Socially Conscious Traveling for Generation Y
When I was but a young lad, going on road trips often meant La Quinta and quick stops at the McDonalds/Burger King/Whataburger off of the interstate, before getting right back on to the highway.
When Megan and I started discussing plans for our Spring Break vacation, we decided that we wanted to do something a little bit off the beaten path and new to both of us (neither of us have really spent much time out in West Texas). Over the last two summers, I’ve watched Alton Brown’s Feasting on Asphalt, and that has been an inspiration for me. For those unfamiliar with the Food Network mini-series, each summer he goes on a road trip through the United States, visiting mom & pop? local eateries along the way.
After talking through the trip some, we decided to see if we could do the same sort of thing and avoid chain establishment fast food and support independent businesses. I am happy to report that we did pretty well, even with Megan being a vegetarian (which can be difficult when you’re outside of Austin). We also extended that independent mindset to our lodgings - no La Quinta or Holiday Inn for us.
Overall, I think that this sort of approach is reflective of how younger people’s brand? consciousness (and oftentimes, a desire to avoid brands) is different from those that have come before us. The same way that more and more people are supporting independent musicians and other artists, there is a sense that we can do the same for 
other businesses (think about Keep Austin Weird, for example). I think that we got a better feel for the places that we visited by venturing out and getting a feel for what was truly local, and keeping the money that we spent in the local economy, supporting local people.
Here are some tips for how to make socially conscious spending choices when on vacation:
- Avoid the interstates if you can, there generally isn’t going to be anything “local” on the interstate
- If you are on the interstate, and you need a meal, exit into town, but go past all of the McDonalds’ and get into the heart of the town, cruise around for a few minutes if you need to.
- Go where the locals are
- Look where you don’t think tourists are not going to be (i.e. not within sight of the interstate)
- Look for the greasy spoon diner with lots of cars parked in front
- Do your research in advance
- If you’re headed to a small town, go to their Chamber of Commerce website and see what establishments are in town
- Take the time to call around to local non-chains and look for their websites, look for what is the weirdest or most interesting looking place, or maybe the goofiest sounding person on phones
- Don’t cop out and go to Burger King, keep looking around! BK doesn’t need your money like a local place would.
- Ask the local working the front desk at your hotel? about local places to eat - it’s their job to know this sort of thing!
It’s great being able to walk into a dining establishment and talk to the person that made your breakfast, took your order, and owns the place too.
Bonus Tip: If you are going to be in small towns, bring cash - a lot of them don’t take credit cards, something that is a bit weird for us cityfolk.
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