11 Pro Travel Goals (+ how to choose the right one)
Travel goals make your adventures more engaging and purposeful. It’s a way to collaborate with your trip. It’s creative, and I like that.
So this is a shortlist of my absolute favorite travel goals.
And since there’s no one-size-fits-all option or list, be sure to check out the last section on how to choose the right goal for you.
But enough of this chit chat — let’s get to it!
Table of Contents Show
What Are Travel Goals?
Travel goals are specific objectives or intentions you set for your trips, vacations and/or experiences.
They create a focused purpose and direction for your trip.
While aimless, spontaneous exploring is equally awesome, having some higher project adds a rewarding and interactive layer to things.
Here are some specific benefits to setting travel goals:
Make your trip(s) more memorable
Have a strong sense of accomplishment
It’s a form of self development
Learn about yourself and boost your self awareness
Make travel more engaging and interactive
Learn about your destinations in a deeper way
11 Kick-Ass Travel Goals
1. Travel More
This is the perfect travel goal to kick off this list.
Simply go traveling more.
Do what you need to do, budget what you need to budget, but try to infuse more adventures into your life. While this is definitely a long-term goal (and lifestyle), here are a few quick tips to start traveling more in life:
Take shorter and closer trips
Become a minimalist budget traveler
Find more flexible work
Budget and plan
Try to go someplace new every year
Become friends with more travelers
Explore more:
➤ How to Travel More
2. Get Out of Your Travel Comfort Zone
Travel is already stretching your comfort zone. But let’s take things a little further.
Travel opens up a lot of unique opportunities and experiences. But often, these things can feel unfamiliar and cause discomfort.
Perfect.
Because doing more challenging things will make you stronger and more confident. Plus, they create more memorable experiences.
So here are some examples of how you could push your comfort zone while traveling:
Try new and unfamiliar local food
Try surfing or something adrenaline-inducing
Explore things off the beaten (touristy) path
Identify specific fears you may have and challenge them
Have new experiences and do things you don’t normally do
Explore more:
➤ Get Out of Your Comfort Zone
3. Make Your Traveling More Immersive
There are tons of ways to travel. But immersive travel is one that truly elevates the experience.
Plus, it makes for a great goal.
Immersive travel is experiential travel, where your aim is to experience a culture and its local nuances more deeply and authentically.
Put another way, it means skipping the all-inclusive resorts for something a little more real.
So here are some great goals to consider for your next trip:
Participate in local traditions or events
Go to small shows to support local artists
Go to local restaurants
Take cooking classes
Use the local language
Stay with a local family or in a guesthouse
Research local customs and etiquette
Become friends with the people who live there
Take it all in and travel slower
Live like a local (not like a tourist)
4. Make New Friends
While I’m all for introverted travel, social travel is definitely an awesome goal.
Unless you’re hiding in your hotel the whole time, you’ll naturally meet other travelers and locals. But for this goal, you’ll be adding a little more intention to things.
Rather than small talk, dig deeper. Rather than goodbye forever, make plans with people. And of course, try to meet people who aren’t weirdos, who you can vibe with.
So here are some tips for making friends while traveling:
Go to social places like pubs or local events
Stay at a share house or hostel
Use a travel app, like Backpackr
Play the game — strike up a conversation with other travelers
Go to a language exchange cafe or event
Go to local Meetups
5. Learn Some Language (+ use it)
Learning and using a different language is an epic way to boost your travel experience.
It’s a solid goal.
And it’s something you’ll feel especially proud of, because you know, learning another language is hard! It’s also a great way to show you respect the local culture (you may even impress some locals).
There are plenty of free resources online to learn a new language, so I won’t bore you with how to do that (you got this).
But if you’re curious what I use for Japanese, I like jtest4you to study vocab and grammar.
6. Do A Creative Travel Project
Creative travel is my bread and butter. I love making music, videos and blogging about my adventures.
So if you’re looking for an artistic goal for your trip, this could be perfect.
And don’t worry, you don’t need to be a creative person. Quality doesn’t matter here.
But then again, if you do find yourself having fun with this, it could definitely evolve into something more (like content creation and building a personal brand).
Either way, here are some ideas for creative travel projects:
Make a short travel film
Make some travel art
Go to museums, shows and galleries
Write about your adventures — turn them into articles or blogs
Write music using sounds from your adventures
Create a photo book of your travels
Explore more:
➤ 15 Ways to Express Your Creativity
7. Visit Every (insert place)
This goal is perfect for anyone that loves a checklist-style objective.
