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21 Epic Travel Experiences Of A Lifetime To Put On Your Bucket List

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Travel Experiences of a Lifetime

These Are 21 of Our Must-Do Travel Experiences of a Lifetime!

Having had a wild year, we’ve thought a lot about our once in a lifetime travel experiences lately.

That’s what happens when you visit off-the-beaten-path countries like  Albania , Bosnia and Herzegovina , and Romania, and then quickly contrast them with the wildly popular Dubrovnik, Croatia .

You start to think about the places that stick with you, stand out in your mind, challenged you, and changed you. That was Sarajevo for us.

One thing we’ve come to understand is that everyone experiences places differently – and each of those experiences are valid. So, in coming up with an ultimate list of experiences, it would be wrong to call them the best travel experiences in the world.

These kinds of top life experiences lists are totally subjective – and everyone is going to have a different list. It’s important to remember that.

So, having read quite a few travel experience articles over the years and having heard stories via word of mouth, this is OUR bucket list of life-changing travel experiences.

We’ve also included one or two things which we are lucky to have done already and feel they were so good that it’s worth chatting about! Ready? Let’s get on with the adventure.

See Penguins in the Wild

penguins with beach and waves behind experiences of a lifetime

Starting off strong with this one, we really want to see penguins in the wild. We love penguins  – as you might have already guessed by the name.

We love our stuffed penguins (who were gifts when we first met ) but seeing real, live penguins would be awesome.

Now, there are a few different places that this could happen: South Africa, Argentina, Australia, and even Antarctica, to name a few.

That said, we might lean towards doing a tour in South Africa because you get to see other cool things like Table Mountain as well as a giant penguin colony!

Island Hopping in Croatia

motor boat in blue ocean with village behind experiences of a lifetime croatia island

It seems that lots of travellers go to Croatia with the intention to see the beautiful islands. We sure did when we stayed outside Split.

Turns out, it can be tricky to explore them on your own schedule due to ferry schedules and finances.

So, we did a bit of research and determined that an island hopping day tour was legitimately the best bang for our buck. Honestly, it was the BEST day – so we are recommending it as a bucket list item.

We explored the islands around Split ( including Hvar ) but there are more further up the coast closer to Zadar and a few further down the Adriatic Coast to Dubrovnik.

You can actually read about our experience island hopping in Croatia  and  watch the video  on YouTube.

Camping and Canoeing Adventure in Yukon, Canada

green lake with green trees experiences of a lifetime yukon canada

Staying a little closer to home for this one, Canada is so massive that exploring it could take a lifetime – and you still probably wouldn’t see the whole thing.

We’ve been to the cottage in Ontario, and Eric has been to way up in Northern Ontario, but the Canadian territories are a whole other level of Canadian wilderness.

The Yukon territory (the one close to Alaska) is one such place that we want to check out. That’s one reason we have Yukon’s capital, Whitehorse, on our Canada sightseeing list , as well!

We would definitely not be ready to tackle a big trip in the Yukon on our own so we would go with an experienced guide on an epic Yukon adventure .

Watching The Sunset Twice At The Burj Khalifa

tall building beside skyscrapers in dubai experiences of a lifetime burj khalifa

Always a sucker for a sunset, we think that seeing the sunset twice in a single day would be cool. How do you do it? Head to the top of the Burj Khalifa, of course!

The Burj Khalifa is the tallest structure on Earth and is located in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.

Because the building is so tall, it is theoretically possible to watch the sunset from the ground, take the elevator to the viewing decks, and watch the sun set AGAIN.

Hooray for angles! To do that, we’d need a Burj Khalifa visitors ticket  for the elevators to the top but that’s easy to manage. Dubai is also a city that calls to us for exploring.

Seeing The Moai Heads On Easter Island (Rapa Nui)

stone statues with green grass and blue sky experiences of a lifetime easter island

Do you know those giant carved rock heads on that island? You know, the one you’ve seen in travel books or online before?

Well, they are called “Moai” and they are standing mysteriously on Rapa Nui, also called Easter Island. Technically part of Chile, this island has been shrouded in mystery and adventure for centuries. Naturally, we want to go and see the Moai up-close.

It’s no easy feat to carve hundred of stone heads measuring 4 metres tall and weighing around 14 tons a piece.

Getting there is also no easy feat. You basically have to fly from mainland Chile – which can get expensive and logistically tough since there aren’t that many flights and spaces book up in advance.

Visiting Easter Island is one of those experiences that you kinda have to plan ahead for. You don’t wake up and go, “Hey, let’s head to Easter Island today”. Unless you’re a millionaire with a private jet, basically.

Lounging On The Purest Sand In The Whitsundays, Australia

blue water with white sandy islands whitsunday islands australia

Our list wouldn’t be complete without at least one Australia spot. The Whitsunday Islands will do! Fun Fact: there are 74 Whitsunday Islands, with the famous Whitehaven Beach featuring some of the purest, whitest sand in the world.

Eric visited way back in 2010 and got to go on a Whitsunday catamaran adventure out to the islands. It was such a great day. The whites and blues of the landscape are out of this world.

Lisa has never been to Australia so we think it’s about time we returned to the land down under. Plus, we’ve got quite a few Aussie friends that keep pestering us to make the trek down there.

We actually had some travel bloggers share their other top places to check out in Australia  so we’ve been reading that list for inspiration!

Making/Eating Authentic Sushi in Japan

colourful sushi plate on table in japan

Just to preface this one – we both love Japanese cuisine. Particularly, Lisa loves a bowl of authentic ramen while Eric is more a sushi guy.

We’ve both never been to Japan but have friends who have lived, taught, or visited there over the years. Having heard stories of how amazing the country is, we are dying to go.

When we are there, we want to take full advantage of the experience and go to a sushi making/eating class . The authenticity level would be off the charts.

Aside from eating, we also want to explore the cities like Tokyo and Osaka as well as dig our own onsen (hot spring bath). We’ll keep you posted on that one.

Riding In A Hot Air Balloon Over Cappadocia, Turkey

hot air balloons over pink rocky landscape turkey experiences of a lifetime

While there are a few well-known places to take an epic hot air balloon ride, few can compete with the grandeur of taking a ride in a hot air balloon over Cappadocia , Turkey.

The volcanic landscape provides an epic backdrop for dozens of balloons floating towards the sky. Eric has actually been in a hot air balloon before – but not in a place like this with many more balloons around!

We also want to explore Turkey, in general, but it’s not on the list for the immediate future. Too many places, so little time.

Hiking the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu

rock ruins in green hillside experiences of a lifetime machu picchu

The next two in this post are on the bucket list and are a bit of a sore spot for us. We once HAD a whole trip to South America planned and half-booked.

As per usual, life got in the way with other plans. So, we haven’t been to Peru to discover places like Lima, Cusco, and Machu Picchu.

That said, we know that someday we will make it down there. For us, hiking the whole Inca Trail would be an amazing mix of exercise, scenery, and nature.

There are different trail lengths/configurations based on the time you have, your fitness level, and where you wish to begin. You don’t have to walk to Machu Picchu if you don’t want to.

There are day train tours to Machu Picchu from Cusco  that are popular but if you wanted to make a whole trek out of it (like we want to), you might consider a full-on Inca Trail trekking tour .

Stargazing in the Atacama Desert in Chile

starry night sky with reflective ground experiences of a lifetime atacama desert

This is another one of those bucket list items that we ALMOST did. If you read the above entry about hiking to Machu Picchu, we had a trip planned that included (among other things) camping in the Atacama Desert on Chile.

We had heard that the stars are just absolutely out of this world and we were so looking forward to it. We are determined to make it down there someday!

We were going to do the trip on our own but hop on appropriate tours as necessary throughout South America.

Heading across the Atacama Desert with an adventure guide was one such instance since there is a lot to see along the way and navigating on your own would be difficult and potentially unsafe if you aren’t prepared!

Exploring Castles In The Scottish Highlands

old stone castle with green hills and bridge experiences of a lifetime scottish highlands

This is another bucket list travel experience of a lifetime that hits a sore spot. See, we’ve both lived in Edinburgh at one time or another (it’s where we met, kinda) and neither of us made it up to explore the famed Scottish Highlands.

There are so many great day trips from Edinburgh that we have been on – but up to the Highlands, Isle of Skye, Loch Ness, etc just aren’t one of them.

We know plenty of people who have explored the Highlands on tours, in rental cars, on backpacking bus routes, you name it.

In particular, there is one castle we want to see – Eilean Donan Castle. It looks gorgeous sitting there surrounded by Scottish landscapes.

We might take more time to do a day trip to Eilean and the Isle of Skye but we will plan more when trips become official and we are back in the UK!

Riding The Trans-Siberian Railway

silver and red railway car experiences of a lifetime trans Siberian

Lisa has a thing for train rides (and Eric doesn’t mind them) so naturally one of the longest train routes in the world at almost 5,000 miles over 6 days seems like a once in a lifetime travel experience.

The Trans Siberian Railway is a massive grouping of rail systems that cover Europe and Asia. The Man in Seat 61 has a helpful guide on the Trans Siberian .

The classic portion of the route would be from Moscow, Russia to Beijing, China. However, the real journey starts in the European rail system with an unofficial starting point to the “proper route” as St. Pancreas Station in London, UK.

While the tickets for a 2nd class berth aren’t crazy expensive, the VISAS would be the most difficult part considering there might be 3 or more involved – Russia and China being the not-so-fun ones to apply for!

Swimming on the Edge of Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe

large waterfall into canyon victoria falls africa

Heading back to Africa – specifically Zambia and Zimbabwe – and checking out the mighty Victoria Falls is definitely on our experiences of a lifetime list.

But just seeing the falls is not enough – we want to swim on the edge. Visitors to the falls can swim in what is called the “Devil’s Pool” which is located beside Livingstone Island (which is on the Zambia side).

This famous pool is a rocky area that is located right on the edge of the falls – basically the scariest infinity pool imaginable. Would you hop in?

You can do a tour of Livingstone Island and hop in the Devil’s Pool for the ultimate Victoria Falls experience and we are SO in.

Exploring Petra and Camping in The Jordanian Desert

stone carved temple in mountain experiences of a lifetime petra

This is one that Eric has had on his bucket list for a long time now. Being a big fan of Indiana Jones, he has been wanting to explore the lost city of Petra and sleep under the stars in the desert for years.

He also has a buddy who has been to Jordan and loved every second there.

After doing a bit of research, we’ve realized Petra is way larger than we had previously imagined. There are also lots of other things to discover in the region.

That said, we’d do a multi-day desert camping tour since a day trip just wouldn’t cut it – especially if you go all that way into the desert!

Riding The Glacier Express in Switzerland

red train on curved bridge with green hills behind experiences of a lifetime switzerland

Back to the idea of trains, this is one that calls to Lisa. The Glacier Express is both the name of the train company and route that takes you through the most spectacular, wintery, and scenic parts of the Swiss Alps.

The trains have massive glass coverings so riders get the best views of the mountainous terrain. The train goes through tunnels and over large span bridges for a memorable day trip between St.Moritz/Davos and Zermatt.

If you want to check out the Glacier Express, visit their website and prepare to be amazed!

Dog Sledding and Seeing The Northern Lights In Finland

northern lights colour shining above lake experiences of a lifetime

We have a thing for animals so naturally we love dogs, as well. We also really want to see the Northern Lights up close and bright while in the right season.

Eric has seen them in Canada and from an airplane but never crystal clear. Since we know that Finland’s northern parts – called the Lapland – are a prime spot to view them, we’d love the opportunity to tour into Lapland .

The snow is abundant, the activities are endless (dog sledding, snowmobiling, etc), and the northern lights are basically guaranteed to be absolutely gorgeous.

That said, we would definitely keep an eye on which dog sledding company we use to make sure they have a good record going for treatment of their doggies.

Read Next –   12 Winter Destinations in Europe We Love

Hang Gliding in Rio de Janeiro

hang glider over coastline beach in rio de janeiro experiences of a lifetime

This one is definitely to cater to the adrenaline-junkie side of us. We have classic train rides on this list – but yet we also have hang gliding in Rio de Janeiro.

Having seen this activity done on Departures (arguably the best travel show ever created), soaring above the bustling Brazilian city has been on Eric’s list for years.

Heights don’t scare us – we’ve both been tandem skydiving (Eric went skydiving in Cairns, Australia ) and Eric has also been bungee jumping before.

There is one company that is known for its safety record and experience taking to the skies hundreds of times a year – so we would definitely try to go tandem hang gliding with Rio Hang Gliding . We would also not tell our mothers beforehand!

Reflecting At The Salt Flats in Bolivia

jeep on reflective salt flats experiences of a lifetime bolivia salt flats

This one is the last of the South America-based activities that we were about to book and then had to cancel. We SO BADLY want to see the salt flats at Uyuni, Bolivia – the world’s largest salt flats.

When there is water, the place is a giant mirror, seen above. When it’s dry, the flats are good for those classic photos people take that play with scale and depth.

We actually spent quite a bit of time researching the top tour companies to take us out there for a few days.

When we looked, the information was kind of lacking so we considered booking at trusted  Uyuni salt flats tour beforehand as opposed to booking there.

Whatever we end up doing (when we do it) we will write all about it!

Climbing Mount Kilimanjaro

wooden signs and colourful flags on top of mountain experiences of a lifetime mount kilimanjaro

Always one to be drawn to high places for the amazing views (hence the Burj Khalifa earlier on this list), hiking to the top of Mount Kilimanjaro is definitely on our list of experiences of a lifetime.

Eric has been to Kenya and stood (briefly) in Tanzania, but never had the chance to check out Kilimanjaro.

As with most experiences here, we know a handful of people who have climbed the mountain and had an incredible time. The trick is – it’s not cheap. Usually, it’s best practice to hop on a guided climb  that takes you up safely.

Watching The Sunrise Over Angkor Wat in Cambodia

temples with water in front and sun rising experiences of a lifetime angkor wat

Since neither of us has been to Asia before, we would definitely start off a little more “touristy” before diving into other experiences and countries.

When it comes to Southeast Asia, Vietnam, Cambodia, and Malaysia are our top places to go first.

For us, visiting Angkor Wat is probably one of the biggest draws to the region. We aren’t religious but can appreciate the dedication to faith through architecture.

The grand size of the temple complex must be just awesome to explore, and watching the sunrise at Angkor Wat  is definitely on our bucket list.

Road Tripping The Pacific Coast Highway In California, USA

bridge over cliff with water and green cliff side experiences of a lifetime big sur california highway one

Last, but certainly not least, is taking an epic road trip down California’s famed State Route 1. In particular, there is a famous portion known as the Pacific Coast Highway.

This stretch of the highway has some of the most scenic and longest straights of untouched coastline in the whole of the United States.

You’ll pass through the famous mountainous region, Big Sur, among other amazing places along the way.

If you are planning a road trip and looking for a deal on rental cars, you can compare prices here across the companies you know and love. We’ve been planning this route for some time but need to get to the US to get started!

And there you have it – 21 of our ideas for epic travel experiences of a lifetime. We truly hope that we can complete this list and then some over the course of our life but we know that we would be lucky to do even a quarter of them.

What do you think? Any of these stand out? Have you done any of them before? What experiences of a lifetime are on your travel bucket list?

Get in touch and let us know – we’d love to compare notes and ideas!

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17 Unique, Once In A Lifetime Travel Experiences Worth Having

It's just one life. Make it worthwhile with these unique experiences.

Read update

Even More Of The Once In A Lifetime Travel Experiences Worth Having

One does not necessarily need to travel the world to get lasting memories. Some special experiences can do all the magic and inspire one's mind for an entire lifetime. For many, it may be watching a fantasy movie or reading a book, but one fact remains; such unique experiences can satisfy a person's deepest imagination. But for the wanderlusters of the world, there are just some things they need to experience in real life. Of course, no two travelers are alike and thus will likely crave different unique experiences. But a few must-tries, 17 to be exact, are so unique that we all secretly dream of experiencing them, hopefully once in our lifetime.

UPDATE: 2023/02/12 17:23 EST BY AARON SPRAY

There is an endless number of things to do in this world. If someone's life is boring, then that person may be doing this whole life-thing wrong. This list was updated and expanded with more of the great things to experience at least once in one's life around the world. Some of these memories will live on for a lifetime.

UPDATE: 2022/12/11 Sera Parris

14 Unique, Once In A Lifetime Travel Experiences Worth Having

Traveling is all about those once-in-a-lifetime experiences. This article was updated and expanded to provide the reader with a few more unique experiences to consider trying when out exploring the world, including solo travel and swimming with the fishes.

17 A Polar Plunge In Antarctica

A polar plunge is an activity that's not just thrilling but also beneficial to the body in many ways. While there are many spots one can go to in the Northern Hemisphere to experience this kind of adventure, Antarctica is the place to be for anyone who truly wants to engage in this activity. In fact, rumor has it that there's nothing quite like taking the chilly and very icy polar plunge in one of the most unique places in the world. So as far as a once-in-a-lifetime experience goes, get ready to plunge away.

16 A Christmas In Polar Night

Christmas is a worldwide event that many people around the world celebrate every year. But not everybody gets to experience Christmas in the middle of Polar night. This is a period when the sun does not rise above the horizon for a period that can last from a week to three months, depending on the location. This leaves the sky dark for as long as the polar night lasts, but this atmospheric condition does not make this joyous occasion any less exciting. One can still enjoy the melodious music, beautiful Christmas trees, and the colorful colors of Christmas. That said, Christmas in Polar night can only be experienced in places in the Northern Hemisphere, such as - Svalbard, Alaska, and parts of Canada.

15 Scuba Dive And Touch Two Continents At The Same Time

One can scuba dive in many destinations around the world, but there’s no other place on earth where one can touch two continents at the same time while diving except at the Silfra Fissure in Iceland. Adventurers can find his otherworldly attraction in Iceland’s Thingvellir National Park . Formed as a result of a rift between the North American and Eurasian Tectonic plates, a deep dive here is truly a unique experience worth having. This rift even moves two centimeters apart every year, which means the spot is still alive and constantly changing.

14 Spend A Night In An Underwater Hotel

The hotel experience is now more than just having a place to rest for the night. Many hotels around the world have now become attractions that are worth traveling for, and while there are still lots of hotels on the earth’s surface to visit, staying in an underwater hotel is something to experience at least once. This experience will have visitors spending the night with live views of life under the sea. Fishes, sharks, rays, and so many other interesting sea creatures will be everywhere. Some underwater hotels to visit around the world include - the Maruka at Conrad Maldives Rangali Island, Maldives; Atlantis at the Palm, Dubai; and Resorts World Sentosa, Singapore.

13 Travel To Space

Space Travel is something that has become popular in today’s world, but while this unique destination may not be easily accessible to the rest of the world, it would be epic to get an experience of this part of the Universe at least once in a lifetime. Fortunately, many organizations such as - Virgin Galactic, SpaceX, and Blue Origin now offer people the opportunity to experience a trip to this part of the world. What makes space travel so interesting is that it is an opportunity to see what’s beyond the sky. A chance to see the stars and witness a sight that the majority of the world only gets to see from their screens.

12 Fly First Class

When it is to be done once in a lifetime, it’s never too expensive. This applies to first-class flights. A lot of people are used to flying in small spaces beside noisy passengers. One does not always have to put up with this. For just once, it will be nice to book a first-class flight and enjoy some royal treatment. The sky is not going to fall. An experience such as this will open one’s eyes to many things. First, one will realize that airplane food is not always so small and that one can enjoy amazing views from three different windows during the flight while sipping a glass of champagne.

Related: Emirates First Class Is The Definition Of Flying In Luxury

11 Float In The Dead Sea

Of course, not all bodies of water are created equal, which is very evident in the Dead Sea in Jordan. While many require swimming to stay afloat, the Dead Sea only requires one to lay still as it handles the floating part naturally. Thanks to this waterway's high salt concentration, ample swimming experience isn't needed. Besides offering a relaxing float, this water is said to be beneficial to the skin. So, for anyone who's feeling adventurous and health conscious, there's no time like the present to float in the Dead Sea.

10 Solo Travel

So many wanderlusters sit at home, month after month, year after year because no one wants to see the world as they do. Even if it isn't that dramatic, more often than not, coordinating schedules, budgets, and interests are all a lot of work. So sometimes, the best option is to go it alone and embrace the great unknown. In fact, everyone should step outside their comfort zone at least once in their lifetime, book a flight and pack a bag. Remember, there's no time like the present.

9 Visit Hobbiton Movie Set In New Zealand

The Lord of the Rings is one epic movie that still lights up the flame of fantasy in the minds of many adventurers around the world. One place to experience the magic of this epic movie is Hobbiton in New Zealand which was the location of the shire and Frodo. Besides Hobbiton, there are so many places from the movie one can see while in New Zealand. To rekindle the flame of middle earth fantasy, one can even watch the movie while in the country it was filmed more than 20 years ago.

Related: 20 Surprising Facts Tourists Should Know About The Lord Of The Rings Movie Set In New Zealand

8 Spend Time On A Lesser-Known Island

Island travel or hopping is one of the most exciting adventures one can have. Of course, there are many popular islands around the world that one can visit. But there's just something special about those mystery islands that have remained popular and somehow unknown to most parts of the world. Besides having beautiful white sand beaches and unique natural attractions, these Lesser-known islands come with the added advantage of seclusion and tranquility, which means one will not have to deal with overcrowded beaches or noisy resorts.

