There is a strange trend going around that suggests being a traveler is a noble trait, while being a tourist has connotations of being ordinary. I am often asked in press interviews what the difference is between the two options when one is loading a backpack or pulling a wheeled suitcase out of the closet; and, frankly, it's a question that annoys me somewhat. I usually respond evasively and, sometimes, with a bit of irritation: "What's wrong with being a tourist?" Once I joked that the traveler doesn't purchase a return ticket, and that's the difference with the tourist, who indeed has one. I've had that repeated to me more than once. The downside is that it's false: the traveler, in most cases, departs with a return ticket. And what they should strive for is not to lose it or avoid having it stolen.
Why the discrediting of tourists? I believe the issue lies in mass tourism, in the development of communication means, in the scarcity of time, and in the rejection of improvisation. Nowadays, thanks to the affordability of travel, going to other parts of the world has become accessible to millions of people's wallets, and the improvement of transportation - one can reach America in just a few hours, whereas it took months over two centuries ago - greatly assists in the expansion of tourism. However, this massification has, paradoxically, contributed to the discrediting of travel, as it is thought to detract from the adventurous nature of going away, since people move according to pre-established dates and itineraries, and almost everyone ends up going to the same places. Time is money these days, and, in the face of the travel hunger of our times, major tour operators have understood that concentrating their programs into a few days and a certain number of sights is a good business. This is also where one of the factors influencing those who love to explore the world along the paths - whether by water or land - of the planet emerges: improvisation. A traveler from a century ago faced countless unexpected situations along their route, and no journey went as planned back then. It was an important part of the travel experience and undoubtedly contained immense excitement, and, why not, even charm. One had to be ready for the unimaginable and on high alert at all times. Today, however, nearly everything is planned down to the last detail to leave nothing to chance. And there are hardly any surprises. It is at this point where the difference between tourism and travel may arise. Chesterton said that the traveler sees what they see, while the tourist sees what they came to see. Theroux expresses similar sentiments, stating that tourists do not know where they have been, while travelers do not know where they are going.
The differential word would be uncertainty, a concept that contains the spice of adventure and the zest of surprise. If we do not know what awaits us when embarking on a journey, it will be richer in emotions, without a doubt. And it is at this point, when the journey ceases to be touristy due to the unpredictable, that it begins to resemble love and every creative act: we know how it begins, but we do not know how it ends.