What if we traveled like pilgrims, not tourists?

What if travel could be more than escape or consumption—what if it could transform us? Isla Mujeres made me ask whether pilgrimage might offer an alternative to tourism.

Ixchel, goddess of the moon, on the southern shores of Isla Mujeres

Earlier this year, I arrived on Isla Mujeres after three intense months at sea—sailing from Barcelona to Cancún in pursuit of meaning and purpose, and as an extension of my research on happiness in the outdoors. The journey left me physically and emotionally exhausted. But being on land …