7 Swim With The Fishes

Whether it's whale sharks, dolphins, stingrays, or any other incredible sea creature, there's just something magical about being that close. This is a great way to test your limits and diving skills if you happen to be out in the ocean. Alternatively, suppose your first swim is in the safety of discovery cove or some other lagoon with trained professionals nearby. In that case, one can still marvel at these impressive sea mammals and check off swimming with the fishes from their unique experience list.

6 Party Hard

Unique experiences come in many forms, and a simple party might just be what one needs to truly get inspired. There are more than a few destinations where enjoying a vibrant party is more than possible. Sure, everyone should strive to live a decent life and be an upstanding member of society when they can, but where's the harm in letting go of oneself and enjoying the party? If only for a little while. Whether it sounds decent or not, such one-off experiences create unforgettable memories that are sure to last a lifetime.

Related: Are You Brave Enough To Browse This Voodoo Market In West Africa?

5 Go To An Intrepid Destination

Most people want to visit the most popular destinations (like London, Paris, Thailand, the Yucatán Peninsula, etc.). But one of the things people should consider doing is visiting very unusual and challenging destinations. Some of these destinations are dangerous and not advised (like visiting the Pyramids of Sudan or the legendary city of Timbuktu in Mali).

But with the right organized tour, some other destinations can be the trip of a lifetime. Consider visiting the West African countries of Senegal or Togo (the origin of Voodoo). One of the most unforgettable destinations in the world is the diverse and perplexing country of Papua New Guinea .

4 Go On A Self-Driven Tour In Namibia

Namibia is one of the most developed and other-worldly countries in Southern Africa. It is a country a third the size of India but has a population of only 2.5 million . The country is vast, expansive, and empty. It is one of the best places in the world for a self-drive tour.

Visitors can see shipwrecks along the beaches in the deserts, picture-perfect sand-dune deserts, authentic culture, and some of the best national parks in Africa. Etosha National Park is one of the easiest parks to go on a self-driven safari tour, and it is one of the cheapest in Africa. Finally, everyone should spend a night at Omaruru Game Lodge in the heart of the country.

3 Visit India

India is a crazy country. It is so full of diversity and just about every form of stimuli one can think about. India is a country where one can have an adventure just by going to get lunch. It is a country where one can see elephants casually crossing the roads at the pedestrian crossings, bodies being cremated on the Ganges River, and see a herd of water buffalo wandering down the street in the center of a city of a million people.

2 Go On The World's Largest Human Catapult

The Kiwis in New Zealand are crazy for outdoor sports. They have been kicking terrified bungy-jumping tourists off their bridges for decades (it's something of a national pastime), and they have built the world's largest human catapult. Go to the adventure capital of Queenstown and experience the thrill of the largest human swing in the world, the largest human catapult, and the oldest bungy jumping site.

1 Hike The Appalachian Trail

Perhaps the ultimate iconic long-distance hike is the Appalachian Trail. Hiking enthusiasts should hike this massive 2,200 miles from Springer Mountain in Georgia to Mount Katahdin in Maine through 14 states. And then, if that isn't enough, finish the Appalachians off with the extension in Canada (the mountain range doesn't just stop at the northern border). One needs to be determined to complete this trail. Of the 3,000 annual attempts at an AT-Thru hike, only around 25% succeed.

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travel experience of a lifetime

Top 20 lifetime travel experiences

Georgina willcox | 01 january 2023.

travel experience of a lifetime

Are you ready to start ticking off your bucket list? From watching the sunrise over the Taj Mahal in India to seeing the iconic Fjords in Norway, you’ll find a host of wonderful far-flung destinations to discover in 2024. They say 'Travel is the only thing you buy that makes you richer', so we’ve selected some of the best travel experiences and places to visit for you to tick off your bucket list.  

1. Iceland - See the Northern Lights

See the Northern Lights on Iceland holiday

Iceland, the Land of Fire and Ice, is full of natural wonders and it offers one of the best opportunities to see the Northern Lights. Visit Iceland and see volcanic landscapes, breathtaking waterfalls and relax in the geothermal waters of the Blue Lagoon.

2. Visit Lake Bled in Slovenia

Visit Lake Bled

Could there be a more postcard-perfect place than Lake Bled? Discover Slovenia and see its most iconic sight in the heart of the Julian Alps. 

3. Take a Jeep Tour in Wadi Rum

Explore Wadi Rum on guided tour

This is one of the many highlights on a trip to Jordan . The Wadi Rum desert, or ‘The Valley of the Moon’, in Jordan is full of incredible rock formations and sand dunes. It was also used as a filming location for the classic film ‘Lawrence of Arabia.’ 

4. Experience an African Safari 

Experience a safari in South Africa

One of best travel experiences in Africa is to search for the Big Five, which we can do so in  Kariega Game Reserve on our South Africa holidays . There are also plenty of other activities and sights to discover in the Rainbow Nation, find out more in our top highlights of South Africa blog. 

5. Go with the flow on a river cruise

River Cruise holidays on the Danube

Sail along the Danube, Rhine or Seine on a river cruise holiday ; it’s one of the best and most relaxing ways to discover some of the highlights of Europe. 

6. Visit La Alhambra

Guided tours of La Alhambra

The UNESCO listed monument complex of La Alhambra, with its magnificent palaces, patios and gardens, is one of the best attractions in Spain to see. 

7. Explore Old Havana in a classic American car

Discover old Havana by car

The classic 1950's cars are famously associated with Cuba; from 1959 to 2013 there was an import ban on cars into the country. Havana's official nickname is ‘Ciudad de la Columnas' or the City of Columns, due to its Colonial architecture. It became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1982 and we think on your Cuba holiday that the best way to explore this historic city is by vintage car!

8. See the mighty Iguazu Falls

Visit Iguazu Falls on guided South American holiday

There are a total of 275 waterfalls that make up the magnificent UNESCO World Heritage Site Iguazu Falls. Discover this incredible wonder of nature on our guided Brazil and Argentina tour .

9. Step back in time to Ancient Egypt

Guided tour of Luxor

The best way to see all the top places in Egypt is to take a guided holiday. Visit the Pyramids of Giza before embarking on a cruise down the Nile and discover more historical treasure troves of Ancient Egypt, such Luxor and Aswan. 

10. See Mount Teide

Guided tour of Mount Teide national park

One of the highlights of a Tenerife holiday is an excursion to  Mount Teide, the third tallest volcanic structure in the world. The volcano is located in Teide National Park, which was named a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 2007. 

11. Explore Valletta 

Guided Valletta city tours

On our holidays to Malta , you can visit its capital Valletta, a UNESCO World Heritage City due to its incredible historic buildings dating back to the 16th century. It’s one of Europe’s smallest capitals so it can easily be explored by foot.

12. Sail around Ha Long Bay 

Guided tours to Ha Long Bay

Hạ Long Bay, a UNESCO World Heritage Site and stunning natural wonder , means "descending dragon" and is quite possibly one of the most beautiful places in the world. It’s just one of the many highlights of Vietnam .

13. See the Taj Mahal

Guided tour of Taj Mahal

A trip to India isn’t complete without visiting the mighty Taj Mahal. One of the new 7 Wonders of the World, the Taj Mahal is a mausoleum in the Indian city of Agra. The Mughal emperor, Shah Jahan commissioned this iconic building to house the tomb of his favourite wife.

14. Go to the smallest country in the world

Visit Vatican on guided Rome trip

On our guided Rome holidays you can visit Vatican City, see St Peter's Basilica and the Sistine Chapel, where you will be amazed by Michelangelo’s most famous masterpiece. 

15. Fjords of Norway

Guided tours of Norway Fjords

Explore the Fjords in Norway , the country’s stunning landscape has attracted tourists for many years, from the snow-capped mountains, glaciers to waterfalls. A cruise along the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Nærøyfjord is an unforgettable experience.

16. Learn more about Ancient Greece

Visit Athens on Greece holiday

The land where civilisation began, a holiday in Greece can offer historical sites and archaeological wonders. See the Acropolis, an ancient citadel perched on a hilltop overlooking Athens and visit Thessaloniki, the cultural capital of Greece. 

17. Take a snow coach journey on Athabasca Glacier

Guided tour of Athabasca Glacier

One of the many highlights of our Western Canada & the Rockies tour is to take a snow coach ride on a real-life glacier! It's incredible way to explore this part of the Columbia icefield. If you want to see more of the Great White North, then check our our blog post on the top 10 places to visit in Canada .  

18. Enjoy a Pastel de nata in Lisbon

Experience a Pastel de nata in Lisbon

The Pastel de nata, a tasty pastry, was created in Lisbon! Portugal’s capital has a fascinating heritage, the city itself is extremely beautiful. With stunning pastel-coloured buildings, neoclassic architecture and mosaic-paved streets. It’s one of the best places in Portugal to visit.

19. Try your luck at Monte Carlo

Discover Monte Carlo Casino

The Monte Carlo Casino opened in 1863, making it 156 years old. You can enjoy a day trip to Monaco, one of the smallest countries in the world, and get a taste of glitz and glamour as part of our Cannes & the Côte d’Azur holiday .

20. Explore Pompeii

Visit Pompeii on guided excursion

A visit to Pompeii will provide an incredible insight into Roman life. This ancient Roman city was buried and largely preserved under ash after the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD. Enjoy a half day excursion to this fascinating site on our Sorrento Coast, Pompeii & Capri tour . 

We hope some of these best travel experiences have inspired you for 2024, we offer escorted holidays to over 100 places worldwide and our team is always on hand to help you choose your dream destination. 

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TravelAwaits

Our mission is to serve the 50+ traveler who's ready to cross a few items off their bucket list.

My 15 Favorite Travel Experiences Everyone Should Try Once

travel experience of a lifetime

  • Bucket List Trips
  • Types of Travel

Travel opens you up to so many incredible experiences, and while there’s a whole lot more of the world I’d still like to see, and this is certainly not the definitive list of best travel experiences, I’d like to share with you some of my most amazing experiences and those I think deserve a spot on every traveler’s bucket list. 

Sunset out on the waters at Mequifi Beach.

1. Watch The Sunrise In A Really Special Place

One of my most memorable sunrises was on Mequfi Beach at the end of a trip through the Quirimbas Archipelago in the Indian Ocean off the north-eastern coast of Mozambique. My husband and I had traveled the 68 miles of the archipelago by plane, sailboat, traditional dhow (wooden boat), and helicopter. We’d spent 2 weeks on the journey and Diamonds Mequfi Beach Resort was the final stop on our itinerary. Keen to savor our last few hours of beach time before flying home, we were up early and down on the beach just as the sun’s first rays of light started to peek over the horizon.

Author, friends and family white water rafting in intense waters.

2. Do Something That Terrifies You

After it takes a 360-foot tumble over Victoria Falls , the Zambezi River squeezes through a narrow gorge where it boils up into the biggest, and arguably best, white water rapids in the world. This is not for the faint-hearted, and an average level of fitness is required, but if you are feeling brave this really can be an adventure of a lifetime. I have done this trip numerous times and it’s definitely something I would recommend.

Pro Tip: The best time to raft the Zambezi is when the water levels are lower and more rapids are accessible, from August to mid-October. Go with a good operator like Bundu Adventures .

3. Laugh When You Get Caught In A Well-Known Tourist Scam!

Rome is an expensive city. Even a double room in a moderately priced hotel can be pricy. Traveling to Rome as a family with small children, we found the best value accommodation was one of the many convents that take in paying guests. Traveling on a budget and trying to economize wherever we could, we caught the train from the airport into the city. With our luggage and two small children in tow (one in a pushchair), we made the classic rookie mistake – we asked a local taxi driver how much he would charge to drive us to the convent. He named an exorbitant price. Some haggling ensued. Beating him down to a price that wasn’t quite so eye-watering, we climbed into the taxi. He drove for minutes, and around the corner pulled up outside our destination! An expensive lesson learned. All we could do was laugh!

Group of hikers ascend the summit at Mount Kilimanjaro.

4. Climb A Mountain

Climbing mountains is something I have been doing for years. I’ve climbed them, guided them, and taken my husband and my children up them. I’ve also taken clients on trips they tell me have been life-changing experiences.

If you are looking for an achievable, yet challenging, mountain to climb, let me steer you towards Tanzania’s Kilimanjaro , where I have been guiding regularly for years. Whether you’ll rate a climb up Africa’s highest mountain a great “travel experience” depends entirely on when you’re asked! Ask a climber making the final push to the summit and they’ll probably say no! At that moment it’s a tough, cold, nauseating, exhausting hell. But ask them 6 hours later, when they’re grinning from ear to ear, standing on the roof of Africa, and their answer will definitely be different.

5. Fly First Class

I’d love to say I have flown in first class, but that wouldn’t quite be true! Years ago, traveling from South Africa to Australia , I got as close to flying first class as I am probably ever going to get. Our travel agent made a mistake with our booking. When the plane touched down in Perth en route to Sydney , my husband and I got off with all the other passengers for a short layover before reboarding. We were surprised to see our boarding passes had us in new seats. In first class! We said nothing, grabbed a glass of champagne from the hostess, and sat down. The hostess, surprised to see us, asked to see our boarding passes. And that’s when the mistake was noticed. We were on the wrong plane; our travel agent had accidentally booked us on a later flight to Sydney! We were allowed to finish our champagne , and then quickly ushered to a pair of empty seats back in economy. Our time in first class was lovely while it lasted!

Nepal flags blow in the wind with mountain scape in the background.

6. Take An Epic Road Trip, On A Road Less Traveled

The 800-mile, 8-day drive from Kathmandu in Nepal to Lhasa in Tibet , along the China-Nepal Friendship Highway is a seriously memorable road trip. It takes you past the highest peaks of the Himalayas, pristine alpine lakes, incredible Buddhist monasteries, and surreal landscapes.

Pro Tip: The China-Nepal Friendship Highway closed after the 2015 Nepal earthquake, and is now only open for goods transport. The route currently being used is along the Pasang Lhamu Highway, a rough route only advised for very intrepid travelers.

Author, Sarah, gives speech at the Malabar River Festival.

7. Spend Time With The Locals

I traveled with Indian friends to Kodenchery in southern India , where they were taking part in a white water kayaking competition. Not knowing the front end of a kayak from the back, I wasn’t actually taking part in the competition but was somehow persuaded to take on the role of commentator. Kodenchery is not on even the most adventurous traveler’s paths, and I was quite a novelty standing on the river bank, microphone in hand, doing my best to describe the action taking place in the river below. I learned a handful of useful phrases from friendly locals and when I was at a total loss for words, one of the local teachers stepped in as my translator. I somehow made it into the local newspaper and onto the local TV news! I’ve never forgotten my weekend of celebrity in the backwaters of south India.

Green tent in the Bale Mountains of Ethiopia.

8. Sleep In A Tent

I’ve slept in many tents in my time, and have many fond memories. My husband, on the other hand, is not a keen camper, only sleeping in a tent when absolutely necessary. Of all the tent experiences I have subjected him to, he tells me the most memorable is waking up one morning in a tiny, ice-covered tent in Ethiopia ’s remote Bale Mountains on a trek through to find the endangered Ethiopian wolf. 

Passengers get ready to board boat for overnight stay.

9. Sleep On A Boat 

My husband and I were traveling to Tanzania ’s Mahale Mountains National Park, on the shores of Lake Tanganyika, to trek with chimpanzees. Most tourists coming to Mahale fly in by charter flight. We decided to travel by boat up the lake from Zambia , spending 3 nights on the MV Liemba , a WWI German gunboat that was converted into a passenger and cargo ferry. We’d managed to secure a “first-class cabin,” which consisted of a rickety bunk bed, a plastic garden chair, and a broken fan — I wouldn’t recommend the trip to any other than the most stoic of travelers. Most of the passengers didn’t have cabins, instead sleeping on the deck. The shared bathroom facilities left a lot to be desired – my husband caught typhoid on the journey home! 

You might not want to choose this boat, but find a boat that suits you, and spend a few nights aboard.

10. Eat Street Food

Street food comes in all shapes, sizes, colors, and flavors. My “sweetest” street food memory is piping hot, fresh jalebis in India. It was a chilly early morning and I was walking, with a friend, through the narrow back streets of a tiny town in the Indian Himalayas, when we came across a guy deep frying these delicious sweets at a makeshift stall on the side of the road. Jalebis are a distant cousin to the donut, with a flour batter, deep fried in circular shapes, and soaked in sugar syrup or honey – they are delicious.

Iconic Sydney Harbor Bridge on a grey day with green trees and city line.

11. Visit An Iconic Site And Appreciate Seeing It In Person

The Eiffel Tower , the leaning tower of Pisa , the Grand Canyon – there are so many iconic sites around the world that deserve a place on your travel list. For me, it’s the Sydney Harbour Bridge. Growing up in Sydney, I never appreciated “the bridge” and must have crossed it a thousand times in my youth, never giving it a second thought. What makes you appreciate it though is climbing to the top! Dressed in a camouflage climbing suit, you, and your trembling knees, climb 1,332 steps to reach the top (burning 504 calories on the way!). At the top, you are rewarded with astounding views over the city. The view is particularly magical at dawn, watching the bustling metropolis come to life far below.

Pro Tip: book your climb with Bridge Climb Sydney the climb will cost you around $128. 

Sunsets while author sips cocktails, image taken over water and viewing cocktail bar.

12. Sip Cocktails In A Rooftop Bar With A View

There are a million places around the world to sip a cocktail from a rooftop bar with a view. My special place is the chic rooftop bar at Upendo House , in Stone Town, Zanzibar. It overlooks the azure ocean and the historic House of Wonders (built by the second Sultan of Zanzibar in 1883 with a door so wide he could enter the house riding on the back of an elephant!).

Infinity pool with a view of Bumi Hills zimbabwe.

13. Swim In Infinity Pool With A View

Everyone loves an infinity pool . My most memorable is the pool at Africa Bush Camps, Bumi Hills , Zimbabwe, which hovers on the edge of a cliff, looking out over the vast and shimmering waters of Lake Kariba, the world’s largest man-made lake, below.

Ancient architecture of the history of Lalibela Ethiopia.

14. Visit Somewhere With A History So Deep You Will Never Truly Understand It

Lalibela in northern Ethiopia is a place where I’ve stood in awe at the history around me. Known for its distinctive subterranean churches, many of which are joined by tunnels carved out of rock during the 12th and 13th centuries, Lalibela is still a pilgrimage site for Coptic Christians today.

15. Take Local Transport 

My first encounter with public transport in India was taking a sleeper train from Delhi to Dehradun (the gateway to India’s famous hill stations). I was alone and had never been on an overnight train before, let alone one in a different country. I boarded the train just before midnight. Within minutes, my fellow passengers had taken me under their collective wings, finding my berth, teaching me how to fold down my bunk bed, and introducing me to their families. As the train pulled out of the station, in unison they opened their picnic containers full of home-cooked food and offered me all kinds of delicious treats. I’ve never felt so instantly and completely accepted by a bunch of total strangers.

Image of Sarah Kingdom

Born and raised in Sydney, Australia, before moving to Africa at the age of 21, Sarah Kingdom is a mountain climber and guide, traveler, yoga teacher, trail runner, and mother of two. When she is not climbing or traveling she lives on a cattle ranch in central Zambia. She guides and runs trips regularly in India, Nepal, Tibet, Russia, and Ethiopia, taking climbers up Tanzania’s Mount Kilimanjaro numerous times a year.

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Once In A Lifetime Travel Experiences – The Travel Stories

Matt Kiefer - Hostel Expert on Hostelgeeks.com

On the road experiences—something that is inevitable if you choose to travel. These can include great experiences, awful times, funny occurrences that you’ll never forget and the just down right weird.

Traveling is about making memories. Memories lasting forever. Check out all travel stories which end up as Experiences for Life – the kind you will never forget and can’t wait to tell your friends about!

Keen for even more entertaining and inspiring travel stories? Check out are huge collection below.

Read all the great stories from around the world. You can instantly share them as well if you enjoy them!

Find all 180+ short travel stories here.

Traveling Jamaica to record our 1st Reggae Song

Our adventure in Jamaica started with a wonderful mistake. My boyfriend and I had booked a hotel two hours away. Instead of paying $50US to sit with tourists on a charter, we paid $2US and traveled with the locals .

Four days later, we stood on the side of the road to catch another $2US public bus to Ocho Rios. Bumping into a local couple we befriended, they set us up with some of their friends that were going to pick us up and drive us around to find a new hotel.  Rule #1 Always trust your gut.

Our new friends then drove us to find a hotel, to their favorite jerk chicken spot and to their homes. Two hours later, we cut our first reggae song! Rule #2 Chill with the locals.

Traveling to Jamaica To Record our 1st Reggae Song

My Cab Driver hunting an Iguana for dinner – Panama Experience!

Cab fares in Panama are determined in advance. There is no meter running, and for good reason. You never know what could happen. There are random stops, occasional detours, and the odd errand that you, as a passenger, should be happy to tolerate. This week, my cabbie stopped in the middle of the road when he spotted a large iguana on the shoulder . He began to chase after it as I sat in the front seat watching the drama unfold with my iPhone.

Losing the lizard in the dry leaves, I gave a whistle to the cabbie and p ointed to the spot where the reptile sat motionless . The Panamanian lept down on the iguana like Spider-Man from above and returned to the truck, lizard in hand.

“ Comida? ” I asked. (Food in Spanish).