Visit every (blank) in (blank). Obviously, you insert the blanks based on your preferences and where you’re traveling to.
For example, you could:
Visit every US state in America
Visit every continent in the world
Go to every museum in New York
Go to as many temples and shrines as you can in Japan
The options here are endless, and this goal could definitely keep you busy for a while.
8. Become A Digital Nomad or Work Overseas
What’s a more exciting travel goal than making money while traveling?
While this isn’t for everyone, anyone can do it (if they want to). It’s actually what I do. I work remotely, from anywhere in the world. Currently, I spend at least half the year in Japan!
It’s a solid lifestyle.
So if this sound interesting to you, here are some tips for getting started:
Start building a side income (freelancing, for example)
Look for flexible work you can do from anywhere
Have a long-term timeline (stay patient)
Consider teaching English overseas
Also, keep in mind that you don’t need to be full time either. Becoming a part-time, temporary digital nomad is totally an option.
Explore more:
➤ Best Remote Jobs for Travelers
9. Start A Travel Blog or Vlog
Creating content while you travel is an awesome goal (and one that keeps on giving).
So, why not start a travel blog or vlog?
Here are a few awesome benefits to going this route:
You’re building a personal brand
You can make solid money
Meet amazing people
Unlock exciting opportunities and partnerships
Learn in-demand skills (like SEO and writing online)
Turn your passions into profit
While it takes time (and a lot of content) to build a successful blog, it’s an amazing adventure and a strong source of pride.
You can learn how I built things in my free blog series on starting a personal brand blog!
10. Backpack Across A Country or Continent
This goal isn’t for the faint of heart. But it can be a seriously epic travel goal.
So if you’re feeling particularly industrious (and love longer-term, adventurous travel), this one may be for you.
Do take note though that when backpacking abroad, you may be spending a lot of time in the elements and potentially precarious situations. So if this is your goal, it’s doubly important to plan ahead and have some good travel insurance.
Check out my top picks for travel insurance here!
11. Volunteer Or Travel Sustainably
Sustainable travel is travel that addresses issues like overtourism, pollution and negative impacts on local communities and cultures.
It’s a solid thing. So this is an equally solid goal.
Here are some ways to make sustainable travel your goal:
Be responsible and respectful (don’t litter, etc.)
Consider volunteering while you travel
Buy ethical travel clothes
Eat and buy local to support local businesses
Don’t be wasteful
How to Choose the Right Travel Goal
“The right goal is choosing one that is personal and relevant.”
Go With Smaller Travel Goals
Big goals are cool. But let’s keep things more manageable — especially for traveling.
For example, don’t set a goal to speak the local language in full fluency when your trip is just three months away.
And if you do want to keep a big goal, spread it out over multiple trips and make it more realistic.
There’s no right or wrong way to have a travel goal. And there’s no need to “go big or go home!” here.
So keep your goals stress-free and manageable.
Break Down Your Goals
Goals need a strategy. That’s where breaking them down comes into play. This is especially helpful if your travel goals are bigger or more complex.
Here’s how I reverse engineering goals:
Define your main goal
Define the main micro goals required to meet that main goal
Define the main nano goals to meet each micro goal
Once you break things down this way, simply focus on the nano goals each day and slowly chip away at them, until you reach one micro goal at a time.
Eventually, you’ll reach your main travel goal.
Make Them Personal
Goals are naturally personal. But it’s easy to forget this when setting travel goals. So here’s your friendly reminder.
Aim to make your goal(s) something you’re actually interested in or already skilled at. This will make things more fun and easier.
For example:
Align your travel goals with your personal values
Write out personal goal setting questions
Have a purpose or mission for your goals
Choose goals that leverage existing skills or interests
Have Fun (don’t be ‘perfect’)
Goals are great. But they can also become a source of stress or anxiety.
And since it’s best to keep travel stress-free, it’s important to avoid this pitfall. My best advice is to just have fun with it and not stress too much about actually meeting strict deadlines or finish lines.
It’s better to just try your goals and not worry about achieving them perfectly.
So stay chill and have fun with it.
Later ✌️
Setting travel goals is an awesome way to make things more engaging, memorable and creative.
Plus, it’s fun.
Some of my favorite goals are having creative projects while traveling, using the local language, making friends and embracing a digital nomad life.
But ultimately, choosing the right goal depends on your preferences, lifestyle and level of commitment.
After all, there’s no rule that says your travel goal needs to be some big, grandiose thing.
So have fun with it and remember, travel is supposed to be relaxing and enjoyable.
Alright, peace!
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