Anyone else consumed by wanderlust?

[beneathhereyes]

I feel that wanderlust is consuming me and having an impact on my family life. I think it's a form of escapism from the daily grind, I'm a carer for dd12 and daily life can be very restrictive. Travelling with her is becoming increasingly harder and I'm starting to resent this 😢.
I want to go to large cities where there is hustle and bustle constantly, its not a case that I want to just go anywhere. I spend large parts of the day googling flights, accommodation, watching YouTube videos of the place etc. Someone recently thought I was very well travelled because I was able to tell her (non famous) street names of a particular city, which I only knew because I spend quite a lot of time on streetview checking out towns as if I was walking along the street.
I get so much pleasure doing all these things, but I realized it's probably not healthy as last night I found cheap flights to London, but the hostel where we've previously stayed has now doubled in price and I'm absolutely gutted 😢
I'm very aware we've been very lucky to travel as there are families who haven't been on holiday ever.
Not sure why I'm posting, but can anyone else relate? It almost feels like an addiction 😔

Sound alike a good way to armchair travel at the moment nd then later, perhaps you can together or you have trips already planned.

@CurleyMango the problem is that if I don't have an impending trip then I feel really out of sorts and agitated. I wish it would be enough for me to armchair travel!

I do it but do not get far, lol
Wonder away and you never know you may get a great trip out of it and if not then it cost you nothing

Yes! You need to get an Occulus quest and you can sit in your front room “walking” round places . Stuff like Ayers Rock, major cities, you can even go inside art galleries.

Obviously not as good as the real thing but better than streetview.

I am a bit like this too OP. I think it’s also a fall out from covid. One of my DC has SEN which does restrict life and restricts where we can go away to. I travelled a lot when younger. But yes I spend a lot of time looking at places to go and exploring booking . It feels like a physical longing.

i think it must be a lot about wanting to escape from the restrictions on life that stretch into the future.

I think it’s totally understandable

Can you plan your next trip?? Build more travel into your life in future?

Look upon it as a hobby. It's not doing any harm, and it's definitely preparing you for the days when you'll be jumping on flights and going to the places you know so well (via Streetview!)

Thank you all for the replies. The problem is that the cost of travel is doubling and it will be prohibitive for me, and coupled with dd's health needs it isn't a case of jumping on a plane. We've been away some where the last 5 years over Christmas (usually London, with which I have a very special bond) and I just checked the flights, which are very cheap but the accommodation and coach have doubled since last year. I literally got heart palpitations at the thought of not getting away (which I know is utterly pathetic).
Thank you for that suggestion @QuebecBagnet@QuebecBagnet, I will look into that! I've never been long haul so those places will be great to discover.

Yes, I get it, it's a need to escape dull routine and enjoy some freedom.

Given money's tight atm it could be good to enjoy planning a future trip. That's what I'm going to do.

@Mitsouko67 yes I think that will have to be the plan. Where are you hoping to go next?

Where do you live? Is it somewhere that someone from London or other large cities might want to go to escape the hustle and bustle that you're seeking? We live in London and regularly house swap with people in the Lake District and similar. They get their city fix, we get our country fix, noone pays for accommodation. Is that sort of thing a possibility? We organise via a home swap website

@PosiePerkinPootleFlump please could I have details of the home swap website? This is such a great idea.

I travelled a lot prior to having my family but money has restricted travelling as an adult. However when all the Covid restrictions came in in 2020 I felt a panic about not being able to travel. It was as if the world had shifted and changed to the point it was almost like being trapped. I had no plans to travel but not being allowed to felt different to not having the money to. I couldn’t even watch documentaries about other places for a while.

Now we are back to only being restricted by money I still haven’t lost some of those feelings about the world not being the same. Everything is much more difficult - Brexit in the midst of Covid - and much more expensive with our unsettled economy.

I don't work Fridays and have no kids and for the past few weeks have woken up on Thursday morning, booked a hotel somewhere and just gone after work on the train for the night.