“ Si…la cena! Ha ha ha ha. ”

He tied the iguana up like a chicken and then put him in the cab with us, under his knees. I am sure it was dead by this time, and couldn’t understand why he wasn’t placed in the BACK of the little pickup truck. Cab rides will never be the same, and I am grateful for the Panamanian experience.

Read: Real Travel Love Stories – Travel the World to find your Soul Mate

hunting an Iguana for dinner

Varanasi, India: A Terror Attack in the City to Die – a True Travel Story

I cannot imagine myself in a more awful yet interesting place than Varanasi. It is one of the oldest cities in India and the holiest city of Hinduism. Varanasi is also considered as Shiva’s favorite city, which he never leaves. Above Varanasi hovers a mixed mist of smoke and fumes, so that at night no stars can be seen. The narrow streets are littered with garbage and feces, and cows, pigs, dogs and monkeys are roaming around. Drug dealers and pimps are standing near the Ghats, the stairs leading to the Ganges, looking out for tourists to scam.

Many religious people come here simply to die, to be cremated on the banks of the Ganges, before the ashes will be handed over to the river.

They say, this way it is possible to break out of the cycle of birth and rebirth. The city is full of sick people waiting for death.

One evening, we had gathered together to visit a so-called Puja on the Ganges. It is traditionally a Hindu ceremony in Varanasi. Suddenly in the midst of the ceremony a bomb exploded. One child died, many people were injured. According to the newspaper Hindustan Times, a terror organization called Indian Mudschaheddin confessed to this attack.

We wrote up a big new guide to the best hostels in Delhi .

Varanasi, a City to Die - Travel Story India

Get some energetic vibes in Bam – When an Earthquake hit Bam

“Bam is still here!”

Said Mr. Panjalizadeh, owner of the Akbar Guest House in Bam, Iran.

“We get energy from you people who visit us.”

In 2003 a 6.6 earthquake hit Bam, devastating the city. Most of my Iranian friends thought I was crazy to drive all the way to Bam. “There’s nothing there,” they said. Nothing could be further from the truth. True, the place had been wrecked, but – after visiting the stunning citadel – I joined Mr. Panjalizadeh for tea in the garden of his guesthouse, seriously damaged by the earthquake and which still resembles a construction site.

But, opening his torn visitor’s books salvaged from the wreckage, I read the treasured memories of his previous guests. I felt humbled by what I read, and energized by this old man’s optimism.

Read: 17 Solo Travel Stories – From Fears, Lonelyness and the best time of the Life!

Get some energetic vibes in Bam - When an Earthquake hit Bam

Walking solo in a GULAG of the Stalin Era – crimes of the past

In Siberia, you read a lot about GULAG and their unfortunate guests. So we had to go to Perm-36, a former soviet labor camp where “country enemies” were imprisoned .

In a forest 100 km northeast from Perm and closed for tick-borne encephalitis, as we discovered after 2 hours in a bouncy minivan, we managed to enter the camp thanks to a kind employee and walked through barbed wire fences and bare dorms with wooden beds.

It’s touching to see how people had to live for minor crimes like being late for work or reading censored books .

Walking solo in a GULAG of the Stalin Era in Russia

Waiting for Kumari, a goddess in Kathmandu

We were in Kathmandu waiting for Kumari to come out of the palace. She is a goddess and a very young girl , chosen among numerous Newari female candidates according to strict body figures and after frightful trials. She cannot lay her feet on the ground, so servants carry her on a sedan out of the palace. Furthermore, she’s not looking to anything in particular with her composed gaze, almost ignoring everyone.

It’s a bittersweet condition: her destiny is already written, she soon will be a woman and will lose her goddess status, as another Kumari shall be appointed .

Waiting for Kumari, a goddess in Kathmandu

Skydiving 15,000 feet over Queenstown, New Zealand

Absolutely petrified. That’s one way of describing my anxiety before jumping out of a plane at 15,000 feet. But I had never done anything like this before, so that made it desirable. What makes traveling different is the unknown, the ability to experience new things without over thinking it. So that’s what I did; at 15,000 feet, of course. And I can honestly say that it was the best experience of my life. Complete silence as I free fell into nothingness. It was exhilarating.

Read : 34 best hostels in New Zealand

Skydiving 15,000 feet over Queenstown, New Zealand

Ticking of the bucket list: Cage-diving with Great Whites

So, this is a sneak preview of my old Bucket List:

– 14. Learn how to swim

– 15. Go cage diving with Great Whites

And then one day in November 2014 I said: “Sign me up for the cage diving with great white sharks, please”, ok, so I may have skipped a step with learning to swim, but really how essential was it to know how to swim when going cage diving with Great Whites?

After attending an amazing International Civil Society Week in Johannesburg, South Africa, I jumped at the chance of taking a two-day trip to Cape Town. If you need something you wake you up at 6am on a Wednesday, get into a cage with 8 Great Whites surrounding. The adrenaline junkie within will be truly pleased.

Ticking of the bucket list: Cage-diving with Great Whites

From Zero to Kilimanjaro, the Highest Peak of Africa

This was it. What was I thinking? “Stephanie, you have never climbed a mountain in your life, never mind starting with Kilimanjaro.” At that stage there was no going back, it was time to take on the challenge. After spending two months living with a Maasai Tribe, the decision came to tackle Kili with three friends.

This was an experience I will never forget. These overwhelming feelings of happiness, fear, tiredness, excitement and anxiety all at once .

Standing at the highest peak of Africa, I told myself, this was my time. It was time to challenge myself and do it while seeing the world.

From Zero to Kilimanjaro, the Highest Peak of Africa

Drinking Shots with Vietnamese War Veterans

It’s true that it’s the people who make the difference! I’m lucky to be traveling with my best friend Hannah, but don’t worry about doing it alone either because we have met the most incredible people….

Like stopping for a bike break in Hoi An and ending up doing shots of rice wine at the insistence of Vietnamese War Veterans, some of which were missing limbs but still had the biggest smiles and funniest stories.

Read: The coolest and best hostel in Ho Chi Minh City with rooftop terrace and fun vibes

This travel story from Vietnam was contributed by Heather, a friend of Hostelgeeks. Heather Jayne Wilkes is from Wales, UK. She’s a world traveler, exploring every single corner of the globe to find experiences, joy and stories to share.

Drinking Shots with Vietnamese War Veterans

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10 Amazing Travel Experiences of a Lifetime That You Must Have

Traveling is an enriching experience that allows us to broaden our horizons, learn about different cultures, and explore new destinations. Even, some travel experiences are so extraordinary that they can become the memories of a lifetime. In this article, we will delve into some of the most unforgettable travel experiences around the world. From sleeping underwater to exploring the wilds of Namibia, these are amazing travel experiences that will stay with you forever.

Solo Travel

solo travel is one of travel experiences of a lifetime

Indeed, solo travel is one of the top travel trends in 2023 . Everyone should step out of their comfort zone at least once in their lifetime, start their own journey, and embrace new experiences they have never had before. Book a flight, pack your bags, plan your own itinerary, manage your time, coordinate your schedule, budget… You will discover that you are capable of doing much more than you thought.

First-class Flight Experience

Delta's first-class cabin goes with a bed and exclusive services

Most people have to fly in cramped spaces next to noisy passengers. Instead, book a first-class flight and you will have a completely different, luxurious experience. You will realize that airplane food is not always bad. You can also admire the magnificent scenery from various windows while enjoying a glass of champagne.

Dead Sea Floating in Jordan

People are reading while floating in the Dead Sea

Thanks to its high salt concentration, even non-swimmers can easily float in the Dead Sea. This experience is said to bring a relaxing feeling and be beneficial for the skin.

Indeed, as one of the travel experiences of a lifetime, floating in the Dead Sea offers a unique and unforgettable sensation. The high salt concentration of the water allows swimmers to effortlessly float on the surface. It also provides various health benefits. Furthermore, the stunning desert landscape and mineral-rich mud make it an ideal destination for relaxation and rejuvenation.

Visit the Hobbiton Village in New Zealand

a hobbit house village in New Zealand

The Lord of the Rings is a legendary film that inspires people from all over the world. To experience the wonder like in the movie, you can visit the beautiful Hobbiton village on the North Island of New Zealand. In addition to the Hobbiton village, there are many other locations in the movie that you can explore when you visit New Zealand.

Stay on a Lesser-known Island

the private whale island resort that has fewer people

In addition to having beautiful white sand beaches and unique natural attractions, lesser-known islands also have the advantage of being secluded and quiet. Therefore, you can enjoy privacy and immerse yourself in nature without feeling uncomfortable because the beach is too crowded or the resort is too noisy.

Swim with the School of Fish

Swimming with a school of sharks in the Bahamas is one of travel experiences of a lifetime

You will feel the wonder of being close to marine creatures. Swimming with whale sharks, dolphins, or rays… will bring you surprise, amazement, and lasting impressions. Definitely, this activity is one of the travel experiences of a lifetime that you must do.

Dive and Touch Two Continents at the Same Time

You can touch both North American and European continents at the same time at Silfre fissure

The only place on Earth where you can touch two continents at the same time while diving is the Silfra fissure in Thingvellir National Park, Iceland. Formed by the fissure between the North American and Eurasian tectonic plates, this crack moves 2 cm apart each year, constantly changing. Diving with a breathing apparatus here is a truly unique and unforgettable experience for anyone.

Spend a Night in an Underwater Hotel

A special underwater room of the Muraka at the Conrad Maldives Rangali Island Resort

Hotels are now more than just a place to sleep overnight. Many hotels around the world have become attractive tourist destinations and staying in an underwater hotel is an experience that should be had at least once. Some underwater hotels for you to experience are Maruka at the Conrad Maldives Rangali Island Resort, Maldives; Atlantis in Dubai, UAE and Resorts World Sentosa, Singapore.

Self-drive Tour to Explore the Wilderness in Namibia

A herd of Springbok antelope in the wildlife of Namibia

Namibia is one of the most developed countries in Africa, with a large area but a population of only 2.5 million people. This is one of the best places in the world to experience self-driving. You can see sunken ships along the beaches in the desert, and beautiful sand dunes like paintings, experience culture and visit Etosha National Park for an exciting safari tour.

Visit India

the ancient temples in India are a part of the country's attractions

India is a mysterious and fascinating country to explore. You will have a diverse range of experiences, from seeing elephants calmly crossing the road at pedestrian crossings and wandering water buffalo in the center of a bustling city of millions of people, to the tradition of cremation on the Ganges River…

Enjoy Traveling!

Traveling is about creating unforgettable memories and experiencing new things that we can cherish for the rest of our lives. Whether you’re looking for adventure, cultural immersion, or relaxation, there are plenty of travel experiences that can leave a lasting impression. From diving in the Silfra rift to spending a night in an underwater hotel, these are the moments that will stay with you forever. So, pack your bags, step out of your comfort zone, and embark on a journey of a lifetime. You won’t regret it.

The Broad Life introduces to you great, inspirational books for your wanderlust. They aren’t just simple travel, each book recounts the author’s journey to discover and learn many awesome things from new civilizations and places. > READ MORE: THE BEST TRAVEL BOOKS OF ALL TIME

IF YOU LOVE THIS LIST OF TRAVEL EXPERIENCES OF A LIFETIME, ‘PIN IT’ NOW

travel experiences you must have once in a lifetime - the broad life's pinterest board

Khoi Nguyen

Khoi Nguyen builds The Broad Life with a desire to inspire people go exploring the world and live a more interesting, experience, and adventurous life. This blog shares the stories, pictures, and experiences at destinations where he has traveled to.

28 Comments

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Nayna Kanabar

This list sounds like A DREAM and I wish I could afford to do them all. What A FANTASTIC experience it would be.

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Yeah, those experiences are truly great!

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Kimberley Asante

I absolutely love traveling and have done quite a bit of traveling, but have not done any of the things you mentioned. I don’t know if I would go diving, but these recommendations look really cool. thanks for sharing your ideas!

Now you have a bucket list of travel experiences that you can plan to do in life. Enjoy!

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Sonia Seivwright

I just want to get paid right now and start travelling. my family will not see me for at least 6 months. lol. It’s really cool to be able to touch 2 continents at the same time.

Yeah, that experience is unique. Hopefully you will be able to do it soon.

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You have put me back into travel-dreaming mode! The only issue is which one to pick – but why not select them all. I should add reading a book while floating in the Dead Sea to my bucket list!

You should do all the experiences in this list. I’m sure your life will be awesome!

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What a cool list! I think staying in the underwater hotel woukd be amazing. Also, flying first class on a long flight overseas is on my bucket list, too!

You should have the plan to finish this bucket list. That will be great!

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Your travel experiences shared on the website are absolutely captivating! The vivid descriptions and stunning photographs make me want to pack my bags and hit the road right away.

You should do it at least one this year.

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I have always wanted to visist the hobbiton village. Looks so sweet and adorable.

That place is truly great for exploring!

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Ntensibe Edgar

You have my heart and mind when you talk about flying in the first class! i am told it’s something like no other!

Yeah, that’s truly great flying in the first class.

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It’s great to see such a diverse range of travel experiences listed, from solo travel to luxurious first-class flights, and even visiting the Hobbiton Village in New Zealand. The idea of staying on a lesser-known island and exploring the wilderness in Namibia with a self-drive tour also sound incredibly exciting. I can’t wait to start planning my next adventure and check some of these off my bucket list!

You should finish this bucket list. You will have the best moments of your life.

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Diving and touching two continents at the same time is very cool. I’d probably chicken out for swimming in the fish pod lol it is cool though.

Those are surely great experiences that you should do. Are you thinking of finishing this whole bucket list?

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Fransic verso

Dead sea I have never been there and it seems interesting to try it. Thank you for sharing these suggestions to try.

Enjoy reading and the experiences you will have!

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Jennifer L Prince

i loved floating in the dead sea. it’s definitely an experience I’ll remember forever!

Absolutely!

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I totally agree with you. In fact, these are all on my list too. I have no idea that we can be at 2 continents at once and we’d love to visit Silfra fissure. So far, I have done only 3 on your list.

Wow, it’s great that you are finishing this list. What did you do?

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Angela Ricardo Bethea

Those are some wonderful selections of places to be and explore. As a Hobbit fan, I would definitely want to visit Hobbiton Village in New Zealand

That Hobbiton place is truly impressive and interesting to visit.

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100 Ultimate Travel Experiences of a Lifetime: The Panel

The judging panel behind our '100 Ultimate Travel Experiences of a Lifetime' countdown.

The judging panel behind our '100 Ultimate Travel Experiences of a Lifetime' countdown.

--> BY Raman Kumar

Last updated . 31 January 2020

These 10 intrepid travellers have traversed the globe and, between them, have tried many of the 100 Ultimate Travel Experiences of a Lifetime. Lucky them!

LEIGH-ANN POW

International Traveller’s editorial director Leigh-Ann spent over a decade at Vogue Australia as associate editor, as well as editing the magazine’s travel pages. Her job involved visiting drop-dead gorgeous locations with drop-dead gorgeous models, photographers, fashion editors and lots of excess baggage in tow. After leaving the title she wrote her first book before joining IT .

RICHARD I’ANSON

Based in Sydney, Richard has built a career on his twin passions for travel and photography. Over the past 32 years he has travelled to more than 85 countries on all seven continents. Richard has published 11 books including four editions of the Lonely Planet ’s Guide to Travel Photography and is a Master of Photography, awarded by the Australian Institute of Professional Photography.

An award-winning journalist, editor and publisher, Sally has authored nine Lonely Planet travel guides, was deputy editor of both Travel + Leisure and Vogue Entertaining + Travel and food publisher at Murdoch Books . She writes travel articles for The Sydney Morning Herald , The Age and Good Food and is the author of Travel Without Tears: 645 ways for families to take on the world .

ANDREW BAIN

An award-winning travel writer, Andrew can usually be found wandering when he should be working. His work has appeared in print around the world including Australian Geographic , Sydney Morning Herald , Outback and International Traveller . He is the author of a number of books including Headwinds, the tale of his 20,000-kilometre bike ride around Australia. Wild and remote lands are his happy place.

LOUISE SOUTHERDEN

Four-time winner of the ASTW’s prestigious Travel Writer of the Year award, Louise Southerden is the author of three books including Adventures on Earth , an interactive ebook collection of her best-ever adventure travel stories and photographs. When not trekking in Madagascar, surfing in Portugal or sea kayaking in PNG, Louise lives in Sydney. Follow her travels on noimpactgirl.blogspot.com .

STEVE MCKENNA

A regular contributor to Australia’s leading travel publications, including International Traveller , Steve has visited, written about and photographed more than 80 countries on six different continents. He fears he has an incurable case of wanderlust and reserves a special affection for Europe, Asia and South America.

CHRISTINE MANFIELD

Christine is one of the country’s most celebrated chefs whose books Tasting India , Fire and Spice , Stir , Paramount Cooking and Paramount Desserts have spiced up kitchens everywhere. She has worked with chefs around the world and regularly hosts gastronomic tours to destinations including India, Morocco and France.

JOHN BORTHWICK

An award-winning travel writer and photographer for over 14 years, John has contributed illustrated articles to publications such as the Weekend Australian , The Sun-Herald , Qantas The Australian Way and International Traveller . His books include Summer In Siam and Chasing Gauguin’s Ghost. He holds a PhD in Travel Literature.

LEE TULLOCH

Lee is publisher and editor of online travel magazine Mr and Mrs Amos ( mrandmrsamos.com ), which she produces with her husband, photographer Tony Amos. She is an award-winning contributing travel editor at Vogue Living , the Luxe Nomad columnist for Fairfax Traveller and the author of five novels.

CRAIG TANSLEY

Craig is a freelance travel journalist, who contributes to several publications including International Travelle r, and has spent the past 14 years trying to uncover the world’s best experiences. A big fan of adventure in nature, his favourites come complete with loads of adrenalin like swimming with humpback whales off Bora Bora.

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Once-in-a-lifetime Exclusive Travel Experiences

Travel+Leisure World's Best Awards 2023 logo in white

Published on: September 29th, 2017

Last modified: July 27th, 2023

If you're ready to start creating extraordinary memories, then we have the perfect inspiration for you.

The most unique, high-end luxury experiences the world has to offer are sure to take your travel to the next level.

Here's our list of the world's once-in-a-lifetime exclusive travel experiences available to travellers in search of an extraordinary voyage.

Private dining at the Angkor Temples, Cambodia

If you’ve ever wanted to experience Cambodia ‘s Angkor Temples without the crowds and happen to have a spare $11,000, then this is for you. After the complex has closed to the public, you can enjoy a private evening of food and entertainment in one of the ancient Angkor temples, illuminated by candles and spotlights. As this is your night, you call the shots.

If you want Apsara dancing, that can be arranged. Would you prefer a completely undisturbed, romantic dinner? No problem. No matter how you prefer to dine, this is the ultimate in bucket-list experiences.

Underwater Excavation in Croatia

Off the coast of  Croatia , a small village has been discovered dating back 3,000 years. During the Ottoman-Venetian War from 1570 to 1573, the village was abandoned and slowly sank. For a few lucky people, there is the opportunity to assist with the underwater excavation in specially organised archaeological tours.

So far, thousands of pieces of broken pottery and bone and wooden tools have been found, and ancient wooden pylons have been uncovered, too.

Dinner with Michelangelo's David, Florence

If you’re looking to impress your friends or perhaps you have a big birthday or anniversary on the horizon, don’t settle for a fancy new restaurant or a villa on a Caribbean island. At Florence’s Galleria dell’Accademia, you can hire the whole museum for a VIP dinner at the foot of Michelangelo’s David.

After dinner, take advantage of having the place to yourself and wander around the museum to admire the  Italian  artworks and sculptures.

Private Opera Performance in a volcano crater with canapes and champagne, Iceland

From your base in a lodge so exclusive it has no name, take a helicopter to the dormant Thrihnukagigur volcano. Head into the magma chamber of the crater, where you’ll find Champagne and canapes awaiting your arrival.

The natural acoustics of the chamber make it perfect for an operatic performance, which you can enjoy as you sip your Champagne, before heading back to the lodge for a soak in the hot springs.

Dinner in a legendary Spanish Palace with a descendant of El Cid

This castle was built by the Knights Templar, but is now a 33-room heirloom of the Royal House of Navarre. It is considered one of the most beautiful houses in  Spain . You’re here to dine with the first-born son of the Marqués de Legarda, and a descendant of the legendary chevalier El Cid.

Your VIP access allows you to break all the usual rules and pick up and examine some of the priceless relics dating from the 12th to the 19th centuries. Join your host for dinner in one of the palace’s rooms – complete with enormous medieval dining table and antique linens and silver.

Private Boat Charter in Antarctica

The  Enigma  offers one of the most lavish cruising experiences in the world. This six-cabin boat sails all around the world, but nowhere does it seem more luxurious than in the remote waters around the  Antarctic Peninsula . For a cool $450,000, up to 12 guests get spacious, comfortable suites, 21 staff members to hand, an on-deck Jacuzzi, and will be able to do what they want without the need to follow a programme like non-charter cruises .

Aside from kayaking, hiking, visiting penguin colonies and taking Zodiac rides, you can also invite scientists from an Antarctic research facility for dinner on board the Enigma to really learn about this fascinating, fragile continent.

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Trips of a Lifetime

We all have our lists — what’s on yours?

