Health & Fitness

How Quitting Smoking Makes Traveling Easier

Traveling to new places is one’s of life’s greatest pleasures, even if the process of traveling isn’t all that welcoming. New places, scenery, and people can offer unique experiences and exposure to cultural differences you may have never imagined. However, if you’re a smoker, traveling becomes a bit more complicated. 

Having to stop every two hours during your drive, waiting in long lines at the airport, or waiting hours on end for your flight to be over so you can smoke can easily drain the fun from the experience. Quitting smoking is not only a great personal health decision, but may even make your travel efforts that much simpler. 

Let’s look closer at how ditching cigarettes can make your trip more enjoyable, affordable, and less stressful. 

Fewer Cravings 

Nicotine is an addictive substance found in tobacco products. It’s what keeps smokers coming back for more and makes the quitting process so difficult. The brain becomes dependent on nicotine, and without it, you’re at the mercy of some pretty unpleasant withdrawal symptoms. 

Imagine being on a family trip only to be irritable the entire time because you can’t have a cigarette. Would that make for a memorable trip? Irritability is just one of many withdrawal symptoms, which can easily derail a trip and ruin your experience. A few include:

  • Diarrhea or constipation
  • Mood swings 
  • Cold sweats
  • Depression
  • Increased anxiety
  • Coughing

None of these are exactly conducive to a pleasant travel experience, especially the first two. You can easily avoid these symptoms and the pains of withdrawal by simply giving up cigarettes forever. You’ll also help your body heal from the damage you’ve already done by smoking, earning you several more years of life to enjoy future travel. 

Restricted Areas

Not all destinations and attractions are smoke-friendly. In fact, many public places have banned smoking entirely, which means if you want to light up, you’ll need to go somewhere else. There are hundreds of beaches, public boardwalks, parks, and attractions that don’t allow smoking on/in or around them. 

Having to go somewhere else entirely just to have a cigarette can certainly tarnish the overall experience. Let’s say you’re in the middle of a tour or exploring a cave and you suddenly need a cigarette; but you have to go all the way back to your car to have one. 

Smokers aren’t the only ones subjected to restrictions. Chewing tobacco users may fall under the same regulations, which is why many are switching to tobacco-free options like https://blackbuffalo.com/. 

Airports 

Airports are quite possibly the most stressful places on the planet. The rush of people, bag checks, security checkpoint workers, and a general atmosphere of ultra-tight security is enough to give anyone anxiety. What do you do as a smoker when that anxiety flairs? But wait…you can’t at the airport or on the plane. 

You’re essentially causing yourself greater anxiety by traveling as a smoker. The airport process will likely stress you out, but once you’ve boarded the plane, you’re not going to be able to smoke for at least a few hours; and 30,000 feet in the air is a bad place to experience withdrawal. 

Most airports are 100% smoke-free to protect public health. Second-hand smoke is a real danger to public safety, accounting for minor air pollution and health hazards for non-smokers. Yes, second-hand smoke can harm other people! 

You can’t smoke at the airport, on the plane, in the terminal, or anywhere close. Wouldn’t it be better to just ditch the habit, save yourself some money, and make your travel experience a little less stressful?

Cost

The financial toll of your cigarette habit may be holding you back from reaching your travel goals. Smoking can cost hundreds per month, which cuts into your savings and makes travel more difficult. Not to mention, you’ll need to count the cost of your habit in your travel planning. This can add hundreds to your hotel, flight, and attraction costs. Let’s be honest; smoking isn’t benefitting you in any way, and is seemingly holding you back from visiting certain places. There’s never been a better time or reason to quit for good. 

Over the course of about five years, you could end up spending close to $20,000 on cigarettes alone. That doesn’t account for the cost of gasoline for your car to obtain your cigarettes and the medical costs associate with smoking-related conditions. 

Imagine everywhere you could travel with an extra $20,000 in your pocket! That dream vacation to Europe? Done. That fun-in-the-sun trip to Cancun? You could take it four times and still have money leftover. 

Conclusion

Travel and smoking are inherently incompatible. From restrictions in airports and planes to certain destinations and public places banning smoking altogether, you’re going to run into a lot of issues as a smoker. The best thing to do is to get rid of your habit and move on to a healthier lifestyle that’s more conducive to your travel goals.