Saturday, February 21, 2009

The Organised/Unorganised Traveller

“A good traveller has no fixed plans and is not intent on arriving.”
- Lao Tzu
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Recent posts have asked the question: What Type of Traveller Are You? I have also looked at the Plugged In Traveller, and the Wired Traveller. Today I’m turning my attention to the Organised Traveller, and their opposite number – the Unorganised Traveller.

All of these – Plugged, Wired and Organised/Unorganised travellers – are part of the mix when thinking about the type of traveller you are.

The Organised Traveller happily leaves everything to their travel agent: flight bookings, travel insurance, hotel reservations, excursions, and the many other details that have to be attended to before embarking on their vacation.

The Organised Traveller likes to know that every stage of their journey has been planned in fine detail. That every waking hour is mapped out like a military exercise. Nothing is left to chance. If you are this type of traveller, guided tours are perfect for you. As are cruise ship vacations, study tours, holiday resorts, and any other type of holiday which offers a full program of activities, and saves you from having to plan or organise more than the absolute essentials.

The Unorganised Traveller on the other hand is, as you might expect, the opposite. But first, let me be clear about what I am talking about here. Being Un-organised is not the same as being Dis-organised. Chevy Chase in the National Lampoon series of Vacation… movies is a completely disorganised traveller.

The Unorganised Traveller maps out points along the way, but leaves plenty of slack in their itinerary to take advantage of last minute changes or chance encounters with locals, and fellow travellers.

Road trips, for instance, are a perfect example.

The Unorganised Traveller plans to drive from A to B; say Adelaide to Sydney (or New York to New Orleans). He might have a list of cities and attractions along the route he wants to visit, but is happy to take ‘the road less travelled’ if it looks interesting, or if he hears about some other place worth visiting. He doesn’t book his accommodation two months in advance. When he is tired of being on the road, he will pull into any reasonable looking motel and rest and recuperate there, before moving on the next day.

Since they never know what awaits them around the next bend in the road, or what panoramic vista might lie before them when they crest a mountain highway - every day holds the potential for new adventures for the Unorganised Traveller.

None of this is meant to disparage the Organised Traveller, of course. As always, it comes down to understanding the type of traveller you are, and planning your travels to reflect your preferences.

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