I guess the Internet can be a boon or bane depending on your travel style.

There’s a thin line between being Pioneer and being stupid.

The pioneer can do some research and then try to change the tourist route for the traveler or explorer route. Actually planning is compatible with exploring and taking risk, but at least you know when and where.

With travel (as with many things in life) balance is so important and such a challenge. Balancing risk and adventure with safety and comfort is a difficult task. I think re-framing one’s perspective on what actions can lead to a truly unique travel experience can be helpful. What I love about travel is that it offers the opportunity to seek adventure and pioneering experiences in even the smallest of ways. So you made a reservation in advance — you saved yourself potentially several hours of stress and aimless wandering. But, as one example, venturing out to dinner alone and striking up a conversation with the people at the table next to yours — that may seem like a small risk, but it does take courage (for most people). I did this on a recent solo trip to Italy and had the most incredible conversation with a man traveling from Norway — it was an exhilarating feeling. For me it is those small, unexpected experiences that always seem to find me when I travel that I relish, and often cherish as my favorite travel memories.

My last trip lasted for 6 months and took in most of the Middle East and North East Africa. I didn’t use a guidebook or map, I was alone, and I travelled only by bicycle. I met 13 other tourists in that half-year. Needless to say I had a lot to learn, and fast. No guidebook or online portal offers that. I’d recommend it to anyone in an instant.

One of my earliest travels was a skiing trip and I lapped up every bit of info I could find in the hard-copy travel agent ski magazines – now, it’s hard to imagine not being able to check recent snow falls, % of open pistes etc.

I think that being able to read up on a place and read other’s travel experiences allows you to plan better – always useful if you’re visiting a place for a limited amount of time. If there’s a lot to see and do, a comparison on a website can allow you to prioritise – admittedly based on other people’s opinions.

Even if you do read all the blogs, communicate in the forums and research on Trip Advisor, there is still going to be an element of the unknown – after all, you never know what might happen out there…..!