Traveling has been my one true passion in life. It keeps you on your toes, forces you to open your eyes and see the world from a different perspective, and accept things as they come. It also reminds you about what truly matters in life – the people you surround yourself with and the joy that comes from living in the moment.

It is so easy to get swept away in the routine of things and, before you know it, weeks, months or even years have passed by, and you have nothing to show for it. I’ve heard so many people in my life saying “Yeah, I’ll go travel, but first I need to __________.” But once you accomplish whatever that is, then there’s always another obstacle, another goal. That’s human nature.

But if you keep putting it off, one day you’ll wake up realizing that you missed your opportunity. Sure, perhaps you can go traveling once you’ve saved up a lot of money or are retired, but will those experiences be the same as if you had gone while you were still young and able-bodied? Traveling takes courage, especially if you want to do it long-term. But it is worth it.

I spent my first two years abroad making next to nothing, and yet I visited 10 new countries and met some amazing people along the way, including my husband. I will hold these memories forever in my heart, and I look forward to exploring the world even more – there’s still so much left to see! Each country I visit teaches me something new, both about the world and about myself, and these experiences and lessons are invaluable – I wouldn’t trade them for anything.

So, what are you waiting for? Read through some of my favorite travel quotes to motivate you to take the plunge and live your life the way you’ve always wanted it to be!

“And then there is the most dangerous risk of all – the risk of spending your life not doing what you want on the bet you can buy yourself the freedom to do it later.” – Randy Komisar “Man is born to live, not to prepare to live.” – Boris Pasterna “I see my path, but I don’t know where it leads. Not knowing where I’m going is what inspires me to travel it.’ – Rosalia de Castro “Be fearless in the pursuit of what sets your soul on fire.” – Jennifer Lee “A journey is a person in itself; no two are alike. And all plans, safeguards, policing, and coercion are fruitless. We find that after years of struggle that we do not take a trip; a trip takes us.” – John Steinbeck “A good traveler has no fixed plans and is not intent on arriving.” – Lao Tzu “We live in a wonderful world that is full of beauty, charm, and adventure. There is no end to the adventures we can have if only we seek them with our eyes open.” – Jawaharial Nehru “Traveling is a brutality. It forces you to trust strangers and to lose sight of all that familiar comfort of home and friends. You are constantly off balance. Nothing is yours except the essential things – air, sleep, dreams, the sea, the sky – all things tending towards the eternal or what we imagine of it.” – Cesare Pavese “Travel isn’t always pretty. It isn’t always comfortable. Sometimes it hurts, it even breaks your heart. But that’s okay. The journey changes you- it should change you. It leaves marks on your memory, on your consciousness, on your heart, and on your body. You take something with you… Hopefully, you leave something good behind.” – Anthony Bourdain “Travel is never a matter of money but of courage.” – Paolo Coelho “Our happiest moments as tourists always seem to come when we stumble upon one thing while in pursuit of something else.” – Lawrence Block “Unexpected travel suggestions are dancing lessons from God.” – Kurt Vonnegut, Jr. “Because in the end, you won’t remember the time you spent working in the office or mowing your lawn. Climb that goddamn mountain.” – Jack Kerouac “During the first period of a man’s life the greatest danger is not to take the risk.” – Soren Kierkegaard “I can’t think of anything that excites a greater sense of childlike wonder than to be in a country where you are ignorant of almost everything. Suddenly you are five years old again. You can’t read anything, you have only the most rudimentary sense of how things work, you can’t even reliably cross a street without endangering your life. Your whole existence becomes a series of interesting guesses.” – Bill Bryson “If you reject the food, ignore the customs, fear the religion and avoid the people, you might better stay at home.” – James Michener “I may not have gone where I intended to go, but I think I have ended up where I needed to be.” – Douglas Adams “To my mind, the greatest reward and luxury of travel is to be able to experience everyday things as if for the first time, to be in a position in which almost nothing is so familiar it is taken for granted.” – Bill Bryson “Perhaps travel cannot prevent bigotry, but by demonstrating that all peoples cry, laugh, eat, worry, and die, it can introduce the idea that if we try and understand each other, we may even become friends.” – Maya Angelou “Life begins at the end of your comfort zone.” – Neale Donald Walsch “The difference between a tourist and a traveler is that a tourist doesn’t know where he’s been and a traveler doesn’t know where he’s going.” “You must live in the present, launch yourself on every wave, find your eternity in each moment.” – Thoreau “A ship in harbor is safe, but that’s not what ships are for.” – William Shedd “Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines, sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.” – Mark Twain

Do you have any other quotes that inspire you? Share them below! I’d love to hear about all of your experiences!

Happy travels! I hope this inspired you to work towards the things that truly matter in life. Your happiness is the most important thing in this world – go find it.