Photo by Jaako

There’s a good reason many of us take an mp3 player with us when we travel. Music can transport us-back home, away from an overcrowded bus, or through a restless night.

Music helps us connect to others-to fellow travelers who might share our taste in songs and to locals who might not speak our language but can carry the rhythm.

For those of us with gypsy blood, music can speak to who we are and why it is that we can never seem to settle down. Music engenders a desire to see a new place, or to travel simply for the joy of the journey.

In the few minutes that a song lasts, the ember of wanderlust inside us can be stoked into a bonfire that can’t be ignored. Suddenly, we’re inspired to earn that money, book that flight, pack that bag–do whatever it takes to get back on the road.

So here I present thirty songs that best capture the spirit of travel.

Go ahead and load up your mp3 player, slip on your earphones, and crank up the tunes. Who knows where these songs will take you.

Songs About Place

Certain songs take you immediately to a specific place. They precisely capture somewhere you’ve been or inspire you to plan a trip to the locale forever locked in lyrics.

Other songs don’t name names, but in your mind, the place evoked by the tune is so exact you have no doubt what town, city, or country the singer is crooning about…until you meet another traveler who pictures an entirely different place every time that song is played.

1. Carolina in My Mind by James Taylor

Who doesn’t see that Carolina sunshine or feel that moonshine when this classic comes through the speakers? I certainly hear “the highway calling” each time this song appears on my play list.

2. Marrakesh Express by Crosby, Stills, and Nash

The vivid imagery of this song–colored cottons, charming cobras–brings this famed Moroccan city right to life. Can you resist its call?

3. Africa by Toto

Come on, I couldn’t leave this one off, could I? It’s classic.

4. Katmandu by Cat Stevens

Strange and bewildering is certainly one way to describe this town. If you’ve been there, I’m sure you can think of many other fitting adjectives.

5. Graceland by Paul Simon

On the surface, sure, it’s a song about Memphis, but I think we all have our own Graceland, that place where we go for reasons we can’t explain, with the hope of being well received.

6. We Danced Anyway by Deana Carter

In each of our histories, there’s that “happy little foreign town,” where we danced, laughed, and were in love with every minute of every day. It’s the place we find a way to go back to time and again, even if just in our memories.

7. Where the Streets Have No Name by U2

It’s the town not in any guidebook, the one you found when you got off the train at the wrong stop or surreptitiously shared a hostel room with someone who had just come from there. It’s the restaurant without a sign, the guestroom tucked away in a back alley, the beach you’ll never be able to find again…but will always remember.

Songs About How To Travel

A common maxim reminds us that it’s not the destination, but the journey that matters. If it’s about the journey, then the method of transportation is important.

By boat, by train, by foot, by car…the manner in which we travel plays a large role in the way in which we experience the world.

8. Proud Mary by CCR

Is it possible to listen to this song and not want to give up that “good job in the city” to “hitch a ride on a river boat queen”? Whether it’s on the Mississippi, the Amazon, the Nile, the Ganges, or some smaller, quieter river, boats are a great throwback way to travel.

9. City of New Orleans by Arlo Guthrie

I’m not sure you can call yourself a traveler if you’ve never made at least one trip by train, passing time playing cards with friends and watching the world pass outside your window.

Songs About the Reasons We Travel

We each have our private reasons for taking a trip, but there are common themes that link travelers.

Often we journey in search of something–ourselves, love, adventure, understanding, the place we belong. Sometimes we go simply because we can’t stand to stay where we are or because of an almost desperate urge for movement.

And in some cases, there is no reason. We travel simply because we are travelers.

Photo by Colin Gregory Palmer

10. Time to Move On by Tom Petty

Stay in one place too long and sometimes it really seems that you can feel the grass growing underfoot. That’s when you know for certain that it’s time to move on.

11. The World at Large by Modest Mouse

With the changing of seasons comes a desire for a change of scenery. The migrating instinct awakes in our souls.

12. America by Simon & Garfunkel

While every trip might be a search for somewhere new or different, it’s also true that every journey away from home is an opportunity to better understand the place from which we come.

13. Taking the Long Way Around by the Dixie Chicks

You have them – the friends who stayed at home and settled down. You look at their lives and can’t imagine finding happiness that way. They, on the other hand, look at your life and wonder why you always have to take “the long way around.” Different strokes, right?

14. The River by Garth Brooks

Some people are content to sit on the shorelines, but those of us who travel know that we’ve got to get out there and chance the rapids, dance in the tides, and follow the dream wherever it leads.

15. Fly Away from Here by Aerosmith

As Steven Tyler sings, “our hopes and dreams are out there somewhere.” We can stay where we are and hope our dreams come to us or we can go out and find that better place. I’m not seeing much of a choice here.

16. Free Bird by Lynrd Skynrd

If you live for that feeling of freedom that comes with arriving in a destination where no one knows you, there’s nothing in the world that can hold you down.

17. Ramble On by Led Zeppelin

Is it love that we’re all looking for as we ramble on? Maybe… though not necessarily romantic love. Love of a place, love of a time, love of life itself.

18. Here I Go Again by Whitesnake

Sometimes the road is lonely and the destination isn’t always clear, but the dream is always big enough to compel us to walk down that road time and time again.

19. Ramblin’ Man by the Allman Brothers

Trying to explain why you travel to those who’d rather stay in one place is often futile. You’re coming from places too far apart, so sometimes the best answer (and maybe the true answer) is simply that you were “born a ramblin’ man.”

Songs that Capture the Joy of Travel

At the end of the day, what most often inspires us to go is the ecstasy of travel, pure and simple. The frustrations of airports, the struggles with packing, and the tedium of days spent working all fade away when you set off on your journey.

