types of traveling

Traveling: a mental activity categorized by intense, divergent imagining. Traveling can be described as escaping the physical reality to explore another, imaginary dimension inside your own head. It is persistent, structured and associated with a sense of fulfillment. You might know it by its other names: maladaptive daydreaming or compulsive fantasy, however these more mainstream terms are negative so self-identified daydreamers prefer the word ‘traveling’ as a positive alternative. Short overview can be found here.

The main difference between traveling, which is experienced by a small proportion of people, and casual daydreaming, which most people on Earth experience, is that casual daydreaming is fragmented, consciously controlled, always related to the physical world and exists only for the sense of fulfillment. Some of the main characteristics of traveling is that it is consistent, usually unrelated to the physical world and is not consciously controlled. Although it is associated with fulfillment it is much more detailed and realistic. You can read more about the differences here.

On AutisticWorlds I talk a lot about this mental activity and help connect people who experience it so that they can share their thoughts and ideas. My followers and other tumblr users are the reason I can collect information and make posts such as this one, which is a small compilation of different self-reported traveler experiences.

Over the months that I run this blog I have learned that traveling is not a single, universally defined activity but a spectrum of activities that have something in common – intense use of imagination. Here’s a list of variations that travelers and daydreamers have reported. I hope it will help you figure yourself out and find people you relate to!

Types of traveling (that I know of)

Interacting: This is a type of traveling I experience most of the time and write about most often. It involves exploring and interacting with an imaginary world existing in your mind. The world can be based on an existing work of fiction (book, movie, TV-show, videogame, etc.) or completely new and exclusive to you. Typically you interact with this world through a first-person ‘avatar’ or ‘alter-ego’ that can be your exact or modified copy. The control you have over the avatar that represents you does not extend to other characters and details of the world – the rest of it exists by its own laws and you have little influence over anything apart from your own actions. All these characteristics separate it from casual daydreaming that the majority of people on Earth experience.





Observing: Just like in the previous type this activity involves exploring an imaginary world, whether based on fiction or completely new. However it doesn’t involve direct interaction and is usually confided to mere observation from a third person perspective. It is also (typically) not consciously controlled and is similar to the process of visualizing or animating a book in the process of reading. The only difference is that there are no direct instructions (the text or audio of the book), and the action is created in the mind of the traveler instead. I hypothesize that some writers use this type of traveling to create their stories, at least partially.





Projecting: While ‘interacting’ and ‘observing’ traveling exists only in the mind and does not cross over or mix up with the physical world, projecting is the exact opposite of that. First two types are examples of internal traveling, while projecting is external. It involves creating a sort of augmented reality using your brain only. The concept of imaginary friends that many children have is an example of that. Although it can be completely separate, some travelers report that their internal traveling can ‘leak’ into the real world, for example they imagine characters that exist in their internal world interacting with them in the physical reality. External and internal traveling can exist independently of each other or overlap.





Mental stimming: Stimming is slang for self-stimulating behavior, a repetitive action that serves a certain purpose (sensory regulation, stress relief, communication, expression of emotions, etc.). Mental stimming is a type of repetitive thinking that can be both internal and external. Some examples of it are: purposefully playing a song in your head, repeating words or phrases mentally without saying them out loud, recreating fragments of movies in your mind. You can read more about it here.





Mental scripting: I decided to include this type here as well because I don’t see it as a part of casual daydreaming even though it is based on the physical reality. Mental scripting involves rehearsing a potential future situation in order to prepare for it. Often it is done through visualization and incorporation of other senses (like all other types of traveling) but as a sensory thinker I am rather biased to view it as such. People with other types of cognition may have different experiences with mental scripting as well as with other types of traveling. I’d also like to point out that traveling is usually a neurodivergent experience, in my case a part of autism, and scripting is a good example of how an autistic trait can involve imagination.

Some general words:

These are types of traveling that I have heard of from other people. This is not a comprehensive list and it will probably be edited in the future. If you experience traveling in a way that doesn’t fit any of these descriptions, do let me know!

Also there is an incredible amount of variety among travelers. You might experience one of these types but not exactly in a way I described (that’s why I add ‘typically’ and ‘usually’ – I want to acknowledge that my information is not complete and I base it on majority of reports). You might experience a mix of these types. You might experience only one, or all of them separately. What is important to understand is that there is no right or wrong way to do it! Whatever is natural and beneficial to you is good.

For more information and resources use the masterpost of links or the ‘traveling’ tag on the blog. Good luck in all your endeavors and travel on!