--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The travel impulse is mental and physical…" description: "\"The travel impulse is mental and physical curiosity. It's a passion. And I can't understand people who don't want to travel.\" — Paul Theroux" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6b9/paul-theroux-913_curiosity_the-travel-impulse-is-mental-and-physica_2594319.jpg" --- # The travel impulse is mental and physical curiosity. It's… ![“The travel impulse is mental and physical curiosity. It's a passion. And I can't understand people who don't want to travel.” quote by Paul Theroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6b9/paul-theroux-913_curiosity_the-travel-impulse-is-mental-and-physica_2594319.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6b9/paul-theroux-913_curiosity_the-travel-impulse-is-mental-and-physica_2594319.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6b9/paul-theroux-913_curiosity_the-travel-impulse-is-mental-and-physica_2594319.jpg) > “The travel impulse is mental and physical curiosity. It's a passion. And I can't understand people who don't want to travel.” [Paul Theroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-theroux/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Travel stems from curiosity, both mental and physical, and is essential to some. **In simple terms:** Travel is driven by curiosity. Key Takeaway Embrace curiosity, travel. Themes exploration curiosity adventure Mood inspired energetic Type motivational philosophical When to use this quote - planning trips - overcoming fear - budget travel Key Concepts cultural immersion personal growth Questions to Reflect On - What fuels your desire to explore? - How does curiosity shape your journeys? A Different Perspective Travel may not be feasible for everyone. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Curiosity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/curiosity/) [Passion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/passion/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Travel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/travel/) ## Related quotes > [I think I still have that same drive and determination, the same curiosity and passion for filmmaking that I did when I first started.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-kopple/i-think-i-still-have-that-same-drive-and-determination-the-same/) Barbara Kopple > [Interest refers to student’s affinity, curiosity, or passion for a particular topic or skill.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carol-ann-tomlinson/interest-refers-to-student-s-affinity-curiosity-or-passion-for-a/) [Carol Ann Tomlinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carol-ann-tomlinson/) > [These are the sort of things that push you on in music - the curiosity, a passion for new ideas.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elvis-costello/these-are-the-sort-of-things-that-push-you-on-in-music-the-curiosity/) [Elvis Costello](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elvis-costello/) > [The source of sexual power is curiosity, passion. You are watching its little flame die of asphyxiation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anais-nin/the-source-of-sexual-power-is-curiosity-passion-you-are-watching-its/) [Anais Nin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anais-nin/) > [No one has ever described the place where I have just arrived: this is the emotion that makes me want to travel. It is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-theroux/no-one-has-ever-described-the-place-where-i-have-just-arrived-this-is/) [Paul Theroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-theroux/) > [I want to travel the world but I also want to stay home on my bed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-want-to-travel-the-world-but-i-also-want-to-stay-home-on-my-bed/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I am very spoilt and want my travel to be smooth and peaceful. I don't like to rough it out, and I certainly do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sushmita-sen/i-am-very-spoilt-and-want-my-travel-to-be-smooth-and-peaceful-i-don-t/) [Sushmita Sen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sushmita-sen/) > [I would want to travel the world and write about it. To be a famous writer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shantel-vansanten/i-would-want-to-travel-the-world-and-write-about-it-to-be-a-famous/) [Shantel VanSanten](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shantel-vansanten/) > [I wasn't able to see my son as much as I wanted. I thought it would be easy living on my own, do what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/danny-drinkwater/i-wasn-t-able-to-see-my-son-as-much-as-i-wanted-i-thought-it-would-be/) [Danny Drinkwater](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/danny-drinkwater/) > [Do we really want to travel in hermetically sealed popemobiles through the rural provinces of France, Mexico and the Far East, eating only in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-bourdain/do-we-really-want-to-travel-in-hermetically-sealed-popemobiles/) [Anthony Bourdain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-bourdain/) > [I don't want to travel around this world and have these kids treat me like I'm someone they're not, because I'm not doing