Sure, complaining about my travels comes off as being obnoxious and super #firstworldproblem-ish, but I’ma tell you anyway.
My name’s Oneika and I like to travel. I like to travel so much that I write a travel blog named “Oneika the Traveller”. I like to travel so much that whenever I’m on a trip, I’m already subconsciously planning another. I like to travel so much that there’s a strong likelihood I will name one of my future children Paris or London or some other touristy city that I have known and loved at some point in my charmed life (and an even stronger likelihood my uber conservative husband won’t let it happen).
But obviously there are things about travelling that I don’t enjoy. Before you bite my head off, I get that complaining about my travels comes off as being ungrateful, blissfully unaware of my privilege, and super #firstworldproblem-ish. But, live a little, will ya? I love travel (I think that the mere existence of my blog hints at this fact), but this is a just a little tongue-in-cheek post about the things I’m not quite as fond of. That cool with you? Awesome. Anyway, without further ado, the 5 things I hate about travelling (warning: I have a penchant for hyperbole):
1. Long plane rides
I’m beginning to think there are only three groups of people who like flying long haul: weirdos, people who consistently fly business or first, and faithful adherents to the “Mile High” Club (I’m not judging you, but eww). But being your average, broke, prudish traveller, I just can’t get down with spending 15 hours on an aircraft to get from Hong Kong to NYC, because spending an inordinate amount of time on a plane is super boring and all around awful for me. While I love you, Cathay Pacific, with your bomb entertainment system (on demand for the win!) and limitless snacks, there are only so many rom-coms starring Keira Knightley that I can watch (and cup noodles I can eat) until the indignity of being crammed into a seat made for a 10-year old causes my right eye to twitch and my blood to boil. Add to this a talkative seatmate whose breath smells like the inside of a sweaty tennis shoe and ohmygod Houston we have a problem. 
2. American customs and immigration
Speaking of Houston… The horrors of U.S. Customs and Border Security are unparalleled in my book and more perplexing than the superstructure that is Donald Trump’s hair (toupee?). I feel as though there must be an unwritten rule that decrees that agents are supposed to be sour, supremely suspicious, and slow moving– especially at New York’s JFK airport. Because, even if you’re lucky enough to not have your crotch sniffed by canine patrol or hustled into a back room for “secondary security screening”, you can still expect a loooooong wait in line followed by a round grilling by the customs officer when you finally get to the counter– especially if you don’t have the “right” passport (or are in possession of a visitors’ visa like an ESTA). Because nothing says “Welcome to America” like a hand-wringing 45-min wait with other “aliens” and a thorough interrogation of why you came to visit.
3. The cost of (decent) accommodation
Oh, how I long for the days when I was young and foolish and didn’t mind sleeping in a ditch or a hovel as long as it was cheap or free! I’ve slept (uncomfortably) on the rooftop of a hostel in Marrakesh for $2 USD, in a mosquito-infested hostel dorm in Mexico City made all the more unbearable by the stinky feet of the four Aussie boys sharing the room, and at a hostel in Rome whose communal bathroom was so filthy I didn’t shower for two days (true story). I’ve also literally slept in a ditch in Spain— alas, me and my travel companions missed the last train to Seville for the evening and the next one didn’t leave until 6 a.m. the following morn. You can probably guess the rest: the train station wouldn’t take mercy on our pitiful souls and wouldn’t let us take refuge there until daybreak, and we were too poor/frugal to cough up money for a hostel. So we slept in a park, in a semi-secluded, ditch-like area, taking turns to stand guard while the others caught up on their zzz. Not ideal, but frankly I was not bothered.
How things have changed! Nowadays, I live and die by the reviews on TripAdvisor, and hotels are my accommodation of choice. Call it age, call me “bougie”… I am a fan of private rooms, proper beds, spotless bathrooms, and sheets with a high thread count. Which brings me to my gripe: why are hotels so darn expensive? I recently went to Austin, Texas for a conference and couldn’t find a hotel within walking distance of the conference venue for under $175 USD a night (bandaid solution: AirBnb. I rented a room in a private residence for $80 a night– still expensive for staying in someone’s house, though!) In Panama City this past summer, a decent 3-star was $100 USD a night, and you can forget about finding a nice place for cheap in Western Europe, honey! The nightly rates will make your eyes bleed. Jesus take the wheel… and be a voucher from Hotels.com. For real.
