You’ve probably met us on the road. We’re those travelers, the ones with bright, eager faces despite the massive sunburn from paddle boarding. We don’t take pictures with our cameras of the mountain we’ve climbed, but happily do it with our phones and upload them to Instagram with a filter or two. We’re Generation Y travelers, and we might do things a little bit differently than other travelers from the past. Here are some things I’ve noticed about some of my peers while wandering to new places (and using new filters on my own Instagram).
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We’re not afraid to do something out of the norm.
If any age group exemplifies “taking the road less traveled,” it might be Gen Y. Though we usually want to visit famous sites and locations, oftentimes, the more exotic and untouched the locale, the better. We’re not afraid to book a random flight to an unknown place or try a new dish even though it looks suspicious. Okay, maybe we are a little, but that’s part of the fun.
We want to share our adventures—in multiple ways.
Social media has become a large part of our lives as young adults, and there is no better way for everyone to know about our trip to Greece’s white sands or a Buddhist temple than to upload it to Facebook, or Twitter, or tumblr…we have a lot of different places online we can. We love to make new friends and show our old ones how excited we are bungee jumping in Africa or riding an elephant in Thailand. Expect us to have multiple ways to share our pictures and our trials and tribulations while traveling.
We go pretty hard.
When we travel, it’s usually an all or nothing thing. Don’t expect to see Gen Yers meandering at a leisurely pace. We usually hit the gas pedal, seeing as much as we can for as cheaply as we can. We might crash when we get home and when we are relaxing in our own beds with a box of cereal, but we will have had some major adventures to share with our friends and families.
We might figure things out as we go.
Rarely have I met a Generation Y traveler with an agenda. Doing things on a whim and without a set plan is more of our style, and you will often find the only set itinerary is our flight schedule. Going with what life brings us and whatever opportunities tend to come along is usually the way we do things. It might not always work out, but more often than not, we end up with an experience better than we imagined.
I feel so fortunate to be a part of this new group of wanderers and to be able to talk to them about travel. Being a Generation Y traveler means we’re unique and filled with the desire to do what we really love. We’re an innovative collection of young people and we’re in for some great times and adventures!