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> Almost all vacations, tours, travels, etc are mapped out and pre-scheduled (even prepaid if possible) before we start on a vacation. That doesn't match my ex

> Almost all vacations, tours, travels, etc are mapped out and pre-scheduled (even prepaid if possible) before we start on a vacation. That doesn't match my experience at all and I suspect you're incorrect generally (though maybe it's your experience). Technology is a safety net which allows us to be more uncomfortable with lack of planning. Take accommodation, for example. My parents would never travel somewhere without first having clear plans and a pre-booked hotel reservation. Meanwhile, I regularly travel to places without having any accommodation booked at all. There's even a large and successful app based on this sort of spontaneity: HotelTonight. Technology makes it much more possible to go on a random detour to a totally random place and feel comfortable that you'll end up fine. Ubiquitous internet has changed travel completely.

jacobolus 10y ago
> Take accommodation, for example. My parents would never travel somewhere without first having clear plans and a pre-booked hotel reservation. This is more down to personality than technology. I know plenty of people who traveled spontaneously 40+ years ago. Heck, some of my ancestors left their home countries and migrated thousands of miles with few possessions and no idea what they’d do at the other end.
- kazlauskis 10y ago
  Totally agree, like with all the choices this is also mainly about personality. I have hitched around the world with my wife for 1.5 years and was using paper maps only. Now when we are back I use SatNav, but having the mentality for adventure it enables me rather than limits. From a societal point of view I would argue this though. Even if we CAN travel the same way as before - actually, in terms of trip outcomes it can be much easier these days - but since technology shapes our choices/culture, when speaking of a general person our will to travel in a more exploratory way diminishes. When before we were forced to learn the 'unimportant' parts of a country (which most often better represent current culture than any museum or special/recommended sighting), nowadays we can very easily avoid any such 'distractions' in the end learning only what TripAdvisor recommends.

jacobolus 10y ago

> Take accommodation, for example. My parents would never travel somewhere without first having clear plans and a pre-booked hotel reservation. This is more down to personality than technology. I know plenty of people who traveled spontaneously 40+ years ago. Heck, some of my ancestors left their home countries and migrated thousands of miles with few possessions and no idea what they’d do at the other end.

kazlauskis 10y ago
Totally agree, like with all the choices this is also mainly about personality. I have hitched around the world with my wife for 1.5 years and was using paper maps only. Now when we are back I use SatNav, but having the mentality for adventure it enables me rather than limits. From a societal point of view I would argue this though. Even if we CAN travel the same way as before - actually, in terms of trip outcomes it can be much easier these days - but since technology shapes our choices/culture, when speaking of a general person our will to travel in a more exploratory way diminishes. When before we were forced to learn the 'unimportant' parts of a country (which most often better represent current culture than any museum or special/recommended sighting), nowadays we can very easily avoid any such 'distractions' in the end learning only what TripAdvisor recommends.