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Traveling Hobbies

Introduction

Traveling is great for our well-being. Most of us want to travel more, but we rarely do. Hobbies can naturally weave travel into our lives in meaningful ways.

Travel provides the opportunity to alleviate stress by offering a break from work or other stressful and repetitive daily routines. […] Travel increases cognitive stimulation. For instance, many travelers visit museums and learn more about art, local history, or science. […] Travel involves new experiences, which also increase cognitive stimulation. Navigating an unfamiliar city or town, for example, often involves reading maps to figure out how to drive from one place to another or which train or bus to take to get around town. […] Travel increases social engagement by building new relationships and deepening understanding of the experiences of others.—Destination Healthy Aging: The Physical, Cognitive and Social Benefits of Travel
New sounds, smells, language, tastes, sensations, and sights spark different synapses in the brain and may have the potential to revitalize the mind. […] Foreign experiences increase both cognitive flexibility and depth and integrativeness of thought, the ability to make deep connections between disparate forms.—For a More Creative Brain, Travel – The Atlantic
Benefits of travel are almost immediate. After only a day or two, 89% of respondents saw significant drops in stress.—Travel is the best medicine, study finds – Los Angeles Times
[…] positive effects of travel experiences on perceived health and wellness have been demonstrated by multiple studies.—Health and Wellness Benefits of Travel Experiences
It appears that those who are waiting to go on a holiday are much happier with their life as a whole, experience less negative or unpleasant feelings and thus enjoy an overall net positive effect or pleasant feelings.—A study of the impact of the expectation of a holiday on an individual’s sense of well-being
But as a psychologist, I believe that travel should routinely be used to achieve the opposite [of comfort, predictability, and relaxation]: to get out of your comfort zone, expose yourself to uncertainty, and eschew rest for exploration and learning. The result is personal growth — greater emotional agility, empathy, and creativity.—The Mental Benefits of Vacationing Somewhere New