A few years ago, chef and I were wandering around Osaka and stumbled into a local beer festival completely by accident.
No map. No recommendation and no resort itinerary pointing us there. We simply turned down a street we hadn’t walked before and found ourselves surrounded by locals enjoying the largest selection of Japanese beers I had ever seen. Chef immediately grabbed a cold beer and fell in love.
He started trying beers with labels we can only identify by pictures but flavors that made him reevaluate his previous obsession with Belgian beers.
That moment lasted maybe two hours. But we talk about it regularly. We finally cracked the code on how to travel like a local.
It never would have happened inside a resort. I certainly would have never found it on a tour bus itinerary or through a concierge recommendation list. It existed entirely outside the bubble that most international travelers never leave and that is what made it special.
This post is about how to find your version of that moment. Every destination has one. Most travelers never do.
Why Some Travelers Never Learn How To Travel Like A Local Internationally
Let me be honest about something before I say anything else. Resorts are not the enemy. I understand exactly why people choose them. Heck, I’ve chosen a few myself for really important reasons. The predictability is appealing. The safety feels certain. The convenience is real. When you don’t feel like thinking about your next meal those onsite restaurants come in clutch.
A resort promises you a version of a destination that has been curated and made comfortable. Everything is handled. You can take a sanctioned tour. There are hoards of people looking out for you and most of them speak your language. You can relax which is exactly what you want on vacation.
I get it. But here is what really happens.
You spend a full week in a country. Cross an ocean, change time zones and come home having experienced a produced version of the destinations. Not the real thing. A highlight reel of a destination that has been sanitized, translated and packaged for the visitor who never intended to get too close.
When people ask, you can say you’ve been there. But when they ask about your trip, you realize you didn’t really experience it.
There are three (3) decisions you make ahead of every trip that can change this.
Where You Stay Determines Everything
One of the most important travel decisions you will make is not where to go. It is where you sleep. To travel like a local, you want to stay where a local would go for a staycation.
Your accommodation is not just a logistical choice. It is a positioning decision. It determines which version of a destination you wake up inside every morning. This shapes who you interact with, what you hear, what you smell, and what you understand about a place by the time you leave.
Most resorts put you behind a guarded gate, outside the destination looking in. People have to be vetted before they can enter and good luck with your souvenirs. While some will have a curated group of local vendors, most won’t have anything not mass produced.
The right accommodation puts you inside a destination from the moment you arrive. And there is a time and a place for both.
I’ve stayed in a traditional Moroccan home (Riad) where we were gifted handmade slippers and given the opportunity to cook alongside the chef in the kitchen. These home are built around a central courtyard hidden behind an unmarked door inside the Medina. I actually thought we were lost when the taxi drove up. It’s completely invisible to anyone who doesn’t know it exists. From the outside it looks like a wall. From the inside it is one of the most beautiful places I have ever stayed.
I woke up the first morning to the call to prayer echoing across the rooftops. Our breakfast was in the courtyard and the neighborhood came to life around me. I walked out the front door directly into the Medina. Not into a lobby, not into a shuttle bay but into the actual city. The spice market was just minutes away.
No resort version of Morocco exists that delivers that. It simply isn’t possible.
This type of accommodation is totally bookable in advance. It doesn’t require special connections or extensive research. It simply requires the willingness to look beyond the obvious option. I break down my planning process in my blog Simplifying Travel Planning.
Practical tip: Search Airbnb, Expedia.com or destination-specific sites for traditional accommodation types before you default to a hotel chain. Search terms like “Riad Morocco,” “Ryokan Japan,” “Trullo Italy” or “Rondavel South Africa” will surface options that chain hotel searches never will. Read the reviews specifically for comments about neighborhood and local access.
Who Shows You Around Matters More Than Where You Go
The second decision most travelers get wrong is who they let show them around. I count myself fortunate to know people around the world. As soon as I think about booking a destination, I reach out to make sure my friends are available for at least one day to catch up.
And in locations where I don’t have a familiar contact, I look for a local guide and skip the resort tour options. I get it, they are convenient and have likely been vetted by the hotel. But here’s the thing.
That wall of brochures/flyers of tours was not designed for you specifically. Most are designed for the largest possible number of people simultaneously. They move everyone to the same stops at the same pace, explain everything in the most broadly accessible terms and return the group to the bus before anyone has had time to experience anything real.
I have taken big tours where I was number 15 of 40. I understand their function. They’ve done the research for you. They are efficient and tick boxes. And I’ve hated every minute of them. The people that are late getting back to the bus. The ones who can’t stop talking. I could go on and on. But have you tried hiring a local guide?
I’ve even managed it a few times on a cruise. A cruise is arguably one of the most logistically constrained travel formats that exists. You have a few hours at best and you fear missing that critical departure time. So you book the expensive ships tour just to make sure. You are not alone.
In Israel, I hired a reliable and recommended local guide instead of the cruise ship option. I gave him the parameters and he handled the rest. No pick up drama. We controlled our own time and we got to see more than either of us ever expected.
He took us to places that were personal to him. Showed us the best viewpoint of the city that the tour buses drove right past and even became our photographer as we floated in the Dead Sea. He took us to his favorite coffee shop and told us stories about the city that no scripted tour could replicate because they were his stories. He answered questions honestly, including the uncomfortable ones, because he had no script to protect.
