How Slow Travel Helps You Find Hidden Gems Around the World

We'll explore how slowing down can help you uncover hidden gems , the kind of places and experiences that don't make it into most guidebooks but will leave a lasting impression and some great memories . So stay tuned .

Hi and welcome back , and today we're talking about slow travel , and I'm going to start by telling you about a little bar I stumbled into in Prague . I had no plans that day and I just decided to wander around and check out the town . Well , I ended up on this little side street and , it being a hot day , I wanted to grab a beer and relax for a bit .

Now , the first thing I noticed when I entered this bar was that there was little witch dolls everywhere . I mean , they were hanging from the ceiling . They were at the end of the bar , they were just all over the place and it wasn't Halloween .

And the second thing I noticed was that the bartender was a woman and the three patrons in the bar were women and I was the only guy in the bar . So I ordered a beer and when I asked the bartender why the witch decor , she replied well , this is a witch bar . I kind of smiled and asked her . I said well , are you a witch ?

She said yes , yes , I'm a witch . And then she pointed to the other three women in the bar and she goes , and so are they . Well , my day just got a lot more interesting and I wound up spending about an hour and a half talking to the bartender , who I found out owned the and the other witches .

Apparently they had a coven in Prague and they were members of the witch coven and that was their watering hole . Well , I had a blast . I mean , I asked them all kinds of questions about witches and apparently they were good witches . They didn't cast evil spells , I didn't walk out of there as a toad or anything and they found out I was from Texas .

They were interested in talking about Texas . Now , I wouldn't have found this place if I'd been rushing around between attractions in a hurry to see everything I could possibly see , and that is the magic of slow travel . It creates a space for the unexpected . So what is slow travel ? Well , let's break it down .

Slow travel is about trading a jam-packed itinerary for meaningful experiences . It's about spending more time in fewer places and really immersing yourself into the culture , and traveling in a way that feels intentional .

Imagine skipping the whirlwind tour of Europe you know the ones they advertise where you see 18 countries in three days , and instead just spending a single month in one country , or two or three weeks in one location , and really getting to know the people and the area that you're staying in . And why does this matter ?

Well , slow travel allows you to connect more deeply with the people , the places and even yourself . Instead of rushing around , you get to savor the journey . It's not just about where you go , it's about how you experience it . And one of the best things about slow travel is that it gives you the time and the space to discover those lesser-known places .

Think about it when you're not racing around from one tourist hotspot to another , you can take the time to explore the off-the-beaten-path streets and talk to locals , or just let serendipity guide you and wander around , like I did a lot of times , and discover things on your own , for instance , during a trip to the Philippines , I spent a week in Puerto Princesa ,

which is a town in the island of Palawan , and , because I had the time , I visited a place called the Vietnam Village , and the Vietnam Village is a town that arose from the Vietnamese boat people that were escaping Vietnam at the end of the war .

The town at one time there were several families that lived there and it had all these little neatly manicured homes . It was streets laid out and complete with a temple , farmland and other amenities .

But by the time I visited there was only three or four families lived there and there was a restaurant on the main highway at the entrance to the village and the temple was still pretty well maintained . But it was kind of surreal because it was part ghost town and part manicured homes of these three and four families that still live there .

When I got there I met a young lady who was working in the fields and she told me all about the village and told me how it came about that I was free to walk around and take photos and look at stuff , she said .

Well , even though a lot of the homes are abandoned , they would appreciate not going in them , which I didn't do , but I just walked around the town . Then I went and had lunch at the restaurant and I talked to the owners , who also lived in the village . It was a neat experience .

I mean , it was a time in history that happened that very few people knew about , and it wasn't in any guidebook , it was just something I discovered simply by being there , being open to the experience . So how can you adopt slow travel and uncover your own little hidden gems ? Well , here's a couple of tips to get you started .

First , if you're in a touristy place like Prague which I spent a month in Prague get away from the tourist areas and explore some . I mean , big cities are great , but smaller towns and rural areas often hold the most surprises . Like I said , I was in Prague for a month . While I was there , I took a day trip on a train to Dresden , germany .

I also visited a lot of other small towns around Prague and I wandered all over the city . That's where me and the witchers had beer .

You could also , you know , stay longer in one place , opt for a week or two in one town , and , just instead of hopping around from city to city , you choose accommodations that connect you with the locals , like guest houses and homestays or even house setting opportunities .

Explore by foot or , you know , grab one of those little bicycles that they rent all over the place and take a little bike ride around town , because when you slow down your pace , you notice details that you otherwise would miss .

I mean , I love walking around and exploring places because you can really come across some interesting things and meet some really cool people and , most importantly , talk to people . I mean I talk to everyone the people working at the hotel and the restaurant workers and just about everyone . Why ?

Well , because locals know the area a lot better than any guidebook and they'll point you to the best hidden spots , whether it be a scenic overlook or a tucked away little restaurant where all the locals eat . I asked him , I said if you had a friend visiting from out of town , where would you take him ? What would you want him to see while you were here ?

