The Travel Woo Woo Things I Do

Like many people I have a bit of a secret side. One that I haven’t really shared publicly in the past, or for that matter, even shared with some of my friends.

But after opening up to some people on my travels I’ve realised it’s something that I do want to share, because if this post can reach someone who needs a few tips on navigating the things I’ve been through, then it’s worth working through my fear of being exposed and vulnerable.

Lately I’ve been reading Rebecca Campbell’s Light is the New Black book and in it she talks about coming out of the spiritual closet. And with this post that’s just what I’m going to be doing, as I share some of the woo woo things I do when I travel.

Why did I embrace the woo woo?

(Very) long story short, I’m not now nor have I ever been religious, but I have always felt there was something a whole lot bigger going on in a spiritual sense.

For a long time I pushed it to one side as I didn’t understand how to embrace it or work with it, but then I went through a dark time that had me questioning everything.

I took my search for answers outside the box and turned to psychics, kinesiologists, traditional Chinese medicine and more. I also went the more traditional route and saw a therapist who gave me the greatest homework assignment ever to read Dr Brian Weiss’ Many Lives Many Masters and in doing so opened my mind even further rather than closing it as I feared she would try to do.

I did a psychic development class and learned to read tarot, and while my Instagram feed is now full of tarot readers and I’ve since made real life friends with other people who love working with their cards, at the time I felt really alone as I didn’t have a way to talk to people who shared that side of me.

As life works to help me connect with my soul tribe, I love meeting people who are going through their own major life shifts so I can let them know there is a whole lot of light on the other side.

But in case we don’t have the chance to meet in person and swap tales and hints over a cup of tea or a cocktail, here are some simple things I do on my travels that you may like to try.

Energy Protection

The more we open ourselves up, the more likely we are to pick up on other people’s energy. Unfortunately there are some places where this can feel a little overwhelming if we don’t protect ourselves, and for me airports have become one of those places.

There’s a lot of stressful and negative energy in busy airports. As well as that potent mix of impatient people, queues and possible delays, there are a lot of people who are going through something big in their lives, or are simply out of their comfort zone and buzzing with nervous energy.

One of the best things a psychic taught me to do years ago is to create a protective energy bubble around myself by simply visualising a ball of white light around me.

Usually the white light is enough in itself, but sometimes I take it up another notch by seeing a mother of pearl layer around the white light. Or if I really want to crank it up, I see mirrors around the white light that reflect energy back to the people that sent it. Return to sender, baby.

Read: Byron Bay retreat goals – 11 of the best getaways

It was years before I heard anyone else talking about doing the same thing, and I did a double take and laughed when listening to one of Oprah’s Super Soul Conversation podcasts where she talked about the way everything changed for the better when she started visualising herself surrounded by white light before she recorded herTV show.

Another powerful thing I swear by is ten little words. And they are:

“Universe, if this is not my energy, take it back.”

These words are pure magic if I suddenly feel myself getting into a funk for no reason, or if I find myself talking to someone whose energy is messing with my own.

If I forget to protect myself before going into an airport, or other crowded space, I’ll say these words to clear out the bad vibes and then mentally whip up my bubble of light.

And a top tip if you are talking to someone who is draining you. It’s difficult to protect yourself while you’re standing in front of them so simply say you have to go to the bathroom, or go outside to make a quick phone call, then as soon as you’re away from them you can do your spiritual cleanse and protect moves.

Energy Clearing in Hotel Rooms

Nothing changes you from being a sceptic to a believer like living in a house with a poltergeist.

Fortunately ours wasn’t out to do us harm, but it wanted our attention and it sure got it when it threw a bunch of my clothes at a wall. From that dramatic introduction it did other odd things like changing our outgoing answering machine message to spooky music, moving things around, and balancing things like oil burners on strange angles that I couldn’t possibly pull off if I tried (and I did).

After turning to another psychic we were told that we could simply ask it to stop or if it continued to create problems could have an exorcist come in and send it on its way.

Which led to me sitting on my bed that night, politely explaining to the poltergeist that it had been there longer than we had, we were only renting and would be on our way in a year or two, and that we were happy to all live together if it stopped doing things to scare us. But if it kept playing up we’d get the exorcist in.