I don't stay in fancy places - last week was a youth hostel in the Lakes, and it is not something I can strictly afford, but I just have this urge to get away and be somewhere else at the moment and have a change of scene. I can't really explain why. I know I am very lucky to be able to do this.

I also spend hours on mapping apps, planning cycling or walking routes, losing myself in roads and tracks. I can literally look up and hours have passed with me doing this. It's like an obsession.

@PosiePerkinPootleFlump my (rented) house is most definitely not up to the standard to put on a website. We have however house swapped with friends, which worked really well. We are on a tight budget so usually stay in youth hostel type places so someone's house always feels quite luxurious in comparison.
@garlictwist that is my dream life! I also have that urge that I can't really explain. That's why it feels so upsetting and constraining that I can't get away at Christmas. I might do a more local break but it's not where I want to go.

@Tumbleweed101 yes I can totally relate to that feeling of being trapped. Its so weird as I have a car and can go on lovely scenic drives but unless I'm somewhere bustling I feel like I have a weight on my chest.

My friend takes her disabled dc on cruises from ports that start in the UK. Bus to port then really good assistance etc. Not cheap but definitely value for money and you can book over a year in advance and pay it off. It will give you something to look forward to.

I live in a city so like remote places/countryside.
My wish list includes Kent, Tours, Finland, Plovdiv,Germany, Canada and Japan.

It doesn’t sound like wanderlust or an addiction to travelling to me.

It sounds like an unfulfilled and profoundly dissatisfied and unhappy person with the current status quo of their life.

friends? Work? Hobbies? Exercise? What’s all that like?

I agree with this.
The obsessive planning for a holiday, a trip you could actually take or looking at feasible options would warrant excitement. Seems like this isn't borne of excitement but more out of unhappiness and frustration?

I do this as a hobby and have been planning a big old American road trip for years. I know some areas of California and Nevada so well through street view and reading travel guides, it almost feels as if I've been there. I wouldn't say it's sad or an addiction though as I'm not consumed by it. It's a really interesting past time or hobby and it's really educational if you also research the geography and history of the places youre longing to visit. With my work and dc and dh health issues at the moment it seems a long way off but one day we'll do it.

Op, it does sound as if it's making you sad though. I can relate to the bustling city longing. There's nothing quite like it. Downtown by Petula Clark really sums it up the feeling. I do hope you can manage some city breaks or even day trips. Premier inn etc are usually cheapest on Sunday nights so it's worth checking then and obviously are cheaper further out if you're able to travel into the city via public transport. We like staying in Wandsworth as it's quick 15 mins or so on the train into Waterloo. Kingston and Richmond are good too.

@Doingprettywellthanks generally speaking I have a great life. Obviously my caring responsibilities limit what I can do, but from an outsiders view I'm doing pretty well. My dream job would be a FT traveller without having to do the subsequent write up, but obviously the boring mandatory things like work and school for the dc prevent that.
Re friends, if I'm honest I'm not that into spending much time with friends. I do a coffee here and there but they aren't a great outlet for me. I really need to exercise but I don't want to. I get very little pleasure from buying clothes or stuff from the house, I'm happy to spend all of my money on travel.
@Playplayaway glad you can relate, your road trip sounds amazing! When in London we stay in the Paddington/Edgware Road area. It literally never sleeps, even on Christmas day everything is open and it's buzzing.

Definitely relate to this. I lived overseas and travelled a lot preDD - but [insert various reasons] don't do that kind of travel these days. I have been seriously yanking my chain - for years. I do sometimes use dd's occulus quest to scope out places - helps to get an idea of whether they are really what I'm looking for. I just bought yet another guide book that may or may not ever be used - and googled a list of accommodation etc. But what I really miss is living overseas in the kind places I loved but wouldn't take dd to live. I definitely always need one or two trips on the horizon to keep me going.

@beneathhereyes have you tried the free travel app Heygo? You book onto a guided tour for free and can see lots of different places in the world. There is a chat function also if you want to chat with others/the tour guide. I found it when I had covid and still take a tour every now and then.