Travelling is one of the most rewarding experiences you will ever have. It’s an opportunity to explore a different culture, as well as yourself at the same time. But travel comes with a learning curve. As a first-timer, you will be confronted with many novel situations. It’s a whole world to navigate, literally, but with the right attitude, it’s a lot of fun.

Here are 13 top tips for new travelers:

Take A Towel – Always bring a towel. You never know when you might need it for swimming, chilling on the beach or drying off after a shower in a run-down hostel. Okay, that’s the practicalities taken care of…

Check Out Major Attractions – Take the time to check out the major attractions and culturally significant hotspots of the places that you visit. They are in the guidebook for a reason, and although they may be crowded, they are usually worth the effort.

Experience Local Culture – Take time away from the standard travel circuit to live a little more like a local. This could be as simple as sitting in a cafe and watching the world go by, to a more involved experience like living with locals for a while.

Learn Some Language – If the locals speak a different language, it can be advantageous and rewarding to learn a bit. This helps with logistics, as with ordering your breakfast. It will also allow you to form deeper connections with the locals. Even a few words will show that you care.

Pack Light – There’s nothing worse than lugging your bag that’s too heavy for your back through a busy, hot town. Pack light to avoid stress. I can tell you this now, but you probably won’t learn it thoroughly until you end up sending half of your luggage back home.

Take an Interest in Cultural Nuances – Looking around at the attractions is fun, but exploring different countries is also very much about observing and interacting with a different culture. People are fundamentally similar in a lot of ways, but society and its rules do change, from unusual superstitions to various table manners. Keep an open mind and willingness to laugh and learn.

Enjoy The Nightlife – Nightlife is a part of the culture. A Saturday night in Scotland is very different from a weekend in Marrakesh. It’s fun to see life at night. Not too often though… spending 30 days waking up with a hangover is not the best way to see the world.

Get Out Of The City – It’s possible to never really see much outside of the cities if you take trains from one major destination to the next. It can take more effort to reach places outside, but it’s well worth it to see the smaller towns, villages, and nature that a country has to offer.

Talk With People – Open up the conversation. This can be scary at first, but a simple “hello” is enough to kickstart a chat. Don’t reserve your interactions for other travelers, talk to the locals too. Even when you travel solo, you will rarely be alone, unless you deliberately seek alone time.

IMAGE >>> https://images.pexels.com/photos/745045/pexels-photo-745045.jpeg?auto=compress&cs=tinysrgb&dpr=2&h=650&w=940 >>> Photo by Helena Lopes // CC0 1.0

Caption: Chat with locals and other travellers.

Take Time To Rest – If you will be traveling for months, then it’s essential to take time to rest. In life back home, you wouldn’t want to visit three museums and a temple every day for three weeks and then stay up all night socializing. You would be exhausted. The same can happen when traveling. So take time out to chill, rest, and catch up with yourself.

Forget the Plan – You probably have some idea of where you want to go and what you want to see, and maybe you have a few dates lined up. It’s good to make plans. But sometimes it’s also good to forget about the plan and go with the flow. You never know who you might meet or where you might end up if you give yourself greater flexibility.

Do What You Love – Do more of what you love, and forget about the pressures to travel in a certain way. It’s tempting to tick off bucket list destinations or travel for the Instagram snaps, but it’s better to learn about cultural preferences and values of the place you’re visiting. Ask yourself important life questions to gain insight into how you want to travel.

Give Back – Any type of lifestyle should give back in some way. If you stay at home in your local community, you would want to give back. Travel should also involve this element. Support local businesses and contribute time and energy to local projects. Take care of the environment and leave no trace, and try not to culturally scar the area that you visit. Have fun, but be conscientious about it.

All of these tips will prove useful for a newbie traveler. Keep them close at hand when embarking on a new journey and you can’t go wrong.