We love to travel. It’s what keeps us inspired and motivated in our everyday lives; always thinking about the next destination. Our travel philosophy grew organically with each itinerary, trip, tour and even traveling misstep. It may be the missteps that informed our philosophy most of all. Knowing what doesn’t work is important. We realized early on that the big chartered buses and brightly colored umbrellas leading our bedraggled group quickly past the “must- sees” just wasn’t our thing.
Instead, we wanted a more immersive and experiential way to travel; Discovering neighborhood haunts, in-depth history tours with guides who have personal connections to their subjects, simply slowing down to feel the rhythm of the people and the place. It’s that moment you are sitting at the café with a coffee or the bistro with a rosé and you think: “I could live here!” That is where immersing yourself in a place seems to always lead!
Of course, immersion always includes discovery and enjoyment of local food and drink. Our complete and utter dedication to this part of traveling led us to another important part of our travel philosophy.
The commitment to exercise and a healthy lifestyle while traveling balances (and let’s be honest, justifies) the complete and joyful commitment to indulging! This was our initial motivation when we began to run while traveling. It became apparent quickly though that there was another even more important benefit; it turned out to be the best way to get to know a place! Early morning runs, watching a city wake up. Connecting with locals about their favorite routes. Discovering neighborhoods to return to later. All of it because we decided to run (and we really wanted that second pastry!).
Nobody knows how to show off their city better than the people who plan running events through them. So, naturally, to our evolving travel formula we added joining a local race whenever and wherever we could. It has been the most surprising and exhilarating addition to our travels and without a doubt the number one reason we were inspired to start Finish Line Travel and share all that we have learned about running fast and traveling slow with all of you.