Why you need to explore what’s outside your front door

When people think about travel, they more often than not think about airports, exotic destinations, new cultural experiences, spicy street food and spending lots and lots of money. I’m not going to lie, these are the things I conjure whenever I think about travel or have come down with a serious case of wanderlust.

I’m not going to get into the semantics of travel, but I’ll let you in on a little secret: It doesn’t have to include planes and airports or spending all of your savings.

Working a full-time job, as many people do, means you only get four weeks a year to travel to your hearts content. Personally, that’s not enough. When the time is right, I’ll be travelling non-stop, all over the world. But for now, what’s a gal to do? In a weekend, you can’t very well travel to Asia or Europe and back. Living in Australia, you’d spend the whole time flying and still not make it back in time for work Monday morning.

However, I’ve managed to find a way to satiate my wanderlust and also save money doing it.

So, how’s it done? It’s easy—are you ready?

All you have to do is step outside your front door. You’re probably thinking, “Pft, I step outside my front door every day to go to work, that’s definitely not travelling.”

I don’t mean the physical act of just stepping outside your front door. I mean going outside and exploring your hometown, your city and even your own little suburb. Trust me. We’ve got to have some trust here, mon chéri. Ok, autocorrect, mon cherries. 

For most people, time and money are major obstacles when it comes to travel, but so many of us spend the working daydreaming about the next time we can jet-set away and explore and discover new things.

This is where stepping outside your front door comes in. Each country and its cities all have hidden wonders within them, we just have to take the time to look. I currently live in Sydney, a very much lusted-after destination for people all over the world. I’ve visited the Opera House plenty of times, climbed the Harbour Bridge, and swam in the iconic azure waters of Bondi Beach. While I love doing all those things, I’m someone who constantly needs to discover new places and things to do. The world’s too big not to!

So, what do I when I step outside my front door? I love exploring the South Coast of New South Wales. There are just so many splendid and exciting things to do down there. Every time I head down to a different little town, I always explore, discover new things and genuinely having a great time – the trifecta of what you’d expect when doing any other kind of travelling? Right? Right.

When I travel overseas, I love immersing myself in big cities like London or New York. Yet, when I actually live in one, in my down time I tend to enjoy a more suburban existence, opting for road trips to quaint coastal towns over the hustle bustle life of a big city.

Once I’ve tried and tested all the South Coast has to offer, I’ll head North, or West. A drive to the awe-inspiring Blue Mountains is another favourite of mine, with plenty of bush-treks to tackle. Or, if I’m up to a longer drive, I might head to the gorgeous and peaceful Port Macquarie. And, on days I’m not feeling like a big adventure, I’ll put on my sneakers and just walk around my own suburb until the dusky sun illuminates the sky in splendid hues of tangerine and coral. It’s still travelling—it’s moving and exploring.

Sometimes, the greatest adventures you have will come from the time you took to explore your own city.

Where do you live? What’s outside your front door that no one knows about?

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