Since 1971, Travel + Leisure editors have followed one mission: to inform, inspire, and guide travelers to have deeper, more meaningful experiences. T+L's editors have traveled to countries all over the world, having flown, sailed, road tripped, and taken the train countless miles. They've visited small towns and big cities, hidden gems and popular destinations, beaches and mountains, and everything in between. With a breadth of knowledge about destinations around the globe, air travel, cruises, hotels, food and drinks, outdoor adventure, and more, they are able to take their real-world experience and provide readers with tried-and-tested trip ideas, in-depth intel, and inspiration at every point of a journey.

A safari through Tanzania with friends. Cage diving with great white sharks in Australia. Boarding the highest railway in northern Europe. We all have our definition of a “trip of a lifetime,” but no matter what yours is, some experiences are so extraordinary, they change how we view the world. And while they're not always easy to reach, often requiring multiple modes of transportation (and even an adventurous spirit), the effort is always well worth the reward.

At Travel + Leisure , we’re devoted to turning our (and your) travel wishes into memories, so let this be the year you stop fantasizing about that once-in-a-lifetime trip and finally book it. Ready, set, get inspired.

Jessie on a Journey | Solo Female Travel Blog

19 Inspiring Travel Experience Stories About Life-Changing Trips

Love inspiring travel experience stories ?

Then you’re in the right place!

Grab a snack and your favorite beverage and get ready to settle in, as you’re about to read some truly inspiring travel stories about life-changing trips.

In this roundup, some of my favorite bloggers share their best travel stories.

You’ll hear about travelers embarking on sacred pilgrimages, growing after a first solo female travel trip, deeply connecting with locals on the road, and getting out of their comfort zones in ways that completely alter the course of their life.

And if you’re looking for a unique travel experience, you’ll likely find it in the short stories about travel below.

Table of Contents

Free Travel Resources

But first…

Make sure to grab free access to my #BeyondTheGuidebook Travel Resource Library:

travel planning resources

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Woohoo! You’re officially a member of the Jessie on a Journey community. 

Make sure to also connect with me  on Instagram ,  on YouTube , and  on Facebook  to start traveling #BeyondTheGuidebook.

I regularly share about solo female travel, New York City, lesser-known destinations, unique experiences, active adventures, and how to turn your passion for exploring the world into a profitable business through travel blogging.

Click here to head back to the travel blog .

.

There is so much included!

Plus, I’m constantly adding new resources, guides, and personality quizzes to help you travel beyond the guidebook!

On that note, let’s dive into the inspiring travel stories .

1. Travel Experience Stories In South America

My travel story takes place in South America, back when I used to travel solo for months at a time.

I was in my mid-20s, and even though I’d backpacked Europe, Southeast Asia, and China and had studied abroad in Australia, the mix of intense excitement and nerves I had leading up to my South America backpacking trip was different.

And despite family and friends warning me that South America wasn’t a place for a solo female traveler , it ended up being my best trip ever.

There are so many interesting short travel stories and unforgettable travel experiences woven into this trip, like:

  • Getting invited to have dinner with my Brazilian plane seatmate and her grandma
  • Having a group of complete strangers on Couchsurfing take me out for dinner and dancing on my birthday in Mendoza
  • Attending a small house party in Argentina and learning about the tradition of mate
  • Getting stuck on a broken-down bus and having an impromptu language exchange with an elderly woman in Peru
  • Having a love interest back home break up with me via text, and then experiencing the kindness of strangers as a woman in my hostel who I barely knew treated me to ice cream to cheer me up
  • Having a romance with a hostel mate in Ecuador and then traveling through the country together
  • Living in a giant treehouse with a group of strangers during a solo trip in Brazil and spending our days exploring hiking trails and swimming and our nights drinking and exchanging stories about traveling
  • Taking a 4×4 from Chile to Bolivia across the Siloli Desert to see otherwordly sites like rainbow lagoons and train graveyards in the middle of nowhere
  • Experiencing some of the world’s most incredible natural wonders, like Iguazu Falls, Torres del Paine, the Amazon River, Uyuni Salt Flats, and Perito Moreno Glacier

At times the trip was also challenging, from dealing with long bus rides and car sickness to flipping over my bicycle handlebars in Peru and getting my body (and ego) badly bruised.

But, I was okay.

In fact, I was more than okay, as the trip showed me how independent I could be and what I was truly capable of. It also showed me the beauty of immersing yourself in cultures different than your own and connecting with locals who want to share them with you.

Years later, when people ask what my best travel experience has been this is the trip that comes to mind.

-Jessie from Jessie on a Journey

A travel experience story about Brunei

2. Traveling With An Open Mind

Many people think of travel as an experience and rightly so. Sometimes, however, you cannot choose the places you travel to.

This happened to me in 2019.

My husband found himself posted in Brunei for work.

Three months pregnant meant that I had a choice:

Either stay with him in Brunei for three months before returning back to India or remain in India, alone.

I chose the former. Not because of my love for the country but because I wanted to be close to him.

Brunei had never held any appeal to me. Whatever research that I pulled off the Internet showed me nothing other than one beautiful mosque.

The flights in and out of the country were expensive so traveling frequently out was not an option either.

I was engulfed by a sense of being trapped in a remote place.

Needless to say, I reached Brunei in a pretty foul mood. I think one of the things that struck me the most even in the midst of that bad mood was the large swaths of greenery that surrounded us.

Mind you, we were not staying in the big city but as far away on the outskirts as you could imagine. I’m not a city girl by any stretch and the greenery eventually soothed my nerves.

It took a week, but I soon found myself interacting with people around me. Fellow expats and locals all went out of their way to make me feel comfortable.

The more comfortable I felt, the more we explored. We trekked (yes, while pregnant!), we joined the board game community, and we enjoyed the local cuisine.

Three months later when it was time to leave, I found myself reluctant to say goodbye to the warmth of the country I had called home for a short while.

I think that my time in Brunei taught me a valuable lesson:

Don’t judge a place by what others say or a lack of information.

Sure, you may not always like what you see, but there will always be something that you will like. You just need to look hard enough to find it!

-Penny from GlobeTrove

A slow travel experience across the Portuguese Camino de Santiago

3. From Half-Day Hiker To Walking Holiday Enthusiast

I’ve always enjoyed walking but never in a million years did I imagine I’d end up walking over 200 kilometers (~124 miles) in 10 days, become a fan of walking holidays, and end up developing self-guided hiking routes in Portugal with a local tour operator as part of my business.

The shift from being someone who was content with an easy three-hour walk to an experienced multi-day hiker began with a brief taste of the Portuguese Camino de Santiago, an ancient pilgrim trail through Portugal to Santiago de Compostela Cathedral in Spain.

Back in 2013 I did a guided one-day hike along one of the most beautiful stretches of the Camino, north of Ponte de Lima. It’s also one of the most challenging sections so it was hard work, but the views from the top of Labruja Mountain made the climb worthwhile.

My guides were so enthusiastic about the thrill of arriving at Santiago de Compostela Cathedral after the challenges of day after day on the Camino that I began to think I might want to give it a go, despite not being religious.

Fast forward a few years and I set off from Barcelos with a friend of mine to follow the Portuguese Camino de Santiago.

Apart from suffering from chronic back pain, I thought I was quite fit but nothing had prepared me for how utterly exhausted I would feel at the end of each walking day.

This was truly a slow travel experience, as we were averaging about 20 kilometers (~12 miles) per day and by the time we reached our hotel, I would barely have enough energy to get cleaned up and find food before collapsing. I had envisioned plenty of sightseeing but that ended up being minimal.

Quickly, I realized the moral of this unique travel experience:

The Camino was all about making the most of the journey rather than the destination.

For me, that was quite a shift in thinking as I am usually all about getting to where I want to be as soon as possible so that I can start exploring. It was, perhaps, also my first step on the path towards mindfulness.

I will never forget the sense of achievement and progress at the end of each walking day, and the relief and pride I felt when we finally made it to Santiago de Compostela.

We met people who had walked the Camino several times and I can totally understand how it can become addictive. 

-Julie from Julie Dawn Fox in Portugal

A story about traveling the Banda Islands

4. A Story About Traveling & Its Ripple Effect

Tucked away in far eastern Indonesia is a tiny archipelago of islands called the Banda Islands.

Apart from world-class snorkeling and some crumbling colonial buildings, the Banda Islands are mostly forgotten and would be described as a backwater by all accounts.

However, the Banda Islands are possibly the main reason that I am who I am today. 

Well, the Bandas are the original Spice Islands.

Nutmeg used to grow on this tiny group of islands alone and nowhere else. The Dutch colonized Indonesia and promptly became the owners of islands where money grew on trees.

The only problem was that Indonesia was so far away that they needed a halfway stop to and from Indonesia.

That’s where my travel experience story comes in.

The same Dutch East India Company that traded in spice set up a halfway station at the foot of Table Mountain to break up their long journey. As a result, my Dutch ancestors arrived in the southernmost point in Africa , and generations later we are still there.

When I visited the Banda Islands, it dawned on me how something happening on the other side of the world can ripple out and affect people on the other side of the planet.

And I’m not the only one!

The spice trade was so important to the Dutch that they even traded a tiny island in the Banda archipelago for a much bigger island…Manhattan.

Yes. That Manhattan.

Before visiting the Banda Islands I never really knew about this part of my history.

Along with the spice that the ships carried back to Amsterdam, it also carried slaves. These slaves, more often than not, ended up in Cape Town.

Just like my European ancestors, they too became a part of Africa and added another shade to our beautiful Rainbow Nation.

It was in the Banda Islands that I realized how much of my culture, food, stories and even words in my mother tongue, Afrikaans, actually originated in Indonesia.

Because of these tiny islands, I am a true mix of Europe, Africa, and Asia. While I always thought I knew how all things in life are somehow connected, I didn’t really grasp it until my visit to Indonesia.

This could have been a resort travel experience story, as I went to Indonesia to swim and snorkel and relax on the world’s best beaches. And while I did get to do that, I also learned a lot about who I am as a person, my people, and my country…on another continent. 

My visit to the Bandas has sparked a fascination with Indonesia, which I have visited seven times since. I’m already planning another trip to this spectacular country!

-De Wet from Museum of Wander

The best trip ever in Costa Rica

5. Awakening My Spirit In A Costa Rican Cloud Forest

In February 2017, I was just coming out of a decade of mysterious chronic illness that had shrunk my world.

And one of the things that finally helped me to resurface during the previous year was an online Qi Gong course I stumbled upon: 

Flowing Zen .

To the casual observer, Qi Gong looks a lot like its better-known cousin, Tai Chi — the ancient art of moving meditation — but it’s actually energy medicine for healing.

In fact, it’s commonly used in Chinese hospitals.

My daily practice that year made such a difference for me that I dangled a reward for myself:

If I stuck with it all year, then I’d head to Sifu Anthony’s annual retreat in a cloud forest in Costa Rica the following February.

And I did! It was my first trip out of the country for more than a decade.

Just like that, I booked a solo trip — something I hadn’t done since I was an exchange student to Europe 30 years earlier — to San Jose where I met up with a dozen strangers and Sifu Anthony, our Qi Gong master.

We boarded a tiny bus and rode up, up, up around carsick-inducing curvy mountain roads into a magical cloud forest jungle where we finally arrived at The Blue Mountain (“La Montana Azul”) for a weeklong Qi Gong retreat. 

There were no Internet or distractions here — just delicious organic vegetarian meals made with love and shared with the community under a gorgeous open-air palapa.

There were also colorful tropical birds singing in the jungle, as well as the largest arachnid I’ve ever seen in my gorgeous (but also roofless) room for a little extra adventure.

I’d felt a little energy movement during my year of online practice, but during that week on The Blue Mountain, my body began to really buzz with Qi — life force energy — as I Lifted the Sky, stood in Wuji Stance, and practiced Shooting Arrows.

I felt electrified and joyful. 

And that was when everything changed for me.

At home, I had a successful career as a freelance writer, but I decided during my week in the cloud forest that I wanted more from life.

I wanted to explore the beauty, diversity, nature, and culture in every corner of the world.

And I wanted to share this intoxicating joyful feeling of life-giving freedom and adventure with anyone who wanted to come along for the ride.

Shortly after that, at age 53, I launched my travel blog.

Dreams really do come true. They are just waiting for you to claim them.

-Chris from Explore Now or Never

Enter your name + email below to subscribe and snag access to my FREE Ultimate Travel Planning Resource Library, full of trip planners, cheat sheets, packing lists, personality quizzes, travel guides, Google Map itineraries + more! //  Privacy Policy . 

.

6. From Rome With Love

This wasn’t the way I wanted to see Rome. 

Sure, I was happy to spend Christmas in Rome and stand in awe of the city’s many iconic attractions. But, life wasn’t meant to turn out like this.

I was supposed to go to Rome with my mom back in 2012; however, life had different plans, because a week before our trip, I got a double kidney infection. A condition that required a week of hospitalization.

Although I was annoyed I had missed my trip, it wasn’t the end of the world since I was fine and everything seemed okay…until my mom developed a cough.

A cough that later became a heartbreaking diagnosis of stage four ovarian cancer. 

My mom spent the final months of her life in chemo, desperately trying to fight a horrific disease so that she wouldn’t let her family down.

And she didn’t.

Instead, she showed us how to never give up on life, even if it was a losing battle. 

So, when she eventually passed away, I booked a trip to Rome. 

Sure, it wasn’t the trip I had hoped for. But, I knew that as her daughter, it was my job to live enough for the both of us. 

And that’s exactly what I did.

Was I an anxious, sad, angry mess of a person?

Absolutely. I was still getting used to a world that my mother wasn’t a part of. 

And honestly, you never get used to that world. You just deal with it because you don’t really have a choice.

But I also knew that I wanted my mom to live on through me and that I didn’t want to live a life where the haunting phrases “should of,” “could of,” and “would have” swirled through my head and ate away at my happiness.

So, I went. I packed a boatload of tissues, sobbed my heart out, and attended Christmas mass at the Vatican. 

I also threw a coin in the Trevi Fountain, walked through the Colosseum, chowed down on gelato, and spent two weeks doing all the things my mom and I had wanted to do. 

And that’s when it hit me. I had never gone to Rome alone because my mom had always been there with me. Maybe she wasn’t physically there, but I thought of her and felt her presence every minute of every day. 

Her presence also reminded me that life isn’t about the things we buy or the money that we have.

It’s about making memories with the people we love; people that never really leave us since they are constantly influencing our lives in countless ways.

And after my trip to Rome, I finally knew that my mom would always be there because she had forever changed my life in the best possible way. 

-Kelly from Girl with the Passport

inspiring travel stories in Finland

7. Studying In Finland

One of my major life-turning points happened during my exchange studies in Finland.

Until then, I was studying at a university in Prague, had a part-time job at a renowned management-consulting firm, and thought I was on the right path in life.

At the University of Economics where I studied it was notoriously difficult to get on an Erasmus exchange trip abroad since the demand was huge. Everyone wanted to go!

Regardless, I decided to sign up early for my last semester, just to see what the process was like to be better prepared for applying again in a year.

I did make it through all the three rounds and surprisingly got a spot at a University in Turku, Finland! I was ecstatic. The success brought its own challenges, but once you set your eyes on the goal, nothing can stop you.

And I had the time of my life in Finland.

I met the most amazing people, traveled a ton, partied a lot, and bonded with friends from all over the world.

Given I was one of the few people there who really needed to pass all her courses and additionally write her thesis, I managed to run on an impossible sleep schedule of four hours per night. But I made it!

My studies in Finland opened up my horizons, too.

The summer after, I wrapped up my life in Prague and went on to study in Germany and China . The whole time I traveled as much as possible, often going on solo adventures. It was only a matter of time when I’d start my own travel blog.

My Finland adventure led me to a life of freedom made up of remote work, travel blogging , and plenty of traveling. I couldn’t have asked for a better outcome. And it gave me one of my favorite true adventure stories that I can now share with others.

-Veronika from Travel Geekery

Travel experience stories in Cuba

8. How Cuba Changed My Life

One of my favorite inspiring stories about travel takes place in Cuba.

I visited Cuba in February 2013 and it changed my life — and I like to think it did so for the better.

Interestingly, I expected a completely different country and was compelled to write about it when I got back home.

But let me tell you more.

I read copious amounts of blogs and travel diaries to prepare myself for the trip to Cuba so I thought I’d go in with a fairly good idea of what to expect. Each and every post I read spoke of marvelous landscapes, pristine beaches, crumbling but charming cities, and welcoming locals.

All of it was true, in my experience — except for the locals.

I didn’t find them so welcoming. At least, not genuinely so. They only seemed to welcome me as far as they could get something in exchange: money, clothes, pens, soap, you name it. 

Each and every day in Cuba was a challenge to avoid the scams, to avoid being ripped off, to fight off each and every attempt of people trying to take advantage of me. I usually managed, but it was exhausting and it left a sour taste in my mouth.

Once I got back home I felt the urge to write about my experience — not for other sites or papers as I’d often do. This time I was afraid I’d be censored.

So I opened my own blog. With zero tech knowledge, zero understanding of online content creation and SEO, I started writing and telling people what they should really expect during a trip to Cuba.

I’d put up the occasional post, but continued with my usual job.

At the end of the year, my contract as a researcher in international human rights law at the local university ended, and I decided to stop pursuing that career for a while.

I packed my bags and left for a long-term trip to Central and South America . I started writing on the blog more consistently and learning, and eventually took my blog full-time , turning it into a career.

As of today, I have never looked back and have no regrets.

The one thing I’ll do, as soon as I can, is travel to Cuba to say thank you — because it changed my life in a way nothing else has ever done. 

-Claudia from Strictly Sardinia

inspiring travel stories in Patagonia

9. A Short Travel Story About Finding Inner Peace In Patagonia

Life in London is hard.

Life in London as a gay single brown refugee is harder.

Juggling between work, my passion for traveling, and the prejudices that I dealt with on a daily basis eventually took their toll on me and I reached a breaking point.

The fact that I couldn’t return home to see my family and being away for them for almost nine years was enough to hammer in the final nail in the coffin.

I almost had a nervous breakdown and in that moment of desperation, which I knew would define the rest of my life, I took a month off and headed to Patagonia.

It was probably the best decision I’ve ever made in my life. The 36 hours it took me to get to El Chalten from London were tiring but Patagonia blew me away.

On my first day there I did a 28-kilometer (17-mile) hike which included a steep mountain climb. It was incredible how moving through the forest helped me clear my mind. And as I stood in front of Laguna de Los Tres, the rain and clouds gave way to sunshine and a rainbow.

I felt at peace.

The countless hikes, great food, and the warmth of locals in Chile and Argentina helped me get back in my skin and find the peace I was missing in my heart.

Nature is indeed the best medicine when it comes to stress relief and I won’t be coy about hugging trees to speed up the process (it did).

Patagonia was life-changing for me.

The beauty of nature struck me at each point and every time I thought it wasn’t possible to beat the view, the next one did just that.

I came back a changed, resilient, and most importantly, a happy person.

-Ucman from BrownBoyTravels

A unique travel experience in Colorado

10. Looking Inwards & Making Connections With Strangers

It was decades before I traveled solo for the first time in my life.

This trip — a six-day escape to Colorado — was the first trip that was not for business or family reasons but just to travel and discover.

As I prepared for it, I had a strange feeling of excitement and nerves at the same time. I had all sorts of thoughts and doubts:

Would it be fun?

Would I be bored?

Would I stay in bed all day or would I bounce with excitement to do the next thing?

I wasn’t sure. Little did I know that it was going to be a memorable journey of self-discovery. 

As a good wife and mom, for me travel is always about the family; always thinking of who would enjoy what. It’s about family time and bonding. It’s about creating memories and travel stories together. It’s all so wonderful.

But on a solo trip who would I connect with? What would I say?

Well, I found that I got to do anything I wanted!

Usually when I travel with my family, if I feel like going on a drive that’s not on the itinerary or getting a snack no one else is interested in, we simply don’t do that.

So it was weird to just go do it. Really, that’s a thing?

As for making connections, it was so easy to meet locals while traveling and also to connect with other travelers. Honestly, I had conversations everywhere — on planes, while hiking, in restaurants, in the hotel lobby.

It was quite an eye-opening experience to meet a mom of 18 kids and hundreds of foster kids, a cookie baker, a professional photographer, a family of Fourteener hikers, and an internationally ranked marathon runner.

The inspiring stories I discovered were amazing and nothing like my wonderful safe life at home. 

In terms of travel safety , I got to go rock climbing, solo hiking, driving up a Fourteener, eating alone.

And it was all fine. Actually, it felt surprisingly normal.

It was was just me, my SUV, and my backpack for a week. Most of all, it was a breath of fresh air that I didn’t know existed. 

It’s wonderful to be back home and know that possibilities are endless and there is so much more out there to explore and be wowed by!

-Jyoti from Story At Every Corner

life-changing travel experience stories in Colombia

11. A Solo Hike To Find Connection

I have traveled solo many times, but I admit I was a bit uneasy booking my trip to Colombia . In part, due to the country’s dark past. But also because I desperately wanted to do the Cocora Valley hike, and if I’m honest, I was terrified.

This hike is located in the Coffee Triangle, an area recognized for its beauty as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It features both rainforest and a stunning green valley speckled with cartoonishly-tall wax palms rising 200 feet or more.

It’s incredibly beautiful.

