I got sober 5 years ago. It changed the way I travel — for the better.

Maggie Downs says there are five things she does differently when she travels, now that she's stopped drinking.Maggie DownsMaggie Downs has been sober for almost five years.She found that traveling was a minefield of triggers and has come up with strategies that help her.Sober travel allows her to find new indulgences and better remember her experiences.Nearly five years ago, I broke up with alcohol. I didn't yet know what it would mean for my day-to-day life, but I knew it would rattle my travel rhythm.No more hotel bar nightcaps. No more mid-flight Bloody Marys. And no more welcome-drink toasts after check-in.I braced for less fun and fewer indulgences. Yawning over sparkling water served in wine glasses. But the surprise was that sober travel turned out to be sharper, more vivid, and even more meaningful. I've realized it's not about what I'm missing, it's about what I get to experience.Over time, I've built a few habits that help me stay grounded, feel like myself, and let me fully revel in every trip. Here's what I do differently now.1. I ask hotels to clear the minibar before I arriveIn my first year of sobriety, I checked into a beautiful hotel in Athens, Greece, and immediately came face-to-face with a minibar glowing like a jewel box, packed with tiny gin bottles and chilled white wine. After a long travel day, that tiny, brightly lit fridge felt like a dare.Now, when I book a room, I ask in advance for the minibar to be emptied. Most hotels are happy to accommodate — some even offer to replace the booze with juices or snacks instead. It's a small move that takes temptation off the table and makes my room feel like a true retreat, not a test of willpower.The author plans out special mornings to give herself a reason to skip nightcaps.Maggie Downs2. I build early-morning excursions into my itineraryOne of sobriety's most underrated perks? How good mornings can feel when you're not nursing a hangover or searching for Ibuprofen in a foreign language.I've leaned into that by planning early-morning adventures, and some of them have become favorite memories, like a pre-dawn walk to Istanbul's Galata Bridge, where fishermen were already casting their lines, or my self-made 6 a.m. bakery crawl through Paris as the streets turned gold. At a resort in Hawaii, I fully became "that person" — up for every activity on the calendar, from sunrise yoga to beachside biking, all before most people had their coffee.Planning special mornings gives me a reason to skip nightcaps without fear of missing out; rather, I'm making space for something better. Plus, there's something electric about seeing a place wake up.In Japan, I wandered the stalls of Kyoto's Nishiki Market just as the shutters rolled open, exchanging quiet nods and sleepy smiles with shopkeepers prepping for the day. With the steam rising from pots of dashi and the sweet scent of melonpan in the air — a fluffy bun — it felt like I'd been let in on a secret.The author traveled sober to Paros, Greece.Maggie Downs3. I have a go-to one-liner for social eventsTraveling means meeting new people and inevitably, facing drink offers. Early on, I stumbled through awkward explanations. Now, I keep it breezy and simple, like "I'm good with what I have, thanks!" or "I'm on a cleanse."Most of the time, people don't care. I figure the ones who do aren't my problem. Once, after I abstained on a boat in the Greek Islands, a fellow traveler raised his wine glass and said, "Well, more for me," and launched into a soliloquy about his failed Dry January. Having a line in my pocket is less about convincing someone else and more about keeping myself from overthinking it.4. I bring comfort items with meBack when hotel bars were my wind-down routine, I was reaching for a type of familiarity. Now, I intentionally pack comfort items so I don't end up seeking that feeling elsewhere: a favorite herbal tea tucked into my carry-on, a podcast or audiobook I save only for travel nights, and a palm-sized journal that smells faintly like the German bookstore I bought it in.They're tiny totems, but when I'm jet-lagged in an unfamiliar place, they anchor me.She finds it easier to remember things from her trips, including people she met during her trip to Belize.Maggie Downs5. I still chase indulgenceEven though booze isn't in the picture anymore, I'm not interested in depriving myself. So I look for what's special in each location I visit and chase the best versions of it.These days, I trade cocktails for other indulgences, like tracking down the silkiest matcha in Kyoto, blending custom perfume at a Mexico City atelier, and splurging on foot rubs in Bangkok that leave me nearly levitating.Five years ago, I thought giving up alcohol would mean giving up an essential part of my travel life — martinis in airport bars, something fizzy on arrival. But it turns out clarity has its own excitement.Now I remember everything: The velvet hush when I was among the first visitors in Musée d'Orsay, the way my neighborhood in Tokyo smelled like warm soy and steel, a conversation with a woman who sold savory fry jacks on a corner in Belize.Sober travel didn't shrink the world for me, it widened it.Read the original article on Business Insider

Comments

Business News

Rachel Reeves under pressure as £20,000 increase personal tax allowance showdown today

