8 Reasons Travel Is Essential for Children & Young Adults

Travel is one of the greatest gifts you can give a young person. Long after the toys are forgotten and the gadgets become outdated, the memories, lessons, and confidence gained from travel stay with them for life.

Whether it’s a family vacation, an educational tour, or a youth program like Ikigai Young Explorers, travel opens the heart, expands the mind, and shapes young people into more capable, curious, and compassionate adults.

Here are 8 powerful reasons why every child or young adult should experience travel:

1. Travel Builds Confidence

Stepping into a new environment — whether it’s a different city or a different country — encourages children to trust their instincts, try new things, and step outside their comfort zone.

They learn:

• How to navigate unfamiliar places
• How to order food on their own
• How to interact with different people
• How to overcome small fears

Every successful moment builds a stronger, more confident young adult.

2. It Encourages Curiosity and Creativity

When children see new landscapes, art, music, wildlife and cultures, something powerful happens:
their imagination expands.

Travel sparks:

• Creative thinking
• Curiosity about the world
• A desire to explore and understand
• Appreciation for beauty and difference

A child who travels learns that the world is bigger and more inspiring, than textbooks can show.

3. It Teaches Real-World Problem-Solving

Travel isn’t always perfect — and that’s exactly why it’s so valuable.

Missed buses, delayed flights, new environments, unexpected weather… these moments teach young people how to:

• Stay calm
• Adapt quickly
• Solve problems
• Think logically

From navigating airports to handling surprises, travel turns challenges into powerful life lessons.

4. Travel Strengthens Family Bonds

Shared experiences create the most meaningful memories.

Whether it’s:

• Laughing during a road trip
• Trying a new dish together
• Getting lost (and finding your way back)
• Watching a sunset in silence

These moments become stories told for years. Travel connects families in ways everyday life sometimes doesn’t.

5. It Exposes Them to Cultures and Perspectives

Travel teaches children to appreciate differences and celebrate diversity.

They learn that:

• People live differently around the world
• Languages, foods, and cultures vary
• Kindness and respect are universal
• The world is interconnected

This builds empathy, open-mindedness and tolerance qualities every young person needs.

6. Travel Enriches Academic Learning

Travel takes learning from theory into reality.

For example:

• History becomes real in ancient cities
• Biology comes alive on a safari
• Geography makes sense when crossing borders
• Languages become easier when spoken daily

Travel gives young people a deeper, more practical understanding of what they study in school

7. It Improves Emotional Intelligence (EQ)

Emotional intelligence is just as important as academic success — and travel is one of the fastest ways to strengthen it.

Young travelers develop:

• Patience
• Gratitude
• Social awareness
• Empathy
• Confidence in social situations

These skills help them become mature, compassionate adults.

8. It Inspires Dreams and Ambition

Seeing the world helps children imagine new versions of themselves.

A trip can inspire them to:

• Study a new subject
• Choose a future career
• Learn a language
• Protect the environment
• Become leaders

Travel shows them that anything is possible — and that the world is full of opportunities waiting to be explored.

Conclusion

Travel isn’t just a holiday for children and young adults,
it’s an investment in their character, worldview, confidence, and future.

Every journey shapes who they become.
Every new experience plants a seed of growth.
And every trip teaches them something they will carry into adulthood.