4. Getting racially profiled
I love travelling while black (TWB)— mostly because in 99% of all cases it’s all love and absolutely great for my already healthy self esteem. I’ve been called Michelle Obama in Thailand and Cambodia, told I have a nice bum in the Philippines, and asked for my autograph in Poland (actually, lies– the very white tour group really only asked to have their picture snapped with me, but details schmetails). I’ve also been told my skin is beautiful in halting English more times than I can count. So yes, black people, you should totally travel to places that don’t often see people like us, it can be great!
But I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention the single most annoying aspect of TWB, which is getting racially profiled. A few examples: in the airports of Macau, Hong Kong, and Moscow I have been asked to show my documents, while gaggles of friends and strangers (all of a lighter hue, if ya know what I mean) waltzed on by with nary a second glance. In Monterrey, Mexico, my Indian-Canadian friend and I were brutally refused entry into a club– no reason given, but when the rest of our party (all Caucasian) were able to get past the door without incident, what the heck were we supposed to think? Same story, different place: at the airport in Quito, I was interrogated by an official who tried to entrap me in a game of 21 questions about my movements within Ecuador. The kicker? I was leaving the country! So his interrogation was wholly unnecessary. Even worse? I was so incensed by what happened that I concealed myself and watched him like a hawk as I waited in line to get a departure stamp… and for 10 minutes, I saw him wave everrrrybody after me through. No hassle. No questioning. No suspicion. So I’m certain that I was profiled. Ugh. Can y’all small-minded people just let a sista LIVE??
5. Packing
Adore trips, despise packing for trips. I’m know I’m not alone on this one. It’s not the physical trundling up of my belongings that’s the issue– rather it’s the hemming and hawing that goes along with having to decide which tenth/sixteenth/sixty-fourth of my ridiculously expansive wardrobe will make the cut. Worse still is trying to predict the weather in my destination: I’m never sure if I should bring that extra fleece or that super-unattractive-but functional rainjacket. Packing is a real chore: unpleasant as taking your bare hands to remove soggy food particles from the drain in the kitchen sink *dry heaves*, annoying as rain on your wedding day, boring as staying in on a Friday night to read Dickens or Dostoyevsky. 
I also like to be efficient with my packing, so what ticks me off the most is when I convince myself to bring that cumbersome “must- have” item.. but then don’t end up using it the whole trip (hellooooo stilettos and arsenal of makeup I never even wear at home!) I feel like us women have a tendency to overpack (3 outfit changes a day! 50-11 bras! That extra pair of Spanx!) so naturally I’m compelled to fight nature and go in the opposite direction, which means I often find myself washing my underwear in the hotel sink three days before the end of the trip. #womp
Travelling is a joy, but as with everything in life there are some things that I don’t love about it. What are some of your dislikes?
37 Comments
Those accommodation horror stories would’ve scarred me forever! Sleeping in a ditch!!Hostel with four guys!! Your one tough cookie!
I totally feel you, I love packing but it’s either I take too many clothes or not enough when I decide to go against my overpacking instinct, and I end up washing tshirts and underwear in the sink too. Will we ever get this right? hahaha
Being racially profiled is hard for me, even in the “good” way, people are sometimes rude and ignorant when they are curious and I dont how how to deal with it.
I can certainly identify with this list. I love being a nomad, but living out a suitcase is annoying. It is part of the reason I stay in places for so long.
I won’t even go in about the profiling, but just know, its a daily struggle I’ve learned to let roll off me.
Great article. I am older now and really want the nice accomadations, so I have to fork over the money.
I will also have to do at least business class for the long travel, because my body will not take 15 hours in coach.
However, I would love to know where you are getting all of these airfare deals?
Thanks
Transiting Suez Canal in a few weeks, and I will miss some crucial college football games!
I love sports, and while travelling…I have been reduced to watching cricket or rugby…meanwhile there’s a BIG10 rivalry game going on…ughh…
I don’t even schedule any travel in March because I know I will be watching college basketball tourney.
As far as packing…did you check out the jacket I told you about? I keep it packed with essentials and add the electronics before I head to the airport.
Blessings
I feel you on the packing hate, but I will not go anywhere without at least 50 pairs of underwear. It’s weird, but I can never have too much underwear! Even if it’s three day trip in the same state.
Preach! I’m an Airbnb girl, but as I get older (and onto my 7th year of being a digital nomad) I only rent one-bedroom apartments with a nice kitchen, view and enough room to do yoga. 5-star reviews only please 🙂
Also, I apologize on behalf of my country for JFK airport. It’s literally the worst… except for our border control, which is probably pure evil.
