hopping between accommodations every couple of days, book longer stays (a week or more) in one location. Choose local rental accommodations like Airbnb, local guesthouses, or homestays that allow you to live like a local to foster a sense of home and allow for a deeper connection with the area.

4. Minimize Itineraries and Schedules: Don’t spend too much time planning a schedule and avoid overloading your itinerary with activities. This is so important as it leaves room for spontaneity. So many times, we have met people who tell us about a place or an opportunity, that we hadn’t previously known about. This flexibility allows you to explore places at your own pace and make discoveries along the way.

5. Embrace Unstructured Time: Take the time to slow down and relax. Engage with locals and make friends rather than moving from one tourist spot to another. Spend more time exploring areas at your leisure. Take in the small details, like local architecture, parks, or street art.

6. Choose Sustainable Transport: Whenever possible use public transport. This would include local buses, local subway, long distance trains, or bicycles. It’s eco-friendly, and it allows you to take in more of the local atmosphere. Aside from reaching your destination, try to avoid frequent air travel within the country as it’s less environmentally friendly.

7. Support Local Businesses: This is easy to do by choosing to eat at local restaurants, cafes, and markets to experience authentic food and support the local economy. Buy from artisans or small businesses rather than chain stores or global brands. Attend festivals, cultural events, and workshops led by locals.

8. Engage with the Local Community: You can do this by learning the language as even knowing a few basic phrases can open doors to more meaningful interactions with locals. Contribute to the community by volunteering at local projects (I volunteered for beach clean ups in the Caribbean and helped out at a turtle sanctuary in Malaysia) and also immerse yourself in cultural experiences by taking part in local traditions, customs, or even cooking classes.

9. Travel in Off-Peak Seasons: This is a fabulous benefit to slow travel as travel during shoulder seasons (before or after the peak tourist period) allows you to experience destinations with fewer crowds. It’s also usually less expensive to travel and to find accommodation. Traveling off-season also reduces the strain on local infrastructure and ecosystems.

10. Embrace Minimal Packing and Travel Light. I’ll admit it’s not so easily done, especially when you first set out, and you think you’ll need everything bar the kitchen sink. But it’s something I’ve learned along the way and often the hard way.

Read my popular post on how to travel light.

I promise you that there’s a freedom to travelling with a smaller luggage load.

Plus, it’s also a lot cheaper to fly if you travel without checking luggage and this also lowers your carbon footprint by reducing emissions in air transport.

You also might like to read my post on whether to travel with a Backpack or a Suitcase as a midlife traveller.

THE BENEFITS OF SLOW TRAVEL

I believe the longer you can stay somewhere the better as then you’ll have an authentic experience of living somewhere like a local.

The most important aspect for me personally with long time slow travel is making new friends and getting to know the people who live in that place.

The differences in our cultures and perhaps our language and the absorbing of these things make slow travel fascinating to me.

Then the longer you stay or the more often you return to a place, strangers can become friends and you can find common opinions and shared interests.

And, in returning, to revisit my friends, receiving a wonderful ‘welcome home’.

I can honestly say I have many dear friends – people whom I have come to love – all over the world whom I have met while travelling and staying in one place for a while.

And, thanks to social media and apps like WhatsApp and Messenger, it is easy to stay in touch and connected to their lives afterwards when I have moved on.

The moving on leads me to the downsides – the drawbacks – of slow travel.

THE DOWNSIDE OF SLOW TRAVEL

Emotional Attachment: I’ve never found that being transient is a barrier to making friends and so when I move on from a place, where I’ve spent a considerable amount of time and energy, I miss that place and the experiences I’ve had there but mostly I miss the lovely people I’ve met.

I can’t help but to get attached and that for me is often painful.

I’m often tearful telling friends ‘farewell until we meet again’.

But I guess it’s a ‘price to pay’ for the freedom I get in return by living this lifestyle.

Travel Insurance: Long term travel often requires sourcing and affording more comprehensive travel insurance.

On internet travel forums, questions about travel insurance for older travellers and travel over 90 days is always a hot topic of conversation.

I wrote a post on Travel Insurance For The Over 50s that you might find helpful as it is based on my own experiences of needing travel insurance.

Healthcare: Also, handling healthcare in foreign countries for extended periods can be challenging, particularly if you have pre-existing conditions and need a regular supply of certain medications.

Climate Issues: Seasonally, staying in one place for a longer time can mean experiencing changing seasons. In temperate climates, this is less of a challenge as this might mean transiting pleasantly from Summer through Fall and Winter.

But in tropical places, this might mean coping with extreme temperatures or dealing with rainy seasons or monsoon or even hurricanes and typhoon.

