The Changing Tastes of Travelers

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The fuzzy photo above was taken a mere seven years ago (which now that I write that actually does seem like a really, really long time ago … sheesh I’m getting old!). It was taken in Hawaii, and it’s me and my friend Faye — who was living there at the time — jumping off a waterfall into the water below.

To be fair, you can’t quite tell from the photo, but the water wasn’t all that far away. There was, however, a particularly ominous sign posted nearby, warning would-be jumpers of a tiny little parasite that lives in the water and was quite fond of swimming up people’s bums, should they happen to be standing around in the water for a while.

You can’t make this stuff up.

All of this is to say, friends, that the activities that I would allow my younger self to do are slowly becoming fond memories, and not necessarily things that I plan to continue doing in my travel future. I feel that, as a 30-year-old traveler, I’m somewhere in this weird sweet spot, travelwise. While I’m still perfectly happy to go hiking in Arizona (even on days when I probably shouldn’t) and snorkeling at The Great Barrier Reef and in Jamaica, I also feel perfectly comfortable saying that staying in a hostel, bungee jumping and SCUBA diving are probably all off at the table at this point.

That’s why I’m thrilled to have read this story in The New York Times yesterday about a brand spankin’ new travel tour company — YOMADS — which is specifically geared towards those of us in the 20- to 40-year-old range. The prices for tours tend to be cheaper than what you’ll find with other typical tour companies (about $1,200 to $2,800, excluding airfare and some meals, according to the Times), and there are a ton of options to pick from like Turkey, South Africa and Morocco, to name a few.

The company is fledgling, and the first trips depart on March 8 so there aren’t any reviews out yet. It seems promising though, definitely a company to keep your eye on.

Now excuse me while I go plan out where YOMADS might take myself and Chris next. (I can hear the Greek and Alaskan trips calling to me …)

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