That racial profiling sends me thru the roof every time. In 2002, I was on my way back from a missions trip in Jamaica with a cool group of white teenagers. Our first connection was Miami where I was the ONLY person whose luggage was searched. People around me were speaking Spanish and French. The TSA guards thought I was smuggling drugs. When I opened my luggage all they found was religious literature that I had to take back to the missions base. Our second connection was Dulles. They profiled an Italian guy in our group who could pass for someone of Middle Eastern origin. It was crazy!
I wholeheartedly concur with the American customs and immigration crap. I mean, I AM American and think it’s over the top! They need to take a page out of Heathrow or Frankfurt, which has always been a breeze for us.
thanks for the honesty. profiling and bathrooms.
Sleeping in filthy hostels and ditches in Spain? Wheeeew CHILE! Those are the type of stories you write books about (or sell to magazines), but they are never to be repeated, right?
My longest trip was around 24hrs total from Saudi Arabia to Texas. There were layovers in Philadelphia and Frankfurt. Just one leg of the trip was 7-8 hour flights. How in the hockey sticks does anyone sit on those cramped chairs for 10 hours?
Seriously, what’s the freshening up routine like on a 7plus hour flight? Those restrooms are sooo tiny!
Yeah, I live an hour or so from Austin, the price of everything that gone through the roof! But, they can charge those rates, so they do!
Profiling…welp, I’ll be ready for it on my next international trip. I’ve never traveled internationally outside of the military, so this should be very interesting!
Having said all this, continue on with being a really great virtual tour-guide. Oh yeah, where is that hotel with the circular 1960s-style bed? It looks so much fun! Was the mattress comfy?
‘Love the post Oneika!
Like yourself, I’ve done all the cheap $2.00 per night thing. I’ve even slept in a mixed dorm where two ransom people were sleeping on MY bed and someone vomitted violently outside our bedroom door. Oh, and what about the time when I went to the women’s bathroom and a man came out half naked, and calmly proceeded to brush his teeth and scratch his balls IN OUR BATHROOM!
Since I’ve paid my travelling years dues, the cost of “nice” accommodation is killing since I don’t do hostels anymore and I want a lovely quiet room all to myself. I’m going to Warsaw in a few weeks and the cost of hotels there had me spluttering LOL!
More than packing, is unpacking!!!
Yay! We possibly dislike the same things about travel though we love travel so much!! Long flights..yes. Coupled with altitude sickness as my origin is below sea-level (most of the Netherlands) and then places like Kenya have an altitude of roughly a thousand meters above sea-level..so the first few days after arrival, it’s guaranteed that I’ll battle with nausea, backaches and dehydration. Accomodation either sends me to cringe mode or it’s so pleasant that I want to stay longer. The only times I would be fond of dorms, my age notwithstanding is during low seasons when dorm rooms are practically empty. I’m not so fond of staying as a guest in Couch surfing or Airbnb, though I have had several people pass through my apartment as I hosted them, it’s easier for me to be a host than a guest because I have more control over the cleanliness, can scrub the house down and wash dry clean and iron the bed sheets. Been held up at immigration in Croatia, Cambodia and Somalia ( though the last one was hardly racial).Packing is always a little bit of a horror for me..I almost always lug around bags of things I won’t even touch for the duration of the trip..worse still is collecting clothes or souvenirs during the trip and ending up flustered and embarrassed at the airport when they realize you are over the allowed weight and have to sit at a corner and try to re-distribute the packing, or risk paying the over the weight fee!
Ugh…the American customs and immigration has stopped and questioned me soo many times. The irony? I’m American!! Maybe it’s because I travel through borders by land, I don’t know, but the rudeness…man! There are times where I just want to get in their faces ( I’m from Brooklyn, it’s a habit), but I sigh heavily and just let it go. I’m just glad to be home.
I traveled Down Under from LA ,I swore I wanted to jump out of the plane. To make things worse the couple behind me became drunk, started fighting and hitting me in the head. Next time I know to stay in Hawaii for at least a week. This was the first time in my life I was jet lagged.
US Customs are known for profiling black females. Though black females are the least likely to be carrying anything illegal they are the most likely to be stopped. Made the mistake of having my connecting flight in Houston taking me home. I had newspapers from Miami which was stamped courtesy of the hotel I stayed in Cancun. The Customs agent insisted I visited Miami because I had newspapers from there. Needless to say I missed my flight north, though I had a 3 hour layover. I get stopped by US Customs every time I reenter the US but have learned to make sure my airline connections are out of the US so I land in my home town. Was stopped held, stripped searched etc in London, England by customs for 8 hours. But the other countries I’ve traveled to I had no problems.
