We who love the road find comfort in new worlds. Travels scratch an itch that only those of us with wanderlust really understand. When we’re home, we dream of being away, and when we’re away, we feel at home. Our money goes to airplane tickets and bed and breakfasts rather than window treatments and throw pillows. We are children of the world. We are the global citizens that search for home wherever we go.

The road beckons us for many reasons. There are as many reasons as there are travelers, but you can tell by a person’s activities while away and motivation for going away what type of traveler they are. Travel personalities are pretty distinct, and chances are you’ll run into each one of these people while you’re off seeing the world.

The everyday anthropologist – life and society is always a topic of study for this traveler. They want to know why spicy food is so popular in Korea and when the chili pepper first made landfall on the Korean peninsula. They are fascinated by customs and cultures. And they approach every trip as a learning opportunity. The everyday anthropologist spends as much time in museums as they do watching people in parks.

The adventurer – always off chasing the next big thing, the road is always in the periphery. This person knows when the surf is up on the North Shore of Hawaii, when the best powder falls in Colorado, and the best ex-pat bar in Phuket. With friend around the world, the adventurer moves in his own time, in packs or alone, but lets whims and nature guide their path rather than propriety and expectation. Yet they are out there, seeing the world. They just need to see it in a controlled environment.

The rootless wanderer – Ah rootless, the word is often tossed out with such disdain. But what is wrong with making the world your home? Moving on a moments notice? Going for a vacation and ending up staying for 10 years? As long as this person isn’t skipping out on family and responsibilities, the rootless wanderer isn’t hurting anyone. They are just to see the world and find new ways to be in it.

The armchair road warrior – sounds like an oxymoron? It is. The armchair traveler are the ones that are on the tour, wearing the matching t-shirt with their fellow travelers. Nothing is left to chance. Their tour guides have planned every last minute for them. They don’t sneak away from the tour to duck into that cute little café. Nope. Tell me how much time I have in the Louvre, and I will apportion the appropriate amount of time to each section.

The escape artist – For this person, it is as much about getting out of their day-to-day life as getting away. It could be the job, which bores and never satisfies, or relationships that feel more like chains than support. Getting away can be a form of running away and voiding the real problems that plague them.

There are some common denominators for the frequent travelers. There is the desire for something new and for different influences to affect our lives. You cannot come away from traveling without being changed in big and small ways. It is the vastness and diverseness of this planet that keeps us fascinated. We love being taken out of context and dropping into existences that we never dreamed of. We love knowing we have had our toes in seas across the globe.