Trying to learn more about the different types of travelling? I hope this post helps!
One thing I love most about travel is how universal it is.
No matter who you are, where you’re from, or how you live your life, there are so many types of travelling that almost anyone can find a travel style to suit their needs.
In fact, the options are so plentiful that it can be tricky to identify the specific kinds of trips that’d work best…
With that in mind, I thought it’d be fun to run through a selection of the main travel types and who they might appeal to.
Want to learn more about the different types of travellers?
Let’s dive in!
Here we go then: 30 different travel types!
Interested in travel styles? You might like these posts too…
- A Complete Guide to Eco Travelling
- How to Plan a Trip on Google Maps
- The Advantages and Disadvantages of Travelling
- How to Say Thank you Around the World
- Comprehensive Guide to Responsible Tourism
- 20 Benefits of Solo Travel
- The Best Jobs for Adventurers
30 Types of Travellers (Different Travel Types)
Very quickly, though, it’s worth noting that many of these travel types aren’t mutually exclusive!
Some travellers fit into multiple categories at the same time.
And some trips begin as certain types of travel before morphing into others.
Nevertheless, this list should provide a useful idea of the many different forms of travel available to someone with itchy feet!
1. Adventure Travel
Adventure travel’s one of the most popular travel types you’ll come across.
Ideal for thrill-seekers and adrenaline junkies, you could be jumping out of airplanes, white-water rafting, trekking through jungles or climbing mountains.
The goal is simple: push yourself to do new, exciting, and heart-thumping things in beautiful parts of the world.
2. Backpack Travel
Backpacking is a classic form of travel that you’re probably familiar with already.
Stripped-back and simple by design, you pack your things into a backpack, hoist it onto your shoulders, and hit the road (often for an extended period of time).
This is my go-to travelling style for a number of reasons.
For the most-part, though, it’s because backpacking goes hand in hand with the next option on this list…
3. Budget Travel
Budget travellers explore the world and have adventures on a shoestring.
In fact, in my experience, budget adventures are often far more memorable simply because you don’t have much cash to splash!
After all, there’s a positive correlation between money and comfort.
So you’re often forced out of your comfort zone when you don’t have much to spend!
You swap private rooms with giant dorm-rooms full of fellow travellers. You trade fancy tours for self-guided experiences. You break the occasional rule. You walk more. You eat the local street food. And so on.
In other words, budget travel can be more immersive, social, and experience-rich.
Of the different types of travel on this list, business travel’s probably one of the best known.
4. Business Travel
As the name suggests, business travel involves travelling for work and/or business-related purposes.
You could be giving a pitch, attending a conference, meeting foreign investors, or sourcing new products, etc.
I have no personal experience with this type of travelling, but I’ve heard through the grapevine that it’s less luxurious than it sounds.
Although the first few trips are novel and exciting, they can grow more tedious over time. Likewise, business travel may be more tiring and constrictive than other types.
5. Couple Travel
This one’s simple too:
The lonely “I” becomes the heart-warming “we” as you hit the road with your partner!
Experiencing the joy of travel with someone you love is always very special.
You make shared, long-lasting memories. You also avoid the loneliness that can hinder a solo traveller’s experience. And you share the financial burden too!
…Just make sure your relationship’s solid beforehand. There’s nothing quite like the trials of travel to expose and exaggerate weaknesses in it.
6. Cruise Travel
If hitting the high seas on a luxury cruise-liner sounds like your idea of a good time, then cruise travel could be perfect.
I’ve never been on one, but (aside from the environmental issues involved), they seem like a lot of fun.
You’ll get to visit some outstanding parts of the world, enjoy endless entertainment on-board the boat, and step foot back on dry land with a bucketful of new memories.
Some kinds of trips never have to end! That’s exactly what you get as a digital nomad.
7. Digital Nomad Travel
Digital nomads are people who earn a living online and use the ensuing flexibility to travel the world, working as they go.
Having been one for a while now, I can vouch for how awesome this lifestyle is.
It’s the ultimate freedom. No boss, no commute. You come and go as you please, doing things on your own terms.
8. Domestic Travel
Domestic travel is a huge, overarching type of travel that simply involves travelling within your home country.
You’re not venturing half-way around the world here.
Instead, you might be getting on a bus to explore your local area, flying to a different county/state/region, or taking a road trip to a neighbouring city.
9. Event Travel
Love the idea of following your favourite band around the world to watch them perform? How about going overseas to the Olympics, or watch a sports tournament?
These are all examples of event travel.
You could be travelling for an array of reasons, but the primary intention is to attend a specific event.
Some types of travellers end up making a home in the countries to which they travel.
10. Expat Travel
Short for expatriate, this travel type involves venturing outside your native country to create a new home overseas.
