Travel Tips for Highly Sensitive Millennials

Are you sensitive and want to travel, but are afraid that it will take a lot from you emotionally, mentally and physically?

Do you worry about whether you can handle the scents, noise, and energy of new places and people?

Do you get anxious being in crowded airports, airplanes, and touristy places?

 

 

Venturing out to explore the world is something I suggest to all millennials. It will offer you many opportunities to grow your trust, faith and knowledge in yourself, in humanity and the world. Being highly sensitive shouldn’t keep you at home in your comfort zone. With the right attitude and planning you will have adventures that fill your mind, heart and soul beyond your imagination.

First, know that you are not alone as a highly sensitive in the world. There are at least 1.4 billion HSPs around the world, that is 20%+ of the population. There is no need to feel like you should buck up and ignore who you are to travel. You can see the world and do it your way. Something to consider is extra self-care planning for the unknown, overwhelming situations, as well as overstimulation. Become more confident about coping with uncertainty and uncomfortableness by learning solutions to keep you grounded, focused and calm.

My mother worked for United Airlines and had me traveling at five years old. I didn’t learn I was HSP until later in life, so I didn’t understand why I had so many overwhelming experiences with smells, bustling city energy, loud honking horns, and hating the last-minute decisions of standby or following a group. I could make myself sick with worry of what could happen when not feeling in control. (the highly inner creative world of HSPs must be managed)

As a highly sensitive with many miles behind me and many more adventures ahead of me, I’m sharing key travel tips for HSP millennials who are ready to leave the comforts of home. I will help you create memorable travels with wise coping skills and strategic travel planning. Let’s go!

There is a saying, “If you don’t plan to succeed, you are planning to fail.” So, plan for successful travels, whatever success means for you. Focus on what you want to experience, not what you don’t want to experience. If we can minimize your discomforts and optimize your pleasures and desires, you will feel less stressed and overwhelmed and more in control. Minimizing the over stimulation will help keep you more grounded and open to new experiences.

 

*Know yourself:
What are your sensitivity deal breakers?  Noise (ear-plugs), overstimulation (wear a hat to make your world smaller-and listen to music), too much at once (schedule free time in between activities…)

What do you need to be your best? Good nutrition (carry emergency food), lots of H2O.  Good Sleep (melatonin, herbs, aromatherapy, white sound…). Daily plans (maps, meals, quiet time, naps, fun…)

What do you need to help you have the most pleasurable and comfortable experience? Comfortable shoes, jewelry, scarf/wrap, incense – essential oils – perfume, connection to locals…

 

*Where? Why?
Don’t go on someone else’s vacation or journey, make sure where you are going suits you and the experience you are wanting.

What do you want to get out of your travels?
Fun, volunteer/contribute, learn __________ (cooking, language, paint, music, tango, wine/beer, history….), meet people, experience a new culture, adventure, luxuriate and be pampered…Do you want to chill or have lots of activities, mountain or beach, cabin or suite, cold or warm, tour or on your own or all-inclusive package?

There is a lot to consider, so take your time and think about it before you jump in.

 

*Traveling companion(s)
Pick your travel partners well or your trip can be hell.  Talk to them about your needs and what is important to you when traveling. Share your vision of the trip and ask them to share theirs. Do they respect your boundaries and desires? If not, I would rethink whether this is a trip you really want to take with this person.

 

Just because you are friends, lovers or married doesn’t mean
you are good traveling companions.

Traveling is a test of any relationship!

You can’t be a HSP and put your life/routine into someone else’s hands. You must be responsible for you!!!!!! No one else knows your needs but you. You’ve got to make them clear to your travel companions.

Are you an introvert and they’re an extrovert….how does that affect you?  It may help to get you out and meeting people, but will they let you go off on your own when you’ve had enough without protest or drama? Is there respect and compassion for each other? You want interdependence, not co-dependency.

 

Consider having your own room if your companion is fun to be with most the time but:

• Is party animal,
• Has a bad snoring problem and you can’t sleep with the sound of it.
• A narcissist that wants you to tell them how great they are and do what they want with no regard to your needs or desires?
• Are they messy and leave everything all over the room and use your things without consideration and understanding your boundaries.

 

*Keep up your daily Self-Care practices
Daily self-care like meditation, energy work, exercise and visualizations/affirmations…. will keep you more grounded and connect to your environment and allow you to receive guidance through your intuition and synchronicities. When you let go of self-care while traveling, you don’t feel good and it negatively influences your travel. Make time for it, even if you’re with a group.

 

A daily practice of clearing other people’s energy out of your field will help you to feel calmer and be healthier. As empaths it is natural and easy for us to be taking on others energy as our own.

It is not healthy nor needed, so learning to not do it is healthy. If you don’t know how to clear your energy here is an audio https://youtu.be/7IPpFt1rUBU

 

It is fun to let your intuition guide you while traveling where this allows amazing events and people to appear. Spiritual practice and playing energetically while traveling is highly recommended for HSPs! Tune into the energy of things around you as you travel.