anything…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mod-sun/i-don-t-want-to-travel-around-this-world-and-have-these-kids-treat-me/) [Mod Sun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mod-sun/) > [For me they go hand in hand. When I travel it makes me want to write, when I read it makes me want to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-dalrymple/for-me-they-go-hand-in-hand-when-i-travel-it-makes-me-want-to-write/) [William Dalrymple](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-dalrymple/) > [When I was younger, I had a horrible flight. Horrible. It was well before I was 10 years old. So I always thought to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-5/when-i-was-younger-i-had-a-horrible-flight-horrible-it-was-well/) [John 5](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-5/) > [I want to travel. Maybe I'll end up living in Norway, making cakes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eva-green/i-want-to-travel-maybe-i-ll-end-up-living-in-norway-making-cakes/) [Eva Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eva-green/) > [We want to reach the kingdom of God, but we don't want to travel by way of death. And yet there stands Necessity saying:…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/augustine/we-want-to-reach-the-kingdom-of-god-but-we-don-t-want-to-travel-by/) [Augustine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/augustine/) ## More by Paul Theroux > [I feel as if my mission is to write, to see, to observe, and I feel lazy if I'm not reaching conclusions. I feel…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-theroux/i-feel-as-if-my-mission-is-to-write-to-see-to-observe-and-i-feel-lazy/) [Paul Theroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-theroux/) > [The larger an English industry was, the more likely it was to go bankrupt, because the English were not naturally corporate people; they disliked…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-theroux/the-larger-an-english-industry-was-the-more-likely-it-was-to-go/) [Paul Theroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-theroux/) > [Maine out of season is unmistakably a great destination: hospitable, good-humored, plenty of elbow room, short days, dark nights of crackling ice crystals.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-theroux/maine-out-of-season-is-unmistakably-a-great-destination-hospitable/) [Paul Theroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-theroux/) > [You can't write about a friend, you can only write about a former friend.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-theroux/you-can-t-write-about-a-friend-you-can-only-write-about-a-former/) [Paul Theroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-theroux/) > [“sightseeing, an activity that delights the truly idle because it seems so much like scholarship, gawping and eavesdropping on antiquity, flattering oneself with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-theroux/sightseeing-an-activity-that-delights-the-truly-idle-because-it-seems/) [Paul Theroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-theroux/) > [The Australian Book of Etiquette is a very slim volume.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-theroux/the-australian-book-of-etiquette-is-a-very-slim-volume/) [Paul Theroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-theroux/) > [Tourists who go to Africa have more of a traditional experience than Africans do. A tourist goes on safari; Africans don't.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-theroux/tourists-who-go-to-africa-have-more-of-a-traditional-experience-than/) [Paul Theroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-theroux/) > [In a way, Che Guevara's fate was far worse than Simon Bolivar's. Guevara's collapse was complete: his intentions were forgotten, but his style was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-theroux/in-a-way-che-guevara-s-fate-was-far-worse-than-simon-bolivar-s/) [Paul Theroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-theroux/) > [It is the simplest fact of Indian life: there are too many Indians.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-theroux/it-is-the-simplest-fact-of-indian-life-there-are-too-many-indians/) [Paul Theroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-theroux/) > [Pain does not create a long-lasting memory, but the memory of luxury exerts itself for ever.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-theroux/pain-does-not-create-a-long-lasting-memory-but-the-memory-of-luxury/) [Paul Theroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-theroux/) > [When I began to make some money, I really wanted to have a home.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-theroux/when-i-began-to-make-some-money-i-really-wanted-to-have-a-home/) [Paul Theroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-theroux/) > [Men in their late 50s often make very bad decisions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-theroux/men-in-their-late-50s-often-make-very-bad-decisions/) [Paul Theroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-theroux/) > [The wish to disappear sends many travelers away. If you are thoroughly sick of being kept waiting at home or at work, travel is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-theroux/the-wish-to-disappear-sends-many-travelers-away-if-you-are-thoroughly/) [Paul Theroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-theroux/) > [To a lot of Africans, seeing an animal is a something of a rarity. So it's a paradox of this sort of parallel life.