🌍✈️ May 7 – National Tourism Day: Wanderlust Without the Jet Lag 🧳🏖️
Let’s be honest—sometimes the best kind of travel is the kind that doesn’t require TSA lines, neck pillows, or trying to decode hotel shower knobs. But on National Tourism Day, we’re giving major ✨main character energy✨ to the spirit of exploration—whether you're racking up passport stamps or just touring your own weird little town.
This holiday is part of National Travel and Tourism Week, a celebration started in 1983 by the U.S. Congress (yes, they do occasionally agree on fun things). It’s all about shining a spotlight on the joy, culture, and pure magic that travel brings to our lives—and the industries that make it happen.
So whether you're a globetrotter with frequent flyer miles or a homebody with a fierce love for your local coffee shop’s croissants, this day is for you.
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Just so you know, this post may contain affiliate links. That means if you click through and buy something, I might earn a tiny commission—enough to keep the lights on and maybe snag a celebratory cupcake. It doesn’t cost you anything extra, pinky promise.
🧭 10+ Delightfully Unusual Ways to Celebrate National Tourism Day
Be a tourist in your own town 🏘️
Pretend you just landed in your hometown with fresh eyes. Take a cheesy selfie in front of a local landmark. Buy a postcard. Ask your neighbor for “insider recommendations.” Wear a fanny pack. Go full tourist mode.Create a “World Tour” dinner night 🌮🍣🍝
Set up mini food stations from different countries around your home (a.k.a. the “Living Room International Terminal”). One chair = Paris café. The bathroom = Tokyo karaoke bar.Take a Google Earth spin 🌐
Close your eyes, click somewhere random, and then go down the street view rabbit hole. Bonus points if you narrate your “trip” in a fake British accent. If you really want to immerse yourself - try some virtual reality!Book a staycation (and don’t do chores) 🏨🛁
Whether it’s an actual hotel or just your guest bedroom with fresh sheets and tiny soaps, give yourself a night of pampered tourist vibes. No folding laundry allowed. Then, consider booking a REAL vacation using this travel planner!Collect souvenir snow globes... virtually ❄️🌆
Find weird souvenir items from around the world online and make a Pinterest board. Odd magnets, snow globes, or T-shirts that say “I ❤️ Bruges”—the cheesier, the better. You can also collect skylines (I said what I said) using Lego skyline kits!Tour the tourist traps 🐊📸
Make a list of your state’s most hilariously overhyped attractions (World’s Largest Ball of Twine, anyone?) and plan a future road trip. Embrace the kitsch.Write a pretend travel blog post 📝
Invent a destination and describe your “trip.” Maybe you just got back from an island where everyone rides dolphins to work. Bonus: no airport delays or sunburn.Send a postcard... from your driveway 💌
Mail a “Wish You Were Here!” card to a friend with a dramatic description of your suburban safari or thrilling grocery store expedition.Take a themed Zoom background tour 💻🌄
Change your Zoom background every hour to a new destination. Act like you’re reporting live from each one. “Oh yes, the Eiffel Tower is so sparkly this time of year!”Learn how to say “hello” in 10 languages 🌏🗣️
Then, greet your houseplants in each one. They won’t judge your accent. Probably.Make your own passport—for funsies 📓
Stamp it with places you've actually been and imaginary ones. (A quick jaunt to Unicornia? Yes please.)
🎒Fun Fact Detour
🚂 The first guided group tour in history was led by Thomas Cook in 1841. He took 500 folks on a 12-mile train ride for a temperance meeting (so, not exactly spring break in Ibiza, but still historic). Cook pretty much invented modern tourism. So thanks, Tom.
🌐 Theme: "A Passport to Flavor—A Global Tapas Picnic"
Tonight, we’re creating a world tour of small plates. Think of it as a snacky stroll through different cultures, all from your indoor picnic blanket.
