Travel Tip 137
How to plan experiential travel
I was so happy to eat grapes warm from the sun and taste wine made onsite that it didn’t matter where I was. (It was Ica, a fairly ugly town, in January last year).
I taught in junior highs and middle schools for twelve years and, as educational fads go, I was always a fan of experiential learning. If you experience something, you’re more likely to learn it than if you just read about it. So, you’re probably not surprised that I think the experiences you have when you travel are more important than where you go.
Experiential learning leads to experiential travel.
This week I interviewed Siwar Qente, who worked with the travel company Where There Be Dragons for sixteen years, welcoming teenagers from around the world to his village with a homestay program. When he described the experiences the teens had, he beamed. He was so proud of what his community had to offer, not because of the stunning Andean landscapes, but because of the activities that seemed mundane to the villagers and extraordinary to the visitors. (Keep reading for more about Siwar Qente and his village).
How to plan experiential travel?
Most people planning vacation pick a destination and then figure out when is the best time to go. Maybe they pick your vacation dates and then go wherever you can get good flight deals for that week. I want you to try picking an experience and working from there.
One year I decided I wanted to go swimming with whale sharks, and ended up in La Paz, Mexico in February.
Why pick an experience first?
It focuses the trip on what you want to do, whether that’s flyfishing, swimming with whale sharks, visiting wineries or just sitting by the beach. It can also make your trip much more affordable if you’re focused on what you want to do and can be flexible about where and when. Choosing the experience first means that you can go with the most affordable flights and hotels to anywhere that you can get the experience you want.
How to plan a trip around the experience?
Experience first, dates second, location third
Say you really want to visit wineries while grapes are being harvested, so you can see piles of grape bunches, freshly cut off the vines and heading to the press. You want to taste wine and see how it’s made, right at the wineries. Whatever it is, first decide what you want to do.
When can you book the trip?
If visiting wineries is your goal, there are dozens of places around the world you can do that but grape harvests tend to be around September in the northern hemisphere and around March in the southern hemisphere, give or take a month depending on the country. Figure out which time of year you can get some vacation, and you’re ready for step three.
If you’re looking for a warm place to go wine tasting in February, does it really matter what country you’re in?
Where do you want to go?
Let’s say you picked March because flights from your city or closest airport are cheaper in March than September. Start looking at flight prices to Australia, New Zealand, Argentina, Chile, Peru, Brazil, Uruguay and South Africa. Set flight alerts for any and all countries on that list, then start comparing prices for hotels and tours. Also check the currency of the countries you’re open to and see where you can stretch your dollar the farthest.
For example, most of the best wineries in South Africa are around Cape Town. For $100 USD per night, you can get a much nicer hotel in Cape Town than you can in most cities around the US. If you come to Peru, Ica has the best wineries and for $100 a night you can get an even nicer hotel than in Cape Town. Don’t just compare prices for flights; what you spend per day on hotels and food adds up quickly. Check for package deals that include meals and hotels but always check the quality of the hotel. Sometimes the screaming deal ends up being a crappy hotel.
If you’re looking for somewhere to go fishing in February, you could end up in Patagonia. This is Tierra del Fuego, Chile.
The surprise is a feature, not a bug.
Say you want to go flyfishing. If you’re truly open to anywhere in the world where you can have a great flyfishing experience, you may be surprised where you end up. That’s part of the fun of first choosing what experience you want to have and then being flexible on everything else.
New Blog: How to Visit Q’ero Nation
Siwar Qente is a member of the Q’ero Nation, from the village of Quiqo, one of five villages that make up the Q’ero Nation. This week I sat down with him to talk about his family’s new community tourism project. It’s the fourth time we’ve met but the first time he told me why he wants to bring travelers to his village for both a homestay program and for spiritual tourism.
