What is travel? Hiking. Leisure. By car in Europe

2024 Author: Harold Hamphrey | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 10:06

Travel is what accompanies humanity since the dawn of the world. Throughout history, people have been in constant motion: they wanted to find the best corner, make new acquaintances, establish economic contacts with distant countries. Today, others have been added to these tasks. What is a journey, why is a person drawn to unknown shores, where to start for an inexperienced tourist? All this and even more - in this article.

Theoretical base

In order to answer the question of what a journey is and how to prepare for it, it is necessary to properly understand the meaning of the definition itself. According to him, a journey is a movement by land or water with the aim of exploring, knowing the unknown, general development, cultural enrichment. Local tasks include sports training, establishing diplomatic and friendly contacts, visiting educational places, etc.

For a long time, travel has been what allowed people to build a complete picture of the surrounding reality. Information about the outlines of the planet's surface, information about the economic structure, culture, traditions,history, population of various states - all these are the achievements of travel and the fruits of the activities of travelers.

From travel history

Today the world knows such great travel chronicles as the descriptions of Herodotus, as well as the scientists who accompanied Alexander the Great. Since the Middle Ages, works have been preserved that tell about the wanderings of Marco Polo and Athanasius Nikitin (“Journey Beyond the Three Seas”), written in the first person. Especially popular at that time and even earlier was the journey to touch the shrines and reach the holy places - it was called "pilgrimage" and was reflected in the travel notes of the pilgrim hegumen Daniel. The next important stage in the development of travel was the Age of Discovery, which qualitatively expanded people's ideas about the openness, grandeur and obscurity of the vast world.

Further, in the period from the 18th to the 19th centuries, travel underwent significant changes in its very essence: they became more and more specific, acquired the character of scientific expeditions. It began after N. M. Przhevalsky called his campaigns “scientific reconnaissance”, which could only satisfy the need for superficial knowledge about a particular area.

The middle of the 20th century was marked by the active development of the tourism sector, in connection with which the journey became identical to any trip carried out by a person on his own, without the mediation of travel agencies. For this type of recreation, where the rejection ofservices of any companies and organizations, even has its own term - "backpacking" (from English backpacking).

Currently, fans of adventurous trips organized at their own peril and risk can get acquainted with this or that place in advance through travel TV programs (“Eagle and Tails”, “Travel Club”, etc.).

Types of travel

So, if what a trip is is clarified, it is necessary to dwell in more detail on the types of recreation that are presented in large numbers today. These include:

Cruise tours.
Sightseeing vacation.
Sports tourism.
VIP travel.
He alth trips.
Educational tourism.
Weekend tours.
Travel to ski resorts.
Event trips (going to festivities, special weeks, carnivals, etc.).
Beach tourism.
Business travel.
Wedding holiday.
Shopping tours.
Travel to exotic resorts and non-standard places.
Gastronomic tours.

As you can see, today everyone can decide what he likes best and plan his own route in the way that is convenient for him - drive along all the main beaches, cover as many shopping centers as possible, look at rejuvenating springs and sources and much more. Whether passive or active, there is a special type of travel for everyone. The main thing in this matter is in accordance with one's own desires andopportunities to choose the type of trip that can bring as many positive impressions, emotions and benefits as possible.

The benefits of travel

If everything is clear about what travel is, then the question of why people travel is still open. Psychologists and even ordinary tourists highlight the following objective advantages of traveling:

Personal development, growth and self-improvement, which is associated with the rejection of the boring "comfort zone". Unexpected situations and circumstances develop in a person the ability to respond quickly, show originality and creativity, communicate with people, and adapt to changing conditions.
Making new friends.
Expanding horizons, increasing erudition. Knowledge of the mores and customs of an unfamiliar state, the language and life of the local population, cuisine and much more - all this as a result has a positive effect on the overall level of the traveler's culture.
Recovery, resting mainly on the production of endorphins, the common name of which is “happiness hormones”. The journey itself is associated with relaxation and positive impressions, which leads to the production of these substances.
Spiritual enrichment.

Now it's time to look at the most popular routes that even a beginner can implement.

Golden Ring (route): why choose and how to go?

Traveling along the Golden Ring is an opportunity to touch the national history of Russia. The route covers cities, each ofwhich occupies a special niche in the development of the state. Many of them present sights taken under the protection of the international organization UNESCO. In addition, the trip helps to relieve the fuss, get rid of the stress imposed by life in the metropolis, and plunge into the unhurried life of the Russian provinces.

Golden Ring, the route of which will be presented below, is currently an active tourist area in Russia. By the way, travelers do not always use the mediation of travel companies and organized excursions, because no special documents are required to make a trip as a "savage" - only a means of transportation! The list of cities looks like this:

Vladimir;
Suzdal;
Rostov the Great;
Ivanovo;
Kostroma;
Yaroslavl;
Pereslavl-Zalessky;
Sergiev Posad.

The total length of the route is approximately 1000 km.

Routes in Europe

Today you can go on a trip not only in Russia, but also by car… in Europe! To do this, you must take care in advance of obtaining medical insurance, an international driver's license, as well as a special visa at the embassy of the country where the entry will be made initially; subsequently, there will be no restrictions on movement between states that are members of the European Union.

In order to travel by car across Europe, you also need to lay a competentroute. The most popular among tourists are, for example, these:

Russia, Belarus, Poland, Czech Republic, Austria. The total length of the route is 5170 km, stops in 6 cities (Minsk, Brest, Vienna, Klagenfurt, Prague, Warsaw).
Route from Moscow to Berlin with a road length of about 2000 km (you can drive in 25-30 hours, but with stops for rest, sightseeing - 4-5 days one way); crossing 4 borders: Belarusian, Czech, Polish, German.

Regardless of where the trip will be made, the trip must be planned and thought out. It is recommended that you familiarize yourself with the laws and national characteristics of the countries where you will be entering.

Hiking

This is one of the best options to start exploring the world of travel. If there is still not enough experience and skills to travel long distances, hiking with a gradual increase in the length of the route and the complication of conditions is what will help you gain confidence in your abilities. You can start with ordinary trips with overnight stays in the forest (the main thing is to make sure the chosen place is safe), and continue crossing mountain ranges and hilly areas of the Urals, the Murmansk region, the Caucasus and other regions.