Why you should travel before 30

There is nothing more satisfying and humbling than opening a child’s eyes to something. When that time comes, you will be overwhelmed, but let’s be honest; some things are easier to do without having to worry about nap times and dirty diapers and God forbid running out of juice boxes!

Of course this is not to say that just because you have kids you can never travel, but once you have experienced traveling with a suitcase and a backpack to having to figure out diaper bags, strollers, car seats, travel cribs and 4 suitcases for a person smaller than your arm, you will wish you had taken this vacation back when you were in college.

They say that youth is wasted on the young and this is unfortunately very true. Most of us do not get to experience the kind of adventure they always wanted to. You are young, have energy and not much to lose. If it’s work, it will come, trust in your skills, but the benefits of traveling before you turn 30 are too numerous to count.

The following places are meant to inspire you to start ticking some things off your bucket list.

• New Zealand

Long haul flights are definitely something you need to do when you are young. When you get old, they will take too big a toll on you. You have a lot of ground to cover in New Zealand so be sure to allow yourself plenty of time to see everything there is. Sail, hike, go wine tasting, watch wildlife, whatever you are into, New Zealand has something to offer you.

• Paris

Who wouldn’t want to fall in love with a Parisian dream boy and get engaged at the Eiffel tower? Well, it’s not going to happen if you’re going to stay in Boise Idaho for the rest of your natural life. Stroll in the streets of the city of love and visit the museums as you shop and eat to your heart’s content. This is a city that should definitely be experienced young. And while you’re at that, take the Euro express and visit London, the most traveled place in 2014, visit the city and it’s iconic landmarks such as the Big Ben before having little ben that might just leave something big somewhere else on his diapers when you’re there.

• The ultimate road trip

You know those family oriented movies with the kids in the back asking “are we there yet?” well; it’s not just in the movies. This happens in real life. Take that road trip now, while you still have control over what plays on your car stereo. It goes without saying that a road trip is more about the journey than the destination. Stop along the way and take your time exploring what you can.

• Wonders of the world

(Sunrise Peak, Jeju, 90ms high, 45mins climb up, 30mins climb down)

Although there has been many claims on what actually is the 7 wonders of the world, the new, the old, the original etc, there’s 2 things in common about most of them: One, that they are a sight to behold. Two, they usually require quite abit of climbing just to get there. These wonders are wonders of nature, ancient buildings that were built so ahead of their time even before technology caught up. They are marvels of the world that one has to see them at least once in your life time, and what better time to do it than before you are 30? With age, climbing stairs that are uneven and probably half an inch too small such as the ones at Cambodia’s Ang Kau Wat, China’s great wall of China, Jeju’s Sunrise peak, takes its toll on the joints, lungs, stamina and heart. What you could have probably completed when you are 25 would probably take thrice as long when you hit 50 with an aching back and sore muscles the next day. The challenge gets more difficult with kids and their tiny legs, which takes them more effort and would most likely end up on your shoulders before you’re even halfway done.

• Go for an Adventurous holiday

(T-Express, Everland, top 3 ranked wood tracked Roller Coaster since 2008)

Have you always wanted to do something thrilling? Like jump off a functioning plane? Hop off a bridge with a rope tied to your ankles? Snowboard down a cliff? Take the roller coaster from hell? Well do it now! You’ll never be as young as you are today and your heart is probably not going to thank you if you do it in the future. Do it now so you would have something to brag and write about to your friends and family in the future. This is it and this is the time for it! It’s also before 30 that your heart pumps blood better so you will be able to recover faster if you do pass out 😉 But seriously, do you really want to leave your kid at MacDonald for 2 hrs while you queue for your favorite roller coaster ride only to come back and explain to a crying him why you didn’t love him enough to bring him along?

The team members behind our Singapore Travel Blog are all under 30 and we are taking the leap of faith by traveling and we think you should too! Take that trip now and then in 5 years when you bring junior along, you can reminisce about all the fun stuff you got up to when you were young or at the very least know the route to the peak without getting lost with little junior on your shoulders.