10 Reasons Travel Is Good for Mental Health

Travel has long been associated with improved mental health, but why is this so? We asked 10 professionals, from RNs and Founders to Community Managers, to share their insights. From building confidence and problem-solving skills to using travel as an escape and mindfulness tool, discover the top reasons travel is a powerful tool for mental health.

Building Confidence and Problem-Solving Skills
Fostering Self-Reflection and Discovery
Reducing Stress With Travel
Unwinding and Stimulating Creativity
Enhancing Mental Flexibility and Creativity
Breaking Old Habits, Developing New Ones
Travel Promotes Emotional Growth
Disconnect and Engage With New Experiences
Acquire New Perspectives Through Travel
Travel as Escape and Mindfulness Tool

Building Confidence and Problem-Solving Skills

Traveling can be an invaluable tool for improving mental health. By broadening one’s perspectives, new experiences can help to build self-confidence and the development of problem-solving skills that come with the challenges presented by foreign cultures or destinations.

Exploring a new region provides insight into what it feels like to be a stranger in a strange land, while also often being helped and welcomed. These elements combined help to bring clarity to understanding our own place within communities and society on a larger scale, which can boost psychological well-being significantly and provide a perspective into how one’s daily life fits into the worldwide contexts we inhabit.

Kate Duske
Editor-in-Chief, Escape Room Data

Fostering Self-Reflection and Discovery

Traveling offers a transformative experience by pushing us out of our comfort zones, enabling self-reflection, and fostering self-discovery. It provides a valuable opportunity to reassess our priorities, set meaningful goals, and gain fresh perspectives.

Stepping away from our routines allows us to detach from distractions and better understand ourselves. Interacting with diverse cultures challenges our beliefs, expanding our horizons and nurturing personal growth.

Travel encourages self-discovery by allowing experimentation and exploring new facets of our personalities. Uncovering hidden talents and confronting fears leads to heightened self-esteem and purpose. Through these transformative moments of self-reflection and self-discovery, we gain clarity and understanding and embark on a lifelong personal development journey.

Bill Lyons
CEO, Griffin Funding

Reducing Stress With Travel

Travel has mental health benefits as it has been shown to reduce stress. Taking a break from your normal routine to explore a new place can help you see your problems from a distance, where they may not seem as serious as when you are right in the thick of your usual environment. You may also be inspired by creative solutions from experiencing something different, so the stress-reducing benefits may also follow you home.

Dr. Bryan Bruno
Medical Director, Mid City TMS

Unwinding and Stimulating Creativity

Travel has been crucial for my mental health because it gives me a break from my usual routine and allows me to unwind and recharge.

Exploring new destinations, experiencing different cultures, and trying new activities have expanded my perspective and often stimulates creativity in my work. Travel is always a perfect opportunity to leave my worries behind, reduce stress, and find a sense of inner peace.

Trevor Ewen
COO, QBench

Enhancing Mental Flexibility and Creativity

Traveling is like a workout for our brains, helping us to think more flexibly and creatively. It pushes us to adapt and learn, keeping our minds sharp.

In our usual routine, our thoughts can get stuck in a rut, but travel shakes things up, making us learn and think differently. It’s a great way to keep our minds active and healthy.

Charles Stewart
Managing Director, eurochange

Breaking Old Habits, Developing New Ones

When a person travels, they step out of their daily routine. This break is powerful. It helps the mind to break old habits that cause stress. For example, some people feel anxious when they check their email. They worry about work problems.

But when they travel, they focus on new experiences. They see beautiful places and meet new people. This change helps them to forget about email. Their mind gets a rest. Slowly, they felt happy and relaxed.

This fresh start can help them build new, positive habits. They might even find better ways to handle email when they get back. So, travel is not just fun. It is good for the mind too.

Ravi Parikh
Founder and CEO, RoverPass

Travel Promotes Emotional Growth

Travel serves as an essential catalyst for emotional growth. As a psychology consultant and digital nomad, I’ve witnessed firsthand how exposure to a new environment and culture can enhance one’s self-awareness.

Stepping out of your comfort zone and meeting with the unfamiliarity of a new place can act as a mirror, helping us confront our internal battles, thus empowering emotional resilience and promoting mental health.

Bayu Prihandito
Psychology Expert, Life Coach, and Founder, Life Architekture

Disconnect and Engage with New Experiences

Traveling gives you the opportunity to disconnect from your day-to-day routine and seek new experiences. It’s a chance to take a break from your phone and interact with nature, people, and different cultures. Being outdoors, engaging with others, and learning new things all positively contribute to your mental health.

Matt Guidice
Co-founder, Matt’s Flights

Acquire New Perspectives Through Travel

We are like cameras, and every trip we go on is the equivalent of acquiring an extra lens to look at life from a different perspective.

This positively affects mental health because all your senses are stimulated. It’s exciting! New smells, new sights, new cultures, new foods, etc.

All these new experiences can give you a happiness boost in the short-term while you’re in the middle of your trip but also contribute to your long-term well-being by giving you an extra “lens” to look at your usual life through and enjoy it more.

Karim Bel Hadj Soulami
Founder, Creme de la Karim

Travel as Escape and Mindfulness Tool

Travel gives you an opportunity to distance yourself – both physically and mentally – from your worries. Thanks to such a temporary escape, you can break the cycle of negative thoughts and gain a fresh perspective. Stepping outside your usual environment provides a new lens through which to view your problems. It can help you find alternative solutions or approaches to what you deal with.

Also, traveling involves being fully present at the moment. Whether you’re admiring a stunning landscape, immersing yourself in local traditions, or savoring new flavors, it all encourages mindfulness and a heightened sense of presence.

Being in a new place, you’re focused on novel experiences and can mentally detach from your problems. It brings relief, a sense of freedom, and a chance to “recharge your batteries”.

Agata Szczepanek
Community Manager, MyPerfectResume