What Is Slow Travel? (And How To Actually Do It

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These days, you hear a lot about travel in general. But one thing that comes up a lot is the term “slow travel.” You might be wondering, “what is slow travel?” Here I’ll show you what it is and how to do it with slow travel tips, and plenty of slow travel ideas.

Slow travel is about experiencing fewer places more deeply and focusing on connection instead of checklists. Pick fewer destinations, stay longer, plan less, and immerse yourself in local life, whether you’re away for a weekend or a month.

Learning how to travel slowly isn’t has hard as you might think. It took me a while to get the hang of it, but now, the slow travel lifestyle is my jam.

What Does Slow Travel Really Mean?

Slow travel is travel that prioritizes the quality and depth of experience over a larger quantity of destinations. Instead of rushing through a checklist of things to see and do, you spend more time in fewer places, immerse yourself in local life, and allow space for rest and spontaneity. The goal is to connect more deeply with the culture, people, and pace, turning your trip into a richer, more sustainable and stress-free experience.

Simply put, do less to experience more.

The term “slow travel” actually comes from the Slow Movement that begun in Italy in the 1980’s. It started as the Slow Food Movement as a reaction to the current fast food culture. But it quickly spread to cover more aspects of life such as slow living, slow fashion, and now… slow travel.

Slow living is all about slowing down and being more mindful and intentional with the things you do and how you consume. It can apply to anything from work and home life, to relationships and even health.

Slow travel prioritizes depth of experience, staying longer in one place, building local connections, and reducing overall stress. Because, let’s face it. Airports are stressful enough without having your vacation fuel it as well. So not only will your budget thank you, but your soul will thank you as well.

The Benefits of Slow Travel

When you travel slow, you experience more by doing less. It’s definitely better on your budget, better for the planet, and it makes you fell more “at home” while you travel. It reduces the stress of travel significantly.

Practical Slow Travel Tips

There are ways to make sure that no matter where you go, you’ll enjoy it slowly and with purpose.

Pick Fewer Destinations

Don’t load up your to-do list. Give yourself time and space to relax and meander. Often times, I’ve had my best travel days just getting lost in a new city. You come across things/views/people you might not have seen otherwise, and all while you were taking your time enjoying everything.

Stay Longer in Each Place

I don’t mean that you should extend your vacation (unless you want to). I mean, don’t hurry from city to city just to squeeze it all in. Opt for one or two must-sees, and leave it at that. Thoroughly enjoy those places. Get to know them inside and out.

Spend enough time in each place that you start to feel like more of a local. I always like to stay in a place long enough that I could give someone directions someplace if they asked me. That’s how you know you have gotten to know a place well.

Live Like a Local (Markets, Cafés, Public Transit)

As I mentioned before, pick a cafe that you go to repeatedly. Make it a morning or evening ritual to go to the same spot. Enjoy local markets with other locals. Take public transit and pay attention to all the stops you could make along the way. Then if you need something to do one day, you have a whole collection of stops you could make locally.

Build Rest Into Your Itinerary

Stop rushing. After all, you’re on vacation. So relax. Some people regenerate by doing “all the things.” But most people don’t. So give yourself time for a quick nap after lunch, or simply lounge on the beach or by the pool for several hours. Do nothing on purpose. It’s spectacular.

Focus on Quality Over Quantity (1–2 Activities a Day)

Don’t do more than one or two activities per day. You want to take your time and enjoy each activity as much as you can. Get that quality over the quantity. It’s okay to do less. I promise. You won’t miss out. Just pick your favorites, and leave it at that. Because if you try to force a ton of activities into your day, all you’ll do is create more stress for yourself.

Embrace Spontaneity

Above all else, slow travel requires adopting the mentality that not everything has to go as planned. In fact, your trip will often improve if you make no plans at all. Be spontaneous! Decide things last minute and in the moment. It makes for a much more interesting day, and you’ll enjoy the spontaneity.

What a Slow Travel Day Looks Like in Real Life

If you need an example, I’ll use the closest city to me, Alicante. If I were to travel slow through Alicante and I was on vacation for 6 days (not including travel days), I would do the following:

1. Pick a nearby cafe with good coffee to start every morning at.
2. Spend the majority of the day seeing the castle and old town Santa Barbara, getting lunch along the way, and then head back to relax the rest of the evening. (That castle is a hike and a half!)
3. Then I’d find someplace nearby for dinner, where I would sit for at least two hours or more with food, a good drink, and maybe a good book or my journal.
4. The next day, I’d return to my cafe for coffee and breakfast.
5. I’d spend a whole morning at the beach. Grab lunch, and then meander through some shops along Mushroom Street in the afternoon. Gelato would definitely be involved. Then I’d grab dinner and relax for several hours again.

I won’t go through all 6 days, but you get where I’m going with this. Pick one or two things, max, and really enjoy them. It makes all the difference in the world!

The Slow Travel Life

It’s easy for me to talk about slow travel because it’s how I live my life right now. I’ll be in this area for another year, and then I plan to head to Greece for 3 months before coming back to Northern Spain for the rest of the time until I can get permanent residency.

While I know not everyone can spend 3 months in one place, the principles of slow travel are still the same, whether your vacation is 3 months, or 3 days.

As hard as it is, avoid the urge to “do it all”. Give yourself some real rest. Slow down and enjoy everything the place you are visiting has to offer. You won’t regret it.

Free Slow Travel Checklist

Want to make sure you’re doing this slow travel thing right? Here’s a free checklist you can save to help you do it right.

Click and save your free checklist