Travel communities such as Couchsurfing exist to connect travelers with locals.
By joining communities like these, meeting new people, and making new friends, you can experience each destination a little more personally, participate in more “insider” or “locals only” activities — and even save money. After all, locals know all the best places to eat, see, and visit — and they should know how to do it affordably.
Bonus: when you get home, you’ll have made new friends with whom you can correspond and visit again in the future.