Our Ultimate List of Travel Destinations

I love my job (I’m an accountant), and my hours could be WAY worse than they are, so I’m not complaining, per se, but I have definitely been fantasizing about vacations and traveling with my husband in the off-season.

John and I love to travel together. Recently we have visited DC, New York, Colorado and North Carolina, which were nice long-weekend visits that we went on mostly to see bands that we love (more on our life and the things that we did last year in this blog post), but we also got married last year and we honeymooned in Koh Samui, Thailand.  We had an amazing time and it has definitely inspried us to travel further away and off of the beaten path.

Since I’ve been giving so much thought (and so many Google searches) to vacations and traveling anyways, I’ve decided to share with you our list of places that we hope to visit within the next few years.  Our long list basically includes every place on the planet, and we would be hard-pressed to list many places that would not visit, given the opportunity.  But our short list is particularly rad, so here you go!

Greece

I would like to explore Greece for a week and a half, stay in Santorini or Mykonos and spend the days relaxing on the beaches, sightseeing or visiting the other islands.  I have found so many gorgeous and affordable Air BnB’s in Greece and that’s how I would most like to experience it, as opposed to staying in a hotel or resort.

Must-Do’s in Greece:

Tour the Acropolis

Eat all of the food

Photo-shoot & explore Santorini

Laze ongorgeous beaches

Hawaii

Fairly expensive and far away, Hawaii is a gorgeous destination that I feel like we must visit before we go to other corners of the world further from home.  It is one of the few states that I have never stepped foot in, and I feel like it’s also one of North America’s most beautiful places.  Since Hawaii is very safe, I would also love to stay in an air BnB for this vacation.  I think this would be an amazing, romantic place for us to relax, take some surfing lessons, shop the local markets and hike around the volcanos.  If you go in February they also have a lot of whale-watching from some of the islands!  The biggest decision would be which island to stay on.  The best solution is probably to island hop or simply visit more than once.

Must-Do’s in Hawaii:

Take a surfing lesson

Soak up the sun

See a lava show or go on a lava tour

Visit the green and black sands beaches

Play in some waterfalls

River kayaking

Experience the cultural entertainment & performances

Barcelona

Full of history, amazing architecture and delicious food, I must visit Barcelona soon.  You can actually find quite affordable flights (around $300-550).  I would stay at a reputable hotel in Barcelona and do a lot of sight-seeing.

Must-Do’s in Barcelona:

Visit La Boqueria early on and food shop for our stay

Visit Las Ramblas

Get tipsy off of vermouth

Go shopping at Barri Gotic

Museums. As many as we can see.

Amsterdam

I want to indulge in Amsterdam and walk around the city and take in all of the sights and colors and smells.  I think every street would be so unique and beautiful (as it is honestly with most new places), but the whole vibe of Amsterdam is just very appealing to me.  It feels like a sexy vacation.

Must-Do’s in Barcelona:

Party at a 24-hour nightclubfor as long as possible without passing out from exhaustion

Ride bikes everywhere

Cruise on the canal

Red light districtvisit

New Zealand

Tough call between New Zealand and Australian, but we have to go with the former.  The land is just gorgeous and was the backdrop of The Chronicles of Narnia, the Lord of the Rings, Avatar and The Hobbit, WHY? Because it’s magical and other-worldly I must assume!  I’m super hype to see such magical grounds and I want to hike all over and hobbit it up in NZ.

Must-Do’s in New Zealand:

Visit the glowworm caves

Hike the Hokitika Gorge

Visit Hobbington

Visit the Tamaki Maori Village for feasting and ancient rituals

Try Zorbing

Visit Wai-O-Tapu hot springs and mud pools

That’s it!  Our top 5 places to visit.  Ideally we will make our way through these within the next 3-5 years in the midst of smaller vacays.

What destinations are on your must-visit list?  Where have you traveled recently?  Share with me in the comments, you may inspire me to update my own travel list!