There are worse things than getting the chance to see your favorite sights more than once in your life. After all, life is short and there are more opportunities to see the world now than there ever were before. If you’re considering a revisit to some of your favorite travel destinations but you feel guilty about, this is your friendly reminder that there’s no guilt or shame in doing it. The world is your oyster to explore as many times as you can. You should never deny yourself the pleasure of travel, especially if you have the means to do it. There is so much to see in the world. You should take advantage of any opportunity you have to see as much of it as possible, as many times as possible. If you’re still not convinced, here are some of the best reasons why revisiting your favorite travel destinations is a great idea.
Experience more of what you love
There are some travel experiences you don’t want to forget. The people, places, activities that you got to see the first time around are usually why you want to see it again. One more drive through the Champs Elysee or a trip around the Louvre where you can take it all in, without worrying about the next item on your itinerary. The second time around, you know which bus to catch or the most direct train line to your destination. You spend a lot less time trying to figure it all out again. What’s more, you’re more willing to experience the atmosphere around you without worrying if you got the best angle for your picture of Trevi Fountain. You may even notice small details you didn’t see the first time around. More than anything, you get the chance to see things you love again. For some, travel is a once-in-a-lifetime experience. If you have the opportunity to do it more than once, why not. Life’s too short to remember trips in pictures alone.
Share it with loved ones
Once you’ve visited a country, seen a monument and swam in all the beaches you can find, you’re the best person to show someone else around. There is no better way to experience a place you love than with someone you love. You want them to see as much of the world as you have. What better way to do it than to show them the nooks and crannies you’ve discovered that they might not have found on their own. Your experience and know-how will improve their travel because it eliminates the small details that take up your time, like figuring out directions, routes and best practices. If your loved one can experience your favorite places in the best way possible, the chances are they’ll share in your excitement. There’s nothing quite like sharing a great travel experience with the ones you love.
Explore new places
Apart from seeing your favorite places again, revisiting travel destinations gives you the best chance to see new things. The second, third or even fourth time around, you’ll have a much better sense of your surroundings and with it comes the confidence of exploration. You’re more eager to travel further, push the envelope on the bounds of tourist destinations and perhaps you’ll see more of the authenticities a destination has to offer. If you’ve revisited a place more than once, chances are you’ve met many locals who can offer you the best local experience. Not only is that great for your travel-log, but you’ll also have the opportunity to immerse yourself in the culture of a place. You can ask for no better experience than being able to explore a destination less like a tourist and more like the locals in your surroundings.
Try new things
On your first attempt, there are lots of details that fall through the cracks. You are preoccupied with your otherness in a new place and you’re less likely to venture further than your DK pocket-size travel guide. You feel much safer sticking to the gospel shared by your favorite travel influencers. A second experience opens your eyes to experiences you have missed on your first run. Trying a local delicacy may have stopped you dead in your tracks, the fear of an upset stomach in a strange place guides you to the nearest McDonald’s. After all, eating what you know can’t kill you. Your palate and indeed your spirit is more adventurous on a second or third try. What’s the worst that could happen? The last time a jellyfish stung your foot, so you already know where the hospital is. But, more than anything, on a second try, you’re aware of the things you regret not doing the first time around so your eagerness to try won’t be dampened.
Expectations change
You might’ve envisioned an entirely different trip the first time around than what you experienced. That’s normal. You go on a trip assuming one kind of holiday but end up with less than you imagine. Upon a second review, you can have an entirely different experience, either because you’re better prepared or because you know better. If you’ve visited a destination once before, by the second visit, you have a clearer picture of what to expect from your trip. You’re more aware of the layout of the city or town that you’ll be visiting, which is great for planning your accommodation and itinerary. You might not have accounted for the difference between Instagram and the internet’s version of things versus the reality of a place. While this doesn’t happen often, you might find that you have a better experience of the things a second time than your first, because you are better prepared for the experience.
You’re a little older and wiser
It’s only once you’re getting on a plane to go back home that you realize just how special a trip was. Maybe you realized as soon as you arrived that you’d be back for your next trip. A second or third trip is a chance for hindsight and better planning to take hold. Perhaps you went way over budget on your first trip. Maybe you bought too many gifts or ate out at fancy restaurants. A second trip could mean that you’re better prepared for the expenses. Or you picked up a couple of saving tips at the end of your last trip that will help you this time around. You know more or less what to expect when it comes to food, activities and travel on your trip. More than likely, you’re not going to make the same mistakes you might’ve before. You’re a lot better equipped and more informed. Another chance at a trip can be a better experience overall.
Pick up where you left off
It can be difficult to perfect the time you spend on your itinerary, particularly on shorter trips. You don’t need to have a long-winded trip planned to get the most out of a destination. Shorter trips sometimes mean that you spend more time on things you actually want to do. But, you’re not going to time every activity and you shouldn’t either. You should get carried away. But that means you might not see everything you planned to. This is especially true for activities that involve popular tourist attractions. There are often lengthy queues and prebookings that you might’ve missed or not been aware of. Perhaps you’re an achievement chaser and you want to tick off as many destinations on your bucket list as possible. Revisiting a destination will give you a chance to see more because you can pick up where you left off on your last trip. Maybe it’s been years since your last visit and you want to see it all again, a revisit will allow you that privilege.
Try the regional cuisine
Every destination has incredible and not-so-great food to choose from. On your first trip, you may not have had the chance to taste them all. Or you were too afraid to try anything. Either way, a revisit will give you the chance to do the same or change your strategy completely. From drinking rum cocktails on the Barbados coastline to eating chocolate coated crickets in Thailand, there’s an entire culinary world to explore on any trip. You might’ve been apprehensive about trying some of the local delicacies on your first trip, but come the second time around, you’re more likely to dive right in. Whether it’s confidence, fearlessness or FOMO, you’ll be a lot less hesitant to try out strange foods on a revisit. You’ve gone home, thinking about everything you missed out on and you made a promise that if you ever got another chance, you’d do it all, no backsies.
Nothing beats nostalgia
Maybe you don’t have anything you regret missing out on, and you have only the fondest memories of your last trip. The restaurants, landmarks, people and atmosphere are what you want to experience again because there’s nothing quite like it at home. You can spend your second trip revisiting all the places you missed the most. Revisit the gelateria where you had your first taste of authentic Italian gelato. You’ve looked for it everywhere back home, but there’s nothing quite like the one you had in Rome. Revisiting all your favorite moments is the most exciting part of going back. You’ll see what’s changed and be surprised by all the things that have remained the same. You know the best food spots and you just want to experience it all again. Plus, you get to relive all your favorite parts. Often, you don’t realize what you’re going to miss most about a place until you’ve been away for a bit. They say absence makes the heart grow fonder, and nowhere is that truer than missing your favorite travel spots.
Places change all the time
It may be years before you get a chance to revisit your favorite destinations. By that time, things may have changed a little or a whole lot. It’s always fun to see what has changed while you’ve been away. Your favorite bookstore or coffee shop may no longer exist. While it is sad to see good things go, your experiences of them are a testament to their existence and their memory. You’ll have pictures of what used to be and upon a second visit, you can document how that has changed and create new memories in that spot. There are so many sentimentalities that you acquire as a result of your travels. You want to hold onto the places that capture your memory of a destination to see if you’ve changed your mind about it. More often than not, you can recreate an experience or feeling just by revisiting an old haunt.