So, as a Brit, I’d become a “British expat” if I were move anywhere outside the UK.
I can’t say I’ve ever done this (not long-term, anyway), yet know many people who have! The reasons for moving country vary dramatically.
From job opportunities to seeking a new start, there are no shortage of possible incentives to create a new home elsewhere.
It’s obviously a major decision, though, so you’d want to seriously weigh up the pros and cons before making any commitments!
11. Family Travel
Ways of travelling don’t get much more commonplace than family travel.
Whether you’re going on a multi-continent trip with your children or taking a week-long vacation with the in-laws, you’re engaging in it!
According to Wikipedia, the definition of “family” seems quite inclusive too.
So, you could be going abroad as a newly married couple or a grandmother with their grandchild and still be partaking in family travel.
12. Flashpacking Travel
Similar to “glamping” versus camping, flashpacking involves upmarket backpacking.
You’re hitting the road with a backpack on your back but a bit more money in your pocket than traditional backpack travellers!
You’d indulge in more expensive activities and accommodation as a result.
To put it another way, flashpacking could be up your street if you like the sound of backpacking, just without the “budget” element.
Flashpacking’s one of those different forms of travel to enjoy when you have a bit more money in your pocket.
13. Food Travel
Like the sound of travelling the world with the primary intention of sampling local delicacies, going to food markets, and dining out at every opportunity?
Well, that’s exactly what you’d be doing as a food traveller!
The ideal travel type for foodies, gastronomy’s at the forefront of any trip you take.
14. Full-Time Travel
The worst part of travelling usually comes right at the end of your trip:
Coming home.
However, you never have to go through it if you start travelling full-time! Full-time travel might sound like pure fantasy, but it’s a reality for a growing number of people nowadays. How’s it possible?
Usually (unless you’re sitting on a mass of cash) by becoming a digital nomad. Get a remote job of some kind and your travels never have to stop.
15. Gap Year Travel
Taking a gap year is another way of travelling that most people will already know heard about.
You take a 12 months out from your work/studies to both explore and do something totally new. This may include volunteering overseas or doing an internship.
However, the term “gap year” is something of a misnomer. You’d be surprised how many people go away for 12 months and come back 3+ years later!
Likewise, although many people associate gap years with a younger demographic (such as students), anybody can go on one at any time in their life.
Don’t want to go travelling solo? This next way to travel could be a better bet…
Enjoying this post about the different types of travel? You might also like these:
- 50 Fascinating Facts About Travel
- 75 Essential Things to Pack for Travel
- Key Features of the Experience of Travel
- 100 Reasons I love to Travel (& You Will Too)
16. Group Travel
The clue’s in the name!
Group travel is, as you’d expect, when you go travelling with more than just yourself for company.
It might be organized, in a tour (more on this later), or simply with friends and/or family members on a “DIY” adventure.
Either way, it’s a way to enjoy the beauty of new places without the rigmarole of fending for yourself the entire time. With loved ones around for support, you can share the experience and create unforgettable memories.
17. Heritage Travel
I have a whole post on heritage tourism, so be sure to check that out if you want to learn more about this particular type of travel.
In short, though, it’s all about exploring new places to see the sites of historical interest there. Good examples include going to Egypt for the pyramids, to Rome for the Colosseum, or to Peru for Machu Picchu.
Travel doesn’t get much more exciting for history buffs and enthusiasts!
18. International Travel
International travel’s the ying to domestic travel’s yang.
The second overarching form of travel, this time you’re leaving your native country to explore overseas!
As for the advantages involved, international travellers enjoy the many benefits of spending time in exotic foreign destinations. Unlike domestic travellers, though, their passion for going abroad comes with environmental issues and distance from home.
Need a break from everyday life? Leisure travel’s another travelling style to look into.
19. Leisure Travel
Leisure travel’s another significant, overarching travel type.
It’s also one that most people partake in (whether they realise it or not)!
In essence, you’re a leisure traveller whenever you go somewhere for a nice break from everyday life. So, the vacation you took last summer? Leisure travel. The camping trip you’re going on next weekend? Leisure travel.
…And so on and so forth.
20. Lifestyle Travel
Lifestyle travel isn’t well-defined online.
Spend enough time reading through travel blogs and articles, though, and it shouldn’t be too long before you come across the term!
Here’s my simple understanding of it:
You take the practice of travelling and turn it into, well…a lifestyle.
That means travelling long-term or full-time, turning down a settled life in favour of an itinerant one, and going on adventures at every opportunity.
Travel isn’t restricted to a trip or two each year. It becomes part of your identity; part of what you do.
21. Luxury Travel
If budget backpacking’s at one end of the “travel spectrum”, luxury travel’s at the other!
