Let’s be honest: anyone can plan a trip.
You pick a destination, book a flight, scroll Pinterest for the “must-dos,” and fill your calendar with activities from morning to night.
But then what? You come home feeling like you need… another vacation?
If you’ve ever returned from a trip feeling more drained than delighted, or like something was missing even though you “checked all the boxes,” you’re not alone.
I’ve been there too.
10 Ways to Make Travel More Meaningful
The truth is, anyone can create a travel itinerary. But it’s up to you to make it meaningful.
So let’s talk about it.
What does meaningful travel even mean? And how can you bring more joy, purpose, and connection into the way you experience the world?
Here are ten ways to add more meaning to your travels:
1. Connect with the People You’re Traveling With (Including Yourself)
Meaningful travel often has less to do with where you go and everything to do with who you’re with.
Whether it’s deepening your relationship with your partner, reconnecting with your kids, or spending intentional time with yourself, travel has a way of creating space for the kind of connection that gets lost in day-to-day life.
Some of our favorite trips weren’t about bucket-list destinations.
We once booked a spontaneous long weekend to Chicago just because we found a good deal on airfare. There wasn’t a big event or grand plan – we just wanted to go somewhere new. We explored the city, saw the Cubs play, ate amazing food, and laughed a lot.
It reminded me that one of the best part of traveling is often just being fully present with the people you love.
2. Follow Your Passions
One of the best ways to travel with meaning is to center your trip around what lights you up.
Love hiking? Find a trail with views that take your breath away. Obsessed with food? Map out restaurants and street eats like your own personal food tour. Into music, sports, or quirky conventions? Build your trip around that.
We’ve traveled to Denver, Colorado for a concert (twice!), Austin, Texas for the food scene, and to The Bahamas for a basketball tournament. Sure, we saw the sights, but the real reason we went was to experience something we loved—together.
That kind of travel feels personal, and it always ends up being more memorable.
You don’t have to follow anyone else’s idea of the “perfect” trip. The more you align your travels with your passions, the more meaningful they’ll feel.
3. Set an Intention for Your Trip
What do you want from this trip?
If your goal is rest and relaxation, don’t pack your schedule from morning to night.
If you’re in need of a little self care, consider unplugging completely.
Setting a clear intention helps you make aligned decisions and avoid feeling like you missed the point of your vacation.
I used to overplan everything. I wanted to do it all, see it all, and experience every must-see. But I always ended up exhausted.
I realized I needed to apply my intentional lifestyle to our travels too. These days, we travel differently. Now, we go slower, schedule downtime, and leave room for spontaneous moments.
And at the end of the day…it’s a way more enjoyable way to travel!
4. Get Outside Your Comfort Zone
This is one of my favorites.
When everyday life starts to feel a little meh, travel is the perfect opportunity to shake things up.
On our recent trip to Curaçao, our original island tour was canceled at the last minute. We pivoted and signed up for an ATV tour instead.
Let me just say – this was way outside my comfort zone. I was super nervous. As a planner, I like to know the details: what to wear, what to bring, what to expect. And this tour? I knew nothing. Not the rules, not the gear, not even how muddy we’d get.
And you know what? It didn’t matter.
We ended up completely covered in dirt, laughing the entire time, seeing parts of the island we never would have otherwise. It turned out to be one of the best days of our whole trip.
You don’t have to do anything extreme, but saying yes to something unfamiliar can be the very thing that shifts your perspective and gives you a deeper sense of adventure.
From white water rafting in in Yellowstone National Park to hiking the Narrows at Zion National Park to spending a week on a boat in the British Virgin Islands, trying something new has never failed to bring a whole new kind of energy and meaning to our travels.
5. Be Flexible and Embrace the Chaos
Let me tell you about Barcelona.
Spain was my dream trip. I had every detail planned.
Then my son got extremely sick.
We had to call a doctor to our apartment, and he couldn’t leave for several days. And I could’ve let it derail the whole trip.
But we chose to make the best of it. Because of my son’s illness, we got a more in depth look at everyday life in the neighborhood close to our apartment.
Wandering into local shops, exploring nearby restaurants, and discovering small markets ended up being some of our favorite moments from that entire trip.
Things will go wrong. The unexpected will happen. When you learn to be flexible and embrace the chaos, the more open you’ll be to finding beauty in the in-between.
