Life’s a Journey: 5 Ads that Make You Want to Travel the World.

Life’s a Journey: 5 Ads that Make You Want to Travel the World.

By Jeff Finkle

If you go online, you can find hundreds of famous quotes about life and the eternal search for meaning in our lives but I think the rock band Aerosmith might have said it best when they sang “Life’s a journey, not a destination.”  One of the things that makes us human, (besides opposable thumbs and a natural disdain for cubicles) is our desire to leave the comfort zone of home and go on a journey and experience viewing the world from a different angle. Whether you head to Florida each winter to see your parents and dip your feet into the calmness of the ocean, or you’re heading to Africa to ride on the backs of elephants, it’s good to get away. Take a brief trip with us as we explore five ads that make us want to drop everything and travel the world.

Linda Rodin’s Perfect Journey: Erwin Penland: Tumi 19 Degree Collection.

You didn’t need to know that Linda Rodin started a very successful beauty company at age 59 to realize that she has a unique zest for life and the spirit of somebody who thinks differently. She oozes personality and natural beauty in this ad titled "Linda Rodin’s Perfect Journey," and the ad is like a snapshot of the Sicily's gorgeous ability to live in the present while exuding the past and Rodin relishes her time there while narrating her own history and connection to Sicily. The ad beautifully captures the faces of the people who live in the village she walks through and the long shots of the orange fields and the picturesque towns provide a glimpse of the history and impact that traveling has had in shaping Rodin's view of the world. Rodin doesn’t have to talk about the Tumi bag for the viewer to see that it functions as an extension of her adventurous spirit.

Rodin has a youthful energy that is intoxicating to the viewer and this desire to suck the marrow out of life is shared by the unique personalities that tell their “perfect journey” in each one of the ads in this campaign. From Mark Gonzalez, the pro skateboarder, to Nick Fouquet, the celebrity hat maker, to Rodin, their unique journeys are told in the campaign created by Erwin Penland. “With each of the 19 films we made our goal was to illicit that same question from the viewer: what is my perfect journey? where would I go if I could go anywhere?”, noted John Cornette, EVP, ECD at Erwin Penland. “Tumi’s dedication to form and functionality means that they can deliver the perfect bag for any journey you can dream up,” Cornette said.” This peek into Linda Rodin’s perfect journey feels like a beautiful dream we’d like to make reality.

For A World of Understanding- MullenLowe-Hyatt.

“What the world needs now is love, sweet love.” This classic song lyric rings as true now as when Hal David first wrote it and Jackie DeShannon first sang it. The soulful version heard during “For a World of Understanding” helps set the tone of togetherness in the spot. This ad, created by MullenLowe for Hyatt, debuted during the Oscars and it delivered an emptional impact worthy of the global stage.

The ad tells the story of travelers in different parts of the world who through small acts of kindness, let their guard down and open themselves up to the different culture they are experiencing. It’s a political ad, only in that it came out in a time of inflammatory viewpoints delivered by a certain political leader but the message of the ad is universal. People are people. In order to broaden your horizons when you travel, you have to respect other people's culture.

A Room With Many Views - Ig2- Tourism Quebec.

This beautifully shot ad for Tourism Quebec titled “A Room With Many Views”  by agency Ig2, takes a couple on a journey they'll never forget and not just because they get to avoid the airport. This couple from Brooklyn is definitely knocked out of their comfort zone when they are transported into the world of culture and natural beauty that is Quebec, Canada. The clever concept of the ad is beautifully executed as the couple’s room is physically lifted and placed down from one gorgeous spot in the province to another.

The couple definitely represent that every-man or every-couple feel to the ad as you can’t help but envision yourself and your spouse in their shoes, or slippers, as who wouldn’t want to wake up on a beach and spot a whale? From traversing over a river, exploring a winery, eating from food trucks and attending a concert, the couple experiences both the tranquility of nature and the coolness of Quebec's culture with a look of wonder and exuberance. As the rousing songs suggest so well in the ad “you will never feel alone, as long as you feel at home,” and Quebec sure seems inviting in "A Room with Many Views."

Don’t Go There, Live There- TBWA\Chiat\Day\LA- Airbnb.

"Don’t go there, live there." This ad’s title sums up exactly what TBWA\Chiat\Day\LA hits home in this spot for Airbnb The ad urges you to experience what it’s like to live in Paris, not by holding a selfie stick on a tour bus, but by cooking food with your family in an apartment while getting to know your Parisian neighbors.

Airbnb offers a unique opportunity for travelers who are looking for more than a resort trip but want to experience a week actually living in Malibu, not just visiting tourist spots in L.A. This ad speaks to those who wants to live in the East Village for a week, which is a nice touch because those that live in New York know that it’s broken into neighborhoods like the East Village and not just uptown, midtown and downtown. After watching this ad, you might want to live your own version of the film “The Holiday” and head to another city where you can become a local, and not just a tourist.

Train- 180LA- Expedia.

In “Train” we see a woman’s life unfold through the journeys she takes and 180LA created a feeling of the world being an interconnected place that is waiting for you to travel through. The ad manages to capture the circle of life as it opens on a young woman aboard the Trans-Siberian railroad receiving wise advice about life from an older man who exudes calmness and wisdom. In a minute’s time, we are treated to a glimpse into the experiences that helped shape her into the strong, compassionate and world-wise person we see at the end of the ad. 

The woman's personal growth is greatly affected by the people she encounters during her travels who opened her eyes to the world they live in. When she delivers the same advice to a young man beginning his journey, it nicely sums up the circle of life and how close we all truly are to each other, despite being seperated by oceans.  The tagline to the ad is “travel the world better” and the spot grabs you and makes you want to peek over your fence and experience the adventure of travel.