Rick Steves Advises Tourists To Ditch This Bad Habit For More Enjoyable Travel Experiences

If there is one person who has seen numerous tourists around the world, it's travel expert and TV personality, Rick Steves. One of the many joys of traveling, other than seeing a new place with fresh eyes, is immersing yourself in the local culture. Steves mentions in his blog that overcomplicating your trip, however, can be an immense burden and urges tourists to "Travel more like Gandhi — with simple clothes, open eyes, and an uncluttered mind."  With a change in attitude and the way you approach traveling, Steves assures tourists that they will have a more enjoyable travel experience.

You're bound to come across a few of them on every trip, in any country around the world. Dragging overstuffed luggage through the streets, and packing unnecessary items like four bottles of shampoo and conditioner. By ridding yourself of unnecessary burdens, such as bringing three pairs of shoes that you'll never wear, and simplifying the way you travel, the world will open up to experiencing local customs and cultures more authentically.  

Creating an anxious, stress-filled beginning to your trip by overcomplicating things can not only weigh you down physically, but also mentally, which in turn becomes exhausting. Planning every little detail of a trip is actually a bad idea, but there are travelers who still overpack, overschedule themselves, and bring every comfort from home with them on the road. Overcomplicating a trip can take the romanticism out of traveling altogether; luckily, there are many old-school travel tips that are timeless for a fool-proof getaway, such as packing light and planning in advance, that can be helpful instead.

The best way to rid yourself of the burden of packing too much for a trip abroad is to follow a complete guide to packing light. Another way to ensure that you aren't overcomplicating your trip is to learn how to create your very own travel capsule wardrobe. By teaching yourself how to pack using a capsule wardrobe, consisting of a couple of pairs of bottoms, a few tops, and an outer layer, packing less luggage, such as only a carry-on, will feel less daunting, and you'll feel a lot freer during your travels without having to lug a 40-pound suitcase behind you on those pesky cobblestone streets.

Another way to ditch the habit of overcomplicating things is to buy items once you reach your destination. It may be shocking to some, but other places in the world do, in fact, sell shampoo, conditioner, and even sunscreen. Groundbreaking, right? If you absolutely have a face cream that is your favorite, then by all means, pack it and bring it with you, but all other essentials can be purchased abroad, and sometimes prices on certain items can be cheaper overseas, and more options might be available. 

By ditching the obsessive behavior of overcomplicating your next trip, you'll be able to enjoy your travels much more if you just shift your attitude and mindset. Leave the unnecessary items at home, embrace flexibility, and relax. Remember, you're on vacation after all.