National Travel and Tourism Week is an annual tradition for the U.S. travel community. It’s a time when travel and tourism professionals across the country unite to celebrate the value travel holds for our economy, businesses and personal well-being.

Travel impacts business productivity and individual travelers’ well-being. Our team believes that travel matters and we decided to celebrate this week by sharing why we travel. 

I travel to escape the mundane. I look forward to the unique sights, sounds, tastes and other experiences associated with a people, place and culture. For me, travel is just as much about education as it is adventure.
Matt Ozuna, Advocacy & Data Manager

Traveling allows me, my husband and my three boys to spend uninterrupted quality time together that we do not typically get in our day-to-day routines. In addition, I am a firm believer in the power of travel to educate and open minds to new and different experiences and cultures. I love being able to give my children that gift and those memories that will shape them and last a lifetime.
Elaine Rosquist, Senior Director of Product Engagement

While I travel, I am not bound by the daily responsibilities of commuting, cooking, cleaning up my home, etc. When I am in a destination, I am free to try out different aspects of myself. Do I want to be more spontaneous? Do I want to ride bikes through the city, climb a mountainside, or become a whiskey aficionado? I can explore myself, and the destination, in a way that isn’t possible at home.
Alyssa Poulin, Product Engagement Manager

Traveling helps me connect with my family and friends around the world. Organizing trips together helps us stay connected throughout the year, even before we go on the trip with making the itineraries.
Caitlyn Blizzard, Director of Communications

I travel because I think travel gives us a common language to learn and understand one another.  There’s no better way to truly learn about one another, other than by visiting communities around the globe, and immersing ourselves in the culture, history, food, music, dance, way of life and people.
Chelsea Welter, Senior Director of Board Governance

When I travel, I get out of my norm, out of my space and out of my head. I see, hear and taste new things and I meet new people. Exploring crowded cities or wide open outdoors invites expansion and the need to adapt (or just to laugh) as much as it reinforces an appreciation of home. Leaving the familiarity of day-to-day life simply for the sake of something else, something other; however, matters most. #GetOutAndSeeSomethingNew
Paula Beck, Director of Marketing

We have so much to learn from the world and people. Traveling keeps me refreshed, humble and connected.
Marissa Orr, Associate Director of Meetings

I travel for life’s experiences. It’s the only thing that separates us from the dinosaurs.
Andreas Weissenborn, Senior Director of Research & Advocacy

Traveling connects and inspires people. Some of my favorite memories with my family and friends involve travelling, experiencing new things and sharing those incredible moments together.
David Breisch, Director of Marketing Technology

I travel so I can experience new places, foods, and culture. Traveling gives me a sense of relief from my day-to-day and also a sense of appreciation. Traveling opens my eyes to what else is out there.
Jordon Chan, Executive Assistant to the President & CEO

I travel to feed my curiosity about the unfamiliar. The experience of crossing borders shifts awareness and opens up my mind to people and cultures that are different from me. Every place I visit leaves a lasting impression and becomes a little piece of who I am.
Kate Skidmore, Senior Director of Membership Engagement

I travel because I enjoy meeting new people and experiencing new cultures. It is not unusual for me to make a new friend on the plane ride to Nicaragua or learn about a pizza place I have to try in a small town in Indiana when I drive through. Having friends and family who live across the US and all around the globe, I get to be a part of the world’s community.
Mary Bramley, Senior Manager of Foundation Development