How to keep the wanderlust alive in daily life
Today, the coronavirus pandemic has brought nearly every movement on earth to a standstill. Border closures, as well as global lockdowns, have made us defer our trip plans and instead, some of us have been stuck at home for months.
The wanderlust in us is longing for this phase to end so that we can prepare ourselves for our next travel adventure. Unfortunately, none of us knows when this will be, so how do we cure this wanderlust?
It’s only natural to resent being unable to experience diverse cultures and admire nature’s marvels. However, this needn’t be the situation. You can certainly pamper your desire for travelling while being safe at home.
Here’s how to indulge your wanderlust during the COVID-19 pandemic or in every day life.
Related: Ultimate Bucketlist for South Africa
Get creative with your travel photos
Though the coronavirus pandemic is certainly not the time for making new vacation memories, it’s undoubtedly the perfect time to revisit old ones. The boatloads of travel photographs that you took while on vacation eventually end up getting lost in your computer and iPhone once you return. Why not organize your travel photos creatively and display them in beautiful ways?
Try presenting your snaps in a creative way using instant photos! I love my new FujiFilm Instax Mini Liplay as its extremely compact especially compared to other instant cameras AND it has all the amazing new digital features!
This hybrid digital/instant camera unlocks the restrictions of an otherwise analog product with its ability to connect to your smartphone via an app. Giving you a range of new features including sounds bits, editing capabilities including frames, it also has a large lens making your images a lot sharper. Oh, and I can’t forget the very handy mirror at the front allowing you to capture those selfie shots seamlessly.
My favourite feature, however, is the Mini LiPlay Camera can act as a printer for images to be sent from your smartphone’s existing image library, via the Mini LiPlay app allowing you to edit in your style and create unique keepsakes!



Enjoy armchair travel
Also known as virtual travel, it is great to beat the lockdown boredom by exploring new places through binge-watching, reading and virtual tours! Yes, relax on your lounge (or where ever is comfy) and experience the planet’s breathtaking beauty and world-famous cultural marvels.
Netflix is packed with travel-related films and eye-opening documentaries. Some of my favourites include:
Parts Unknown
Dark Tourism
Street Food
The Kindness Diaries
While learning about rare species of wildlife, awe-inspiring structures, and remote cultures worldwide, you can prepare to make better travel choices in the future. Also, you can learn about the impacts of climate change on extremely vulnerable regions worldwide and be inspired to travel more sustainably.
For reading buffs, this is the best time to indulge in your hobby. Reading destination-specific books will familiarize you with varied cultures and perceptions. While helping you to visualize travel moments, reading will soothe your heart and eliminate boredom. For instance, you could imagine yourself road tripping through the USA desert!
Making travel reading a habit during the coronavirus pandemic will nourish your brain and improve your thought process. What better way than this to boost mental health during a crisis?
Indulge in travel from the comfort of your own couch and explore new destinations travel blogs and vlogs. It may be an obvious recommendation but it truly is a great way to live vicariously for the time being.
Here are some suggested blogs to read or view:
- Adventure in You
- BucketListly
- The Bucket List Family
- Explore Shaw
- Salt in Our Hair
- Lost With Purpose
For even more awesome websites worth reading, here’s a list of my favourite travel blogs.

Blog or Journal your favourite travel memories
How about reviving the scent and joy of your past travels? No better way to do it than writing down these travel pieces. While describing your previous journeys, you’re sure to feel the same pleasure that you experienced during these trips.
Combine your untold travel stories with descriptions of your special interests. For instance, you could have a keen interest in architecture, wildlife, or languages that you could portray in your travelogues. What’s more, sharing such interesting travel pieces online will help you build new bonds while still stuck at home due to the pandemic.
If you have a flair for poetry, try writing a poem about your first trek. Sharing such creative pieces on social media will inspire newbies at the adventure to go trekking as soon as the lockdown phase is over.
Embrace the weekend getaway
Gone are the days of Euro trips and road-tripping around the USA. Its time to explore our own backyard- which is pretty spectacular! The border closures are constantly changing so explore a little closer to home! There is no doubt about it, Sydney is one of the best cities on earth! You can easily spend more than 4 days exploring the city of Sydney. Your home town is a great option too. Why not go for a little staycation, eat out and go on some local hikes – like Bouddi National Park.
As things settle down you will be able to explore some of the best romantic getaways in NSW. Some are road trips, nature stays and others can be reached by a short plane ride. And although we won’t be able to go overseas for some time, you will be able to start ticking off our Australia bucket list in no time!
When you think of it this way, it seems crazy that we go to such lengths to travel halfway across the globe without giving our backyards a second glance. We seem to scoff at the idea of travelling locally, but perhaps it’s time we change that.

Cook from your favourites countries!
A significant part of travel is tasting the local cuisine of your destination. I loved my cooking class in Vietnam, where we made some authentic dishes. So, during this lockdown, try exploring new cultures by mastering different global cuisines at home. You’ll find countless cookbooks as well as recipes online to help you do so.
This way you won’t need to book a cooking session in a foreign land during your forthcoming trip. Instead, you’ll be in a position to compare the cuisine there with your own preparation.
For instance, you might have already mastered an authentic Indian Dhokla or traditional Italian pasta well before visiting these countries. Make cultural cooking even more enjoyable by trying a different theme each week. Also, add more authenticity and set the right atmosphere for such cooking by playing background, cultural music.


Learn a new language or two
Utilize this extended time at home to learn one or two foreign languages. Going the extra mile in preparing for your forthcoming vacation will only reward you later. By the time you’ll land in your next vacation destination, you’ll certainly be saying numerous basic phrases of that language.
By learning the lingo of your travel destination, you’re sure to create positive vibes on landing there. You’d make strangers happy by speaking their dialect, thus building great bonds with them. What’s more, you’d also travel more confidently and safely throughout the foreign land.
The very process of learning a new language will give you a feeling of being almost on your way someplace. With modern technology, you can find several free apps to learn new languages at home. You can even listen to podcasts of a foreign language. So, don’t fret over not being able to take classroom courses, given the social distancing norms.

Turn your House into a Boutique Hotel or Spa
Won’t it feel refreshing to declutter and frequently use fresh bed sheets and towels? Try arranging flowers inside your bathroom and using coconut-like scents throughout the house. This way you’ll end up visualizing yourself relaxing in a tropical getaway!
Don’t forget to keep small chocolates in the bedside drawer for occasional treats. Tuck an additional snug blanket into a basket near your bed.
Put soothing background music on and indulge in a facial treatment, or, simply meditate. Enjoy the feeling of luxury in your home-turned-hotel!

Plan your next adventure!
As some travel companies are saying, now is not the time to panic, but the time to plan. Don’t rule out travel altogether, instead, consider postponing your trip or start planning a new one. Now is the perfect time to revisit your bucket-list and start refining where you want to go and what you want to do because if this pandemic has taught us anything, it’s that we can’t take the opportunity to travel for granted.
So, get out your world maps, start doing your research (read some of our top travel stories for inspiration) and be prepared to book those trips once it’s safe to do so. Plus, your tourism will be much appreciated once this is all over.

So, now you know several ways to satiate your wanderlust at home during the COVID-19 pandemic. These will gear you up for the ensuing trip, instilling a joyful feeling in you. After all, you deserve a bit of a break from all that negativity of the virus!
This post is a collaboration with Fuji Instax. As always opinions, photos and ideas remain my own.
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