Every trip begins with a question.

For most people, it sounds like this:


Where should I go? What’s worth seeing? What’s the most efficient route?


These questions are logical. Practical. They make sense in a world of overbooked calendars, short vacations, and an overwhelming number of options. But they also lead to the same problem: generic trips that feel hollow.


You end up visiting the same “must-see” places as everyone else, taking the same photos, eating in restaurants that appear on every top 10 list. You follow the plan, but the experience doesn’t stay with you.


Because you were asking the wrong question from the beginning.


A Better Way to Start


Instead of asking “Where should I go?”, ask yourself:


“What do I want to feel?”

“What kind of experience do I want to remember?”

“What part of myself do I want this trip to awaken or restore?”


These questions lead you somewhere entirely different.


If you want to feel awe, you don’t need a world-famous landmark surrounded by crowds.

You need a quiet sunrise on a cliff, a long walk through a foggy forest, or an unfamiliar skyline at dusk. 


If you want connection, a guided group tour might not do it.


But a meaningful conversation with someone who lives there — over coffee, or on a long walk — just might.


If you crave freedom, maybe it’s not about ticking off attractions.


It’s about throwing away the schedule for a day and seeing where the city pulls you.

This isn’t just a poetic reframe — it’s a practical one.

When you travel based on how you want to feel, you begin to ignore the noise:

• The endless recommendations

• The high-pressure “Top 10” lists

• The social media-driven expectations

Instead, you begin designing an experience that fits you — not the algorithm, not the trend, not the tourist checklist.


Planning Around Emotion, Not Efficiency


We live in a world obsessed with planning. Every hour of a trip is scheduled, optimized, and booked in advance. And while this works for logistics, it rarely works for meaning.

Because memorable travel isn’t efficient.


It’s emotional.


It’s shaped by detours, long conversations, changed plans, and open time.

The best travel stories often begin with:

• “We were supposed to go there, but…”

• “We met someone who told us about this hidden place…”

• “We got lost and ended up somewhere incredible…”


These moments don’t come from a spreadsheet.

They come from being intentional about your starting point.

And that starting point is not a location.


It’s a question.


So, What’s the Right Question?


Don’t ask:


“What’s the best city in Europe for 4 days?”

“Where should I go in spring?”

“What’s the cheapest destination right now?”


Instead, ask:


“What do I want this trip to unlock in me?”

“What kind of memory do I want to carry for years?”

“What feeling do I want to return home with?”


Start there, and your entire trip — the people you meet, the pace you move, the choices you make — will begin to align with what really matters.

And when that happens, travel becomes more than a break.

It becomes a story you own.


Where the Real Trip Begins


Most trips are over-planned and under-felt.

But when you shift the question — from logistics to emotion — something powerful happens:

The city opens up differently.

You move differently.

And you remember differently.

Because the places we carry with us the longest aren’t the ones we “did right.”

They’re the ones we truly felt.


What about you?


What’s the question you really want your next trip to answer?


Drop it in the comments. Let’s start there.