And they'll tell you all the cool places . And just to give you a little inspiration , I'll share a couple of places . Like I said , when I was in the Czech Republic , I was there in Prague for a month . Well , I I took one day and I went to the little town of Pilsen , which is real close , about a 45-minute train ride .

Pilsen is known for the Pilsner or Quell Brewery . Now . This brewery opened up in 1842 , and it was the very first brewery to make Pilsner beer , which Pilsner beer is all over the world right now . Well , they invented it . When I heard that , I had to go visit the brewery and it is still in operation today .

They're still making beer and you can tour the brewery and I think they had , if I'm not mistaken , somewhere between 7 and 12 kilometers of tunnels underneath the brewery , just crisscrossing everywhere where they stored the beer . I mean , it was a cool little brewery tour . But Pilsen also has other things .

They got catacombs under the town that you can tour and I , walking around town , which is a very small town , I discovered the George S Patton Museum , a creation of one man's passion to commemorate the liberation of the town of Pilsen by General George Patton during World War II . A fantastic little museum .

Now , when I was in Macedonia , which is now known as Northern Macedonia or North Macedonia , I visited the town of Orid O-H-R-I-D .

Orid sits on the border of Albania and it's a beautiful old town , sits on Lake Orid , which is the lake that separates Macedonia from Albania , but Orid is known as the Jerusalem of the Balkans because of its religious significance and all the historical heritage .

It sits , like I said , on the shores of Lake Orrid and it borders Albania and at one time it had 365 churches , one for every day of the year . There's still a whole bunch of those churches there and monasteries , including St Sophia , which was built in 1025 . And they also have a big castle on top of the hill that you can go visit .

I mean , it is a really , really cool town and I was telling you about accommodations . When I was in Macedonia , at Ord , I stayed in a guest house . It was a man and woman . They were probably in their late 60s , early 70s at the time and it was their home and they had turned it into a guest house . They lived downstairs .

Upstairs there were four bedrooms that they rented out , the rooms , and I had a blast talking to them and meeting them . They were great . They told me all about the place . In fact , I sat there and went out to the garden one afternoon , drank wine with the guy that owned the place from grapes that he had grown and made his own wine .

One morning , when I came down and I said , well , I told him hello I mean , there wasn't a lot of interaction with him , they were just the hosts of the place . But I came downstairs and I saw her standing there , his wife , and I told her hello and said I'm going to leave now . And she said well , wait a minute , come here .

She brought me in there and she had made some kind of coffee cake for breakfast and she wanted me to have a piece of coffee cake before I left . So I said okay . So I had a piece of coffee cake and before I could do anything , she shoved this little shot glass in my hand and poured me a clear liquor .

Now , having drank clear liquor in Europe and Middle East and some other places , I knew what I was in store for . And it was some kind of homemade brandy that she made . And after I took this shot of liquid fire , before I could catch my breath and say anything , she poured me another shot .

Now , mind you , this is 7.30 in the morning , so I was starting my morning off real good , some really nice coffee cake and two shots of homemade liquor . And before she could do a third shot , I said , oh , that's it , I got to go . I'll have another one later . But those are the kind of people you meet when you just do a little bit of slow traveling .

I stayed at this guest house that they owned and they told me all about the place . I had a blast talking to them . I had a blast exploring the town of Ored , and those are just a couple of places that you can find that are off the beaten path and when you let go of strict itineraries and embrace a slower and more curious way of traveling .

And I guess , looking back on it , I've always done some form of slow traveling . I prefer to go somewhere and just explore the area , walk around town , discover things , meet people and talk to them , because you find the most interesting things , meet some of the most interesting people and you come back with some fabulous stories that you can tell your friends .

So you got a choice . You can take a one-week four-country whirlwind tour of Europe and say I saw the Eiffel Tower , the Champs-Élysées , the Tower of London , and I remember sleeping a lot on the bus overnight as we went from one place to the other . Or you can come back and tell your friends man , I met a bunch of witches in Prague .

So , as we wrap it up here . Here's the takeaway it's more than just a way to see the world . Slow travel is a mindset . It's about being present and savoring the journey and just opening yourself up to the unexpected . So on your next trip , resist the urge to just pack your schedule with all kinds of things to do .

I mean , go ahead and schedule some things , say I want to see this and I want to see this , but leave yourself time to wander around a little bit , get lost in a good way , and you might just uncover a hidden gem that makes your trip unforgettable .

So thanks for joining me on this episode of the Traveling Fool , and if you've discovered your own little hidden gems through slow travel , I'd love to hear about them . You can share your stories with us on social media or just shoot me an email at editor at the Traveling Fool .

And if you haven't , go ahead and sign up for my newsletter , like I said , I send it out about once a month . I occasionally miss a month . It's packed full of travel news and contests and things of that nature . Never say your name or email address . I'm a one-man show . The only place your name and email goes is to me to add to the newsletter .

So until next time , safe travels , thank you , you .