Travel without a phone

I am gong to try a fast this weekend

Great article and advice. I think for the average Joe this is a big leap, but going to a date-night without a phone or taking a day off is something we all can do right now. I would love to build up to this and do it some day. Thank you Derek for being cool! (rock)

Partially agree, and partially not:
xkcd.com/1314/

For sure with a connected phone is easy to fall in the trap of "not being there".
Great counter-argument! Thanks for posting this! — Derek

My phone can text, phone and tell me the time. And often I forget it at home anyway. =)

While still having phone in my pocket, I intentionally focus more on events happening before my eyes instead on pressure to capture more of it.

That means I have almost no pictures and having to look what others recorded, but also I'm more relaxed and enjoying the moment.

Enjoy the moment, take 5 seconds to snap a photo, go back to enjoying the moment. It's a not either/or.

You don't have to treat a sunset the way an alcoholic treats a glass of wine.
Good point. I personally get more joy from abstinence than moderation. — Derek

Excellent point, John.

I think Derek means at least a couple different things here: disconnect and isolate oneself (perhaps with a little personal risk).

I often leave my phone at home and I often bring it with me. I don't really notice a difference, because I'm just not using it a lot.

It's neat to see how people are interpreting this post across the net.

Ichi Go Ichi E -

We only have one life. Every day is unique. Every day goes by and everything we do on that day will never ever repeat again. Every moment should be cherished.

Hi Derek,

When you say you "travel with a phone" do you mean that you "leave the phone at home" so that all your interactions; buying tickets, finding buses, flying to and from, are done without a phone on you OR do you mean that you "take the phone with you but" once at the hotel room you shut if off or leave it behind and go adventuring?

Thanks,

Adrian

my first back packing trip through Europe I tried to record all of it. I think I ended up not really seeing anything in the countries I visited. Since then I have worked in Ireland, India, and China. And now I feel the best way to travel, is to actually get a job in that country for a period of time.

In 2017 I lost my phone and decided not to replace it. I lasted 40 days with no phone whatsoever, and during that time I had a lot of good experiences. As you've found, I made some unexpected discoveries. Afterwards, I felt less addicted to my phone.

I also wrote more than is strictly necessary about phonelessness and walking here: http://msls.net/phone/

When my dad drove from London to Deli through Afghanistan in the 70s he wrote a postcard to my grandfather about the number of men pushing heroine in the streets, and how shocked he was. When he returned to New Zealand my grandfather gave him a drawing in response: Joan of Arc being pushed in a wheelbarrow by a man in a turban.

It's his best reminder of the trip, and poor spelling.

30 years earlier, as a toddler my dad, granddad and the rest of my family emigrated to New Zealand by boat, through the Panama Canal. They had one one photo of them in the canal that they sent with a couple of others to my great grandmother with news of their safe arrival and work with a "Maori chap" on a local farm.

Months later great grandmothers return letter warned them to 'take the upmost care' with the savages which she heard were cannibals.

And we freak out when there's no signal or 1% battery remaining...

On my last month-long trip I had not booked hotel for more than a few days in advance. Having some kind of internet connection was crucial to staying flexible and booking nights where I wanted to stay. I did it without picking up a SIM--just relying on wifi. (And didn't shoot a single movie the whole time.)

And a phone with a good camera is far, far easier to keep with you (and easier to keep it safe) than a DSLR, decent mirrorless, or even a point & shoot. As a kind of amateur photographer, phones are now perfectly adequate as cameras. For someone who is taking 'thousands' of pics--become a photographer, and leave the snapshot-type stuff behind.

Also, for a phone to work as a good camera, turn all notifications off. Period.

You should write more .

