Is it the Journey or the Destination?

Arnold,

do you still beat your wife? You can't be wishy-washy. Yes or No. You must pick one or the other option!

Or, as a teacher of mine once said, the answer to everything is - it depends.

I won't be wishy-washy - ha! It's definitely the journey for me.

The destination is a one-time event. The journey begins usually 10 months before the trip when ideas are just starting to form - which country(s) to visit, the type of trip - combo of mountains, city/villages, and water. Then all of the fun of discovering what's possible in that area. The day when the airplane tickets are booked and/or a special hotel, makes the trip "official"! From there the anticipation builds until it's the actual day to go.

The destination - wonderful!

But, the journey continues. Now we're back, and we can relive the memories, share our high points & funny stories with friends & pull together a travel book on-line. That journey continues as what we've learned & experienced is now a part of our life. : )

In my case, I'd have to say that it's the destination. The journey is usually a somewhat tiring and unpleasant ordeal, with the usual airport hassles, flight delays, cramped seating, mediocre food and then rail or bus transport to get to my desired location. Once I get to the destination, I can relax and truly start enjoying the holiday.

I enjoy both the journey and the destination.

Then again sometimes a destination is much more interesting than I had expected, and some are dogs. Then I don't like that destination as much.

Sometimes the journey winds up much less pleasant than usual and then I don't like that part of the journey. Sometimes it is much better.

So, on balance, I like both.

The people one meets. Oops, that is not a correct response.

Definitely the journey ... which, like Jean, begins months in advance, with all the planning and preparation. Finally the big day arrives, and even though I know we have many hours of uncomfortable travel ahead of us, I am excited when we head for the airport and eager to get on the plane.

Our first destination is usually just one stop on our journey. And even if we love that place, we're usually ready to leave and explore the next one. When we reach our final destination, we are almost always regretful and seldom ready for the journey to end. We want to just keep moving on.

May depend a little bit on how your define both journey and destination. For us, it is the end product whether it is the journey through Europe or the destination of Europe. For the us the planning is a pain along with the trip over. Once we step off the plane, it all begins.

"I enjoy both the journey and the destination."

So, Nigel, that makes you "wishy-washy". Sigh! LOL. :o)

Sometimes it is the journey, sometimes it is the destination.

Once I went from Frasdorf (how many people know where that is?) to Zwiesel (ditto). Other than stopping at a RR crossing to watch a RailJet whizz by, it was an pretty uneventful journey, but the destinations were worthwhile.

On the other hand, I went from Oberammergau to Bayrischzell one day. The destinations were not extraordinary, but the journey, by bus, along the Walchensee and down into Kochel were great.

Does that make me wishy-washy?

For the most part, I would say it's where I get to, not the process of getting there, that I enjoy the most.

The journey. It is a learning and growing experience especially when things go wrong (as they always do) and you have to figure things out on the fly and recover. And we always have recovered, thankfully.

The destination. For me each trip has a series of physical destinations, but also more abstract destinations (e.g. expanding your cultural horizons, disconnecting from your day-to-day world, simple relaxation). The destination is what makes the journey worth it, and those abstract destinations of the mind are really what make trips and locations memorable for me. Trip planning, dreaming, researching, and the actual travel from place to place (what I think of as the journey) are all fun, but you need the destination so that the journey can even begin.

Definitely destination. I could skip most of journey - that means flying from US to Europe. Once there and traveling in Europe (mostly by train) from one destination to another I enjoy journey too, but destination wins. Homework and planning before I don't consider journey but I admit it's enjoyable to certain degree. I don't overplan because I like some flexibility and you have much better access to information about your options once you are there.

It depends. That's a wishy-washy answer. Still, it depends on the trip. Sometimes it was both journey and the destination, ie, my three trips to/in Poland. The journey involved the long train rides, ie 9-10.5 hrs. including transfer time. Other times it was the destination period, just get me there, such as flying from SFO the ten plus hour transatlantic route. When I took the ferry in the past and will do in the future knowing it's more than 24 hours from A to B, that was/will be both journey and destination, say Helsinki. I know I can easily fly there from London or Frankfurt, etc but then that would mean giving up up that 24 hour or so ferry trip. It is that experience one chooses to value.

When does the journey start and when does it end? My journey through Paris began when I got off the bus at Gare de l'Est and ended when I got back on it with great sadness but tons of memories for the ride back to CDG.

I still don't know what my destination is but I'm loving the journey.

I agree with Ken and opt for the destination. The tiring and unpleasant ordeal of the airport hassles, flight delays, cramped seating, mediocre food, and rail / bus transport to get to where I want to go is not a good reason to spend good money. I can be hassled, delayed, physically uncomfortable, and get bad food without ever leaving my home town. All of the above is simply a means to an end -- the destination.

I have to say the entire journey (altho I love planning, too). I love my adventure from the moment I lock the door to my house until I unlock the door at the end. I enjoy every moment, although I hate jet lag, as I love watching people, studying their luggage, and studying systems in general. And if the flight is long, I just remember what a hassle the trip would have been 100 years ago! That changes one's perspective a bit.