We had access that no tour bus provides. Not because we were special. Because we asked.
That is the only difference.
A local guide does not need to be expensive or elaborate. In many destinations, a few hours with a knowledgeable local costs less than a resort excursion and delivers significantly more. Platforms like Airbnb Experiences, GetYourGuide and Viator all offer local guide options across most major destinations. Look specifically for guides who lead small group or private tours and read reviews that mention personal connection and off-the-beaten-path access.
Eat Where The Locals Eat
I have already written at length about the strategy behind eating like a local internationally and if you haven’t read that post yet I’d encourage you to. It’s called How to Eat Like a Local When You Travel Internationally. It covers everything from the World’s Best Restaurants list to following the two-block rule that never fails.
Eating where the locals eat is not just about the quality of the meal. It’s about the authenticity of the experiences. To travel like a local, you must act like a local and go the places they go.
In Florence, I stumbled into a tiny restaurant where I’m positive the food was being prepared by someone’s grandma. The menu was handwritten in Italian and there was no English option. A staff member came through to help translate. The table next to us was a family celebrating something. And the food was extraordinary. Bonus, the price was a fraction of anything I saw on the main tourist drag.
But what I remember most is not the food. It was the discovery of local life, enjoying a meal and feeling the energy of that room.
None of it was planned. All of it was possible because I stepped away from the obvious.
Talk To The People Who Actually Live There
This one requires the least planning and delivers some of the most profound results. Talk to residents. Not just hospitality staff.
There is a meaningful difference between the warmth of someone whose job is to make you comfortable and the warmth of someone who simply lives there and has no professional obligation to you whatsoever. And it’ not hard. Walk into a shop and have a meaningful conversation with the associate. Or speak to the cashier when you are out buying a bottle of water. Look people in the eye and make a connection.
More often than not, you’ll find there is a genuine willingness to help. To stop, to share details about the country or direct you to some place they love. Not because you are a visitor but because that is the culture. They have no reason to help other than the fact that you are there and they are there and that is apparently enough.
You will not find that inside a resort. You cannot manufacture it. It only happens when you step outside the walls and into real life.
That is true of every destination on earth.
The resort gives you a destination. The people give you the place.
My Perspective
After more than 60 countries, the trips that I speak about the most are almost never the ones with the most impressive resort or the most famous landmarks. It’s actually the ones where I genuinely made a connection with the destination.
A beer festival in Japan I stumbled into. A personalized wine tasting experience at an off the radar vineyard in South Africa where we sampled wine straight from the barrel. A local guide in Israel who told me things about his city that no tour script would ever include. A random afternoon in Florence where I was just a person eating lunch in someone else’s ordinary life.
None of those moments required a large budget. None required special access or elaborate planning. They required only the decision to position myself differently. To stay inside the destination rather than adjacent to it, to ask the person who lives there rather than the person paid to help me.
That decision is available to you on every trip. In every destination. At every budget level. A resort will always be an option. But finding the heart of the destination will only show itself when you seek it out. That’s how you travel like a local.
Want to go deeper on international travel strategy? Read:
- How to Eat Like a Local When You Travel Internationally — the full culinary strategy including the World’s Best Restaurants list
- What I No Longer Tolerate When I Travel — the standards that protect your energy, money and enjoyment
- The First 48 Hours of International Travel — how the decisions you make when you land set the tone for everything that follows
- Simplifying Travel Planning — how to research and plan your international trip without getting overwhelmed
FAQs About Experiencing A Destination Beyond The Resort
How do I find authentic accommodation like a Riad or Ryokan when traveling internationally? Search Airbnb, Expedia.com or destination-specific platforms using traditional property type names rather than generic hotel searches. Terms like “Riad Morocco,” “Ryokan Japan,” “Trullo Italy” or “Masseria” in Puglia will surface options that standard searches miss. Read reviews specifically for comments about neighborhood access and local immersion.
Is it safe to explore outside the resort when traveling internationally? Safety varies significantly by destination, neighborhood and time of day and requires honest research specific to where you are going rather than a blanket answer. Research your specific destination thoroughly before you arrive, ask your accommodation for neighborhood-specific guidance and use common sense about timing and solo versus group exploration. The goal is informed confidence, not recklessness.
How do I find a reputable local guide for international travel? Platforms like Airbnb Experiences, GetYourGuide and Viator all offer vetted local guide options across most major international destinations. Look for guides who offer private or small group tours and read reviews specifically for mentions of personal stories, off-the-beaten-path access and genuine local knowledge — not just logistical efficiency. Booking a guide for even a half day in a new destination is one of the highest value investments you can make in your travel experience.
What if I still want the convenience of a resort but want more authentic experiences? Use the resort as your base and venture out deliberately. Hire a local guide for one day of your trip. Identify one neighborhood restaurant per day using the strategies in my culinary travel post. Talk to people you encounter outside the resort grounds. The authentic experience doesn’t require abandoning comfort — it requires leaving the property with intention.
📍 Watch this week’s Travel Tip Tuesday reel for the 60-second version: How to Upgrade Your Travel Experience
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