We took the same vacation to Wyoming like at least three different times when I was young.  The first time, it was awesome!  The second was just as cool because I got to go whitewater rafting.  By the third time, I was beginning to feel like we were stuck in a rut and there was nothing else to see in the state of Wyoming.  The following summers, when it came time to discuss family vacations, I was always in favor of a trip involving a state other than Wyoming.  Upon reflection, maybe I should have reconsidered and looked favorably on the idea of replicating a vacation destination.  Not convinced?  Here are 5 good reasons to visit destinations more than once:

1. To show someone else

Sometimes a specific place or trip is so special that you must share that experience with someone else.  When you have a memorable experience, it is only natural that you want to spread the wealth and make similar memories with another person who will appreciate it.  To illustrate, I have a good friend from college who has never been to Yellowstone National Park.  Even though I have visited Yellowstone, I would love to go there again to show her all the spectacular characteristics that awestruck me when I visited for the first time–the bubbling mud pots that smell like rotten eggs, Old Faithful‘s timely spouting, and the fun of having a snowball fight atop a mountain in July.

2. To see a new attraction

The world is in a perpetual state of motion.  Buildings are constructed,
new people and cultures influence place, and trails are blazed to newly
discovered locations.  You might have visited Florida’s Disney World
Resort five years ago–but this year your family wants to return because
the park has added new activities and rides.  As places change, people
often want to return to see new additions or transformations.

3. To enjoy a favorite place

I know it sounds like a cheesy cliché, but people do have places they
favor above others.  That particular place has special meaning, makes
them happy, or provides them with a sense of security and comfort.  If
there is such a location that has significance to you, why not return to
it?

4. To “up the ante”


Let’s be honest, money dictates where you go and what kind of activities
you do.  A good reason to revisit a location is so you can go on
adventures and see sites you were previously unable to afford.  Fancier
hotels, the finest restaurants in town, and maybe a few guided tours are
sure to spice up a destination.

5. To say hello to friends

This is the best reason to journey to the same place multiple times, in
my personal opinion.  It might even be only to visit the baker who owns
the pastry shop on Sycamore Street, or it could be to visit someone you
have known all your life but moved halfway around the world after
college.  Throughout life, people make connections that are never
forgotten and because of those relationships, people will visit the same
location time after time without ever getting bored–or even considering
not going.  More times than not, it is the individuals and the cultural
atmosphere, not the place, that attracts tourists to an area.

When I asked one of my fellow interns why he would visit a place more
than once, he said because it is always different and pointed out one of
his favorite quotes, from the philosopher Heraclitus.  “No man ever
steps in the same river twice, for it’s not the same river and he’s not
the same man.”  I could not have asked for a better explanation of why
everyone should think twice before crossing out those past destinations
for this year’s vacation.  Places change over time, but you might not
have thought about how individuals also change.  What you perceive and
remember about New York City when you visited as a 12-year-old is going
to be very different than when you return at age 34.  

These are just a few of the reasons to revisit a destination.  Have you
ever visited a place more than once?  What had changed?  What remained
the same?  Would you visit it again?  Why or why not?  Happy travels!

Becky for My Wonderful World

Photos courtesy of My Shot Your Shot

Old Faithful at Yellowstone National Park–Nancy Freeman
Karnataka–Raghu Govind