With flying it is the destination which justifies it all.
But on trains and - outside Europe - long-distance buses it's a different story. You need a destination to board a train or bus, but the journey can be a goal in itself. I have good memories of sitting on buses in northern Pakistan or those in Peru, going from the coast to the mountains. This year the trains in Poland were a pleasure, especially the older stock. It brought back the memories of travelling on an Interrail pass.

My journeys can never be separated from their destinations.

First off.,.. many of you are not interpreting the word "journey " as I am.

I hate the physical journey usually... long plane rides, cramped and uncomfortable.. seriously if I could just be "beamed" to my chosen destination I would be absolutely fine with that.. Train rides over 5 hours suck to me too.. same with bus rides over 2 hours.. ( one exception was on the one RS tour I have ever taken, the drive through the Alps was spectacular and I enjoyed it thoroughly!)

It seems some are including the fun part of trip planning and research as the "journey".. is so , I agree that part of the "journey" is as much fun as the trip in many ways..

But ultimately .. while I love the planning etc.. I love getting "THERE".. wherever there is.. and enjoying each destination.

Isn't a "journey" something reality TV contestants find themselves on these days??

There are people who enjoy the physical journey?!?!?! The airports, the planes? I'm not sure I'd really enjoy that even if I were traveling first-class without luggage.

David - if you have time for that tv fare, maybe you need to get out more :-)

It's all about the Destination!!!

The journey is simply the way to reach the destination, and because that so often involves enduring airport security screening ordeals and long transfers to gates, it's definitely NOT about the journey!

Definitely the journey because the destinations are just part of the journey and without the journey there would be no destination.

Yes, plane travel and airports can be extremely uncomfortable and frustrating. But I take a zen approach to all of it and not let it bother me. Even when I get sent to the special room at the Rome airport for an intense questioning about my time in Italy because I apparently spent too much time there without having luggage to check. At least the coffee was decent during my wait.

I make a distinction whether the means to the destination is by plane or the train. By train it can be the journey as much as the destination, or even more so, depending on the landscape, ie, what I find interesting and fascinating in the landscape and/or the particular route the train takes plus the towns it stops at,... makes no difference whether the ride is 2 hours or ten hours.

As a rule Chani, I don't watch reality TV.
However, I did start to watch The Amazing Race the other day just to see where they were going.
Pretty soon I found myself hitting 'fast forward' through the 'journey' bits to reach the 'destination' bits.
So I guess I have answered the question.

Having said that, if anyone is willing to shout me the Residence on Etihad A380 from Sydney to London, or a suite on the Queen Mary 2 from Southampton to New York, or a trip on the Orient Express from London to Venice, I am willing to endure the journey all in the name of research.

I enjoy the journey - starting from research, poring over books and maps, to detailed planning and re-planning. And yes, I love the airport - the buzz of people going to so many destinations, the anticipation of the trip I am embarking on :-) it makes me smile just sitting here :-) the travel fun is tranished/dimmed by cramped seats but I love looking out the window in flight and seeing all the sleeping people onboard (I am the one walking up and down the aisle most of the night, peering out the door windows) I even like the stern men in tiny booths who look at my passport - they are more proof that I am really overseas!! I enjoy maps and driving, so the journey is fun as we go from destination to destination. A traffic jam near Antwerp is a much better problem than traffic on the way to/from the office!! Getting lost in Venice is a great thing - somehow a gellato stand would appear :-) and the journey countinues.

The destinations are inseperable from the journey, so the question is flawed. If we could be transported to the destinations or if you travel just to see the countryside slip by, then maybe you could choose journey or destination. I enjoy the entire process and travel is grand!

Travel while you can!

For me it is usually the destination that is most important, but having just returned from walking the Camino in Spain, this time it was the journey.

That said, I do really enjoy riding trains and watching the scenery. I also like going to the airport and the excitement that entails. I am probably the only person on this forum that has always had good food on a flight. I have yet to have a bad meal and I fly economy coach. Have never encountered rude security and airline personnel have always been kind and helpful. So my journeys are fun too.

I still love riding on public transportation, long distance buses, trains and taking planes. I love the whole process of 'getting there'. Yes, I've had less enjoyable travel days, including frustrating, uncomfortable and exhausting ones. (Including having a 6-hour bus ride with my feet resting on a pig one time or having a particularly nasty experience at Tel Aviv Airport another time).

I'm also really into the destination; the people, the experiences, the food, the stuff I learn and the things I see.

It's the memories that distinguish which I enjoyed or struck me more: journey or destination. It's only after the fact, and for specific individual experiences, that I can answer your question without being 'wishy-washy'.

Sorry to be 'wishy washy' but I think that's the only way this question can be answered. Every journey and every destination is unique. Sometimes the journey is the destination. Sometimes you don't care how you get there (journey) you just want to be there (destination). How can one say definitively which they like better as a general overall opinion? It just depends.

It's the destination. If not for that, there would be no journey.

Memories are often built around the journey, as much as the destination, though.

