There are highly practical reasons to travel at break neck speeds.
Most of us only receive a couple weeks of vacation per year so were generally forced to engage in fast paced, short term travel, such as:
1. a short, hardly refreshing, trip for a few days in one or two places
2. a longer perhaps week long trip that allows us to visit a greater number of places
3. a longer, perhaps week long trip, that allows us to spend more time in a singular place
The working man’s vacation has gotten some bad press over the years, citing how unfortunate (or even wretched) it is that we must attempt to enjoy quick paced travel that hardly allows us to get our minds off things and soak in the moment and our surroundings. I’ve spent a lot of time on #1 and 2, cramming as many activities as a possible into a single vacation day. 5 major cities in 7 days? Speeding 10 hours round trip to Yosemite National Park (only to spend a paltry 2 hours in the park) and making it back to San Fran by 5pm for the Giant’s playoff game? A 14 hour, overnight trip with no sleep to Boston or Montreal? I’ve done them all. I regret none.
Fast paced travel has enabled me, albeit briefly, to see dozens of towns and cities throughout North America and Europe. Are there cities I regret speeding through? Absolutely. However, fast paced sampling of cities proves to be undeniably efficient and eye opening.
1. It allows for a quick taste of culture
2. Forces efficient use of time (see only the highlights that are of immediate interest)
3. Increases your awareness of what the various cities and the world, broadly, has to offer
4. But most importantly, it gives you the insight to determine which cities are worth returning to.
In other words, some cities simply will not resonance with you personally and/or not worth any additional time in the future. Therefore, fast paced travel is hugely beneficial because it eliminates cities you shouldn’t invest more time in and guides you in where you should. This is a huge time saver in the long run, especially when you want to take a #3 style trip. I have found that I have returned to most cities that I really enjoy in more depth and with great eagerness.
While we may not have much vacation time, surely we should make it count when we do use it.
Eliminate the uninteresting and revisit the interesting.