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-theroux/to-a-lot-of-africans-seeing-an-animal-is-a-something-of-a-rarity-so/) [Paul Theroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-theroux/) > [The wish to travel seems to me characteristically human: the desire to move, to satisfy your curiosity or ease your fears, to change the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-theroux/the-wish-to-travel-seems-to-me-characteristically-human-the-desire-to/) [Paul Theroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-theroux/) [Explore all 328 Paul Theroux quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-theroux/) ## More Curiosity quotes > [I'm a strange mixture of my mother's curiosity; my father, who grew up the son of the manse in a Presbyterian family, who had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rupert-murdoch/i-m-a-strange-mixture-of-my-mother-s-curiosity-my-father-who-grew-up/) [Rupert Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rupert-murdoch/) > [“Metal makes everything magical. Just ask a unicorn.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sybrina-durant/metal-makes-everything-magical-just-ask-a-unicorn/) [Sybrina Durant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sybrina-durant/) > [ We have no clear ideas of the agency of \[demonic\] spirits, nor is it necessary. The Scripture says little to satisfy our curiosity; but… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-newton/we-have-no-clear-ideas-of-the-agency-of-demonic-spirits-nor-is-it/) [John Newton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-newton/) > [The four Cs of making dreams come true: Curiosity, Courage, Consistency, Confidence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-disney/the-four-cs-of-making-dreams-come-true-curiosity-courage-consistency/) [Walt Disney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-disney/) > [Curiosity Can Kill.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anison/curiosity-can-kill/) [Anison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anison/) > [“So curious you must be. Like little calves poking their heads through the fence with big eyes and a headful of curiosity.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carew-papritz/so-curious-you-must-be-like-little-calves-poking-their-heads-through/) [Carew Papritz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carew-papritz/) > [ “\[T\]he question "What is everything?" has no meaning, even though it seems to be profound. \[...\] The point is, perhaps, that I am not… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-w-watts/t-he-question-what-is-everything-has-no-meaning-even-though-it-seems/) [Alan W. Watts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-w-watts/) > [ By profession a biologist, \[Thomas Henry Huxley\] covered in fact the whole field of the exact sciences, and then bulged through its four fences.… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-l-mencken/by-profession-a-biologist-thomas-henry-huxley-covered-in-fact-the/) [H. L. Mencken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-l-mencken/) > [How do we know that we have a right to kill creatures that we are so little above, as dogs, for our curiosity or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-pope/how-do-we-know-that-we-have-a-right-to-kill-creatures-that-we-are-so/) [Alexander Pope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-pope/) > [Be curious not judge mental](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/unknow/be-curious-not-judge-mental/) Unknow > [There is nothing so carking as the pangs of unsatisfied curiosity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gertrude-atherton/there-is-nothing-so-carking-as-the-pangs-of-unsatisfied-curiosity/) [Gertrude Atherton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gertrude-atherton/) > [Curiosity is the essence of human existence. 'Who are we? Where are we? Where do we come from? Where are we going?'... I don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/curiosity-is-the-essence-of-human-existence-who-are-we-where-are-we/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Sometimes curiosity is a poison, not only for those who drink it but for everyone around it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-norman-lippert/sometimes-curiosity-is-a-poison-not-only-for-those-who-drink-it-but/) [G. Norman Lippert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-norman-lippert/) > [As long as your curiosity is greater than your fear, you will move forward!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/as-long-as-your-curiosity-is-greater-than-your-fear-you-will-move/) [Mehmet Murat Ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/) > [Curiosity may have killed the cat, but it sure has earned a lot of people graduate degrees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robyn-irving/curiosity-may-have-killed-the-cat-but-it-sure-has-earned-a-lot-of/) Robyn Irving [Browse all 2,721 Curiosity quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/curiosity/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The travel impulse is mental and physical curiosity. It's a passion. 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