My informal count up to this point after weeding out the wishy-washy responses:

Journey - 8
Destination - 8 or 9

I recognized that when I posted the question that it was going to be a difficult one since the journey and the destination are linked. However, the point of it was 'what type of traveler are you'? Again, I know that this could be a 'it depends on the situation/trip but if you have to choose one, which would it be.

Along the same lines as the question posed, I came across this interesting article on BBC.com yesterday that asks the questions:

Are you an Explorer? Are you a risk taker? Do you step out of your comfort zone?

http://www.bbc.com/travel/story/20151022-youre-either-an-explorer-or-youre-not-which-one-are-you

For me is just being there the most important part of the trip. Yes, I step out of the comfort zone giving me the best experience. Tip: according to me the best way to set yourself free from fear. So happy to be there and a bit sad the moment I must leave. But no destination without the journey, what can be pleasant too ofcourse.

Arnold, I still don't know what you mean by "journey" and by "destination."

It's like asking grey: are you white or are you black?
You can't take the journey or the destination out of travel.

A little lesson then ...

"Chani decides to walk to the shop."

In this case Chani, 'the walk' is the journey, and 'the shop' is the destination. lol

So back to my other question - who travels to faraway places in order to justify the joys of packing, schlepping to the airport, standing in line after line, jumping through security hoops, then idling away in overpriced duty-free shops or sitting in uncomfortable lounge seats to then crowd onto a plane and be cramped and uncomfortable, served mediocre food, endure the dubious pleasures of being in a closed space with hundreds of fellow beings, few if any of whom are also there because they love the experience, then to be disgorged very slowly into another massive terminal and walk for a mile to stand in line to be admitted to their country, then stand around for another undetermined amount of time wondering if your precious bags with the red bows will indeed appear, then make your way through myriads of people hurrying in every other direction to find some transport which will take you to your destination. And that's the simple one - add a change of planes with more security, more walking, waiting, tension . . . So who flies to Budapest so they get to do all that?

The article noted talks about real exploration and risk, not what most of us do when we "explore" Paris, for example.

One person's "wishy-washy" is another's discerned reflection in the absence of defined terms. But a fun thread nonetheless.

Chani, well said. Very well said

".Who flies...so they can do all that?" Flying to Paris CDG (and to London LHR too), I do all that by taking that 10.5 hour direct flight from SFO, except the part about sitting in the lounge, which I don't qualify for, and I don't go to "duty 'free" shops. They don't apply to me. Of course, going through LHR Border Control in the afternoon takes 3 to 4x longer than it does in the morning.

The question is: "Is it the Journey or the Destination?" Maybe the term that needs defining is "it".

I was enchanted with my flight on Icelandic Air, going to Seattle as we flew over the Polar Ice Cap in Oct. We flew into the sunset for 7 hours. Any idea how beautiful this was? Seeing all of the glaciers, icebergs, the wilds of Canada and the mountains meant I barely had time to eat I was so enthralled with looking out the window and taking photos. This flight is one of my favorite travel moments. Returning, it was night time, but I could see all the stars and the icy scenery was still very visible.

One makes of life what one will and you can certainly enjoy the journey if you like, especially if you are doing something completely different. I just rode a train for 6 hours to Madrid and stared out of the window almost the entire time as the scenery of Spain is special. I didn't want to miss anything.

To me the journey is the end to end trip - from the time you step outside your house till the time you return. Some seem to be fixated on just the airport and the hassles of air travel but for me it includes navigating all the intermediate points whether that be getting a rental car, figuring out the right road, missing your exit and having to double back, finding a parking spot in Cannes and then giving up in frustration and letting the hotel valet it or trying to find the bus stop in Tirana to get to Macedonia or the one in Ulcinj. But more importantly all the interactions that one has with all the locals when traveling in distant lands - including hoteliers and long distance cab drivers . Not to mention fellow travelers whose paths you cross - like a couple I met in Armenia who had started in Germany and were biking to China and were concerned about getting over the high mountain passes in Central Asia before the winter snows set in or the Spaniard I met in Tajikistan who had started biking in Barcelona and was going to keep going till he got to Mongolia.

I am a big believer that you do see a lot and experience a lot and interact a lot with folks when one is on the move - and yes, the airport and the plane rides are part of the journey but just one component.

Ultimately, the journey and the destination have to be defined by each of us!

Perfect answer to your own question, Arnold! :-)

Okay, now I have it. Thank you. Great philosophy.

I love everything about my trips (except for the airport/plane bits and, I'll admit it, the 'getting lost' bits), from the start of planning to comparing notes with friends at home to looking at my photos years later.

Like Chani, I generally like most of the trip - except the air portion and maybe going through customs and immigration.

I enjoy planning as much as I enjoy viewing photos from my trips afterwards. I had a great time driving in Italy - so yes I like an adventure. I like eating things I've never eaten before (even if sometimes they don't turn out to be great).

An interesting article in The Guardian this week may cause a few people to re-think this question.

http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2015/nov/05/australia-journey-time-travel

Faster,cheaper, and yes more uncomfortable journeys, have perhaps now spoilt the destination for us.