Local travel: exploring close to home

Travel does not have to begin at an airport. Some of the most rewarding trips start from your own front door and end a few hours away, in a town, a park or a city you have somehow never explored. Local travel costs less, takes less time, and teaches you to look at familiar ground with a traveler's eyes.

Why nearby places count

It is easy to overlook what is close. The famous sights of a region are often the ones locals have never visited, precisely because they could go any time. Local travel reverses that. It asks you to treat your own region with the curiosity you would bring to a foreign country: reading about its history, eating its specialities, seeking out its quiet corners.

• It is easy. No passports, no jet lag, no long flights.
• It is flexible. A free weekend or even a single day is enough.
• It supports your own community and the small businesses around it.
• It deepens your sense of home, so that the place you live becomes richer.

Road trips

A road trip is the classic form of local travel in the United States, and it can be as short or as long as you like. The pleasure lies in the in-between: roadside diners, small museums, scenic overlooks, farm stands, detours down promising side roads. A few principles make road trips better:

• Plan a rough route, but leave room for unplanned stops.
• Drive fewer miles each day than you think you can; the stops are the point.
• Use back roads rather than highways where time allows.
• Pack a cooler with water and snacks, and keep an eye on fuel in remote areas.
• Check weather and road conditions before you set out.

Small towns

Small towns hold much of a country's character. A main street of old brick buildings, a courthouse square, a local history museum run by volunteers, a café where everyone knows each other, a seasonal fair or festival: these are the textures of everyday life. Walk the town slowly, read historical markers, visit the library or museum, and chat with people in shops and cafés. Many towns have walking maps of historic homes or public art.

State parks and waterfalls

State parks are among the most underrated destinations in the country. Many protect forests, rivers, canyons, beaches and waterfalls just as beautiful as those in national parks, with fewer visitors. Chasing waterfalls is a wonderful theme for a series of weekend trips: after heavy rain or snowmelt they are at their most powerful, and in autumn the surrounding color makes them glow.

Stay on marked trails, keep well back from the edges of falls and cliffs, and never climb on wet rocks above a drop. For a much larger waterfall, see Niagara Falls from both sides.

Food festivals and Mardi Gras in southwest Louisiana

Southwest Louisiana is a region with a strong culture of food, music and celebration, rooted in Cajun and Creole traditions. Small-town festivals celebrate local foods such as crawfish, rice, boudin and gumbo, often with live music and dancing. In the countryside, a distinctive rural Mardi Gras tradition has groups of costumed riders going from farm to farm to gather ingredients for a communal gumbo, with music, dancing and plenty of good-humored chaos. It is a remarkable example of a living folk tradition, and visitors are welcome at many public celebrations. Check local information about each event, and respect private property and community customs.

Beyond the festivals, the region's bayous, prairies and wetlands are rich in birds, and small dance halls and restaurants keep traditional music alive.

Big-city walks

Cities close to home are also worth rediscovering on foot.

New York

New York is a city of neighborhoods, each with its own character, and it rewards long walks: across bridges, through parks, along waterfront promenades, and down streets of old brownstones. Choose one or two neighborhoods per day rather than trying to see everything.

Boston's historic trail

In Boston, a marked walking trail connects historic sites of the American Revolution, from old burying grounds to meeting houses and a historic ship. Following it is an easy, self-guided way to understand the city's history, and it passes through lively neighborhoods and markets along the way.

Seeing home anew

Local travel changes how you feel about where you live. The next time someone asks for a recommendation near your home, you will have stories to tell. And when you do travel farther, you will bring the same attentive eye. For more on that way of seeing, read why time away matters, and for choosing your next trip, near or far, ways to choose a destination. Old churchyards in small towns are covered in visiting historic cemeteries.