Travel is the movement of people between distant geographicallocations. Travel can be done byfoot,bicycle,automobile,train,boat,bus,airplane,ship or other means, with or withoutluggage, and can be one way or round trip.[1] Travel can also include relatively short stays between successive movements, as in the case oftourism.
Etymology
The origin of the word "travel" is most likely lost to history. The term "travel" may originate from theOld French wordtravail, which means 'work'.[2] According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, the first known use of the wordtravel was in the 14th century. It also states that the word comes from Middle Englishtravailen,travelen (which means to torment, labor, strive, journey) and earlier from Old Frenchtravailler (which means to work strenuously, toil).
In English, people still occasionally use the wordstravail, which means struggle. According to Simon Winchester in his bookThe Best Travelers' Tales (2004), the wordstravel andtravail both share an even more ancient root: a Roman instrument of torture called thetripalium (in Latin it means "three stakes", as in to impale).[citation needed] This link may reflect the extreme difficulty of travel in ancient times. Travel in modern times may or may not be much easier, depending upon the destination. Travel toMount Everest, theAmazon rainforest,extreme tourism, andadventure travel are more difficult forms of travel. Travel can also be more difficult depending on the method of travel, such as bybus,cruise ship, or even bybullock cart.[3]
Travel dates back toantiquity where wealthy Greeks and Romans would travel for leisure to theirsummer homes andvillas in cities such asPompeii andBaiae.[9] While early travel tended to be slower, more dangerous, and more dominated by trade and migration, cultural and technological advances over many years have tended to mean that travel has become easier and more accessible.[10] Humankind has come a long way in transportation sinceChristopher Columbus sailed to the New World from Spain in 1492, an expedition which took over 10 weeks to arrive at the final destination; to the 21st century whenaircraft allows travel from Spain to the United States overnight.
Travel in theMiddle Ages offered hardships and challenges, though it was important to the economy and to society. Thewholesale sector depended (for example) onmerchants dealing with/throughcaravans or sea-voyagers, end-userretailing often demanded the services of many itinerantpeddlers wandering from village to hamlet,gyrovagues (wandering monks) and wanderingfriars broughttheology andpastoral support to neglected areas,traveling minstrels toured, and armies ranged far and wide in various crusades and in sundry other wars.[9] Pilgrimages were common in both the European and Islamic world and involved streams of travelers both locally and internationally.[11]
In the late 16th century, it became fashionable for young Europeanaristocrats and wealthy upper-class men to travel to significant European cities as part of their education in the arts and literature. This was known as theGrand Tour, and included cities such as London, Paris, Venice, Florence, and Rome. However, theFrench Revolution brought with it the end of the Grand Tour.[9]
Travel by water often provided more comfort and speed than land-travel, at least until the advent of a network ofrailways in the 19th century. Travel for the purpose of tourism is reported to have started around this time when people began to travel for fun as travel was no longer a hard and challenging task. This was capitalized on by people likeThomas Cook selling tourism packages where trains and hotels were booked together.[12]Airships andairplanes took over much of the role of long-distance surface travel in the 20th century, notably after the Second World War where there was a surplus of both aircraft and pilots.[9] Air travel has become so ubiquitous in the 21st century that one woman,Alexis Alford, visited all 196 countries before the age of 21.[13]
Geographic types
Travel may be local, regional, national (domestic) or international. In some countries, non-local internal travel may require aninternal passport, while international travel typically requires apassport andvisa. Tours are a common type of travel. Examples of travel tours are expedition cruises,[14] small group tours,[15] and river cruises.[16]
Authorities emphasize the importance of taking precautions to ensure travelsafety.[17] When traveling abroad, the odds favor a safe and incident-free trip, however, travelers can be subject to difficulties, crime and violence.[18] Some safety considerations include being aware of one's surroundings,[17] avoiding being the target of a crime,[17] leaving copies of one'spassport anditinerary information with trusted people,[17] obtainingmedical insurance valid in the country being visited[17] and registering with one's nationalembassy when arriving in a foreign country.[17] Many countries do not recognize drivers' licenses from other countries; however most countries acceptinternational driving permits.[19]Automobile insurance policies issued in one's own country are often invalid in foreign countries, and it is often a requirement to obtain temporary auto insurance valid in the country being visited.[19] It is also advisable to become oriented with the driving rules and regulations of destination countries.[19] Wearing aseat belt is highly advisable for safety reasons; many countries have penalties for violatingseatbelt laws.[19]
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