When it comes to packing 2 pairs of undies & one on. Two or three shirts, a sweater, oil of olay, comb, brush, hair cream and toilet paper. I don’t like to carry a lot of stuff. Though since I am going to Italy next month will pack a pair of pants and some earrings.
It’s great you brought up TWB because it can really affect a trip (good, bad or otherwise). Unfortunately for POC, they have to consider how they could be treated in a city/country before traveling but being terrified of going anywhere means you miss out on so much. Great post!
I hear you with the American Immigration thing! I know many countries take security very seriously, but US Immigration is such a trial. I’ve never felt so unsure of my own travel plans before – the constant questioning makes me doubt whether I *am* actually staying at a certain hotel or going to a certain city, because surely I must be lying! Also I have made the mistake of trying to add a little light humour into the mix, which is not a good idea with anyone in Immigration. I get the feeling you have to be pretty humourless to take it up as a career.
I completely agree with everything on this list, although I hate unpacking more than packing: my suitcase can be in various stages of unpacking for weeks. However, I start to prepare my wardrobe weeks (even months) in advance, so it makes packing a little bit less annoying. At the moment, I’m already planning outfits for my trip to Paris in April ’16. Being from Los Angeles, I have no idea what to expect – I do t exactly have too many winter clothes, and spring is not exactly SoCal spring. 🙂
And I hated immigration too, LAX is probably similar to JFK and can take an hour to get through if two large planes from Asia arrive at the same time – forget it! However, I’ve had Global Entry for the past year and it’s a lifesaver – not sure if you’re eligible because you’re Canadian but I recommend any U.S. citizen who travels internationally a couple of times a year sign up – even returning from Montreal this past weekend, I was able to use my GE and avoid the long customs line at YUL. The privilege also included TSA Precheck, again another lifesaver! Worth the $100 investment for 5 years: essentially $20 per year.
Your honesty is so refreshing and hilarious!
My experience travelling to Houston from England is one of the reasons I don’t plan to visit the US again, who needs the aggravation? The world is full of (more) beautiful, friendly places why would I torture myself going to a place they clearly want to keep so many out of?
Not to mention the horrible gun crime and cops shooting up or killing people and ..no thanks! I truly cannot imagine why anyone would want to visit or live in America. Just my viewpoint.
On another note, I enjoy packing and carefully prepare a list at least a week in advance with everything neatly categorised:)
And YES, comfy, private hotel rooms, pristine bathrooms, daily housekeeping and a mouthwatering breakfast buffet are essential!
Ben and I are budget travelers but we refuse to sleep in dorms. We enjoy our privacy, and having all our stuff sprawled out and not have to worry about locking it up, or sharing baths. Not to mention, that I am an extremely light sleeper. But we can’t justify spending $50+ a night for a room (too frugal for that). But hey who knows, maybe when we get rich, lol. However, I do hear you about having certain standards because we can’t sacrifice the small things that make us happy for money. Money will come and go.
True that! Do you get private rooms in hostels then? I think that’s a really good compromise.
I love the post Oneika! I just learned this last year that those long haul flights were so much easier without a child! You can watch a movie, go to sleep, but now… Sadly no. Wait until London or Paris is born and it becomes the worst! But then again it makes for room for a whole new set of blog posts!
I loved traveling with my toddler/preschooler. The two of us could curl up together on our two seats and both fall sound asleep. At 5’8”, im not a small person, but I was thinner then.
We watched baggage carts and caterers restocking, read the safety card, watched the prep and distribution of meals & snacks, did LEGO and puzzles on the tray table. But you are right about grown-up movies and magazines—that didn’t happen at home or on a plane.
I’m American and am apalled at how TSA agents act towards anyone, regardless of the color of your passport. My husband (European citizen) flies diplomatically and gets accosted, and his mother spent two hours in customs last year because her last name (González) was suspicious. What a horrid way to come into a country.
LOL! @ “Jesus take the wheel… and be a voucher from Hotels.com. For real.”
This brings back memories 🙂
My friend who speaks Spanish and was arranging our stay didn’t show up, the Barcelona train station closed and wouldn’t let me sleep there—I was scared! A couple nights alone in a hostel, then a move to a different with a shared room, including a roommate I got extra close to 😉 Traveling with my little one, I was much more careful. We have only done a few trips over recent years. Now that he’s in high school, I think we are going to get going again. I can’t wait.
I love traveling, travel a lot for work and sometimes for leisure, and dislike the same things as you! Haha! The last one especially is a headache – it doesn’t matter how many times I’ve had to do it in my life, I do not seem to know how to pack and always end up either having too much or too little… // http://www.lorikemi.com
Why is it I always really feel like you do?
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