LexTalk

  I don’t think the best way to meet people while traveling is to walk into a crowded bar and announce:
“HELLO. I’M VISITING AND CURRENTLY ACCEPTING APPLICATIONS FOR NEW FRIENDS.”

Although…
That would certainly be memorable.
For me, meeting people while traveling has always felt better when it happens naturally.
You sit somewhere.
You start talking.
Someone recommends a restaurant.
A bartender tells you about a weird piece of local history.
Someone on your tour mentions another place you absolutely have to visit.
And suddenly, a person who was a complete stranger five minutes ago has changed some tiny part of your trip.

That’s the kind of connection I love.

Go Where the Locals Go

This is probably my biggest piece of advice.

If you want to experience a place — and meet some of the people who actually live there — get away from the places designed exclusively for tourists once in a while.

Find the local restaurant.

The neighborhood bar.

The coffee shop that’s been there forever.

The farmers market.

The little downtown.

The place where everyone seems to know the bartender’s name.

Those are my favorite places anyway.

I love finding the little local food joint that doesn’t necessarily look impressive from the outside…

but the parking lot is packed.

That’s usually a sign. 

And once you’re there?

Talk to people.

Sit at the Bar

This is one of my favorite little travel tricks.

If I’m somewhere with my husband and we’re grabbing food or drinks, sitting at the bar can be so much more social than sitting alone at a table.

You naturally end up talking to the bartender.
Sometimes you start chatting with the people sitting beside you.
And bartenders can be absolute gold mines of local information.

Ask:
“Where would you eat if you only had one night here?”

Or:

“What’s something around here tourists usually miss?”

And, naturally, my personal favorite:
“Okay… what’s haunted?”

That’s how you get the good stuff.

Not necessarily the answer sitting at the top of a search result.

The weird story.

The restaurant somebody’s grandmother has been going to for 40 years.

The creepy hotel.

The little hidden spot you’d never know existed.

Do Something You’re Actually Interested In

This might be the easiest way to meet people without feeling like you’re trying to meet people.

Book an experience.
Take the ghost tour.
Go on the historic walking tour.
Try the food tour.
Visit the winery.
Join the excursion.
Take the hike.
Go to the local festival.

Whatever sounds fun to you.
Because now you’re surrounded by people who voluntarily signed up for the exact same oddly specific activity.

Conversation becomes pretty easy.

If we’re both standing outside a supposedly haunted building at 10 p.m. waiting to see whether a ghost wants to communicate…

we already have something to talk about.

And even if you don’t walk away with a lifelong friendship, you might spend the next two hours laughing and talking with people you would’ve never met otherwise.

That’s pretty cool.

Ask People Questions

People usually love talking about the places they call home.
So, ask.

What’s your favorite restaurant?
What’s this town known for?
Where should we grab breakfast tomorrow?
Is there somewhere nearby we shouldn’t miss?
What’s something tourists always get wrong about this place?
Where do locals actually hang out?

I’ve found that one question often turns into five recommendations.

Then somebody else overhears the conversation and says:

“Oh no, don’t go there. You need to go to THIS place.”

And suddenly you’ve accidentally started a town meeting.

Those conversations are part of what makes traveling fun.

Put Your Phone Down Sometimes

This one is hard.

Trust me.

I’m taking pictures.
I’m making videos.
I’m looking something up.
I’m checking directions.
I’m figuring out where we’re going next.

Our phones are incredibly useful when we’re traveling.

But sometimes.. put it down.

Look around.
Make eye contact.

Listen to what’s happening around you.

People are much more likely to start a conversation when you don’t look completely absorbed in a screen.

And you might notice something you would’ve missed.

Don’t Force It

This might be the most important part.

You don’t need to leave every vacation with six new contacts in your phone.

Not every conversation needs to become a friendship.

Some people are only meant to exist in your life for ten minutes.

And I actually think there’s something kind of beautiful about that.

Maybe it’s the bartender who tells you where to eat dinner.
Maybe it’s another traveler who tells you about a place they visited yesterday.
Maybe it’s an older couple sitting beside you who tells you they’ve been coming to this town every anniversary for 30 years.
Maybe it’s somebody on a ghost tour who makes you laugh the entire night.

You might never see them again.
But now they’re part of that memory.

Be Curious

I think curiosity is one of the best things you can pack when you travel.

Curiosity about the food.
The history.
The buildings.
The ghost stories.
The culture.

And especially…
the people.

Everyone you meet knows something you don’t.

They have stories.

They’ve been places.

They’ve experienced things.

And sometimes all it takes to hear one of those stories is asking a question.

The People Become Part of the Place

When I think back on trips, I don’t only remember what I saw.

I remember conversations.

The person who gave us a recommendation.

The bartender who told us a story.

The stranger we laughed with.

The person who made a place feel a little more welcoming.

Those tiny interactions add texture to a trip.

They make a city feel less like somewhere you visited…
and more like somewhere you experienced.

So, if you want to meet people while traveling?

Go where the locals go.
Sit at the bar.
Book the weird tour.
Ask questions.
Put your phone down every once in a while.
Be friendly.
Be curious.

And don’t worry about whether every conversation turns into a friendship.

Because maybe the best way to meet people while traveling isn’t trying to collect new friends everywhere you go.

It’s being open enough to let strangers become part of the story.