Express

Comments

Business News

Rachel Reeves under pressure as £20,000 increase personal tax allowance showdown today

Pensions, drawdown pots and ISAs ROCKET as Trump slashes China tariffs

Nationwide members who are 'most likely' to get £100 bonus

Amigo boss steps down as lender seeks lifeline before it runs out of cash

IG Group bullish on annual outlook after tariff uncertainty boosts trading

Moving house ‘comes above childbirth’ as most stressful life experiences ranked

Trump Says He Will Sign Executive Order To Cut Drug Prices By ‘30% To 80%’—What To Know

Virat Kohli Retires From Test Cricket, Ending 14-Year Career

UFC Vegas 106: Burns Vs. Morales Full Fight Card

Prompt Engineering Endorses New Chain-Of-Draft Technique Improving Classical Chain-Of-Thought

Mark Vientos’ Bat Is Slowly Coming Around For New York Mets

Real Madrid Star Vinicius Jr. Caught In FC Barcelona Fan Confrontation (VIDEO)

Real Madrid Fans Protest ‘Embarrassment’ Team Post-FC Barcelona Loss (VIDEO)

Amigo boss steps down as lender seeks lifeline before it runs out of cash

IG Group bullish on annual outlook after tariff uncertainty boosts trading

Spy-themed interactive experience comes to London at the end of May

Virgin Media O2 and Daisy unite to form &#163;3bn business telecoms group

US and China agree to slash tariffs on each other

Shoppers rush to buy 'beautiful' dress from Next that 'flatters the figure'

Primark introduces new charge in stores today - but shoppers say 'not worth it'

The US and China have agreed to slash tariffs for 90 days

Can OnlyFans save the music industry?

The Indicator: American science brain drain

It's actually really hard to make a robot, guys

Asian shares advance as details awaited on progress in China-US trade talks

House Republicans unveil Medicaid cuts that Democrats warn will leave millions without care

Heathrow records busiest April for passenger numbers

Most early pensioners not ‘confident their savings will last,’ new research reveals

Chinese Battery Giant CATL Seeks Over $4 Billion In Hong Kong Listing

FC Barcelona Ace Lamine Yamal Provokes Real Madrid After El Clasico

FC Barcelona Rages Over Real Madrid VAR Room ‘Thank Goodness’ Remark

Heathrow records busiest April for passenger numbers

UK-US trade deal 'isn't worth the paper it's written on', says Nobel Prize-winning economist

Mum-of-two loses more than 11 stone doing 'wall pilates' at home

Ninja's electric outdoor pizza oven that comes with stand and cover has £76 off

M&S and Co-op customers warned over common task after 20 million members targeted

Can I get Carer's Allowance? It's worth £83.30 a week - but watch out for benefit pitfalls

Demand for student digs and plush offices helping buoy commercial property 'revival'

All the savings rates that have been slashed since base rate cut, including Chip and Plum

U.S. and China Hail Progress, but Does That Mean There’s a Trade Deal?

Landmark hotel in same family for seven generations for sale from administration

Yankees Highlight First Trip To Temporary Home Of The A’s By Rocking Luis Severino

Indonesian Billionaire Widjaja Family Raises Sinarmas Land Bid Amid Criticism From Minority Shareholders

FC Barcelona Star Has Decided To Leave This Summer, Reports SPORT

Inside the hacking meltdown at Marks & Spencer's

'Perfectly hydrating' raves fan of anti-wrinkle serum now with 67% price cut

What is the point of pension tax relief - can't we scrap tax in retirement instead? STEVE WEBB

Charity couple move apart to care for animals

Can More Military Spending Revive an Economy? This British Town Hopes So.

Indian Film Skips Theatrical Release, Producer Faces Legal Trouble

‘The Last Of Us’ Season 2, Episode 5 Recap And Review: It’s In The Air

Dana White On Alvarez Vs. Crawford At Allegiant Stadium: ‘I Hate It’

Major bank reveals huge £175 bonus for customers but there's a catch

Trump administration fires top copyright official days after firing Librarian of Congress

Should Energy Markets Fret Over India-Pakistan Hostilities?

Today’s ‘Wordle’ #1423 Hints, Clues And Answer For Monday, May 12th

What ‘Fire Country’ Star Diane Farr Wants You To Know About Wildfires

Asia Stocks Rise on Hope for Lower Tariffs After U.S.-China Talks

Trump Plan Would Tie Some Drug Prices to What Peer Nations Pay

The US Copyright Office has thoughts on how AI is trained. Big Tech may not like it.

Virgin Media O2 and Daisy unite to form £3bn business telecoms group