Randi Glazer’s Sensible Travel Destinations: Gilroy’s Food and Wine Festivals Earn High Praise

Despite the assertive declarations regarding the need for a novel experience to break away from an increasingly frustrating feeling of monotony, the overwhelming majority of travelers still tend to make decisions based on that which feels familiar. This is not intentional, of course, as gravitating toward that which is familiar is a natural urge we all tend to share and find extraordinarily difficult to overcome.

As a longtime avid travel, Randi Glazer is familiar with the paradoxical dichotomy regarding the desire for a new experience and the comfort associated with familiarity. Over the course of her many travels, Ms. Glazer has learned that it is best to choose a destination that is truly unique but also stimulates one of the senses in a manner that is familiar but also -- at least in a general sense -- unobtrusive.

It is partly due to this interesting theory that Ms. Glazer has included Gilroy, California, among her list of “sensible” travel destinations, a pun that consistently elicits a small chuckle from clients but also provides an opportunity to make the kind of self-deprecating joke that sets everyone at ease and creates the relaxed atmosphere conducive for travel planning. Gilroy, of course, boasts several events that feature the unique but comfort-inducing setting many travelers seek to experience.

Pointing out the powerful nature of sensory experiences typically tied to smell and taste, Ms. Glazer specifically identified Gilroy’s Annual Garlic Festival as well as Santa Clara’s Annual Art & Wine Festival as ideal examples demonstrating her theory on the need to include something intensely familiar with a novel destination or travel experience.

Both of these local events are incredibly well attended and have been staples of the area’s annual calendar for nearly 40 years, a testament to the quality of each event and the enthusiasm experienced by attendees. Travelers can use these events as a way to anchor part of their schedule while maintaining a sense of flexibility in terms of the opportunities that exist outside of the event grounds or during the days before and after the festival.

Gilroy is positioned in a central location that appeals to travelers who wish to experience the multitude of unique attractions found throughout this particular region of Northern California. Essentially equidistant from San Francisco and Big Sur, Gilroy enables visitors to spend a day in either location while still maintaining more than enough time to visit Santa Cruz or to explore Yosemite National Park for several days.
For travelers not accustomed to the potentially rugged camping experiences associated with places like Big Sur and Yosemite, being able to look forward to a day of pampered leisure spent at a local winery or wine festival will certainly make such a new and unfamiliar experience all the more bearable and hopefully entirely enjoyable. As Ms. Glazer points out, striking a balance between the familiar and the unfamiliar ensures a new travel experience turns out to be a relaxing and positive travel experience.