This 17th-century habit completely transformed how I travel

September 8, 2026 — 5:00am

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From the 17th to the 19th centuries young British aristocrats would head off for a “grand tour” of Europe, sometimes spending months meandering between the cities.

One object that was essential for many was a sketchbook or an easel and paints.

Touring was considered an enlightening cultural experience that allowed travellers to soak up European art, considered to be superior to art they found at home.

By sitting for long periods, sketching the classical sculpture and architecture before their eyes and writing detailed diaries at every stop, the grand tourists believed they would get a moral education that would improve their tastes, intellectual habits and manners.

Without cameras, the sketches and paintings served as postcards and ways to pin down memories.

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Just as the camera killed sketching, the selfie killed the appreciation of a monument or artefact for itself. People like to get themselves in the frame.

Since travelling last year with Geelong-based artist Teresa Lawrence, who collaborates with Luxe Sailing on “making art in Greece” tours, I’ve taken a sketchbook and watercolours on every trip.

I find it calming to slow down and draw what I’m seeing, rather than photograph it and file it away with tens of thousands of other images in my phone, never to be looked at again.

I didn’t imagine I would ever have the opportunity in a busy travel schedule to sit and draw, but now I intentionally make time for it, each day if I can. It’s addictive.

Back home, I flip through my little Fabriano notebook and feel so much more connected to the place through my funny little interpretations, rather than the camera’s.

It’s a new skill for me and a source of profound pleasure. I’m not just consuming a thing or place, I’m making something original out of it.

As an antidote to all the fakery we’re swamped with every day, drawing and other crafts can be immensely satisfying.

We tend to think of short holidays, often weekends, as welcome circuit-breakers, a bit of rest and relaxation, sometimes spent with the tribe of family and friends. That’s one kind of travel.

But another kind is using that break as an opportunity to develop a skill, learn a new craft, or practise an art, like drawing, that gives you pleasure.

Longevity experts say it’s essential to challenge your brain throughout your life with unfamiliar tasks to stay sharp, so learning complex tasks such as a new language and a new musical instrument help slow cognitive ageing.

But the one thing people undervalue is the necessity of creative moments in life. Time to dream, time to sing, to make something non-essential like a pottery sculpture or a painting.

So many people feel they don’t have time for this in their lives. And I hear people say they’re not creative when it’s not true. We’re all creative, it’s an essential component of our human makeup. We all have frontal lobes that produce new thoughts.

Being creative simply means putting something new (to you) into the world, whether it’s an idea or a knitted sock.

I’ve noticed that people who have a good life-work balance tend to be the ones who do something extra with their hands and minds for pleasure – knitting, sewing, embroidering, carving, making pottery.

So, on those precious weekends away, why not get creative?

Go solo, go with friends. Learn a new skill or craft that gives you the kind of fulfilment that comes from making something yourself.

If you investigate, you’ll find there are dozens of retreats and artisan-guided tours across Australia and the rest of the world. For instance, for painters, there’s Australian company Painting Holiday Tours, which has an intensive selection of artist-led tours for short breaks and longer travels overseas.

I found there was tremendous value in travelling with a professional artist and teacher such as Teresa to kickstart my new passion.

It was one of the best experiences of my life because I came back with a whole new way of seeing the places where I travel, not a small thing after 40 years of it.

I know it’s very 18th century of me, but I think those grand tourists and their slow travels had it all figured out.

The writer was a guest of Luxe Sailing.

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Lee Tulloch – Lee is a best-selling novelist, columnist, editor and writer. Her distinguished career stretches back more than three decades, and includes 12 years based between New York and Paris. Lee specialises in sustainable and thoughtful travel.Connect via email.AdvertisementAdvertisement