Editor’s Letter: The Value of Human Connection When We Travel

The election hit us like a comet just as we were putting this issue to bed, as it did people all over America and the world. I’ll spare you my thoughts on it—you must be sick to death by now of post-election commentary, and anyway, that’s not what you’ve come to this magazine for. But November 5 did make me think about two things that travel can do for us right now. In a way, they seem paradoxical, but maybe that goes to show how powerful travel is.

The first is this: That Great American Road Trip that everyone was taking during the pandemic? We should keep taking it. Look, I’m not naive enough to think that encounters with other Americans are the solution to all the fear and loathing coursing through this country—and I know that, as a straight white guy, I have an easier time rolling up in whatever part of the country I want than many of my fellow travelers do. But I still have to say that, from Western Montana to Midcoast Maine, Minneapolis to Miami, I’ve met people eager to feed me their food, share secrets about the place they’re from, and find out something about what I’m all about too. At a time when America feels divided, human-to-human encounters prove we’re really not.

The second is that it’s okay to use travel as an escape, if you need to. Go forget your cares at an all-inclusive resort, book that trip to see the Great Migration or the northern lights, or just rent an Airbnb on top of a mountain and stare at the stars. Sometimes the most important thing is getting away from everything else.

This article appeared in the January/February 2025 issue of Condé Nast Traveler. Subscribe to the magazine here.