12 Lies You Tell Yourself While Traveling

Caroline Morse Teel is the Managing Editor for SmarterTravel Media. Follow her on Instagram @TravelWithCaroline.

Caroline joined Boston-based SmarterTravel in 2011 after living in Ireland, London, and Manhattan. She's traveled to all seven continents, jumped out of planes, and bungeed off bridges in the pursuit of a good story. She loves exploring off-the-beaten path destinations, anything outdoorsy, and all things adventure.

Her stories have also appeared online at USA Today, Business Insider, Huffington Post, Yahoo, Boston.com, TripAdvisor, Buzzfeed, Jetsetter, Oyster, Airfarewatchdog, and others.

The Handy Item I Always Pack: "Earplugs. A good pair has saved my sleep and sanity many times!"

Ultimate Bucket List Experience: Hiking Mount Kilimanjaro.

Travel Motto: "Don't be boring."

Aisle, Window, or Middle Seat: "Aisle (when the first class private suite isn't available)."

E-mail her at cteel@smartertravel.com.

See recent posts by Caroline Morse Teel

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We all do it sometimes—tell ourselves little white lies while traveling. Some of them are designed to make us feel better about our choices, and some are just delusions we choose to believe out of convenience (even if we know deep down that they’re not true). How many of these lies do you make yourself believe when you’re traveling?

12 Lies You Tell Yourself While Traveling

I Burned Off All That Food by Walking Around

“I must have walked for miles today. That totally justifies this pizza, beer, and ice cream dinner that I’m about to demolish. I mean, I’m probably going to lose weight because I’m getting so much exercise on this trip!”

This Bag Is Totally Carry-on Sized

“I can’t really lift it, and the zippers are hanging on for dear life since it’s so overstuffed, but it’s totally going to fit in the bag sizer at the airport. Man, I’m such an awesome packer.”

I Don’t Need a Hotel, I’ll Sleep on the Plane/Bus/Train

“Let’s see, if I get the overnight bus between cities, that takes nine hours. I’ll instantly fall asleep the minute I get onboard, and I’ll sleep deeply sitting upright and surrounded by strangers. I’ll wake up refreshed after a solid eight hours of sleep and will be rejuvenated and ready to explore my new destination as soon as I get there! I’m so much smarter than all those suckers who pay for an extra night in a hotel.”

I Won’t Check My Work E-mail

“I’ve got that out of office message on, and I’m not checking in until I’m back in the office! Except my boss needed an answer on that one project, and I’m not sure that the other project is getting taken care of…”

This 6:00 a.m. Flight Won’t Be So Bad

“It’s $100 less to take the early flight instead of one that leaves at a respectable time. I’ll just go to bed super early and have everything packed and ready to go the night before, so getting up at 3:00 a.m. to get to the airport two hours ahead of time won’t be a problem at all!”

This Hotel Duvet Has Totally Been Washed

“I’ve read all those news stories about hotel duvets being reused without being washed, but this roadside motel looks pretty legit, and I’m sure that stain is just a part of the pattern. I’m going to snuggle up under it and tell myself that it’s been washed recently.”

Of Course I’ll Wear This

“I’m definitely going to need this [swimsuit/pair of heels/fancy dress/out-of-season piece of clothing] on this trip. I mean, what if I get invited to a last-minute pool party/black-tie gala and I don’t have anything to wear?”

We Won’t Spend Any Time in the Hotel Anyway

“We’re going to be spending all of our time out and about exploring, not holed up in the hotel room, so booking this fleabag hotel to save a few bucks won’t have any impact on the quality of our trip at all!”

These Shoes Won’t Give Me Blisters

“I mean I just bought them yesterday, but they’re really cute and I’m sure they won’t give me blisters after wearing them on a day-long walk.” See also: “These flip-flops are a very practical choice for a walk around a city!”

It Won’t Be That Cold

“Sure, the forecast is in the 50s, but that’s practically the 60s, which is kind of warm. And I’ll be walking around all day, so I’ll heat up and won’t need to bring a jacket.”

I’ll Only Spend X Amount

“Okay, if I go to the ATM just once at the beginning of the trip and take out exactly $100, I won’t spend any more than that while I’m here.”

I Won’t Get on Social Media the Whole Time

“I’m so tired of constantly being on Facebook/Instagram/Snapchat. I’m going to use this trip as a time to unplug from technology and just be present! Except this train ride is really boring and they have Wi-Fi…”

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Caroline Morse is a Senior Editor with SmarterTravel. Follow her adventures around the world on Instagram TravelWithCaroline and on Twitter @CarolineMorse1.

Editor’s note: This story was originally published in 2016. It has been updated to reflect the most current information.

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