Last year I made a list of what I valued the most in life, the things I wanted to keep doing, or to do more of in the future. I selected a few things that were very important to me, and one of the entries of this list is “Adventure and excitement”.

In fact, I found that sometimes, in my life, all the weeks, days and months had felt the same, and I couldn’t really remember them. That’s why I decided that I wanted to go on more adventures and to feel more excited about things in general.

I felt that my life was overall, not very interesting and I had the feeling that I didn’t really know the cities or places I was living in (you know the feeling when a tourist knows more about your city than you do? Precisely that). However, when you’re studying or working, you don’t always have enough time (or money) to go on big faraway adventures.

I wanted to live a life that was interesting and memorable to me, even when I didn’t have long holidays or a lot of money. That’s why I started to write a list of “Local Adventures”. To me, they are small adventures that don’t require more than a day or going abroad, and where little to no money is involved.

Local adventures, inspiration and tips

When I started writing my list, I was living in Paris and only had a month left there, before moving to another place. So, I put every sight that I wanted to see, places I wanted to visit or to go to. Obviously, I didn’t see everything, but I have to say that after the 2 years I spent in Paris, this last month truly made me fall in love with the city.

Okay, so what kind of adventures am I talking about? Well, visiting a museum, seeing a new park, walking in another neighborhood, trying new types of food, going to botanical gardens or farms, trying a new sport, getting lost in a new part of town, organizing a spa day, swimming in a lake, visiting a nearby town, trying an escape game, do a seasonal activity… The list is pretty much endless!

To get inspiration you can of course focus on the more touristic spots, then look on Google Maps for a new park, check on Instagram cool photo spots, find experiences on Airbnb, read tourist guides of your own city, or just walk around and write down everything that tickles your curiosity – this can also be an adventure!

Another thing that really helped me was to schedule them in my weeks. Having just a list can work sometimes, but not for everything, and if I wait for the day where I’ll be spontaneous enough to just visit a museum in my own city, then I’ll wait for a long time. By scheduling them, not only I was a bit more certain that I would actually do them, but I also created this feeling of anticipation and excitement that I wanted to have!

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Going on local adventures has had quite an impact in my life, especially since I love to travel but don’t always get the chance to do it as much as I would like to. It changes my routine, makes a day or week stand out among others, keeps me busy and motivated, and it allows me to make new memories!

As it is something that I would like to keep on doing, I will try to post them here, as a way to hold myself accountable and maybe it will inspire some of you!