5: Hometown Tourist: Literally, the Next Town Over
In this Episode…
Carson and Nicole discuss why you should want to explore your hometown as a tourist, and how to do so to expand your horizons, make new discoveries, and uncover the magic in the places you find most mundane.
Show Notes:
Here are the websites we mentioned in today’s episode:
TripAdvisor: a resource for researching and reviewing hotels, restaurants, and attractions
EventBrite: a website that advertises events large and small
Don’t forget to look at your local newspaper and chamber of commerce websites, too. Facebook is another great resource for events.
Takeaways:
Playing tourist at home is a great way to give yourself a travel top-up in between trips, you can learn a lot and discover things to show friends and family when they visit, and it’s fun.
Plan it like any other trip—look for museums, tourist attractions, state or regional parks, top restaurants and bars in the area.
Try simple or spontaneous methods in your day-to-day—stop along your usual routes, turn right instead of left, or ask friends/family for suggestions.
Visit a nearby town you don’t spend much time in. Often the destinations that are in the 40-90 minute drive range get ignored.
Try a new activity—what’s popular in your area that you’ve never done? Or splurge on something you’ve never indulged in because it’s too expensive.
Go where the tourists are and pretend you’re one of them
Pick up brochures at local hotels and keep your eyes open for events.