One of my favourite places in the world, the Caribbean island of Utila, where I often spend many wonderful months in the window between March and September is too uncomfortable for me once rainy season arrives due to the oppressive humidity and the number of sandflies and mosquitoes in rainy season.

I once had to change my plans to island hop the Philippines over Christmas time when a typhoon warning was issued so headed to Kuala Lumpur Malaysia instead.

Another practical issue of long-term slow travel is the matter of a visa and legal stay limits and many countries have limitations on how long you can stay as a tourist.

Visas and Legal Length of Stay: Lots of countries, depending on your nationality and passport, have different requirements regarding entry and how long you are legally allowed to stay.

Many want you to apply for Visa Permissions (for a fee) before travelling.

For example: Travel to The USA requires an Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA) as part of its Visa Waver Programme and Europe is soon to bring in the European Travel Information and Authorisation System (ETIAS).

Depending on your origins and passport South Korea and Japan and Taiwan and lots of other countries now require you to complete an Online Tourist Visa App to acquire a QR Code to aid smooth entry into the country.

Some nations impose strict visa limits that may cut slow travel short, requiring travellers to leave after a certain period of time (e.g., 30, 60, or 90 days).

Long-stay visas or residency permits can be expensive and require significant paperwork which can add to the overall stress and cost of travel.

And, all these legal requirements are constantly shifting (I’m looking at you Thailand) so every trip you make as a tourist must be double checked to ensure you abide by the current entry and exit requirements to avoid any breach.

SLOW TRAVEL IS NOT A NEW WAY TO TRAVEL

If you think about it – despite what the leading hotel report says about Slow Travel Trending in 2025 – in times long ago people always travelled slowly because it was the only way to travel.

Back in the 1700’s the time to travel anywhere was measured in days or weeks not hours.

For example, in 1700 in the UK, it took a week to travel the two hundred or so miles from London to York by horse and carriage.

By 1750, with an improved road, the journey still took around four days.

And it would still take ten whole days to get from London to Edinburgh.

In the USA, in the 1700s, the colonies were sparsely populated, and travel was slow, difficult, and often dangerous while on foot, on horseback, and using horse-drawn wagons and stagecoaches.

For example, on horseback, a trip from New York to Boston could typically take up to a week or more when today you can do it in just four hours by train.

SPEED OF TRAVEL CHANGES THE WORLD

In 1825, at Darlington in Northeast England, George Stephenson built the first public steam railway in the world. And, in 1830, both Liverpool and Manchester had railway connections.

Steam train travel for both passengers and freight would change the whole world.

By 1845, that weeklong stagecoach journey I told you about from London to York, was reduced to just 10 hours by taking the steam train.

In the USA, during the early 1800’s, steamboats made river travel faster and The Pony Express Mail Service connected the East and West.

Then in 1830, the steam locomotive revolutionizing cross-country travel.

The Transcontinental Railroad was completed in 1869 and linked the East and West coasts.

This cut travel time across the country from months to just days.

FLYING AROUND THE WORLD

In 1914, the journey to Australia from the UK by ship took about 40 days, but in 1919, the first flight from Hounslow in England to Darwin Australia – via parts of Europe, the Middle East, India, and southeast Asia – took 28 days.

In the 1950s, the last liners could do the journey in about 25 days using the Suez Canal as a shortcut.

ACCELERATING INTO THE 20TH CENTURY

By the 1920s, the automobile was the dominant mode of transportation for individuals, and road infrastructure expanded significantly.

Intercity bus systems, like Greyhound, became popular for cheaper long-distance travel.

Jet aircraft was introduced in the 1950s to make flying faster, cheaper, and more accessible.

By the 1970s, air travel became the preferred transport for long-distance travel in the USA.

TRAVEL NOW

In the 21st century, air travel remains the fastest and most common way to travel long distances.

But now we have more fuel-efficient planes and new technologies like TSA Pre-Check and biometric boarding.

Some countries have overcome political and logistical challenges to develop high speed rail.

There is growing interest in electric cars fuelled by companies like Tesla.

Ride-sharing services like Uber and Lyft and Grab have changed urban travel.

So, if the acceleration in the speed of travel has been speeding up our lives over the past few hundred years, maybe it is time to slow down our travel experiences

If only to fully savour and appreciate that even today – especially today – travelling is still an absolute privilege.

How do you like to travel?

Does Slow Travel appeal to you?

Would you take time out for the opportunity to travel for longer and travel slowly?

Is Slow Travel something you aspire to do in retirement?

Let me know. I’d love to hear from you.

Leave a comment!

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