 

When I travel, I put my hand onto trees in the jungle or forest and feel their energy,
I feel the stone of ruins, temples, the love in places of worship, and the people.  I use my intuition to all the time to guide me where to stay, eat, who to meet, when to go to things.
I ask for guidance daily and listen and watch for surprises!

 

*Plan, Plan, Plan
After you know where you are going, why and what you need, you can start planning. Paying attention to your needs and taking time to plan will eliminate a lot of stress and uncertainty.
Ask friends what they know about where you are going, who they know and follow up. Meeting people in a new place that are friends of friends is fun and adds juiciness to your travel
experience.

What to do:

Read up on where you are going, we love The Lonely Planet and have found them to be very accurate. Pick out the events and places you really want to go to before you are there. Start to lay out a travel plan from the must do experiences and leave time for wandering, talking to locals and sharing stories with other travelers, downtime, or unexpected opportunities and synchronicities. As you take these actions, a plan, that feels good to you, will emerge.

 

Think about traveling off season and visiting museums and touristy places early for less crowds. We went on a bicycle tour of Angkor Wat that had us missing most of the crowds and traveled the roads less traveled. Buy tickets to events online before you go, so you don’t have to wait in long lines. Small actions like these make for more ease and fun. If too crowded, too hot, too _______ go somewhere else…be flexible

 

 

What to bring:

Figure out how to bring things so it is easy to store, keep organized and find. I use a lot of ziploc bags of different sizes. In my suitcase and carry on backpack I have all my electronic chargers, lotions and potions, jewelry and snacks in baggies. (they also have special clothing bags at Bed and Bath) that you suck the air out of them and pack so much more. Everything is easy to find and doesn’t get too wrinkle.

 

 

 

·      Travel Guides and maps, visa, passport (you must have at least 6 months before it expires from your return home travel date), take photo copies of both passport, drivers license… and keep photo copies in your email.

·      Electronic devices: Phone, camera and/or laptop… sim card for phone, is there internet? Do you need adaptors, car charger? Do your homework! Other countries don’t have the availability of internet like the US.

·      Calming/Soothing materials….(coloring books, journaling, art book, audio books, music, essential oils….)

·      Dietary and health needs: I bring gluten free crackers and wraps, low sugar snacks, jerky and protein powder, so if there isn’t anything I can eat I’ve got something. I bring my vitamins.

·      Financial needs: credit card, cash, ATM, debit card? If all your money is in a debit card and you get rob they can have you pull it all out and you lose everything, credit card you can put limits on and they back you up. Check with your bank and find a bank credit card that doesn’t charge a foreign fee and let them know when you are traveling, so they won’t turn your card off thinking it stolen when there’s a charge on it from Italy. To keep everything safe buy yourself a good money belt to wear under your clothes.

·      Clothing needs: Don’t bring more than you need and can handle on your own. Make this easy! Research if there is clothing restrictions where you are going. Some areas around the world are very strict about dress codes. Short shorts and skimpy tops won’t be tolerated or interrupted negatively.

·      Hosting gift: If you are being hosted by a family bring something that is unique and special for them or ask them if there is something they would like you to bring them. You can always mail it ahead of you and let them know a package is coming for you.

 

Useful Travel Apps

HostelWorld app – find hostels all over the world
Guides by Lonely Planet – free city guides and knowledge
Hopper and Skyscanner – find cheap flights
WhatsApp – stay connected to family and friends
Your bank app
Your Airline apps
Speak and Translate – easy language translations

 

*Airports and Flying
Planning here is very important! Plan for the worst scenario…overnight in airport, missed flight, delayed flight, crowded crying baby flight…
And now plan, How you WILL cope if any of these challenges show up. When traveling challenges will show up and expect that you will figure it out.

  If you expect to manage yourself well, no matter what happens around you, you will!

 

·      Put your airline app on your phone for notifications and to us incase flights cancelled/problems…instead of running to counter with everyone else to make new reservations for the next flight.

·      Get into the TSA Pre program to save time through security. Big stress reduction!

·      Be early, give yourself lots of time and little anxiety.

·      Bring healthy snack food in your carry on + H2O, Kava Kava and Rescue Remedy are great to calm your anxiety on the plane.

·      Select good seating, consider paying a little extra for that comfort and peace of mind

·      Bring activities, cards, coloring book, audio books, grounding jewelry, slip on shoes, essential oils that calm and energize you, a scarf/wrap that is cozy and soothing to put on headrest or be a pillow or blanket.

 

I don’t go through the scanner machine at the airport. I get patted down. It doesn’t feel right for me to go through it and I travel a lot. So we add time into our schedule to allow for the pat down…because sometimes they are not fast. The TSA Pre boarding program helps with this problem. Up to you. We have been late where I had to go through the device once in a couple years now.

 

*Manage your mind
Focus on what you want your travels to be like and take action to ensure that, by visualizing with feelings the journey you are planning. Don’t let your rich, complex and creative mind run rampant with negative “What if?” scenarios. Realize you are a powerful creator and you can use your superpowers of intuition, empathy, connection to Source, love and acute awareness of your surroundings to find solutions to most challenges you encounter. I find sometimes things don’t work out so I can experience something better, that I would’ve never imagined possible.

 

Bon Voyage HSP Travelers! Travel well and safe!