It’s also a long hike and quite challenging — it generally takes between six and eight hours and there is a steep area with over 3,000 feet of elevation within a quarter of a mile.

I wasn’t in hiking shape, so I was a little concerned. But, worst of all for me were the seven dodgy-looking suspension bridges. 

I’m terrified of heights.

And, I’d be going alone.

I decided to go anyway and I met an incredible woman on the bus to Salento, the town near Cocora. She was also traveling solo and we agreed to hike together.

The town is a backpacker enclave and we met up with a small group of people all traveling solo. As the days passed, our group got larger and it was such a magical experience.

As much as I love city travel, this small town won my heart.

My new friend and I set off on the hike and met two other women who were nervous to do the hike. We all went together.

When we got to the first suspension bridge, I paused. I was embarrassed to admit my fear, but the bridge swayed widely and there was nowhere to hold onto.

When they realized how out of my comfort zone I was and how scared I felt, everything changed. Instead of me dealing with it alone, they were all there to encourage me.

One crossed the bridge to encourage me from the other side and they stayed off of it to limit the sway. Crazy enough, I not only crossed the seven suspension bridges, but I also crossed one an extra time when we went the wrong way on the trail.

I did it! 

I was prepared to be blown away by Cocora Valley’s beauty, but what I wasn’t expecting was what a life-changing travel experience my time there would be.

 -Sam from My Flying Leap

short stories on travel and sustainability

12. How A Pet Sitting Travel Experience Led To A Passionate Career

We wanted to go to the Caribbean but didn’t know much about the islands or how we were going to afford it.

By chance, a friend of ours in Australia mentioned “pet sitting” and that it is something you can do all over the world.

We quickly created an account on a pet sitting website and began searching for options. There were only a couple of sits available in that part of the world, but we tried our luck, sent a request, and to our surprise landed a three-month gig in a beautiful house in the US Virgin Islands — with an infinity pool overlooking the British Virgin Islands.

A month into our sit, we had explored the destination pretty well and so had a lot of time on our hands. We managed to secure another sit in Grenada, so our year was going to be taken up with Caribbean pet sits.

Inspired by a Canadian couple that had previously stayed at our Grenada housesit, we decided to start our own travel blog. We began by writing about The Virgin Islands, highlighting the beautiful beaches and funky bars.

But for every photo of a beautiful beach there were 10 photos of trash.     

It was hard to ignore the plastic pollution issue, especially on such pristine and remote beaches.  So, we began to share photos of the trash we saw and how much we could pick up on our daily dog walks.

The more we looked into plastic pollution, the more we realized the severity of the global plastic pandemic. From that point, we used our platform to create awareness and highlight ways to say no to plastic and travel plastic-free .

We changed our daily routines, our way of living, and even our diets to accommodate more organic foods and little to no plastic packaging.

It’s been over three years now and we continue to do what we can. This journey has led us to some amazing places, working with great conscious brands and even organizing a country-wide beach clean-up campaign in Grenada.

Our aim now is to keep on going.

We love connecting with like-minded people and love the shift over the last few years that brands have made towards creating more sustainable products and services.

It’s been an amazing few years that was sparked by a conversation about pet sitting. Who would have guessed?

-Aaron & Vivien from The Dharma Trails

travel for experience in Uganda

13. Learning To Slow Down The Hard Way

On Christmas of 2017, I was born again.

We like to spend our Christmas holidays somewhere warm abroad, and that year we chose Uganda.

Nature, wildlife, and sunny days were a blessing when it was so cold and dark in Europe. Life was beautiful, and we had a rental car and a busy schedule ahead to explore the country.

This is where this short travel story turns into one of my more scary travel experiences :

At Murchinson Falls National Park, we had a car accident.

I lost control of the car, and it rolled over, destroying windows, chassis, and engine.

But we were alive! My right arm was severely injured, but we managed to walk to our lodge, not far inside the park.

In the lodge, I was happy to learn that there was a pretty decent American hospital in Masindi that was just a one-hour drive from the lodge. Moreover, one of the lodge’s guests was a nurse who cleaned the wound while we were waiting for the taxi from/to Masindi.

The hospital took care of us, and after a couple of injections and stitches, I was ready to head to our new hotel in Masindi; however, my wound required daily dressing and more injections, so we were asked to stay in town for a few days.   

Masindi is the kind of place where you may want to stop to buy some food or water, but that’s it.

The town’s highlights were the market and our daily visit to the hospital, so we ended up looking for the small things, chatting with the medical staff, the hotel staff, the people in the market, and learning more about their customs.

We learned to slow down the hard way.

When we were allowed to leave, we took a road trip south through the country to see something else. We did not care about our travel bucket list anymore — we were alive, and we wanted to enjoy Uganda’s unique nature and its people. 

In the end, our Uganda trip was not about the places that we saw, but the people that we met. It was travel for experience vs sightseeing.

I hope to revisit Uganda one day, with a stop at Masindi for some food, water, and maybe something else.

-Elisa from World in Paris

short travel stories about cycling

14. A Cycling Trip To Remember

During the summer of 2019, I cycled solo from London to Istanbul. This huge bicycle tour took me 89 days and through 11 countries.

As you might expect, it was a challenging yet incredible journey, which saw me pedal along some of Europe’s greatest rivers, pass through some of its best cities, and witness some of its most beautiful scenery.

It’s becoming more and more important for us to think about the impact that travel can have on our environment. This was the inspiration for my bicycle tour; I wanted to find more responsible ways to explore the world and avoid flights where possible.

I discovered that bicycle touring is one of the most eco-friendly ways to travel, as using nothing but a bicycle and your own pedal power you can carry everything you need while covering surprising distances each day.

The simplicity of life and the sheer amount of time I spent cycling alone gave me a lot of time to just think . This really helped me to come to terms with some personal problems rooted in my past and, as a result, I arrived solo in Istanbul with newly found confidence, independence, and liberation. 

Cycling across the entire European continent may seem like an impossibly daunting task, but I assure you, it will make you feel like a new person, just like it did for me.

-Lauren from The Planet Edit

Best travel experience in Jamaica

15. How The Caribbean Shaped Me Into A Fully Sustainable Traveler

One of my first international trips as an adult was traveling around the Caribbean .

I checked into my hotel in Jamaica and asked for a recommendation for a local place to eat. The receptionist told me that under no circumstances should I should go into the town because it was really dangerous, but that — to my luck — the hotel’s restaurant offered wonderful Caribbean food.

I pondered my options:

Did I really want to spend all my time on the beach without getting to know a single local?

I was a very inexperienced traveler and very young, but there was only one answer to my question:

Absolutely not. I was not going to be visiting a new place and staying hostage in a hotel chain. So out I went.

The poverty hit me in the face. After only seeing fancy resorts, the reality was hard to swallow.

A few locals approached me and were super curious as to what I was doing there alone, since most tourists didn’t go there.

I told them I was interested in meeting them and experiencing their culture. And just like that, I was embraced.

We met more people, had some food, and then we danced the night away. They had so little, yet they wanted to share it with me. They wanted to make me feel welcome.

And they undeniably did.

The next morning all I could think about was how all the money most tourists spend goes to big corporations. The locals have to be thankful if they get a job that pays minimum wage, while foreign businesses earn millions.

I have always been environmentally conscious, but this trip made it clear that sustainability goes well beyond nature and wildlife.

It’s also about communities.

From then on I always look for locally owned accommodation, eateries, guides, and souvenirs.

Sustainability, with everything it entails, became a motto for me and changed the very essence of the way I travel.

-Coni from  Experiencing the Globe

Short stories about travel in Peru

16. Lessons From My Students In Peru

One of the most life-changing trips I’ve ever been on was a volunteering experience in the stunning city of Cuzco in Peru.

I spent a month there teaching English and Italian to a group of local adults. And even though my time there was short, the travel experience was so humbling that it changed my outlook on life.

My lessons took the form of active conversations, which essentially turned into a massive multilingual cultural exchange between me and my students. Hearing my students talk about their lives — and realizing just how different they were from mine — made me look at my own life with a fresh new perspective.

One person spoke about the three years he spent living in a jungle with his dad, where they fed off of animals they hunted in order to survive.

Another student told me about her ultimate dream of mastering English so that she could become a tour guide and have a more stable future.

For me, these stories were a reminder of just how small I am in this world and how much we can get consumed by the small bubbles we live in. 

Most of all, my students showed a passion and appreciation for life that I’d never witnessed before.

This is true for the locals I met in Cuzco in general. The quality of life in Cuzco is very modest; hot water is scarce and you learn to live with little.

But the locals there do way more than just that — they spontaneously parade the streets with trumpets and drums just because they’re feeling happy, and their energy for the simple things in life is incredibly contagious.

It was impossible to not feel inspired in Cuzco because my students always had the biggest smiles on their faces, and the locals showed me again and again that simply being alive is a blessing.

I went to Peru to teach, but ended up learning more from my students and the locals there than they did from me.

Ever since I got back from that trip, I made it a goal to slow down and not take the simple things in life for granted.

Every time I get upset about something, I think about the Peruvians in Cuzco parading their streets in song and pure joy, and I tell myself to stop complaining.

-Jiayi from  The Diary of a Nomad

inspiring traveling stories about overcoming obstacles

17. Braving Travel With Chronic Pain

Santiago de Compostela is a beautiful city with a prominent cathedral positioned centrally within the city.

While the historical cathedral attracts numerous visitors, even more well-known is the route to Santiago de Compostela, Camino de Santiago –- the world-famous pilgrimage route that has a plethora of trailheads and ends in Santiago. 

Home to locals, students, English teachers, and those on a spiritual pilgrimage, personal conquest, or a great outdoor hiking excursion, Santiago is a magical city.

My introduction to Santiago de Compostela doesn’t begin on the pilgrimage route, yet ends with a spiritual awakening analogous with those other unique pilgrimage stories.

It was my first solo trip abroad teaching English in Spain, a country that’s always been on my travel bucket list. A small town outside of Santiago was selected as the school I’d be teaching at for the year.

Unknowingly, this teach abroad program chose the perfect city for me to live in. 

A year prior, I suffered a traumatic brain injury that left me unable to function normally and complete average tasks. Migraines, headaches, and dizziness became my body’s normal temperament, a hidden disability invisible to the naked eye. 

Braving travel with chronic pain was the first lesson I learned during the trip.

The vast green outdoors and fresh dew from the morning rain enlivened me daily and reminded me about the importance of slowing down so I could enjoy traveling with my hidden disability. 

I also learned to stop often for daily tea breaks and to embrace the long lunch hour,  siestas , with good food, company, and a nap to rest.

Meeting locals , indulging in local food, and learning Spanish allowed me to connect deeply with the beautiful culture of Santiago. After all, my dream was to travel to Spain, and I more than accomplished that dream.

Difficult or not, I learned to own my dream and I was more than surprised with the results.

Who knew that a year after my injury I’d be traveling the world with chronic pain, and for that, I’m eternally grateful.

-Ciara from Wellness Travel Diaries

travel experience stories in China

18. A Blessing In Disguise

2020 has been a wild year for all of us and foreign students in China are no exception. As soon as the malevolent virus began to make its rounds in China, our university sent us home for “two weeks.”

However, within a short time, countries began to shut their borders and these “two weeks” turned into months, a full year even.

Crushed by the burden of online lectures and virtual labs, my boyfriend and I packed our bags and caught one of the first flights to his home country of Pakistan.

I had always been an over-ambitious traveler. I believed numbers were everything — the number of countries I visited, the number of hours I spent on a plane, the number of international trips I took in a year. These numbers were what defined me.

My feet were constantly itching and I never liked to spend more than a few days in a place before heading to the next country. Revisiting a place felt superfluous to me.

That’s why I was hoping to spend a month or two in Pakistan and then continue to check new countries off the list — after all, my online classes finally granted me the freedom to “work on my numbers.”

But as is usually the case in 2020, things turned out quite different from what I had expected. Borders remained closed and worldwide infections stayed rampant. At this point, I have already spent nearly half a year in Pakistan.

During this peculiar time, however, an amazing thing happened:

My mindset about travel started to change and I began to look at my long stay in Pakistan as perhaps my most valuable travel experience ever.

I may not have visited dozens of countries like in previous years but my experiences were deeper than ever before.

From trekking to one of the world’s tallest mountains to sharing tea with heavily armed officers at nearly 5,000 meters altitude to exploring hidden beaches in the most secluded regions to spontaneously being invited to village homes, my adventures in Pakistan couldn’t have been more incredible. They opened my eyes to the sheer diversity of many countries and completely transformed my idea about traveling. 

It took me nearly a full year of heavy restrictions on international travel and a few months in one of the world’s most fascinating countries to give up on my superficial ideals and become a more mature traveler.

This time will always have a special place in my heart.

-Arabela from The Spicy Travel Girl

short travel stories about life-changing trips

19. What The River Taught Me

My travel story takes place in the summer of 2017 — the final summer before I graduated university — as it continues to play a significant role in the person I’ve become.

When I say that, people ask me if it was the portion of the summer I spent solo backpacking in Europe . And to their surprise, it wasn’t. It was actually the latter portion of the summer where I stayed closer to home.

For July and August I worked as a canoe guide leading whitewater canoe trips on remote rivers in Canada. It was here that I got to canoe the powerful and iconic Missinaibi River, a river that continues to influence me all these years later.

The Missinaibi River flows from the powerful Lake Superior to the even more powerful salty waters of James Bay. Here, I led a group of eight teenagers through dozens of whitewater rapids over 500 kilometers (~311 miles).

With no cell service for 25 days, we were forced to disconnect from anything other than the river.

During this trip I learned two important lessons:

First, I learned to be confident in my own abilities as a leader and problem solver.

There were a few rapids where my campers’ boats flipped and I had to rescue the campers and the canoes. One rescue saw two boats flip on a mile-long rapid. It took six hours to make it down the rapid, and during this time I managed stuck canoes and crying campers.

And while this was one of the most difficult rescues I’ve done, I was amazed at how calm I was throughout it. I gave clear directions, prioritized effectively, and kept my campers safe throughout the entire experience. Following the rescue, I had a newfound sense of confidence in my abilities.

The second lesson I learned on the Missinaibi was the power of disconnecting from society and connecting with the people around you.

A wild river commands all of your attention. Each day, you and your group must take down camp, load canoes, paddle up to eight hours while navigating both rapids and portages, get to a new campsite, set up camp, cook dinner, and go to bed.

And without the distraction of technology, your attention has nowhere else to be. You focus on the river and your teammates.

As someone who had wrestled with anxiety and depression prior to this summer, I felt at total ease on the trip. Now I seek societal disconnection and human connection as much as I can. 

Sometimes the most profound, life-altering trips are the least expected trips closer to home.

-Mikaela of  Voyageur Tripper

More Short Travel Experience Stories

25 Crazy Travel Stories You Need To Read To Believe

23 Inspiring Travel Stories Sharing The Kindness Of Strangers

17 True Short Adventure Travel Stories To Inspire Your Next Trip

38 Inspiring Travel Love Stories From The Road

16 Short Funny Travel Stories That Will Make You Laugh

20 Embarrassing Travel Stories That Will Make You Laugh & Blush

21 Travel Horror Stories About Scary Travel Experiences

Do you have any inspiring travel experience stories about life-changing trips to share?

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These stories are so much fun to read! Thanks so much for putting a post like this together. It’s great to be able to check out other people’s blogs and read about other people’s experiences!

Always great to read about travel experiences of others. Some great stories to read over coffee. I’ve Pinned your post for future reference and to share with others. Will check out each story author’s blog as well. Great Job! 🙂

Amazing story for new traveler like me thanks for your contribution

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13 Once-in-a-Lifetime Experiences to Inspire Your Next Trip

Last updated: March 9th, 2022

Tourists looking at massive Galapagos tortoise

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Cross off items from your travel bucket list by embarking on one of these once-in-a-lifetime experiences. From spectacular natural wonders to ancient cities, there are plenty of unforgettable destinations to discover around the world.

Sail down stunning fjords in New Zealand. Paddle towards the southernmost tip of the Americas on a canoe. Marvel at gigantic glaciers from up close in Alaska. Explore the world’s famous ruins, like the mystical city of Machu Picchu, the magnificent Colosseum in Rome, and the enduring exterior of the Parthenon in Athens.

If you’re looking for an extraordinary journey, look no further than this list of 13 once-in-a-lifetime adventures.

Experience Alaska’s Glaciers

Amazing calving of Hubbard Glacier

Hubbard Glacier, Alaska

On a trip to the Last Frontier, you’ll have a chance to get up close and personal with one of Alaska’s impressive glaciers found throughout the state, such as Hubbard Glacier, the largest tidewater glacier in North America, which is also nicknamed “the galloping glacier.”

Witness the beauty of Hubbard’s glistening blue ice, and stare in awe at its 7-mile-long and 400-foot face. Experience what it’s like to watch a calving display, which is when a large chunk of ice detaches from the glacier and crashes into the ocean, creating a roaring sound that is often referred to as “white thunder.”

Journey into Tongass National Forest and hike to the face of Mendenhall Glacier, or admire it from the viewing center in Juneau . Board a helicopter in Skagway and fly over snowy mountains and rivers before landing on top of Denver Glacier, where you can go on a dog sledding adventure across its icy surface.

Read: Hubbard Glacier vs. Glacier Bay vs. Endicott Arm & Dawes Glacier

Sail Down the New Zealand Fjords

Milford Sound reflecting on water

Milford Sound, New Zealand

Discover the spectacular fjords of New Zealand , one of the most beautiful natural sights you’ll ever see. These narrow inlets of water were carved thousands of years ago by receding glaciers that left stunning rivers of water surrounded by dramatic cliffs and lush rainforests in their wake.

Sail through Fiordland National Park, an eco-wonderland where you’ll find New Zealand’s most fascinating fjords, including Milford Sound, Dusky Sound, and Doubtful Sound. Keep an eye out for waterfalls, and marvel at the wildlife you’ll find in the area, including fur seals, bottlenose dolphins, alpine parrots, and the rare Fiordland Crested Penguin.

Majestic falls in Fiordland National Park

Fiordland National Park, New Zealand

Find out why Milford Sound was once described as “the eighth wonder of the world” by the author of The Jungle Book. Cruise through Dusky Sound and watch humpback whales breaching out of the water. Allow the serene environment of Doubtful Sound, often referred to as the “sound of silence,” to soothe you into a blissful, meditative state.

Read: Things to Do on New Zealand’s South Island

Wander Ancient Ruins in Rome

Beautiful Colosseum in Rome

Colosseum, Rome

Follow in the footsteps of gladiators and emperors by touring some of the ancient ruins found scattered around Rome. Go inside the magnificent Colosseum, one of Italy’s most famous landmarks . Tour the sprawling amphitheater, built in AD 80, where deadly gladiator fights, executions, and other bloody forms of entertainment were held.

Visit the Pantheon, an impeccably preserved monument of ancient Rome that once served as a temple to worship the gods. An architectural masterpiece, the Pantheon has been endlessly imitated around the world, and once you see it’s geometric exterior and interior, you’ll understand why.

Couple walking along Roman Forum

Roman Forum, Rome

Other ancient ruins you can visit in Rome include the Roman Forum, the former center of religion and politics; Palantine Hill, the official residence of several emperors; and the Baths of Diocletian, the largest public baths in Ancient Rome.

Discover the Hidden City of Machu Picchu

Landscape view of Machu Picchu

Machu Picchu, Peru

Discover an ancient world frozen in time at Machu Picchu , one of the most impeccably preserved archaeological ruins in the world.

Nestled within the mountains outside of Cuzco, Peru, Machu Picchu is a sprawling former Incan city that lies almost 8,000 feet above sea level and features over 200 buildings, including houses, temples, and baths made out of stone.

After the Incans abandoned the city during the Spanish conquest of the sixteenth century, Machu Picchu remained hidden for thousands of years until it was discovered by archeologist Hiram Bingham in 1911.

Sacred stone of Intihuatana overlooking the mountain

Intihuatana Rock, Peru

Today, you can walk amongst the impressive remains and experience the area’s mysticism first hand. Marvel at the intricate city and structures that were built well before the invention of the wheel, like Intihuatana Rock, which may have been used as a former sundial or astronomical observatory. Once you step foot in this mysterious city, you’ll understand why Machu Picchu was named one of the Seven Wonders of the World.

Meet the Unique Animals of The Galapagos

Blue-footed boobies on rocks

Blue-footed boobies in Galapagos

Seeing the fascinating Galapagos wildlife is an incredible once-in-a-lifetime experience that can’t be had anywhere else on Earth.

Ever since Charles Darwin devised his theories of evolution and natural selection after spending time around the islands in the nineteenth century, environmentalists and animal lovers have been drawn to the Galapagos .

Huge Galapagos tortoise

Galapagos tortoise

Discover endemic flora and fauna that are found nowhere else on Earth, like the Española lava lizard, the giant Galapagos tortoise, the blue-footed booby, and a large colony of frigate birds.

Snorkel in its warm and diverse waters and see Galapagos fur seals lounging in the distance, swim with sea turtles, and spot colorful schools of fish.

View of Galapagos with hardened black lava and volcanic landscape

Hike on hills made up of hardened black lava, and dip your toes in black-sand beaches and green-tinted shores. Take a stroll through a white Palo Santo forest and admire the arid volcanic landscapes of this untouched natural paradise.

