What Sparked Your Love for Travel? 13 People Share The Journeys That Started It All

Editor’s note: Beginnings have the power to shape our future directions. However you come to it, you never forget the early experiences that set you on a lifelong love for travel. The WoW blog itself was founded at an intersection of storytelling, writing and travels birthed in childhood. And so for the first collaborative post, we went back to the “beginning story”. We asked people what sparked their love for travel. From an Iron Curtain country to New Zealand, South America to London and beyond, we discover heartwarming stories of wonder, adventure, enrichment and life-changing moments. Each illustrates how the magic of travel touches us in different but significant ways. Here are 13 people on the journeys that shaped their travel paths. I hope you are as inspired reading as I was putting them together for this post.

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1. From Behind the Iron Curtain to the Heights of the World: Zivile

I’m from an Iron Curtain country where the mere idea of travel was unthinkable back then. Visas were expensive and difficult to obtain, making travel abroad even more impossible. Life behind the Iron Curtain was heavily censored. As a result, books became my travel guides and inspiration in childhood. J. F. Cooper Chingachgook and his tribe fighting for freedom. Wandering foggy London with A. Christie detectives. Strolling Paris with characters from G. de Maupassant novels. Conquering the seas with Moby Dick.

Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine that someday I too would travel the world.

Today, I have climbed some of the highest peaks of the planet, been to the remotest places, shared a roof with indigenous people, trekked through jungles, deserts and mountains and biked on far flung roads. Sometimes when I remember the little girl with a book on her lap, I pinch myself. Zivile is a Travel Marketing Executive currently based in London.

2. The Unforgettable Girls Trip: Sabrina

Barbados. A 5 star hotel. And a group of 20+ years students. That’s how it all began. I still don’t know how we managed to pull it off, but that was our first girls trip. Sometimes I think we peaked too soon. But even if we never reach those dizzy heights again, it made me want to know as much of the world as I possibly could! Whether it’s short city breaks, week long indulgences with the fam or slumming it through Asia for months, I’m here for it all. I work in the travel industry so literally spend all day thinking about holidays. I wouldn’t have it any other way. Follow Tipping the Scales on Twitter and Instagram.

3. Finding Your Happy Place: Debbie

I’ve always had a love for travelling. It’s something I got from my mum. Even when things were tight financially, we would still travel. It may have just been a few day trips to cities in France, Belgium and Holland, but to us it was everything. However, I truly caught the travel bug after university. Like many other students, I left university asking myself that dreaded question, “What now?”

At a time where I felt sad, lost and confused, travelling brought me happiness. 

Travel helped me to see myself more clearly and to realise that I am capable of so much more than I ever could’ve imagined. Follow Wanderlust Calls on Twitter and Instagram.

4. The One-Way Ticket to New Adventures: David

I grew up in a melting pot of nations on Portobello Road in Notting Hill, London. At age 11 I spent a summer in Yugoslavia, now known as Croatia, and loved the freedom and maturity of looking after myself at that age. Years went by and I began to reek of inner London life. A memory popped into my head one day of that carefree summer from long ago, and for a brief moment, I was back there as a kid again. The jolt of the Central Line tube as it stopped at Holborn snapped me back into the present. However, it kick started my curiosity about travel again. Within three months and in my early 30s, I was on a plane with a one-way ticket to South America to start new adventures. The rest, as they say, is history. David is a DevOps Engineer currently based in London.

5. Learning to Say Yes: Jenna

I was super attached to my big brother when I was young. Anything he did, I did, and anywhere he went, best believe I was there. In 2000, mum was making arrangements for a family trip to Jamaica. She asked my big brother if he wanted to go and he simply answered “no” without a second thought. OMG I couldn’t believe it. It was my turn in the hot seat. “Jenna, would you like to come?” I could only manage to move my head from side to side which mum took as a no. I truly wanted to go, but sided with my brother. Not that he asked me to. I cried and begged to join them when the day finally arrived. Mum explained that it was impossible. I hugged her tightly and said goodbye.

I told myself that whenever the opportunity to travel presents itself to me, I won’t turn it down.

Travelling secured a place in my heart that day, and I have been in love with it ever since. Follow Jenna on Twitter and Instagram.

6. The Trips with Dad that Spurned a Career in Travel: Samantha

One of my first trips as a child was Paris with Dad in the 80’s. It was such an adventure. We returned with a story he likes to remind everyone of. I went to use the toilet in a coffee shop. Instead of a toilet, I found a hole in the ground. Apparently, I screeched so loudly that the whole cafe heard. It was a bad day to be in dungarees.

As I grew up, I enjoyed more trips to the Caribbean, United States and Mexico with Dad. I decided to be an Air Stewardess. However, I freaked out as a shy teenager having to talk about myself in front of people during my first airline interview. My travel journey changed direction and I got my first job in a local travel agency. 18 years later I still work in travel and have made lasting memories in many beautiful countries. Follow Heartfilled Crafts on Instagram.