You travel in style, staying in fancy accommodation and doing fancy things.
The extent of luxury definitely varies. Look it up on Instagram, though, and you can expect to see infinity pools and fine-dining; chauffeurs and foie-gras (…washed down with champagne, of course).
It’s also expensive! So make sure you start saving those pennies if you want a dose of luxury in your next trip.
Travel styles don’t get much fancier (or more expensive) than luxury travel.
22. Medical Travel
Need an operation or some other form of medical treatment that’s unavailable (or unaffordable) where you’re from?
Try your hand at medical travel and go overseas instead!
In certain countries, you can receive 5* treatment at a fraction of the price. In others, you can access life-saving support that your native country simply doesn’t offer.
23. Road Trip Travel
Road trips are a classic form of travelling that we all know and love.
Wait for a sunny weekend, pile into the car with some close friends, wind down the windows, turn up the tunes, and hit the road for a fun-filled few days (with these trivia games for company).
24. RTW Travel
Short for “round the world” travel, this one often goes hand in hand with a gap year, budget travel, and backpacking.
An antidote to a sedentary life, you pack your bags and take to the skies, stopping off at countries as you go; gradually making your way around the world.
The complete opposite to weekend getaways and short vacations, RTW travel requires both time and money. However, it’s also guaranteed to deliver incredible memories and lifetime friendships.
Of the different ways of travelling on this list, I definitely recommend giving the next one a go…
25. Slow Travel
Slow travel’s as much of a philosophy as it is a type of travelling. The idea’s simple:
Take your time as you explore a new place!
Go slowly instead of rushing from one attraction to the next. Be present, attentive, and receptive to your environment. Don’t worry about schedules and deadlines.
The goal isn’t to tick things off a bucket list. It’s to immerse yourself in whatever you’re doing, wherever you’re doing it.
26. Solo Travel
The all-popular alternative to group and family travel, travelling solo involves venturing out into the world all by yourself.
The pros?
Unbridled control over your time and schedule; a fantastic chance to become more self-confident, reliant, and comfortable in your own skin. You’ll be outside your comfort zone more often than not, which is a recipe for personal development.
The cons?
Loneliness! There’s also nobody to hold your hand, provide a shoulder to cry on, help you make decisions, or experience the adventure with.
27. Tours Travel
If you’ve got the cash, like the idea of meeting new people, and want the convenience of having someone create your itinerary and show you around a destination, then travel tours would be a perfect choice.
The downsides?
Alongside the expense, you’ll have less control over your schedule.
Oh, and there’s always the chance of finding someone else in the group annoying, or getting a poor-quality guide. Paying extra for a private tour could be worth considering in these situations.
Few types of vacations are as rewarding as volunteer travel.
28. Volunteer Travel
Not everybody wants to go overseas simply to explore somewhere new, see the sights, and experience a new culture.
Some want to give back and make a difference in the local community too.
That’s where volunteer travel comes into play. A different way to travel, you find organizations and projects in a particular country and apply to get involved with their work. You often have to pay for the privilege as well.
29. Weekend Travel
Lack the time, cash, or inclination to spend weeks, months, or years on the road?
Well, a weekend getaway could be one of the best types of vacations for you.
Weekend travel’s simply that: you go away for the weekend! Maybe you take a city break, or go on camping trip, or visit relatives in a neighbouring town. Whatever you do, you have 48+ hours or so in your chosen destination.
Of course, you can always take the Friday and/or Monday off work (or wait for a public holiday) if you want a slightly longer break.
30. Wellness Travel
Last but not least, wellness travel is all about R & R.
You’re travelling with one thing in mind:
Your physical, mental, and emotional wellbeing!
Maybe you’re spending a weekend at the spa. Perhaps you’re going on a yoga retreat. Or maybe you want to spend a week playing golf with your buddies.
In truth, what you do matters less than the goal behind it. If you spend time away with the express purpose of enhancing your wellbeing, then you’re partaking in wellness travel.
Enjoy the Different Types of Travelling
You meet all sorts of different types of travellers when you hit the road.
They’re of all ages and backgrounds and come from all walks of life. They’re tall and they’re small, rich and poor, introverted and extroverted…
And I think there’s one primary reason why this is the case:
Because travelling itself is something anyone can enjoy!
And that, in turn, is helped by the fact that there are so many different types of travelling to experience.
From the budget-friendliest of backpacking trips to the most extravagant of luxury vacations, the diverse types of travel that exist make it accessible to everyone.
I hope this list of 30 travel types has highlighted the main ones!
With any luck, you’ll be able to use it to identify the specific type that best fits your needs. Got any questions or thoughts?
Drop a comment below to let me know!
And, if you’re interested, check out this related post on the various types of tourism.