5 Non-Negotiables When Visiting a New Place
And a helpful travel tip to stay hydrated. 🙏
Hi friends—Kayti here! It’s so wonderful to see how many new subscribers we have from the past few weeks (1,500 of you now!).
I’ve been deep in some book editing (👀 more about that soon), but I’m excited to jump in today with a short but meaningful piece about five non-negotiables while visiting a new place.
I hope these provide some inspo for your next trip, and I’d love to hear your non-negotiables while traveling in the comments!! Please feel free to share below. xo
What You Can’t Miss Doing in a New Place
Research the neighborhood—not the accommodation—first. This might sound counterintuitive, but I always scope out the best neighborhoods in a new city and then narrow in on a radius when searching for hostels, hotels, or Airbnbs. I look for: walkability, coffee shops, grocery stores for if I’m staying at an Airbnb and planning to cook, proximity to public transit, how easy it is to get to and from the airport, and “vibe” factor. Is this a fun area to explore? Is it more local or tourist vibes? Is it a neighborhood I myself would likely live in if I moved here?
Start your first morning at a local coffee (or tea) shop. I have this theory that coffee shops can really tell you about a city (and I’m not talking Starbucks). For example, coffee shop culture is huge in Los Angeles and offers a peek into daily life. In fact, when I visited Berlin last fall, I didn’t buy a SIM card for my phone; instead, I bounced around coffee shops all day to refuel and used the Wi-Fi to plot where I’d visit next. It was a great way to experience various neighborhoods—from chatting with the baristas to eavesdropping on conversations that I clearly couldn’t understand. I even spent a few afternoons working in cafes, and it allowed me to feel local in a way that simply popping in wouldn’t have.
Get to walking! It’s not a secret we typically log more steps when traveling, but I like to turn this up a notch. I’m a huge proponent of walking almost everywhere in a new place (at dawn, at night, in heels, when it’s raining), simply so that I can better experience a place and immerse myself in the environment. And the walking doesn’t have to be destination-orientated either! I’ve often discovered the best shops and attractions simply by walking in one direction. Of course, limitations to this may exist depending on the destination or health capacities, and you should always have a plan/make sure you know how to get home. But if possible, try it out—you’ll likely see things that you’d never find on a tourist map.
Ask a human for help (not your phone). It’s so easy these days to use Google when we’re lost or looking for a recommendation while traveling. And while I’m a huge fan of Reddit and reviews, I think it’s essential to ask locals (humans!) for help when we need it (yes! Even with a language barrier!). Human connection is so overlooked these days, and with Google Translate, we don’t even have to try much. So while technology is great, so is challenging ourselves and asking the people who live there for help/recs/etc. Which leads me into my final point…
Learn the local language. My final non-negotiable while traveling to a new place revolves around language. I always learn how to say “hello” and “thank you” (and a few other phrases depending on the complexity of the language). This is a sign of respect, but it also makes traveling a much richer experience. Walking into a shop and saying “hello” or departing a bus and being able to say “thank you” is incredibly meaningful and something I think many travelers take for granted.
🇮🇹 Last edition’s poll was a close one, but ultimately, the two-week itinerary in Italy won out—so more to come on that next week! (And maybe we’ll do the Christmas markets one anyway so you can plan for Winter 2025. 😉)
👀 Business class seats for 49K points each way!
👚 Henah’s all-time favorite comfy clothes for travel and work—made from recycled materials. Enjoy $30 off your first purchase! 🥲 (*referral)
💧 This website shows you where to fill your water bottle in every airport to reduce single-use plastic!
🇩🇪 A video recap from Kayti’s time in Berlin last fall (the best time to visit!)
Happy (almost) Halloween—stay spooky and safe, friends.
—Kayti & Henah
Love the local coffee shop tip — and PREACH about it not being Starbucks. I've found that the local coffee shops are usually in the neighborhood(s) I want to stay in... and if I'm staying in another area, the walk to / from the shop is a great way to find other hidden gems.
Another non-negotiable for me is researching and trying food that is local to not only the country but also the specific region. Example: don't think you're going to find Italy's best pizza in Venice! Instead try the cicchetti or seafood. You can learn so much about a place through food.