7. The School Trip That Started It All: Jess

My love for travel started 10 years ago when I visited Spain for the first time with other students from my Spanish language class. We stayed with local families to improve our conversation, learnt to flamenco and enjoyed churros for the first time. There was even an interview for a Spanish TV channel! We also visited the Alhambra in Granada which took my breath away. I had the best week and the trip opened my eyes to the experiences that only travelling will give you. I haven’t looked back since. Follow Road2Culturedom on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

8. Fuelling the Travel Fire Through Books: Annabel

My first introduction to the world of travel was through my dad’s extensive encyclopaedia collection! I would spend hours researching countries and imagining myself in those places going on countless adventures. 
I was also fortunate enough to have parents who ensured I stayed connected to my roots by taking me on several holidays to see our family in Ghana. This definitely added fuel to my ever burning travel fire.

Being in the air was exhilarating. I felt free and limitless.

I’ve been chasing that feeling ever since. Follow The Woman In Transit on Twitter, Instagram and Pinterest.

9. The Year Abroad Story: Temi

What sparked my love for travel was my placement year abroad in Hamburg! The moment I accepted my job offer I went straight to Google Maps to search up Hamburg and the first thoughts which came to mind was “Omg, there’s actually loads to do in here,” “Is Berlin really that close? I’m defo going there!” “Amsterdam is only 40 minutes away? *Adds to list*” Before I knew it, I went from exploring Hamburg and other German cities to visiting other EU countries and the rest was history. Follow The Palateport on Twitter, Instagram and Pinterest.

10. From Jamaica to that Je-Ne-Sais-Quoi: Hanniffa

As a young Jamaican, I would watch TV shows like “Allo Allo” and “Are You Being Served?” and practise the accents with my brother. I was particularly curious about Europe, and maybe, meeting that blond Dutch guy at 16 also contributed. However, the idea of travel scared me. I remember crying every day of the summer my mom visited the US, until she returned. While at uni, I spent one term on exchange at York University in Canada. I met interesting people, did new things, overcame my fears and learnt to trust myself.

As fate would have it on return to Jamaica, my uni notice board displayed a programme to teach English in France for 7 months. It was a huge step of faith. I neither spoke French nor knew anyone. But I experienced miracles, met people, did many road trips and made new friends. That was 14 years ago. I fell in love…with travel, and now consider myself a citizen of a big world with so much more to see. Follow Hanniffa on Instagram.

11. Making Meaningful Connections in a New Place: Kyomi

There isn’t a romantic moment where I realised how powerful and meaningful travel was to me. I originally left London with a vague notion that ‘there must be more than this life I know’ simply because I couldn’t ever imagine leaving a good job in London if I got it. But my earliest memory is when I first moved to Malaga, Spain. Sitting around on a regular weekday evening with my housemates from Spain, Poland and Germany – sharing our foods and discussing differences in expression between our languages. We learned so much from each living together during that time; and I look back on those moments so warmly. It completely opened my mind! Follow Wading Wade on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Pinterest.

12. The Travel Bug Bites in Different Ways: Caroline

I am no globetrotter by any means, but having checked off 32 countries on my world map, I struggle to pinpoint when the travel bug first bit me. I got my first passport stamp when I relocated to the UK at the age of 10 which was a traumatic experience. It was another 6 or 7 years before I got on another flight. To top things off, my fear of heights is still prevalent though I have managed to overcome this by sleeping as soon I locate my seat and fasten that seat belt.

Perhaps it was my early teenage fantasy of being a flight attendant – the neat uniforms, secret hand signals and being in a different city every week for business and leisure ignited the itch to explore the world. Whatever it is, I’m a proud member of the wanderlust club, with a newfound confidence for solo travel. Follow TravelEatSlay on Twitter and Instagram.

13. Embracing the Ropes of Solo Travel: Clara

My first experience of falling in love with travel was taking trips with my family and classmates when I was a child back in my gorgeous country, Argentina. But I didn’t have the real travel experience until I did it by myself in New Zealand. Travelling solo is sink or swim, and you have to learn how to survive — who to trust, how to make friends and how to find your way around alone.

Travelling is a school, and I was born hungry to learn.

I found it easy to break with routine, meet new people, try different foods, see other landscapes and explore the good, the bad and the ugly in our amazing world. Travelling taught me to be tough, smart, silly, accept and grow up. It taught me to laugh, cry, be social and antisocial, play games, appreciate family and not take a second of life for granted. Clara is an Air Travel Consultant currently based in London.

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A huge thank you to all 13 of you for sharing your amazing journeys with us! Over to you, dear reader – what sparked your love for travel?