From that moment on nothing happened again. And to be honest I kind of forgot all about it as the years went by. But then I stayed in a few hotel rooms that didn’t feel quite right and I started talking to empty rooms again. Just to be on the safe side.

Now I introduce myself to hotel rooms when I check in and say hi to any spirits that might be there. A bit like the way Marie Kondo introduces herself to the houses she’s about to tidy up, but in my case I bring the clutter into the space.

If a room feels like it has some dark or heavy energy I’ll tell it to leave in the name of love and light. And while it may seem odd considering I’m not religious, I’ll also call on Archangel Michael to come in and do a light filled sweep of any lower energies or riff raff.

As strange as this may all seem, I wish I’d told another travel writer about my woo woo ways in hotels at the start of a trip together. It was only after a lot of drinks on the final night that she told me she’d felt like she was held down on her bed in her room by something she couldn’t see. The second night she slept in the other bed in her room and was left alone (personally I would have changed rooms after the first offence, but she didn’t want to sound crazy at reception).

We then found out the hotel was haunted and that other people who’d stayed there vowed they never would again because they were so scared.

Fortunately I haven’t experienced anything like that and hopefully never will, but regardless of how a room feels I like to give it a spritz of my own blend of essential oils as I settle in.

I travel with a mix of eucalyptus, lavender and violet oil, which helps clear negative energy and create a sense of calm and tranquillity. I also have a small spray bottle, so I simply fill the spray bottle with water, add a few drops of my essential oil mix, and spritz away.

You can also buy beautiful travel candles like the ones by Moonlight Rituals, which include their hand poured Reset candles topped with amethyst, dried camomile and lavender flowers and their Cleanse and Protect candles with black tourmaline and camomile flowers in handy travel tins.

Regardless of the woo woo side, your favourite spritzes and candles make the room smells familiar which makes it easier to relax and sleep, so if you’re travelling with someone who would think you’re cray if you talked about energies and spirits, just tell them you’re doing it to get a good night’s sleep.

Ask the Oracle

While I now travel with my tarot cards, for a long time I would only use them when I was at home and would get my intuitive check in fixes on the road from oracle card apps on my phone.

Now even though I have my tarot cards by my side, I love to also ask one of my oracle decks for an extra insight card.

As much as I love shuffling physical cards, I feel a different kind of connection to the oracle apps. And it’s a lot easier to travel with four or five of them in my iPad and phone than carrying all of those physical decks.

Personal favourites of mine include Rebecca Campbell’s Work Your Light deck, and Alana Fairchild’s Sacred Rebels.

Thanks to the amazing tarot folks out there sharing their spreads on Instagram, I do a spread I’ve never done before almost every day. But there’s one I like to do before each trip, and that’s Owl and Bones Tarot’s Road Trip Spread.  

There are so many wonderful tarot people out there sharing their work, so if you like connecting with the cards, have fun finding them on Instagram. Knowing they’re all out there really has changed my life for the better.

Get Your Cosmic Weather Report

A few years ago under a supermoon, another travel writer told me about a woman called Elizabeth Peru who shares a weekly energy forecast based on what’s happening in the cosmos.

Curious, I immediately signed up to her free newsletters. A few months later I was enjoying the sneak tastes I was getting so much I became a subscriber and so now receive her daily forecasts as well as meditations and other tools like eclipse guides and her ultimate Mercury retrograde guide (newsflash, retrogrades can be wonderful to work with and aren’t out to get us).

Elizabeth’s Tip Offs have given me quite a few a-ha! moments and helped me prepare for rough energy weather, so to speak. Just like I would if I saw thunderstorms were predicted, I can be prepared for a possible downpour if I go out.

I can put my energy shields up, and tread carefully when I know people could be extra emotional or quick to temper.

But what I love most of all are all of the supportive, beautiful messages Elizabeth shares from her soul.

While there have always been spiritual books that the woo woo curious among us could turn to, I love this new age where there’s so much out there online that we can find.

It’s a freaking exciting time to be alive, and to come out of that spiritual closet.