Photo by Ash

20. Changes in Latitude, Changes in Attitude by Jimmy Buffett

Who hasn’t scanned the departures at the airport and recalled all the places that they’ve already been and made plans for the places still to be explored?

21. On the Road Again by Willie Nelson

Going places that you’ve never been, seeing things that you’ve never seen, making music with your friends…isn’t that what travel is all about?

22. A Good Day to Run by Darryl Worley

The only question this song leaves to ponder is: what day isn’t a good day to run?

23. Roam by the B-52’s

Fly the skies, see the seas, run around all the continents. Go ahead, roam without a care.

24. Come Away With Me by Norah Jones

I’m not sure it’s possible to resist this siren’s call to walk with her in yellow-grassed fields, to stand with her atop a mountain, to lie with her under a tin roof in the rain. It’s travel the romantic way.

25. Fly Away by Lenny Kravitz

Just think of all the places you would visit if you could fly, taking off with every whim. And travel without the hassle of the airport…I’m not sure it gets better than that.

26. Life is a Highway by Tom Cochrane

Windows down, gas tank full, an open road in front of you. This song demands that you sing along as you see the world from behind the wheel.

27. Wherever I May Roam by Metallica

When you’re able to find home on the road, you know that you’ve reached a new level of travel and you no longer care how the world defines you.

28. I’ve Been Everywhere by Johnny Cash

Though I’ve yet to actually meet anyone who can claim they’ve been everywhere, there certainly are a lot of people trying. Regardless of whether you like to hit as many spots as you can or take it slow and easy through one place, rambling through the many places listed in this song is always fun.

29. King of the Road by Roger Miller

Everybody wants to be king of something, and if you’re a traveler, there’s no better kingdom than the road.

30. Around the World by the Red Hot Chili Peppers

No arguing here. Life is indeed beautiful all around the world.

What songs would you add to the list? Share your picks in the comments!

Not only does he make you laugh, but he’s also just as enamored as you are with hopping around the globe in search of amazing adventures. No longer will you be working the long-distance relationship; instead you’ll now be part of a traveling twosome.

Sounds fantastic, doesn’t it? That is, until you find yourself not speaking on a twelve-hour bus ride or fighting your way up Kilimanjaro. There’s nothing like cancelled flights, squat toilets, overcrowded minibuses, or simply being stressed out in an unfamiliar place to expose our worst traits.

A week into a trip you might find the considerate gentleman you left home with has been replaced by someone less patient, more churlish, and a good deal smellier.

But don’t fret. Traveling as a twosome can be wonderful.

You’ll have someone to watch your stuff while you run around bargaining for a cab, someone to keep you warm in that tent on Kilimanjaro, and someone to commiserate with when that long-distance bus replays the world’s worst Bollywood film for the third time.

With the following advice in mind and the perfect partner in tow, you’ll find that the best way to see the world is together.

1. Pick A Destination That You Will Both Enjoy

Whether you have one week or one year, you don’t want to waste your time in a not-so-perfect place. Problem is, when traveling with your partner, defining the perfect place isn’t always easy.

You might be thinking white sands and turquoise waters. He, on the other hand, is imagining imposing mountains. You want art. He wants adventure. What to do?

First off, make individual lists of the top five places you’d like to go. If you’re lucky, you’ll both be eager to see at least one of the same places.

Not happening? Discuss what draws you to the places on your lists. Maybe you’ve picked different places, but your goals are similar. Still not even close to wanting the same thing? Then it’s time to get creative while remembering the golden rule of partnership-compromise.

There’s hardly a destination in the world where you can’t combine multiple interests. Egypt might immediately bring to mind thoughts of ancient history, but don’t forget the fine beaches of the Red Sea. In Chile, you can get active in Patagonia, then relax with fine wines in the Lake District.

2. Split Responsibilities

Nobody likes to think of travel as being work, but you’ll need to book flights and accommodations, figure out how to handle your money, and determine what to do with the house, the dog, and everything else being left behind.

While one of you may naturally be more of a planner, it’s not fair for one person to shoulder all the responsibilities. Figure out a way to share the load.

If you’re going to multiple cities, consider assigning all responsibilities related to that location to one person. You be the expert on Thailand, while he handles Vietnam. Or you handle hotels and let him book the flights.

How you split up responsibility isn’t as important as doing it.

3. Say Goodbye Every Once In A While

No matter how awesome your partner is, spending all day, every day with him (or her) can be a bit much. All those cute little things he does can, after too much togetherness, easily become big annoying things. So give yourselves a break.

Instead of dragging him through an art museum he’ll ruin with his whining, spend an afternoon alone, while he catches a soccer game in which you have zero interest.

On a longer trip, such as a year-long round the world adventure, consider splitting up for a week or two. You can go on that bike tour you’ve been eyeing while he learns to scuba dive.

The time apart will make future time together all the sweeter.

4. Make New Friends

At home, you don’t rely solely on each other for entertainment, so why do it on the road?

Part of the joy of travel is meeting new people, but it’s often harder to do so when you’re traveling with a partner, so go out of your way to be open and approachable.

Stay at a hostel (many offer private double rooms) where you can mingle with other travelers in the common room. Chat up a stranger at the bar. Book a one-day tour.

Once others realize that you’re interested in connecting, you won’t have any trouble making friends. Then, when that wonderful partner of yours is about to make you lose your mind, you’ll have someone else to hang out with until you can remember why you fell for him in the first place.

What tips do you have for couples on the road? Share in the comments!

Theresa Dowell Blackinton is a freelance writer and frequent traveler. In 2008 she will put her relationship tips to the test when she hits the road with her husband for a one year trip around the world. Visit her website, Lives of Wander, to follow along on their journey.