From a psychological perspective, we are paradoxical in our attitudes towards travel.

In some ways we want to go where others go because we are social creatures who want to stay with the tribe. But on the other hand we like to strike out where no-one else has been, find new routes and not be treated like cattle. For we like to differentiate ourselves too, a primal sense linked to the necessity to find a mate by being individual.

But whichever group you belong to, the chances are that you are, at heart and on some levels, a travel snob.

Even when going on holiday with the family on a trip booked through a brochure, most of us like to think of ourselves as a traveller rather than a tourist. Tourists and holiday-makers usually have everything pre-arranged while ‘real’ travellers live in the moment and arrange everything for themselves, but even tourists will try and find some uniqueness in their minds which separates them from the rest of the tourists.

Whatever your level of self-appointed elitism, perhaps it needs a reality check if you find yourself saying that you really are a ‘serious’ traveller, or ‘I would never go there – too touristy’, or argue that a destination is not ‘authentic’ unless you spend a prolonged time there or live there.

If you make a distinction between ‘trips’ and ‘journeys’ by thinking that the latter are in some way risky, arduous and involve deprivation and suffering, you are probably a travel snob.

Or you may say that you aren’t really travelling unless you go to the most remote ‘off-the-beaten-track’ destinations with the nearest human connection days away, or at least believe that travel is more than a commodity, a hedonistic experience, simple escapism, or just plain good fun.  Some say that it’s not really travelling unless you rough it, and cringe every time they see a suitcase.

There are good psychological reasons for not wanting to be part of the tourist herd, but remember the old adage: It is entirely possible to have a thick passport and a narrow mind.

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Annie Gurton is a Psychological Therapist and Counsellor based in Sydney. She has an MA in Psychotherapy, a BSc(Hons) in Psychology and a BS(Hons) in Humanities.  She is a graduate member of the British Psychological Society (MBPsS) and a Clinical Member of CAPA NSW (Counselling And Psychotherapy Association). She has been helping people in emotional pain and difficulties for many years, and is available for sessions in therapy rooms in Manly, Brookvale, Freshwater and North Strathfield, and on Skype and email: www.anniegurton.com+61 423 632 657