6. Learn Something New
Want to bring more depth to your travels? Try learning something along the way. A cooking class, a local workshop, or even a guided cultural tour can create memories that stick in a whole different way.
Even picking up a few phrases in the local language can shift the way you interact with the world around you. People notice. And they appreciate the effort.
One of my favorite things to do right now when we travel is a food tour. You get to try new and fun foods, meet new people, and can learn so much about your destination from your tour guide. We learned so much on a recent food tour on ham culture in Madrid!
7. Support Local Whenever You Can
Where you spend your money makes a difference.
Choosing to support local shops, restaurants, and artisans not only brings more authenticity to your trip—it also directly supports the people who make a place what it is.
Skip the chain coffee shop and try the neighborhood café. Browse a weekend market instead of grabbing souvenirs from the airport gift store. Look for locally owned accommodations, even if it’s just for one night.
These small, intentional choices connect you to the local economy in a more personal and impactful way.
I like to buy small pieces of art from street vendors. They’re a great way to support local people, and they become visual memories of our travels once we’re back home. Every time I walk past one in our house, it takes me right back to that moment, that place, that feeling.
Small choices can make a big impact, both for you and for them.
8. Immerse Yourself in Local Culture
You don’t have to sign up for a full cultural immersion program to get a deeper experience.
Sometimes it’s as simple as grocery shopping like a local, grabbing pastries from the neighborhood bakery, or talking to your Uber driver.
You can also intentionally build small cultural experiences into your day: learn a few greetings in the local language, try traditional foods, or attend a community event or festival if your timing lines up.
Not everything has to be planned—sometimes the most memorable cultural exchanges happen when you’re simply present and curious
9. Let Go of Expectations
This one is huge.
Let go of what other people say you’re supposed to do. If you don’t enjoy museums, skip them. If you hate rigid schedules, don’t make one. If your dream day involves lounging with a book for hours, that’s totally fine!!
There’s a lot of noise out there about what “real travel” looks like. But here’s the truth: only you can decide what makes a trip meaningful.
People love to criticize all-inclusive resorts. But for us, they’ve been the setting for some of our most relaxed, connection-filled trips.
When you’re open to chatting with staff or exploring off-resort, you can absolutely get a deeper experience too. It’s all about what you bring to it.
10. Slow Down and Savor
If you take just one thing from this list—let it be this one. Slow down.
We live in a culture of constant movement, and sometimes that mindset sneaks into how we travel. But slowing down allows you to really take in where you are, who you’re with, and how you feel.
Put your phone on airplane mode for a couple of hours. Order the second coffee. Walk the long way back to your hotel. Sit on a bench and people-watch. These are the little moments that often become your favorite memories.
I take a lot of photos while we travel—not just the places we go, but the food we eat, the name of our tour guide, a street sign, or the details of a special meal. I like to think of them as notes. Tiny snapshots that help me remember the little things that made the trip special.
When we get home, I create photo books from each trip. It’s one of our favorite ways to look back and relive those moments. The kids flip through them all the time.
Take the photos. Capture the feelings. Let yourself truly be there.
Because meaningful travel lives in the pauses—and those small moments are often the ones you’ll treasure the most.
Define What Meaningful Travel Means to You
There’s no one-size-fits-all when it comes to meaningful travel. What you define as meaningful might look completely different from someone else’s – and that’s exactly how it should be.
Ask yourself:
What are my goals for this trip?
What do I value most right now?
What would make me feel excited, restored, or alive?
What do I need out of this experience?
Your answers might shift with every season of life. And that’s okay. The point isn’t to check every box or make every trip “deep” – it’s to stay connected to your why.
Most importantly, be kind to yourself. This isn’t something you have to get just right. It’s not one more thing to perfect.
Progress over perfection, always. Even small shifts in how you travel can lead to big feelings of joy, connection, and clarity.
Travel That Stays With You
Meaningful travel isn’t about how far you go or how many boxes you check.
It’s about how present you are. It’s about noticing the small things, choosing experiences that matter to you, and giving yourself permission to let go of what doesn’t.
Whether you’re planning a big adventure or a quiet weekend close to home, you don’t need a perfect plan to create something memorable. You just need intention – and a willingness to see the magic in the moment.
Here’s to trips that feed your soul – not just your itinerary.