🇪🇸 Spanish-Inspired: Patatas Bravas with Smoky Paprika Aioli
Ingredients
2 large russet potatoes, cubed
Olive oil
1 tsp smoked paprika
Salt & pepper
For the aioli:
1/2 cup mayo
1 garlic clove, minced
1/2 tsp smoked paprika
Squeeze of lemon juice
Roast the potatoes at 425°F until crispy. Mix the aioli ingredients and serve it on the side or drizzled like a true tapas bar star.
🇯🇵 Japanese-Inspired: Cucumber & Seaweed Salad
Ingredients
1 cucumber, thinly sliced
1 tbsp dried wakame (rehydrated)
1 tbsp rice vinegar
1 tsp soy sauce
Pinch of sugar + sesame seeds
Light, refreshing, and a little ocean-y—like a breeze off Tokyo Bay.
🇮🇹 Italian-Inspired: Caprese Skewers
Ingredients
Cherry tomatoes
Mozzarella balls
Fresh basil
Balsamic glaze
Thread onto toothpicks and drizzle. Instant Italian vacation.
🇲🇽 Mexican-Inspired: Mini Elote Cups
Ingredients
Corn (fresh or frozen)
Mayo
Cotija cheese
Chili powder
Lime juice
Mix and serve in little cups with a sprinkle of cilantro. Bonus: No corn stuck in your teeth from the cob.
🍹 Drink: Global Sangria Bar (Mocktail or Cocktail)
Base: Sparkling water, white wine, or rosé
Add-ins: Sliced citrus, berries, kiwi, mango, pomegranate seeds
Optional splash: elderflower syrup, fruit juice, or booze
Let guests build their own—like a drinkable world tour.
🕯 Vibes
Lay out a map as a tablecloth
Use mini flags for each dish
Queue up an international playlist - check out our specially curated on on Spotify!
Maybe even hand out “boarding passes” to your guests 😏
🌟 Elementary Classroom Edition
Postcards from Around the World 💌
Students "visit" a country, then write and design a postcard as if they were there. Integrate writing skills and social studies in one swoop! Use these passport stamps for extra flair and the National Geographic Kids World Atlas for research!
🌎 Secondary Classroom Edition
Math of Travel Planning ✈️📊
Use real data: currency exchange rates, travel times, hotel costs, and map distances. Students work in pairs to create and justify a travel budget.
Quirky in the Workplace Edition
Tourist-Inspired Snack Crawl
Set up a global snack station with “international” treats... or just rename regular stuff:
"Swedish" Fish
“Parisian” Croissants (from the gas station)
“Brazilian” Coffee (same as usual, but say it with flair)
🎬 Movie that Embodies National Tourism Day:
The Secret Life of Walter Mitty (2013)
This one's for all the quiet introverts who accidentally turn into globe-trotting legends.
Starts in a gray office.
Ends with him skateboarding through Iceland and scaling mountains.
Includes every dreamy tourist fantasy except that one where you can’t find a clean bathroom.
📸 Vibes: Pinterest-worthy adventure, soul-searching with scenic backdrops, and major “quit your job and buy a backpack” energy.
📺 TV Show Episode that Screams National Tourism Day:
Friends – Season 4, Episodes 23 & 24: “The One with Ross’s Wedding” (Parts I & II)
Because nothing captures the tourist struggle like six Americans awkwardly navigating London:
Joey wears a Union Jack hat and buys every cliché souvenir imaginable.
Rachel tries to interrupt a wedding overseas (as one does).
Ross says “Rachel” at the altar. Iconic. Touristy. Disaster.
🗺️ Vibes: Everything that goes wrong when tourists try to be locals... and fail spectacularly.
🏁 Final Boarding Call…
National Tourism Day isn’t just about crossing borders—it’s about chasing curiosity, finding wonder in the ordinary, and occasionally pretending your cat is your travel buddy named Señor Whiskers from Barcelona. So go explore. Near, far, or just in your imagination. 🌟
🧳 Hashtags for the Road (or the couch):
#NationalTourismDay #WanderFromHome #TouristInMyTown #TravelQuirky #StaycationGoals #PostcardsAndPretending #CelebrateQuirky
