4 Travel Myths You Probably Didn’t Know About

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Traveling can be such an overwhelming thing. People talk, people speculate and people simply don’t know. This is how travel myths start to exist. No worries, I’ll debunk some of these myths for you, so you can travel more savvy through the world!

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Back when I hadn’t traveled as much, I had several beliefs about traveling that, when I actually started traveling more, turned out to be simply not true.

Here are some of the travel myths I encountered, debunked!

Myth 1: You only need English

While English is one of the most spoken languages, it’s not always spoken in all countries around the world.

Just like I talked about in my post about traveling to another country when you don’t know the language, I traveled to Spain with very little knowledge of the Spanish language, thinking they would most definitely understand at least some English. It’s a western European country, right?

I was wrong.

When I arrived, the lady who rented me her apartment didn’t know any English. And she wasn’t the only one. Many Spanish people have little knowledge of the English language. While I was there to learn the language and thus learnt it quite quickly, it was definitely a surprise that could have been avoided.

Take some time to research your next destination, instead of just assuming you’ll be just fine with English. You might just find out you should prepare a few things to make yourself understood.

Read more: How To Travel To A Foreign Country When You Don’t Know The Language

Myth 2: Restaurants near big tourist attractions will have the best food

Humans like to follow other people, they like to go where a lot of other people go. People also like convenience. Especially when traveling. And what is more convenient than eating close to the places you’re visiting? A lot of other people will think the same, and voila, a lot of people will flock to the same nearby restaurants. This usually does not mean they are actually good!

These restaurants have to push out a lot of food in a short period of time, trying to serve as many customers as possible. They also know that the majority of these people will never come back, so they simply don’t care much about the quality of their food. They will prioritize speed over quality.

What you should do instead, is walking a few blocks away from the touristic site. Check where there are a lot of locals and look for a menu that isn’t translated in every language. Websites like Yelp and TripAdvisor will help you find the best restaurants in town.

Use these websites and Google to find reviews. With these steps you’re guaranteed to get a good meal.

Myth 3: Comparison websites will always give you the best deal

One thing I found while looking for accommodations online is that comparison websites don’t always give you the best rates. While they can be super useful to find the accommodation you’re looking for, don’t just take the offered rate at face value.

Go to the website of the accommodation and see if you can book directly through them. It can sometimes save you so much, you think it’s a different room.

Some websites link back to their listing on the comparison website. Well, that will be the best deal then. But it doesn’t hurt to check!

Myth 4: Traveling is expensive

And lastly, probably the biggest myth of them all. Especially in this economy, this is a thing people struggle to believe, and sometimes, including me.

Here is a friendly reminder that travel can be as expensive and as cheap as you want!

There are many ways to save money on traveling. Things such as using couch surfing, hostels, taking busses instead of taxi’s, etc. can keep your costs low. Flexibility, traveling off-season and skipping the expensive tourist attractions are also great ways to save money.

Try things like working in exchange for food and housing. It saves you from spending on some of the biggest travel expenses and give you an amazing experience in return.

And traveling doesn’t always mean a three-week round trip through Europe, sometimes it means a weekend away about an hour away from home.

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These were just a few of the many travel myths out there. I’m sure I still believe some of them, but we all live and learn, so I’ll probably figure it out in the future. At least they can’t get me, and now also you, with these myths anymore!

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