Take a Gondola Ride in Venice

Couple enjoying a romantic gondola ride in Venice

Gondola ride in Venice

Take your loved one on an unforgettable gondola ride through the canals of Venice , one of the most romantic cities in the world.

Explore La Serenissima while aboard one of these unique wooden boats that have been winding their way through Venice’s intricate network of canals for decades.

Allow a gondolier, clad in a traditional striped shirt and straw hat, point out some of the city’s most famous landmarks, such as the Rialto Bridge—the oldest bridge in Venice—and the Bridge of Sighs. Legend says if you kiss your sweetheart under the awning of the Bridge of Sighs as the bells of St. Mark’s toll, you’ll stay together forever.

Soak In the Healing Minerals of the Blue Lagoon in Iceland

Couple relaxing in Blue Lagoon Iceland

Blue Lagoon in Reykjavik, Iceland

It’s easy to see why over a million people flock to this mineral-rich lagoon in Iceland every year. The heated lagoon glows with milky blue water and is surrounded by stunning black lava formations that heighten the landscape’s allure.

One of the most beautiful places in Iceland , the man-made lagoon is sourced by silica-rich water from a nearby geothermal power plant. In the 1980s, locals discovered the healing and skin-purifying properties of the lagoon, and it quickly became a popular swimming hole. Today, it’s been transformed into a world-class spa with a nearby resort, restaurant, and shop, where you can buy skin products featuring the Blue Lagoon’s nourishing minerals.

Read: Experience Iceland’s Nature

Marvel at La Sagrada Familia in Barcelona

Historic Sagrada Familia reflecting on water

Sagrada Familia in Barcelona, Spain

Admire one of the world’s most renowned architectural masterpieces in Barcelona , where the four unique towers of La Sagrada Familia await. The striking Catholic basilica, designed by superstar architect Antoni Gaudí, has been in construction for more than 130 years and is scheduled for completion within the next ten years.

Take your time admiring the building’s intricate Gothic facade and religious symbols, many of which depict the life of Christ, from his birth to his resurrection. Step inside and marvel at the smooth white columns and glass-stained windows. Head up the winding staircases and make your way to the top of one of La Sagrada Familia’s iconic towers for an unbeatable view of Barcelona’s cityscape.

Embark on a Canoe at the End of the World

Beautiful lake with mountain view in Ushuaia

Tierra del Fuego in Ushuaia, Argentina

Journey to “the end of the world” in Ushuaia , the gateway to Tierra del Fuego, an archipelago located at the southernmost tip of South America. Tierra del Fuego National Park is a spectacular 150,000-acre natural haven that contains towering glaciers, untouched forests, and snow-capped mountains.

For a truly once-in-a-lifetime adventure, hop on a canoe and paddle through the serene lakes and glacier-fed rivers of Tierra del Fuego, where you’ll feel like you have all of Mother Nature’s bounty to yourself.

Make your way to Laguna Verde, a beautiful green lagoon with ample opportunities to spot rare birds including condors, albatross, and sea petrels. Finish off your trip to the end of the world with a stop at the Pan-American Road, a highway that extends from North America all the way to the tip of Ushuaia.

Walk Around The Acropolis in Athens

Couple admiring the historical site of Parthenon

Parthenon in Athens, Greece

History lovers can walk through one of the most important ancient ruins of the world during a visit to the Acropolis in Greece. Perched above a hill in Athens , the Acropolis (which means “high city”) was a center of worship that dates back to the Bronze Age.

Many of the buildings and temples within the Acropolis were built during the fifth century, the golden age of Athens. A number of structures are dedicated to the goddess Athena, including its crowning achievement: the Parthenon.

The Parthenon is a breathtaking example of Classical Greek architecture and continues to serve as a lasting symbol of Ancient Greece, democracy, and Western culture. Today, it is by far the most visited landmark in all of Athens. Most of its white marble exterior remains intact thanks to massive restoration efforts by the government.

Discover the Icy Paradise of Antarctica

Deep blue water of Paradise Bay with snow-capped mountains

Paradise Bay, Antarctica

For a truly once-in-a-lifetime experience, explore the frozen wonderland of Antarctica , the southernmost continent in the world. Breathe in the fresh, icy air as you sail through icebergs and frozen bays, see humpback and minke whales making their way through its frigid waters, and take photos of lazy elephant seals lounging on top of rocks.

Visit Antarctica to enjoy spectacular snowy mountain views of Rojas Peak and Bryde Peak. Stare in awe at the glimmering blue facade of the Petzval Glacier. Witness the vastness of the snow-covered South Pole while crossing the Schollart Channel, a scenic waterway with even more photo opportunities.

Watch the wildlife in Antarctica , particularly in Paradise Bay and Elephant Island, where playful penguins waddle on the icy terrain before diving into the water for food.

See Masterpieces of the Renaissance in Tuscany

Beautiful marble statue of David

Michelangelo’s Statue of David in Galleria dell’Accademia, Florence

Go museum-hopping and see some truly spectacular art during a visit to Florence , the birthplace of the Renaissance movement.

Aside from indulging in authentic Tuscan food and cones of gelato to your heart’s content, one of the best things to do in this Italian gem is to marvel at some of the world’s greatest masterpieces.

Stop by the Galleria dell’Accademia, where Michelangelo’s Statue of David stands 17 feet tall. Marvel at the perfection of this marble statue and its impeccable details that were created at the beginning of the sixteenth century with only a hammer and chisel.

Beautiful facade of Uffizi Gallery

Uffizi Gallery, Florence

At the Uffizi Gallery, you’ll find “The Birth of Venus,” one of Sandro Botticelli’s most ethereal paintings, which depicts the goddess of love and beauty. Roam the museum’s halls and discover other Renaissance masterpieces by Leonardo da Vinci, Raphael, and Caravaggio.

Admire the Stunning Iguazu Falls

Couple looking at majestic Iguazu Falls

Iguazu Falls in Buenos Aires, Argentina

Experience the thrill of visiting Iguazu Falls, the world’s largest collection of waterfalls. Located on the border between Argentina and Brazil, Iguazu Falls is made up of 275 waterfalls that span almost two miles and vary in size and potency.

Get up close to this powerful display of nature, and allow its thunderous noise and breathtaking beauty to win you over. You can spot the falls from a number of lush trails and scenic observatories nearby, but don’t miss walking on the footbridge that takes you right above the Devil’s Throat, the site’s highest cascade, where you’ll be enveloped by a refreshing cool mist that rises from the base of the falls.

Celebrity Millennium sailing along Hubbard Glacier

Celebrity Millennium

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9 Best Once-in-a-Lifetime Luxury Travel Experiences

Live like royalty at these mind-blowing luxury travel getaways.

Do you dream of experiencing the ultimate luxury travel at least once in your lifetime? Do you want to indulge in experiences that go beyond your expectations? Well, the answer is to plan a bucket-list travel with remarkable luxury experiences around the world. In this article, we’ll go through the best once-in-a-lifetime luxury travel experiences to help you plan your itinerary.

Table Of Contents

What are the best once-in-a-lifetime luxury travel experiences?

#1. antarctica cruise, luxury safari, private dining, champagne & oyster tasting, gourmet food tours, luxe yacht charter, villa rental, glamorous glamping tents, what are some travel inspirations for a once-in-a-lifetime experience, hot air balloon ride, northern lights tour, eclipse chasing, what are some unique adventure experiences that provide luxury immersion, volcano exploration tour, private jet tours, wine tasting at a vineyard, q: what are the 9 best once-in-a-lifetime luxury travel experiences, q: what are some of the luxury accommodations available for these experiences, q: can you give an example of a once-in-a-lifetime experience involving two helicopters, q: what is an example of exclusive dinner available to travelers, q: are there any behind-the-scenes experiences available for travelers, q: what are some of the activities available for travelers on a luxury cruise, q: can you enjoy an outdoor adventure while on a luxury trip, q: what is an example of a once-in-a-lifetime private dining experience, q: what are some of the destinations for luxury travel experiences, q: what are some of the amenities available for travelers on a luxury trip.

9-best-once-in-a-lifetime-luxury-travel-experiences

Antarctica is by far one of the most remote, serene, and untouched places on earth. With pristine white landscapes, icebergs, glaciers, and dramatic wildlife – this place will leave you in awe. One of the most popular ways to experience this surreal continent is by taking an expedition cruise.

The cruise ship will provide you with true luxury, from world-class dining to on-ship spa treatments, exclusive excursions, and 5-star accommodations – all while immersing you in the natural beauty that Antarctica offers.

  • 10 Travel Hacks to Make the Most of Your Adventure

#2. Villa Stay

best-once-in-a-lifetime-luxury-travel-destinations

If you’re looking for peace, privacy, and sheer indulgence, then a villa stay can provide all of this and more. Indulge in sustainable luxury vacations that offer you privacy, personalized butler service, and all the amenities you can imagine. Whether you choose the Maldives or a lakeside villa in Lake Como, a villa stay will rejuvenate you like nothing else.

For those who like to explore raw nature, Africa’s luxury safari has to offer plenty of iconic experiences. Go on a private guided tour, witness the wildebeest migration, and observe up-close Africa’s big five – lions, elephants, leopards, rhinos, and buffalo. You can also choose to spend a night at a luxury treehouse or wild-suite for a one-of-a-kind exclusive experience.

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What are some luxury dining experiences while traveling?

For the ultimate VIP experience, why not have a private dinner at the world’s most storied locations? From Christ the Redeemer to Michelangelo’s David, you can dine in unparalleled locations while savoring gourmet food and sipping Champagne.

Indulge in some of the world’s finest Champagne and oysters while travelling. From a vineyard in the Canadian Rockies to a luxury beach resort in the Maldives, you can immerse yourself in exclusive gastronomic experiences that take your tastebuds on a unique journey.

  • Top 10 Solo Travel Tips You Should Know Before Going Alone

Take your passion for gourmet food to a new destination . Whether you’re into wine tasting in South Africa’s wine regions or a truffle hunting tour in Italy, you’ll also have a chance to experience unique cultures, meet avid foodies, and learn about the region's history, architecture, and way of living.

What are the best luxury lodgings for a travel experience?

If you’re looking for a unique lodging experience, you can never go wrong with a luxe yacht charter. You can explore destinations such as the Himalayas or the Antarctic waters while indulging in bespoke amenities such as private guided tours, kayaking, spa treatments, and gourmet dining. Dates are available for private jets and luxury yacht charters, for those who like to experience true luxury immersement.

luxury-travel-experiences

Aside from comfort, amenities, and privacy, villa rentals offer an unparalleled sense of luxury. From a villa rental in South Africa’s wildlife-laden savannah to a lakeside villa in Lake Como, villa rentals offer the perfect getaway and a chance to immerse in luxurious experiences.

For travellers who want to get up close and personal with nature without compromising comfort, luxurious tented camps and glamping sites provide just that. From private hot tubs to sprawling decks with scenic views, you can immerse yourself in natural surroundings while enjoying personalized service and lavish amenities.

Have you ever felt a deep yearning for adventure? The kind that tugs at your soul and compels you to break free from the monotony of everyday life? If so, then it's time to embrace your wanderlust and set off on a journey that will ignite your senses and transform your perspective.

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From hidden tropical paradises to ancient historical marvels, this article will introduce you to some travel inspirations that will make your heart race with anticipation. So buckle up, because we're about to take off into a world full of extraordinary moments waiting to be discovered.

Experience the awe-inspiring beauty of a hot air balloon adventure that will transport you to new heights. Immerse yourself in the mesmerizing landscapes of Canada's magnificent Moraine Lake, where you'll float gracefully amidst the pristine wilderness. Alternatively, embark on a breathtaking journey above the vast African Savannah, as you marvel at the untamed beauty of the African continent. Prepare to be captivated by the panoramic vistas and create cherished memories that will last a lifetime.

For a unique experience that will inspire you forever, a Northern Lights tour is ideal. From a lodge in the Canadian Rockies to Iceland or Scandinavia, you can opt for unique tours such as witnessing the Northern Lights while relaxing in a warm outdoor hot tub.

Embark on an extraordinary celestial journey that will ignite your sense of wonder and leave you spellbound. If you're an avid sky chaser and a devoted nature enthusiast, immersing yourself in the enchantment of an eclipse is an unparalleled experience. Picture yourself in the majestic embrace of the Chilean mountains, where you can bask in the awe-inspiring spectacle of the sun or moon gracefully aligning with the Earth.

Alternatively, indulge in the ultimate luxury aboard a captivating yacht, floating serenely on the boundless expanse of the ocean, as you witness the breathtaking phenomenon unfold before your very eyes. Prepare to be transported to a realm where time stands still, and let the ethereal beauty of an up-close and personal eclipse weave its magic

Are you ready to embark on an extraordinary journey where excitement meets extravagance? Brace yourself for a mind-blowing exploration of unique adventure experiences that redefine luxury immersion. Picture yourself soaring through the skies in a private jet as you witness breathtaking landscapes unfold beneath you or diving into crystal-clear waters to explore vibrant coral reefs while staying at an exclusive island resort.

These one-of-a-kind adventures not only provide heart-pounding thrills but also pamper your senses with unparalleled luxury, creating memories that will last a lifetime. Get ready to step out of your comfort zone and into a world where thrill-seekers meet high rollers!

For adventurous travelers who enjoy off-beaten destinations , a volcano exploration tour is perfect. From experiencing the depth of a volcano in Iceland to embarking on a heli-hike in Hawaii’s Mauna Kea, you can unveil the raw beauty of Mother Nature while indulging in luxury service and amenities.

For the ultimate immersive experience and an opportunity to visit the world's most iconic destinations, look no further than a private jet tour. From China’s Great Wall to exploring hidden treasures in Europe, you can embark on private jet tours and indulge in bespoke service and luxury immersion.

For the oenophiles out there, travel the world's most famous wine regions, including Napa Valley, Tuscany, or France, and indulge in bespoke wine tasting experiences. Learn about the history of the wine region, meet winemakers, and indulge in exquisite gourmet food pairings.

In conclusion, luxury travel experiences are a way of making unforgettable memories and indulging in unique visions of the world. Whether you’re a seasoned traveller or just starting, we hope this article provides you with the inspiration to plan your extraordinary journey that will last a lifetime.

A: Some of the best once-in-a-lifetime luxury travel experiences include visiting Antarctica, taking a cruise, staying in a luxe villa, indulging in a spa day, sipping champagne while watching an eclipse, enjoying private dining, spending a night in a hot air balloon, and witnessing the Northern Lights.

A: Luxury accommodations include staying in a five-star resort’s king-size bed, enjoying a private villa, and spending the night in a hot air balloon fully stocked with all the amenities one could want.

A: One such experience is taking a helicopter tour of the Himalayas, stopping for a private chef-prepared lunch and stargazing on top of a frozen peak.

A: You can indulge in an ultra-exclusive five-night feast prepared by a Michelin-starred chef while surrounded by the verdant wilderness of the Amazon.

A: Yes, you can take a backstage tour of one of the world’s most famous cultural institutions or an art scene tour in a city with a fascinating history and a world heritage site.

A: Luxury cruises offer a range of activities including cultural immersion, ambling through the frontier, and learning about the fascinating history of the region through exclusive tours.

A: Yes, you can take a hot air balloon ride over a stunning landscape or take a private tour of a volcano in a helicopter.

A: You could enjoy a private dinner in the middle of the ocean or on a deserted island that can only be reached by boat.

A: Some popular destinations include Tahiti, Papeete, and the Maldives.

A: Amenities include fully stocked bars, private pools, personal butlers, and a fleet of cars at your disposal.

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Paris aerial panorama with river Seine and Eiffel tower, France. Romantic summer holidays vacation destination. Panoramic view above historical Parisian buildings and landmarks with sunset sky

10 Trips of a Lifetime to Take in 2024

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Caroline Morse Teel

Caroline Morse Teel is the Managing Editor for SmarterTravel Media. Follow her adventures around the world on Instagram @TravelWithCaroline.

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Let 2024 be the year you stop dreaming about that bucket list trip and finally book it. From riding the rails through Alaska’s stunning scenery to hiking along Japan’s under-the-radar coastline, these are the best trips to take in 2024. 

Paris, France: Olympics Travel Package

RIO DE JANEIRO - MARCH 18, 2016: A large set of Olympic rings shines in bright sunlight against blue sky.

The City of Light will be even more abuzz than normal as Paris hosts the 2024 Summer Olympics. The games will be hosted in iconic locations, so this is your once-in-a-lifetime chance to watch skateboarding in the Place de la Concorde, beach volleyball in the Champ de Mars, and equestrian events in the Palace of Versailles. 

If snagging a hotel room and tickets to a game seems impossible, don’t worry—official packages that combine Olympic tickets and accommodations are available. 

Torres del Paine National Park, Chile: Journeysmiths

Hiker at mirador condor enjoying amazing view of Los Cuernos rocks and Lake Pehoe in Torres del Paine national park, Patagonia, Chile

Located towards the bottom of Chile, Torres del Paine National Park feels like the end of the earth. This rugged and wild place rewards intrepid visitors with stunning scenery around every turn. The best way to see the highlights of Torres del Paine is via the W Trek, a hiking trail that leads to the views of the most iconic sites in the park. 

Although the W Trek traditionally involves camping or sharing rooms in a hostel-style refugio, bespoke travel company Journeysmiths can plan a custom trip along the trek with luxury resort accommodations instead of tents.  

Hidden Gems of the Greek Cyclades, Greece: Kensington Tours

traditional white houses in Pyrgos village, the hidden gem of Santorini, Cyclades islands Greece - amazing travel destination

If every time you opened a social media app recently you saw another friend in Greece, it’s not a coincidence—tourism to this vacation hotspot has exploded over recent years. Enjoy all the best parts of Greece, without the crowds, on Kensington Tours’ Hidden Gems of the Greek Cyclades tour , which visits the lesser-known islands of Milos and Naxos. 

The itinerary includes unique experiences like a citron liquor sampling at a local distillery and a private tour of Byzantine and Venetian relics.

Under the Northern Lights: Iceland & Greenland: Exodus Adventure Travels

South Iceland Broad-Church at dusk near Hvolsvollur, Iceland, under a spectacular Northern Lights display

To spot the Northern Lights, it’s best to head somewhere with minimal light pollution—like the middle of the Arctic. Exodus Adventure Travels’ Under the Northern Lights trip does just that, taking guests on a cruise around the remote coasts of Iceland and Greenland. 

Although seeing the aurora borealis, polar bears, and whales isn’t guaranteed, you’re sure to see incredible mountains, fjord, and massive icebergs along the way.

Madagascar Adventure: World Expeditions

The Tsingy Rouge (Red Tsingy) in the region of Diana in northern Madagascar.

Madagascar is the fourth largest island in the world, and this remote island is home to an incredibly diverse ecosystem where you can find lemurs, chameleons, Baobab trees, and rainforests.  

Traverse this unique country on World Expeditions’ 21-day Madagascar Adventure trip. On this extended tour, you’ll hike colorful sandstone canyons and swim in natural pools in Isalo National park, hike through the limestone pinnacles of Tsingy de Bamaraha, canoe along the Manambolo River, and more.

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Alaska Railroad, Glaciers, Rails, and Trails Package

Seward, Alaska: Alaska Railroad (ARR) Class II railroad. Passenger train engine 4320. Coastal Classic Train takes passengers between Seward and Anchorage on the Kenai Peninsula.

An Alaska trip might conjure up visions of cruises, but there’s a better way to immerse yourself in The Last Frontier—on a land-based trip, like Alaska Railroad’s Glaciers, Rails, and Trails journey . This 11-day package includes a variety of day trips featuring scenic train rides, glacier and wildlife cruises, glacial river float trips, and jetboat tours.

You’ll see the state’s highlights with stops in Kenai Fjords National Park, Denali National Park, and National Wild River Park.

Japan: Kyoto, Tokyo & the Michinouk Coastal Trail: G Adventures

Beautiful view of the Gozanoishi Shrine on the shore of Lake Tazawa in Semboku, Akita, Japan

Long known for its backpacker-budget trips, G Adventures recently branched out and launched The Geluxe Collection . These upgraded experiences combine active adventures with luxury accommodations and transport. Check out the new travel style on G Adventures’ Japan: Kyoto, Tokyo & the Michinoku Coastal Trail trip , an 11-day journey highlighting the best of Japan. The trip starts in Kyoto and ends in Tokyo, and visits Lake Tazawa and Jodogahama Beach along the way.

During the day, you’ll enjoy unique activities like creating crafts using bark from wild cherry blossoms or tasting sake at a 330-year-old brewery. At night, you’ll stay in four-star accommodation like the lakefront Tazawako Rose Park Hotel.

Cycle New Zealand: Otago Rail Trail: Intrepid Travel

Three people cycling the Otago Central Rail Trail in a row towards Middlemarch, South Island, New Zealand

The best way to see New Zealand? On two wheels. Intrepid Travel’s Cycle New Zealand Otago Rail Trail trip follows the spectacular Otago Central Rail Trail, a flat and traffic-free path that was voted New Zealand’s favorite ride for two years in a row.

The biking journey takes you on a loop from Queenstown to Omakau Ophir, Wedderburn, Hyde, and Middlemarch. In addition to cycling, there are opportunities to add some adrenaline in the form of bungy jumping or jet boating.

