9 Travel Mistakes to Stop Making Once You Hit 30

There's nothing wrong with going to touristy spots — after all, that's what traveling is about. But try to go outside those areas for food or your hotel, unless you're traveling somewhere where you absolutely have to stay in tourist central. Or you just plain want to. I have found that if I stay just outside a bustling area, the hotel will be a little cheaper, but I always take a look at how easy it is to get around and make sure I can feasibly do it.

When you're young and spry, booking a cheaper flight that includes a layover or two is no big deal. Spend the extra bit of money now and get a direct flight wherever possible. Time is valuable, and you don't want to waste it in airports waiting for flights if you don't have to.

Repeat after me: this is vacation. You're away from work; you're away from home. Allow yourself to have some time to unwind between all your sightseeing adventures. You don't have to go, go, go all the time. Sleep in. Have a long lunch with a view. Too often I come back from vacation feeling like I need another vacation at home just to catch up on sleep. No more of that now that I've hit 30. Vacation time means relaxing but exciting me time, no matter where I am.

Look, I know travel insurance is probably something you never bought before and sincerely think you don't need, but just do it. The day something goes wrong, you'll wish you spent that little bit of extra money on it.

I'm all for saving money, but I also really love my space. Unless you're booking at a superexpensive hotel where it makes sense to share a room, just get separate rooms so you and your friend aren't all over each other. You already know you're going to be spending a lot of time with your friend during your travels, so save your evenings in your hotel room for your me time.

When I traveled in my 20s, I would always take public transportation to and from the airports and lug around my suitcase. The travel time was always over an hour because of all the stops, and it just drained me. Take the quicker option, and pay a little more for a cab — as long as the price is within reason of course. You also don't want to break the bank just for a cab.

I'm still struggling to find the right balance of how much time to spend on taking pictures when I travel. I recently invested in a camera that will take quality pictures, so I want to make sure to use it so I have those memories, but I also don't want to get caught up in taking photos and forgetting to look around and just be. It's important to take those pictures, because those will live on in a permanent form forever, but don't forget to live in the moment, too.

I used to very much be all about saving my money and being very careful with what I bought on vacation. (Unless I was traveling with my parents, which meant I let them buy me everything.) Now I never know if something I see in a shop while traveling will ever be available to me again, so if I have strong feelings about it, I buy it. Whether it's unique candies in London or a sweater in a boutique in Paris, I make sure to buy it if I love it. (Yes, I bought both of those things.)

Take risks, talk to people, be adventurous. When you travel, you can be anything you want to be. Of course you should be safe, but you should also be bold. Go beyond your normal boundaries.