There are tens of thousands of destinations around the world — roughly 80,000 airports if you count smaller airstrips and makeshift runways. Some big, some small, some urban and some dangling on the edge of windswept cliffs. And in my humble opinion, we don’t just choose destinations anymore. We choose what they say about us. Obviously, there are the big categories people fall into like business traveler, adventurer, luxury seeker and such; but I am referring more to do you pursue experiences that challenge your view of the world? Do you take a chance and rent that car and navigate the unfamiliar, trusty GPS in your hand?

Traveling to another country can be life-changing. Stepping into a place completely foreign to you, in which you know no one, can really shake you up and give you new perspective. I know when I landed in Paris a year ago, alone on a new continent for the first time ever, I questioned what kind of choice I had made. Did I really think I could handle this trip on my own? While it was not a relaxing vacation in the least, the new connections I made with myself and the world around me were exactly what I was after.

Yasser at the Louvre Museum Paris, France, 2025.

Try as I might, I can’t help but be a little skeptical thinking about how social media has influenced our desire to travel and, perhaps even more so, our behavior while traveling. Taking pictures in front of a landmark to remember for the rest of your life is nothing new, but those were for yourself — for your memories.

How much does showing off on social media govern how, where and why we travel now? It’s an important question because how we approach our travel greatly determines our impact on the destination, as well. Are the “vibes” and “aesthetics” aligned with the need for the trip or our self image? Is this a place you’ve been desperately searching out, eager to arrive in and ready to respect, or just someplace you’ve seen everyone else post about and feel like you need to check off? I guarantee if it’s the latter, you will not be truly open to the place you are traveling.

Yasser at the Corazón Cabo Resort, Los Cabos, San Lucas, 2021.

I say all this knowing full well I have booked entire vacations purposefully to disconnect from everything in a stress-free, all-possible-wants-and-needs-catered-to, luxurious bubble. The picture above reflects that, as it was the sole purpose of a girls’ trip to Los Cabos a few years ago. So no judgement here! But those aren’t the travels that stick with me. It’s been the difficult ones, the ones that forced me to be comfortable with being a little uncomfortable that I savor. Those are the ones I love hearing about and give me the sense of who you are as a person.

— Yasser Gallagher-Ogando, executive media director