When I backpacked Europe, I realized that I would cut a memorable moment short right after having taken a photo/video of it. My thought process was that since there’s a digital record of it, I can relive it any moment. Couldn’t be further from the truth! “I find it more useful to refer to how I felt, instead of what I saw.” 👏🏻
Ooooh! Yes! Great insight! That's the thought process for me, too. — Derek

of course :) you were much more present in the situation and much more mindful :) I take my students on silent walks quite often to teach to see the beauty that is all around them :)

Except for 3 months in 2003, I've never had a cell phone. Oddly, it is only when I travel that I feel the utility would justify the distraction. Peace.

I find we don't use the phone much. We still get lost. We look up where we want to go and head off in that direction. Sort of half way between.
We need the phone do our kids at home can get hold of us if there is a problem.
I guess I am saying you can take your phone, but leave it in your bag, pocket or whatever.

YES!!!! *high five!*

Lol! Laughing at myself as I'm sitting in Seoul right now as I'm reading this. I was going to take the train into the city but am too tired today.The first thing I like to do when traveling is hit the pavement; get out and walk around to get my bearings. Several years ago, a colleague and I had a free afternoon in A city in Taiwan. She said, let's just get on a bus and take it to the end of the line. Sounded adventurous! Turned out to be a dead end in an abandoned part of town. But it's an idea I often consider when traveling to other cities. Just go!

My camera has always been a "point and shoot" ever since I had to wait while my companions took pictures, and by doing so they were hitting the "pause button" my vacation.

A trick I learned long ago is to turn my head away and see if I retain the scene—if not, try again. I got the trick off an undersea explorer from back when there were no commercial underwater cameras.

A journal, as Derek notes, is excellent for capturing scenes and feelings about the scenes. If my journals all vanished I would still have the memories, not something I can say about photos vanishing. Part of the joy of vacations and road trips for me is the joy of sitting at a table with my journal.

I like the article. good point! The thing is, for people who are not so great with directions like me, and in particular if you were to ask Koreans for directions in Korean (I'm saying this as a Korean), the experience may be very different. When I ask for direction "Where is Apkujong-dong and how can I get there?" Then the response is "Go there..." and when they say "there" depending on if it's "THEEEre" or "There," the distance of how long you go to get "there" is long or short. The relativity based on how you elongate the word "there" gives me anxiety because it's so subjective. Having a phone gives some relief in case you get lost :)

I teach business education (entrepreneurship) to high school students and at the beginning of each class I say "please put your WMD's out of reach", of course they are current day high school students so they don't understand what I'm referring to so I explain my twist on the concept of WMD's, my twist, I refer to WMD's as weapons of mass distraction! I model it by putting my phone out of reach all day long and I honestly feel less stress as a result.

I understand and agree. I've sailed all over the Americas and I don't look at the pictures but I remember the people and the events.

That will work until it doesn't. The most important function of the phone is as an answer for emergencies, like when you are injured, have a stroke, are running from attackers etc. So turn the phone off to get the benefits of leaving it home but have it as a friend in times of extreme trouble.

Some technology does stuff we don’t all need it is for the sake of it. I am not an early adopter but I don’t resist change. But I value things of useful purpose...like fire...to quote a song “Stuff that works”

When I went to the Hermitage for the first time I didn't go on a tour and I got my husband to take the pictures.

I was awestruck. It was inspirational on an almost spiritual level. I couldn't wait to show it to the people in our group who hadn't seen it yet.

When we took them to see it we joined a tour group. It was a totally different experience.
There was no wonder. We were looking at it with our brains, not our hearts.

When you look through the lense to take a picture you are using the analytical part of the brain and once the picture is taken you move on to the next thing without taking it in.

After you look at the pictures you see that they are never as good as what you remembered in your head and that the picture actually replaces the superior picture in your head.

Your memory picture is better because it takes in every thing that is normally out of the frame. You get context. You can see how steep the road is, how big the mountain behind you is. It's colored by the emotions you are feeling and what your other senses are telling you.

So I don't take pictures and I don't look at them either. I'm happy with the multidimensional memory in my head.

So, good plan! Leave the phone at home when you travel, but also when you are taking a walk or going on a bike ride, or having fun with your friends.