Sailing the Caribbean: National Geographic Travel

Turquoise colored sea with ancored catamarans, Tobago Cays, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Caribbean sea

See the gems of the Caribbean in style on National Geographic Travel’s Sailing the Caribbean tour. This eight-day cruise takes place aboard the elegant square-rigger ship the Sea Cloud, a beautiful historic boat that was once the private yacht of Marjorie Merriweather Post. This elegant ship has just 30 staterooms, allowing for a much more intimate experience than a typical cruise.

The itinerary travels through some of the Caribean’s lesser-visited islands, including Dominica, Bequia, and Terre-de-Haut.

Disney Parks Around the World: Adventures by Disney

beautiful view of Disneyland park , Paris, France

The Disney Parks Around the World trip is the ultimate splurge for true fans of the mouse. This luxury adventure costs $114,995 per person for 24 days and visits 12 Disney theme parks as well as three iconic real-world landmarks (the Taj Mahal, Pyramids of Giza, and the Eiffel Tower.)

You’ll travel in style on a private jet, and receive special behind-the-scenes access at many of the parks. 

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Life-changing travel experience stories

Get inspiration from travelers’ tales. Submerge into these life-changing travel experience stories, beautiful tales of how a trip can alter the trajectory of your life – Experiencing the Globe #LifeChanching #TravelExperiences #Wanderlust #WhyTravel #IndependentTravel #SoloFemaleTravel #BucketList #Adventures #SustainableTravel #SustainableTourism

There’s nothing like other travelers’ tales to get inspiration . When you are home longing to be on the road, or when you are on a journey wondering why you left the comfort of your house, submerge into these life-changing travel experience stories, beautiful tales of how a trip can alter the trajectory of your life .

I’m sure my regular readers are used to me talking about travel experiences . But for those who are discovering this little window to my soul called Experiencing the Globe , you can see that it all started with a bucket list of all the –surprise, surprise– travel experiences I want to have around the world.

The list is my goal in life, so I’m spending as much time as I can on the road. But when I’m home in between trips I seek inspiration in other travelers’ tales. I’ve read as many books about exciting journeys as I could put my hands on. And recently I got a hold of Lonely Planet’s Travel Goals: Inspiring Experiences to Transform Your Life .

It got me thinking of my own life-changing travel experiences . Like my transformation into a sustainable traveler after fully grasping what that meant for the planet and all the life in it. I have a trip to the Caribbean to thank for that. The first trip I took alone, when I was starting to test my boundaries, empowered me as a solo female traveler, and opened my eyes to a new world of possibilities! I’m so thankful I chose Italy , an amazing destination to explore on your own! I reaffirmed my faith in human kindness after spending a month in Iran , meeting the loveliest people I’ve ever encountered.  And the most literal life-changing travel experience, moving to Croatia after meeting the love of my life in this beautiful country that now I call home.

Roatán, Honduras

The book also encouraged me to ask other travelers if they had a story in their own travels that changed their lives in one way or another. I was overwhelmed with the beautiful tales… some of the best life-changing stories that’ll inspire you to travel!

Life-changing travel experience stories that’ll inspire you to travel

Collecting memories, not counting countries.

I want to start this series of tales with my own. As I told you, many aspects of my life have changed over the years due to a travel experience, but the one I want to elaborate on is the one that defined what my life would be. Traveling hasn’t changed me, it has made me. It’s who I am. Several trips to the south of Chile showed me where I was going. This is the story of how I became the person I am today:

My parents took me camping to the Chilean Lake District every summer while growing up. This was in the dark age, before the internet. Back then we had to rely on maps and guidebooks. So through the endless hours of our road trips, I kept myself entertained glancing at a map, reading about the small towns we passed, and convincing my folks to take a detour to visit some place that caught my attention.

During one trip I told them that I have decided I wanted to go everywhere in the world. After a few laughs, my dad told me about the Travelers’ Century Club (TCC), a group for people who have visited 100 or more of the world’s countries and territories. My eyes sparkled with the thought of being a member, and I made it my goal.

Obviously, I started asking to go to another country instead of the same National Park we always visited. They laughed again –conscious of the monster they have created– and offered a compromise: they’d take me to our neighbor Argentina, my first trip abroad, but I had to see more of my own country before I embarked on my adventure of visiting another hundred. I happily accepted.

See, what I immediately realized is that –as much as I wanted to be part of the TCC– the main reasons to travel should revolve around what I’ll get out of a trip –whether that’s meeting locals, tasting the typical cuisine, exploring nature, or adventuring into an activity– it shouldn’t be just to count countries . I know the “why you should travel” is super personal, but ticking countries off a list only because you put your feet there feels meaningless to me.

Why do people travel? Well, there are as many reasons as people traveling, but even if it is to get a tan while you’re permanently sipping from a cocktail, that trip will always be part of your story, so you should make the most of it.

After visiting every region in Chile, I started to go abroad. Nowadays, with about 60 countries and territories of the TCC list properly visited, what I knew instinctively, transformed into lessons I learnt during my travels … What inspires me the most to hit the road is experiences, because they feed my adventurous soul –the TCC list (and my own bucket list) became the means to guide my journey, not an end themselves.

Lake Calafquen Villarrica Volcano Chile

Spreading the word about the truth of traveling

Claudia’s life story is remarkably similar to my own. Being avid travelers changed the way we perceive a destination, and the story that should be told about it. We both left behind an academic career and repurposed our research abilities towards travel writing. Now we both blog from a distinct point of view. This is the story of how in a visit to Cuba she found her true calling:

“Cuba changed my life because it was nothing like I had expected it to be –quite the opposite, in fact. You see, being the avid traveler that I am, before my trip to Cuba I spent months reading just about anything I could put my hands on. If it talked about Cuba, I had to read it. Everything made it sound like traveling to Cuba would be easy, and locals would be generous and welcoming.

My time in Cuba was less than fabulous. Don’t get me wrong, it is a gorgeous country and now, a few years later, with much more traveling experience and understanding, I am ready to go again. But back then, it was awful. My 23 days there were a constant challenge to avoid scams –a challenge that a few times saw me succeed but that other times saw me fail miserably. It was frustrating. I felt I could not trust anybody. Where were the lovely Cubans everyone talked about in their blogs?

Cuba taught me that people lie, even (or especially) online. Because nobody really wants to say they have had a bad experience, and nobody is really interested in reading about others’ bad experiences –but is that really the case?

I decided there and then to be different. I decided that I had to warn others, tell them the truth, let them know what they should expect and what they should do to avoid scams. That’s why I opened my blog. It was just a pastime at the beginning.

Fast-forward 2 years and I realized that I did want to make an effort to make it work out. After all, what did I have to lose? My contract as a research fellow at the university had expired and I had no real prospect if not a series of menial short-term teaching jobs I was less than interested in. So, I gave blogging my heart and soul. And it worked. I’m a much happier person now. I love what I am doing. I wake up in the morning to face a long list of to-do things and I read it with a smile on my face, which is priceless.

Cuba changed my life. And despite all the frustration I felt back when I was there, it changed it for the best.”

Havana, Cuba

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Encountering wildlife to find yourself

Camilla was looking for something, but she wasn’t sure what it was. Her heart lead her to India , and after that trip her life would never be the same. Animals can have different impacts in our life, but for this former vegan chef, one particular big cat meant more than anything. This is her story:

“January 2017. That’s the date I first arrived in India. By that time, I used to work as a freelance vegan chef in the hustling city of Paris. Having attended a 4-weeks course on yoga and Ayurveda, I had planned to spend the following month exploring this amazing country.

Little did I know that a special encounter would change my life forever.

Always an animal lover, over the years I had developed a passion for the most majestic of big cats: the tiger. The striped animal had somehow summoned me. To what reason and to convey what message I do not know, but to such a call one can hardly resist.

India is home to more than 60% of the world’s remaining wild tigers. The critically endangered species is highly protected, and the country has given to many of its national parks the status of Tiger Reserve.

It was time for me to see my first one in the wild.

With zero safari experience and many hours of research, I booked 4 drives in Ranthambhore, one of India’s most famous Tiger Reserves .

I will always remember the excitement before that first drive in the jungle, and I will never forget the distress of realizing that finding the elusive cat is no easy task. 

But all of a sudden, there it was. Glorious in its fierce black striped orange coat, a killer look and an attitude to die for. My first wild tiger.

That fleeting moment was enough to make me want more. Today, I have moved to Central India, prime tiger landscape of the world, and I have seen 103 different individuals. But every time I see those eyes, I feel the same excitement that I felt as a total beginner that day in Ranthambhore.”

Ranthambhore - Tigers in the Wild

Finding love in an unexpected place

Traveling is full of surprises. A spontaneous detour can change your life forever. Don’t I know it! A quick, unplanned stop in Split after exploring Dubrovnik ended up seeing me move continents for love. A simple recommendation of a town in The Philippines had the same in store for Alya. This is the tale of the trip that lead her to her husband:

“Meeting my future husband was definitely one of the most life-changing travel experiences I’ve ever had. We met 6 years ago in the Philippines. I was traveling alone around Southeast Asia for a couple of months. After completing my dive course in Gili Air Island in Indonesia and didn’t know where to go next. I was looking for a good place to learn to surf. My dive instructor told me about San Fernando, a small town on Luzon Island in the Philippines. It sounded like the perfect place for me. I bought a plane ticket immediately and two days later arrived in San Fernando.

The hostel I stayed at had a big dormitory with many beds. I met many travelers including Campbell. In fact, we had neighboring beds in the dormitory. He traveled alone as well and we liked each other, so we started going together to the beach, surfing and going out at night. By chance we had very similar travel plans and decided to continue our trip together.

We both like doing the same things, like surfing, diving and hiking. We left San Fernando and traveled around the Philippines together for 2 months. From there we went to Singapore. Unfortunately, I had to go back home, my 4-month holiday was over. We arranged to meet up again two months later in Nepal since we both had trekking to Everest Base Camp on our bucket list. So we did, it was our first multi-day trek together.

We met up a couple of times on the road again in different countries. After 6 months of on and off I decided to quit my job and join Campbell on his around the world adventure. Three years later we got married and decided to start a travel blog . In the last 6 years we’ve done hundreds of hikes, spent a year hitchhiking through Latin America, drove thousands of kilometers across Africa and walked seven Camino de Santiago routes.

Now I can’t imagine how my life would look like if I hadn’t gone to that place in the Philippines and had never met my husband.”

Luzon, Philippines

Giving is better than having

A trip to South East Asia gave Corritta’s life a whole new meaning. Possessions are overrated, true happiness comes from giving. She and her family left a comfortable life in the United States behind to fill their souls while making the world a better place. This is the tale of their journey:

“My life changing experience prompted me to sell our house, car and possessions to take off on a journey to see the world. That may seem a little extreme but let me explain. My first international trip was to Bangkok in 2018. I thought this trip would be a great way to get away from the stress in my life. It turned out to be a life altering experience that made me realize I was existing, not living. 

While in Bangkok we took a day trip to Wildlife Friends Foundation Thailand and it changed my life. We learned how cruel animal tourism is and how we, as tourists, are unwitting accomplices. We support illegal pouching and animal cruelty by taking part in animal tourism. This includes taking pictures with large cats or monkeys and riding elephants. When we do these things, we are not only hurting the animals, we are ensuring things will never get better. I must admit I was never an animal lover but being up close and personal with elephants changed something within me. It made me want to give back.  

So, two years later, with my partner and our one-year old baby boy, decided to take off for a  family gap year .  We sold everything and left San Diego to live a life of service. We will use this time to give back to those less fortunate. 

When I left Thailand my definition of happiness changed. It was no longer associated with material possessions, but by the quality of life I wanted to live. I realized what truly matters is the love of your family. The Thai people with their families were happier than most Americans. So I decided to take back one of the most invaluable things in the world, time. Never forget, all the money in the world can’t buy you more time.” 

Nam Fon, Thai Elephant Refuge

Small changes can make the world a better place

A trip to Australia developed plastic-issue awareness in Simona. Seeing how the tides brought tons of plastic to the shores made her change her approach to traveling. From carrying her own grocery bags and water bottle, little adjustments made her a much more responsible traveler. This is how her journey towards sustainability started:

“The first time ever I realized that plastic was a serious matter for our planet was during a road trip in Western Australia, almost 12 years ago.

We stopped at a supermarket along the Coral Bay coast to buy some groceries and the lady at the counter told us they didn’t sell any shopping bags to prevent plastic in the ocean and to help preserving the endangered turtles living in that area. After a first reaction of surprise, we gathered all our shopping in our arms and left, reflecting on what we had been told.

This was just one of the many experiences I’ve lived that made me more conscious about my impact and pushed me to adopt various habits to live and travel more sustainably. For example, after that trip, I am always carrying a cotton bag when I go shopping.

Our eco-honeymoon to Borneo was another life-changing experience that has strengthened my resolution to turn to a zero-waste lifestyle. I selected three ecotourism projects to visit. In Asia finding safe drinkable water is always a challenge, but we traveled with our water bottle, and we chose the right service providers engaged in sustainable travel so, with a little effort, we managed to avoid almost entirely the use of plastic during our trip.

However, we were seriously struck by our stay on Libaran Island, where a sustainable and turtle conservation project was launched 10 years ago. Despite the big efforts carried out by the project and the community in cleaning up the beaches and creatively re-use plastic, the shore is washed daily with tons of plastic coming from the tides. Walking on a carpet of plastic that almost prevented us from seeing the beach underneath was quite shocking.

Facing this global issue in person, raised in me a contrasting feeling of sadness and anger that soon turned into determination: to do as much as possible to reduce plastic in our life. Sometimes we may feel helpless in front of big problems, but we should be aware that small changes can actually make a difference!”

Western Australia - Travel Off

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Discovering happiness in simplicity

When her career and personal relations were failing, Soujanya decided to retreat to the mountains. The Himalayas were the perfect setting to get away from everything and regain perspective. In a small village she discovered that technology is overrated, and that what counts are real connections. This is how a trip to India changed her take on life:

“Back in mid-2019 I wasn’t in a good place in life. I was getting out of a serious relationship, I was burn out at my job, I had problems within my family, and the ever-increasing sense of loneliness had thrown me into a pit of depression. During that time, I turned to the only positive thing I had going on for myself, which was travel and blogging.

After some contemplation, I decided to quit my job to travel. I had saved up enough money that would last me 8-10 months so I didn’t give it much thought because I knew it was the only thing that would keep me from tipping over the edge.

The first thing I did after leaving my job was to head to the Himalayas in India. I spent a month in the Kinnaur and Spiti valleys in the state of Himachal Pradesh. The Kinnaur district was a breath of fresh air. The snow-clad mountain range in the distance, the lush green vegetation all around, the sparse population and the friendly people spoke to my soul.

There was one village called Chitkul , which lies on the Indo-Tibet border and has no cell connectivity, that helped heal me the most. A remote village with a population of less than a thousand people and only a handful of tourists, with nothing around it for many miles.

I spent my days sitting by the river, hiking to the nearby hills and walking through meadows. Just being there surrounded by the Himalayas, without any social media due to lack of connectivity, and making real connections with other travelers and the villagers had some sort of magical effect on me. Not only I have the best travel experience of my life, but the place also healed my mind. I came back happier than ever, with a renewed spirit, ready to enjoy everything that life had to offer.”

Chitkul Village - The Spicy Journey

Uncovering a braver version of yourself

We all have that one thing we’d love to do but we’re too scared to try. A trip to Thailand taught Allison that life is what we made of it. Pushing her boundaries not only allowed her to have a ton of fun, but also gave her a new path, one in which she gets to do what she loves. This is her story, an encouragement for you to get out of you comfort zone too:

“Shortly after I graduated from college, I moved to a new state to start a full-time job. One day at work, I found myself wanting to go traveling. As I didn’t have any friends there, I decided it was the perfect opportunity to go on my first ever solo trip. So I quickly started doing research on where I’d like to go.

I had never traveled alone before, especially overseas, so I decided to sign up for a guided group that was going rock climbing in Thailand . This gave me a sense of security, being new to solo traveling. It felt like a great way to dip my toes into being alone and meeting strangers, but also doing something that sounded really fun and engaging for 2 weeks.

The entire Thailand trip forced me out of so many comfort zones that ended up being one of the big turning points of my life. The time I spent in Thailand navigating airports and taxis alone, meeting a group of complete strangers, and spending 2 weeks climbing with them in often remote parts of the country, ended up being one of the greatest experiences of my life. Up until this point I had always considered myself a ‘shy’ and ‘cautious’ kind of person, but this travel experience lit me up to become different. It showed me a brave, strong, and self-sufficient side of myself that went on to influence my life in dramatic ways when I returned home.

When I got back, I pretty much dedicated my life to spending as much time as possible outdoors whether that be climbing, hiking, or backpacking… essentially doing things that I once thought I wasn’t ‘capable of’ or was ‘too scared of’. Today, roughly 6 years later, I’m an outdoor empowerment coach and backpacking educator.

My trip to Thailand was the spark that I needed to make that change. It showed me what was possible. I don’t know if it was the people I met, the experiences I had, or the beauty of traveling in Thailand – likely a bit of all of it– but whatever it was, it changed the trajectory of my life, and I’ll forever hold Thailand (and all the people I met) in a special place in my heart.”

Thailand - She Dreams of Alpine

A leap of faith towards a new life

Getting to visit a new place after a business trip is nothing out of the ordinary. For most people. For Derek and Mike it was literally life-changing. After a quick trip to Copenhagen , they packed up and started a new chapter of their lives as expats in a different continent. This is the tale of their journey:

“In November 2016 we had a life-changing travel experience in Copenhagen, Denmark. My partner Mike was asked to make an unexpected business trip to the city to help with a project. His company had recently acquired another company in Denmark, and he was asked to help with the integration. He flew there from our hometown, Philadelphia, with only a few days’ notice, and on his first day in the office they asked if he would stay a few weeks longer. He agreed but asked for time off during the American Thanksgiving so that I could fly to Denmark and take advantage of the opportunity to enjoy a cheap trip to Europe with no-cost lodging and some meals expensed.

We loved getting to check out a city that we didn’t have on our travel bucket list before this opportunity came about. We did a few tours, visited the Christmas markets and dined out. At one restaurant we got to try the traditional Danish Christmas meal. I enjoyed Copenhagen for 5 days and Mike remained there for work until the end of November.

On his last night in Denmark, he had dinner at his boss’ home. They shared a meal with a lot of wine and then Mike called me when he got back to his hotel. I could hear the excitement in his voice. He asked if I liked Copenhagen, which seemed odd because he knew I enjoyed myself when I was there. Then he asked if I liked it enough to move there, because on that final night, his boss asked if we would take an expat assignment in Denmark.

We didn’t hesitate to accept and our life abroad began almost right away. That trip to Copenhagen was certainly life-changing!”

Copenhagen - Robe Trotting

Learning to fully appreciate what’s in front you

No matter how much you have traveled, there are places that will bring up the best of you. No matter how much there is still to see, some places will take your breath away and will forever stay in your heart. A trip to Antarctica transformed Wendy into a student. She acquired as much information as she could to fully absorb the beauty that she was about to witness. And now she is longing to go back. This is her story:

“Before my cruise from Ushuaia to Antarctica , I was already quite well-traveled. I had visited about 75 countries and seen plenty of natural beauty before. But all of that paled in comparison to the White Continent. The Perito Moreno glacier in Argentina had mesmerized me just days earlier, but now I was seeing dozens, even hundreds, of sparkling white glaciers practically everywhere I looked. These landscapes were so different from anything I’d ever seen that it felt like I’d traveled to another planet.

On the times when the weather was bad, and on the long days of crossing the Drake Passage between Tierra del Fuego and Antarctica, I soaked up every bit of knowledge that I could about this snow-and-ice-covered land. Our ship, the MV Ushuaia, was manned by a full staff of scientists and lecturers who were experts in a number of relevant topics, from geology to ornithology. When we were out on the high seas with nothing to do, these experts held lectures on the flora, fauna, history and geology of Antarctica, and I attended every single one.

When we stopped at the British base at Port Lockroy on Goudier Island, I grilled the staff there with questions about how I too could go live and work on the island. And while that dream never materialized, my memories of Antarctica are still sharp in my mind 11 years later, and I still dream of returning one day.

Such an expensive voyage would normally be the trip of a lifetime, not a return destination. But if you’re willing to try your luck, sharply discounted last-minute deals can be found at the port in Ushuaia a day or two before departure. In recent years, these huge discounts have become few and far between, as most ships fill up months in advance. But still I’m thinking of a return trip to Antarctica for some more adventure!”

Adelie Penguins in Antarctica - The Nomadic Vegan

No matter where you go, every single place in the world has the potential to change your life! Tell me in the comments if you’ve had any life-changing travel experiences!

Liked it? Want to read it later? Pin it!

Get inspiration from travelers’ tales. Submerge into these life-changing travel experience stories, beautiful tales of how a trip can alter the trajectory of your life – Experiencing the Globe #LifeChanching #TravelExperiences #Wanderlust #WhyTravel #IndependentTravel #SoloFemaleTravel #BucketList #Adventures #SustainableTravel #SustainableTourism

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travel experience of a lifetime

16 thoughts on “Life-changing travel experience stories”

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Wow this is really amazing,I pray that I will be opportuned to travel around the world one day

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Sometimes we think it’s a far away dream because it’s dangerous, or expensive, or because we can’t take time from work. I’m aware that for some people it’s actually quite impossible due to their passport or the political situation in their country. For others, their responsibilities are far too great to leave behind. But for most of us, it’s just a matter of priorities. Don’t wait until you have all the money you think you need, or all the time you’d like to spend on the road. Just go! Even if it’s a weekend trip to your neighboring city, or to the countryside close to your place. You got to start somewhere, and every trip has the potential to be life-changing! Let me know how it goes! 🙂

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I was looking for inspiration, and inspiration I found. I can’t travel at the moment, but I’m already thinking of how to be more sustainable on my next trip. Thank you all for sharing!