I notice that when we are really having fun people forget to take pictures. That's how I know my treasure hunt or other event was a success.

This speaks to me due to my frequent travel schedule. Recently, I took a five day trip to Bar Harbor, Maine and decided no phone and no photos! My memories are more vivid than any photo I could have captured. Maybe the camera hinders our minds from capturing the moment with all our senses. Yes, leave the phone behind! Cheers. ~Tim DeTellis

This really resonated with me "appreciating things in a 1 step process vs 2 step process" ..off late i have been hooked to my phone a lot , will definitely try this

Derek,
BOOM... you nailed it!
This is perfect.

I'm going to forget my phone more often

derek

Life is but only fleeting moments. We tried too hard to make it 'permanent'. Impermanent is nature. Be one and we feel its awe.

I really like traveling without a phone too Derek.

Whenever I go overseas I purposely get lost. I like to wonder and ask for directions and meet new people.

When we are strapped to our phone 24/7 it leads to a lack of interaction and the best way to get over that is to unplug.

I did it this past weekend with an adult camp in Texas and it was liberating. Just turned off my phone and left it in my car.

I felt so good at the end of the weekend and was able to think and not have to be connected 100% of the time.

Huge stress relief.

This is great. I have deleted the internet off my phone so I'm forced to interact with the real world instead of being sucked into my phone. It's great too!

Thanks Derek,

Best regards
Jan

I don't even own a cell phone, my wife does.

Nice food for thought, Derek.

I think a big problem we have (after reading a few comments, in particular that spot-on XKCD comic) is that we are falling into the trap of carrying our phone for some reasons - to have maps, translators, a camera, guides, etc. - but end up using it for much more than that.

The moments and experiences we deprive ourselves from are not coming from our documentation of the trip. Because there's nothing like having a bad day at the office and suddenly your phone displaying an absolutely mesmerizing Balinese waterfall you swam in a few weeks ago. The experiential deprivations are in those moments when we are not checking something off the "Top 10 things to do in X," and we take out our phones out to scroll through instagram, facebook, tiktok, or the news. Those moments when we are waiting for a bus, a train, our food, or a friend, and instead of interacting with our environment, we succumb to the cravings of our devices and completely remove ourselves from the cultural immersion we are experiencing. The observations yet to be made. The experiences and conversations we've yet to digest in order to place them in the greater context of whatever it is we're learning about. Because, at that very moment, I'm convinced there's a lot more things to think about and do than learn the latest on Trump's impeachment procedure.

The only reason I carry a phone is for emergencies on a desolate road. I don't carry one at all when I'm in town.

Documenting things with photos and videos means you go back to relive old experiences. Without them you go forward to new experience. Remember that time that's just about to happen?

Short, clear, properly pronounced, with transcripts? I'll be using these for English lessons then. Thank you Derek!

So powerful. I love this and always leave my phone on airplane mode when I go to a different country.

I really enjoyed this post because it's what I've experienced personally. I always remind my kids that when they travel, be where they are and don't worry about where they're not. I'd rather them not call me or send pictures. There will be time for that when they get home.

I just learned about your podcast today and started listening. Since 1 wasn't very long I tried #2. Interesting fact, I forgot my phone at home today and am without it as I type. I enjoy leaving it at home! Looking forward to #3.

How've I gone this long without knowing you had a podcast? I am looking forward to listening to all of them. Your thought process brings so much calm. The episode with you on TF's podcast got me hooked. Anything You Want is a staple in my way of running my business. Thank you!

Realised this when I got lost in Paris with a dead phone. Great day.

So there I was, at the first or second most visited tourist attraction in London: The Tate Museum of modern art. I was going up a huge high open escalator, thinking, "Wow, I can't believe I'm in London!" And I was a "global gazer" looking everywhere. To my surprise, and I counted, roughly half the people on various benches and "balconies" were on their devices. Half! In London! My device stayed in my pocket.