That’s amazing to hear, Dani! Welcome to the sustainable traveler’s team! 🌱

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I googled inspiring travel stories to see if my day could be picked up, and I’m so glad this popped up! Lovely stories, super inspiring! I can’t wait for the pandemic to be over to create some travel stories of my own ❤️

Awww! I’m so happy to read your comment, Monty! Hopefully the pandemic will be under control soon and you’ll get to have some travel stories too. Make sure you tell me about them!

' src=

Beautiful tales! I can’t wait to start traveling again. Travel already has changed my life, but I’d be happy living through any of the wonderful experiences described here!

When you get to travel again, keep an open mind and an open heart… amazing experiences will happen! ❤️

' src=

Very inspiring stories! Thank you for sharing them!

It was a blast to write this, and collect other wonderful tales!

' src=

Love all these stories! Love how travel has shaped everyone!

In one way or another, every trip makes us a bit different. It was great to get these wonderful travelers to share their stories -now I’m sure it’s not only me who is deeply changed by travel!

' src=

These are all such inspiring stories! Really goes to show you how much travel can impact your life. Thanks for sharing!

It’s crazy how much travel can change us, and how much we can learn from it, no matter where we go!

' src=

I loved reading this! All of the stories are such an inspiration! I can’t wait to get back on the road 😍

In times of armchair travel, nothing like beautiful stories to keep the wanderlust up, right? ❤️

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Experiences of a Lifetime: Trip Ideas for the Family Traveler

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Amber Fort in Jaipur, India

Amber Fort in Jaipur, India

The top three family experiences of a lifetime uncover the customs and stories we share while traveling together.

Embrace adventure as you delve into the wilderness with your loved ones or learn the importance of cultural heritage. From Bollywood stars to Southern Hemisphere starlight and the magic of generational storytelling, each excursion provides perspective on how to embrace time as a family.

Discover nature, explore the way we share our familial pasts, or find a new way to interact with a different culture. You can capture the dream of your preferred trip with our guide to remarkable and distinctive family experiences.

1. Explore the Magic of Generations in Casablanca

2. share the adventure of chimpanzee troops and constellations, 3. capture the excitement of bollywood, plan your family trip of a lifetime.

Hassan II Mosque in Casablanca

Hassan II Mosque in Casablanca

Casablanca is a contemporary business and industrial powerhouse, but also the gateway to the heart of Morocco. When visiting with a family, there is no better way to experience the joys and unique perspectives of the city than through the eyes of other families who have lived, grown, and shared generations in the bustling city.

While often overlooked or quickly left for the more famous cultural cities, Casablanca has a soul of its own, shared by the experiences of local guides and the stories passed down by their grandmothers.

Each new tale will accompany a landmark that impresses, whether inside Casablanca or when visiting nearby villages that showcase traditions and the connectivity that stories bring to strangers and friends alike. As a family you will find magic in an experience that unfurls a new and unexpected view of Morocco.

Morocco Trip Idea

Essential Morocco Experience: 12-Day Vacation reveals the passionate colors and vibrant swirl of life, from the cityscapes to the rolling hills of the golden desert, as you discover contemporary cities informed by old-world traditions.

Highlights: Discover the magnitude of the design and construction of the Hassan II Mosque in Casablanca • Embrace the distinctive layers of Roman and Moor history in Volubilis • Visit the famous tanneries of Fes • Sample exceptional cuisine a tasting tour • Capture the beauty and charm of Chefchaouen on a professional photography tour

Learn more: Morocco Tours & Vacations • Morocco Travel Guide

Expert Tips for Discerning Travelers

Chimpanzee in Uganda

Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park, Uganda

The best family memories often emerge from a shared adventure and there are few greater excursions than those the outdoors can provide. With a mixture of walking safaris and unforgettable starlight, you can capture your family’s imagination with the unforgettable experience of sleeping beneath a ceiling of stars after a day searching for chimpanzees.

Elevate the traditional camping experience with the possibility of elephants grazing on nearby trees or lions roaring in the distance beneath the star-studded sky as you embrace the timeless joys of the outdoors together.

A trek for chimpanzees can be immersive, filled with the scents of the forest, the sounds of a distant troop, and the opportunity to find an active and curious youth roaming through the branches. Whether you discover chimpanzees or just take pleasure in the night sky, the experience will provide a lifetime of countless stories.

Tanzania Trip Idea

This 14-day Intimate Two-Week Safari: Serengeti, Katavi & Mahale Chimps will share rich nature and marvelous surprises beyond traditional game-drive experiences.

Highlights: Marvel at the inimitability of a chimpanzee trek • Enjoy horseback safaris and nighttime drives in the Grumeti Reserve • Explore iconic elephant and buffalo herds in Katavi, a remote and rarely explored national park • Make a journey to a remote camp to enjoy the Katavi Plains • Take a dhow cruise on Lake Tanganyika

Learn more: Tanzania Safaris • Tanzania Safari Guide

Majestic Taj Mahal in Agra, India

Taj Mahal in Agra, India

A visit to the movies may not seem like a lifetime experience until you have an evening at the Raj Mandir Cinema in Jaipur for an authentic Bollywood showing. Since the theater opened in 1976, audiences have participated in the movies rather than sat passively.

As a family, you can embrace the lively and passionate experience from the moment the credits roll on screen, as the crowd roars or jeers, celebrates the action or sings and dances along with the actors on screen.

Enjoy the pure pleasure of the experience and of feeling as though your family was pulled into the movie itself for a sensational sample of contemporary culture shared through the music, stories, and lights of quintessential Bollywood.

India Trip Idea

15-Day Golden Triangle with Vineyard Tour gives you an exciting new perspective on the grandeur of India as depicted in the art, architecture, and culture.

Highlights: Explore the Pink City of Jaipur on a guided tour of renowned heritage sites • Cruise across the Arabian Sea to visit the Hindu and Buddhist spiritual grounds of Elephanta Island • Witness the spectacular scenes of the Taj Mahal • Enter the impressive second-century Ajanta Caves to view the ancient sculptures • Wander the historic red sandstone city of Fatehpur Sikri

Learn more: India Tours & Vacations • India Travel Guide

Treking through Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park, Uganda

Make brand new memories, embrace exciting connections, and indulge in the pleasures of unique possibilities that demonstrate the world’s endless marvels. Find the passion of a Bollywood film as it speaks to the heart of contemporary culture in India. Embrace the essence of the outdoors as you trek for chimpanzees. Learn about the cultural transcendence of generations in Casablanca.

The wonders of travel are not just about where you visit, but how you experience each new destination, whether through shared stories or unfettered views. Our Trips of a Lifetime travel guide can help inspire how to enjoy your next trip, or you can personalize our featured family vacations and tours .

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This company is hosting the first michelin-starred meal in space.

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For the sky-high price of $495,000 per-passenger, this once-in-a-lifetime experience will be out of this world.

Specializing in luxury space travel, Space VIP has partnered with Michelin-starred Chef Rasmus Munk ... [+] to host a stratospheric dining experience at the edge of space.

How far are you willing to travel for a really great meal?

How about 100,000 feet above sea level on a six-hour stratospheric adventure that will take you to the edge of space and back?

In an announcement made by luxury space travel operator SpaceVIP on Friday, the mission-based expedition company said they’re teaming up with acclaimed chef Rasmus Munk and are offering six intrepid travelers the mission and memories of a lifetime when they host the first Michelin-starred meal on the edge of space in 2025.

“This announcement has already cast its spotlight on space tourism and we are thrilled about the dialogue it has started around the importance of space travel,” SpaceVIP founder Roman Chiporukha wrote via email to Forbes .

The expedition will take place aboard Space Perspective Spaceship Neptune, the world's first ... [+] carbon-neutral spaceship.

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One small step for man, one giant leap for a Michelin-starred meal, the experience will take place aboard Spaceship Neptune for the astronomical price of $495,000 per-person. The world's first carbon-neutral spacecraft, the launch date has been set for late 2025 and will depart from the Kennedy Space in Florida.

According to the press release, the flight will last around six-hours in total and will take place in a pressurized capsule that is lifted into the sky by a stratospheric space-balloon. While onboard, participants will have access to Wi-Fi and will be able to livestream the entire experience with friends and family on earth.

Explorers will ascend 100,000 ft above sea level where they will dine as they watch the sunrise over ... [+] the Earth’s curvature in this cozy capsule.

After purchasing three capsules from a Florida-based company Space Perspective in 2021, Chiporukha says SpaceVIP has been developing partnerships with artists that are designed to elevate human consciousness through the power of space travel.

“It is by launching these flights that we will be able to make them accessible to more people,” Chiporukha said. “In the 1920’s, a ticket for a transatlantic flight was prohibitively expensive and accessible only to the elite, however, with advancements in technology, and the growth of the airline industry, air travel became more affordable over time. This is just the beginning of private space travel, so we absolutely see it going in the same direction,” he added.

Two-Michelin-star chef Rasmus Munk has announced plans to create an out of this world menu that will ... [+] be serves aboard a pressurized capsule at the edge of space.

Known for his highly immersive, holistic fine-dining restaurant, Alchemist , chef Rasmus Munk has two-Michelin stars under his belt and his Copenhagen-based restaurant is ranked among the top five best restaurants in the world.

According to Chiporukha, SpaceVIP tapped Munk for this experience because he believes his approach to the dining experience is created through the lens of social impact. “We started our conversation with Chef Rasmus last Fall and it quickly became clear that we were aligned in our purpose-driven approach to this experience,”Chiporukha said.

The journey is set to launch from the Kennedy Space Center starting at the price of $495k per ticket ... [+] and the proceeds will be directed to the Space Prize Foundation.

The specifics around the menu, and how the meal will be served is the “next phase” of the expedition planning process, however dishes will be “inspired by the role of space exploration over the last 60-years of human history and the impact it has had on society,” Chiporukha said.

In the meantime, Chiporukha says SpaceVIP has already had dozens of qualified participants express interest in the Michelin-starred meal experience and he expects they will secure the seats of all six passengers “sooner than expected.”

“The majesty of watching the sun rise over our planet brings into focus the profound understanding that we collectively have one home, a feeling that no other human experience can evoke at such an emotional depth,” Chiporukha said.

Included in the price of admission, passengers will be outfitted by French fashion house Ogier whose custom outfits will use “cutting-edge fabric technology” specific to this mission.

The experience was inspired by the role of space exploration during the last 60 years of human ... [+] history, and the impact it's had on society.

“When we figure out how to grow plants in space with minimal water, these solutions can be utilized on Earth in places like South Africa or California that are having unprecedented droughts,” Chiporukha said. “Our goal is to increase awareness and bring people together so that, in solidarity, we can come up with solutions that benefit us all.”

Over the course of the six-hour journey, Chef Rasmus will tell an intentional story through the ... [+] language of Holistic Cuisine that will challenge the diner to reexamine their relationship with Earth and those who inhabit it.

As plans for this culinary ‘odyssey to the cosmos’ continues to evolve, Chiporukha says SpaceVIP will continue to promote the transformative power of space travel.

In addition to this being the first Michelin-starred mean served in space, all of the proceeds for this will be directed to the Space Prize Foundation . “Whether it's a zero gravity flight or an orbital mission, we are the destination for all space tourism experiences,” Chiporukha said “We're excited to be at the forefront of this new world and to continue to promote universal space literacy through the Space Prize Foundation.”

Michelle Gross

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Family Vacations & Tours

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  • Family Adventure Holidays & Tours

Who needs a ball pit and a buffet when you've got the whole world to play in?

We've developed a better style of  family  travel - one that favors real-world experiences over the ones behind a screen and always includes kid-friendly accommodations and activities. Think: traveling in a tuk-tuk through the streets of  Bangkok  and kicking a football with Maasai tribespeople to catching an overnight train in  Egypt  or searching for wildlife with a wolf tracker in  Yellowstone National Park . Enjoy the journey through incredible destinations with other like-minded families eager to make memories to last a lifetime. Your sense of adventure doesn't disappear when you have kids, so why should your family holiday options be limited?

Our family vacations & tours

Vietnam family holiday, 13 days from 1392.

Experience the Asia of old on a family adventure that captures the spirit of Vietnam....

Vietnam Family Holiday Comfort

13 days from 1605.

Experience Vietnamese customs and charms on a 13-day family adventure from Hanoi to Ho...

South Africa Family Safari with Teenagers

12 days from 2275.

Enjoy this Teenage Family Adventure, while hiking, canoeing, snorkeling, rafting,...

Borneo Family Holiday

9 days from 1448.

Travel to Borneo to visit orangutan sanctuaries and explore lush jungles. See the best...

Morocco Family Holiday Comfort

10 days from 1134.

Take your family on a Moroccan adventure through Casablanca, Fes, Midelt, Merzouga, Ait...

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Tailor-Made trips

Take four or more on an exclusive trip and tailor your itinerary

Morocco Family Holiday

8 days from 689.

Travel to Morocco and embark on a family adventure. Take a tour of Marrakech, relax on...

Vietnam Family Holiday with Teenagers

9 days from 1229.

Get the most out of your family getaway by cycling, kayaking, walking and cruising...

Sri Lanka Family Holiday

12 days from 1985.

Discover Sri Lanka on an 11-day tour that will captivate kids and adults alike, with...

Best of Morocco Family Holiday

12 days from 1135.

Looking for the best Moroccan family holiday? This trip has everything from Fes, Meknes...

Botswana Family Safari with Teenagers

10 days from 2012.

Take your family to Victoria Falls, Okavango River and Chobe National Park on this teen...

Costa Rica Family Holiday

10 days from 2105.

This family-style trip through Costa Rica begins and ends in San Jose, taking in the...

Japan Family Holiday

12 days from 5468.

Discover Japan on this 12-day family tour. Sample fresh sushi in Tokyo, soak in onsen...

Egypt Family Holiday

8 days from 1538.

Decode the secrets of the Great Sphinx and more during this family adventure through...

Turkey Family Holiday

10 days from 2450.

Discover Turkey on this family adventure through Istanbul, Goreme, Selcuk, Pamukkale...

Tanzania Family Safari

8 days from 2280.

Experience the people, culture and wildlife of Kenya and Tanzania on a small group...

Peru Family Holiday

9 days from 2905.

Visit Peru on this Family Adventure, travelling through Lima, Cusco and Aguas Calientes...

Northern India Family Holiday

10 days from 1101.

Take an action-packed family tour of India, following tiger trails, visiting Delhi and...

Mexico Family Holiday

7 days from 1670.

Travel the Yucatan from Playa del Carmen through Tulum, Izamal and Merida on a 7-day...

South Korea Family Holiday

8 days from 2825.

Take an eye-opening family holiday to South Korea, and discover temples, monks, hotpot,...

Map of Bali Family Holiday with Teenagers including Indonesia

Bali Family Holiday with Teenagers

8 days from 1284.

Ricepaddles, rapids, bikes and beaches – find it all as you travel to Ubud, Candi Dasa,...

Kakadu, Katherine & Litchfield Family Adventure

4 days from 1280.

Set out on a camping safari through captivating Kakadu National Park. Experience the...

Summer Pyrenees Family Holiday with teenagers

8 days from 1126.

Walk, ride and raft on this European adventure into the heart of the Pyrenees. Unleash...

Egypt Family Holiday Comfort

8 days from 1900.

Step back in time on an 8-day family Egyptian adventure through Cairo, Aswan and Luxor....

Best of Costa Rica Family Holiday

14 days from 3720.

Take a family adventure to the wilds of Costa Rica, starting in San Jose and visiting...

Uluru & Kings Canyon Family Adventure

4 days from 1020.

Discover the best of Australia's Red Centre on a four-day family adventure with...

Egypt and Jordan Family Holiday

15 days from 4388, yellowstone and grand teton family holiday, 6 days from 3653.

Take the family on a 6-day adventure in Yellowstone and Grand Teton national parks....

Borneo Family Holiday Comfort

10 days from 1605.

Discover the best that Borneo has to offer on this unforgettable family adventure...

China Family Holiday

12 days from 3164.

Travel to the Land of the Dragon and explore Beijing, Xi'an, Yangshuo, Chengdu and Hong...

Cambodia Family Holiday with Teenagers

8 days from 855.

Encounter Cambodia's complex history and welcoming culture on a small-group family...

Kenya Family Safari

8 days from 2400.

Track your way across the plains of Kenya on this thrilling safari, covering Nairobi,...

Jordan Family Holiday

8 days from 1575.

Discover lost cities on a family adventure in Jordan. From the capital Amman to the...

Thailand Family Holiday

12 days from 1704.

Enjoy the sights, culture and history of Thailand on a fun family trip. Eat yummy food,...

Japan Highlights Family Holiday

8 days from 3494.

Take a fun family adventure to Japan and visit Tokyo, Kawane, Kyoto and Osaka. Travel...

Map of Turkey Family Holiday with Teenagers including Turkey

Turkey Family Holiday with Teenagers

8 days from 1615.

Exploring Turkey’s coast with your teenagers, visiting ruins in Xanthos, hiking...

Map of Italy Family Holiday  including Italy

Italy Family Holiday

8 days from 2960.

From the ruins of Rome, to the ancient city of Pompeii and the seaside delights of...

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Why choose intrepid.

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Just for families

The clue’s in the title. These trips are for families only (including any aunts, uncles or cousins who’d like to come along, of course). As long as you’re traveling with a child under the age of 18, you’re a family in our eyes. Plus, unlike other travel companies, children aged 17 years and younger receive a 10% discount on the price of their trip.

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Travel with other families

Traveling the Intrepid way is a bit like traveling with a group of friends. These trips are made up of 3–5 like-minded families, and the kids tend to hit it off straight away, allowing you to enjoy some well-earned R&R. We often find the whole family ends up making friendships with people from all over the world, staying in touch long after the adventure ends.

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Small group sizes

Intrepid’s family group sizes are small enough to avoid the crowds and reach some out-of-the-way places but big enough for a good social mix. Our average group size of 10 allows us to hop aboard local boats, buses or trains, eat at friendly, family-run restaurants and kick back in traditional accommodation and homestays.

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Action packed

We know the biggest challenge on a family trip is keeping the kids entertained, so we’ve planned in advance. Nearly all of our hotels feature pools, and each day has a great mix of action-packed adventure and flexible free time. Your local leader can also suggest activities based on your kid’s hobbies or school curriculum.

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Safety first

Our local leaders are specially trained to run family adventures, so you’ll be well taken care of. You can also rest easy knowing we conduct safety assessments on all our activities to meet local standards as well as our own comprehensive safety policy. 

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Sustainable travel

We strive to use travel as a force for good. That’s why we choose to give back to the communities we visit, carbon offset all our trips and take our social and environmental responsibilities seriously. We’ve been officially certified as the world’s largest travel B Corp, which means when you choose Intrepid Travel, you can rest assured you’re traveling to improve the planet.

Family favorites

The scaly face of an Iguana looking at the camera as it lies on a tree

Come for the biodiverse landscapes of Costa Rica and stay for the fascinating wildlife lurking in the country’s tropical wilderness. Spot three-toed sloths as they munch on their leafy food, listen out for the call of howler monkeys as they swing from tree to tree, and catch sight of a slow-moving iguana as it moves along the jungle floor – all within the extraordinary Manuel Antonio National Park. 

Mother and tiger cub rest in Ranthambore National Park, Rajasthan

Rajasthan, India

With palaces, forts, festivals and wildlife encounters to take the breath away, Rajasthan in India is a must-see for all families. We stay in century-old heritage accommodation, living life like a Maharaja and Maharani. Trace the tracks of Bengal tigers in the jungle, wander through lush palace gardens, clock the famous Taj Mahal and ride the rails through the sun-kissed countryside.

Family tour through the streets of Essaouira

Essaouira, Morocco

An artists’ town through and through, Essaouira is full of surprises. First, there’s the beautiful blue-specked townscape, with its whitewashed seaside houses you could stare at for an age. Dig a little deeper and find galleries, boutiques, wood workshops and a colorful heritage of Portuguese, British, French and Jewish influences.

Colorful tradtional wear of the Maasai tribe in the Loita hills

Loita Hills, Kenya

Nestled in the Great Rift Valley, Loita Hills is a special place. It’s the town the Maasai call home, and it’s a privilege to spend time with such a proud and joyous people. Join in the famous Maasai jumping dance and remember to get a snap of the family leaping for the sky. 

A brightly colored Citadel in Hue, Vietnam

Hue, Vietnam

Deep dive into Hue - a spectacular city with a royal past - on your family adventure through Vietnam. Whether you’re excited to travel the atmospheric streets on a cyclo tour, visit ancient pagodas built for religious figures, marvel at impressive citadels fit for royalty or join members of the community for a traditional paper flower-making class at a local non-government organization, there’s a little something for everyone in this cultural country. 

A young girl holding up a piece of pizza in Italy with her mouth open

If there’s a destination fit for family travel, it’s Italy – think pizza and gelato making in Sorrento, scialatielli tasting (fresh pasta) in Minori, and history lessons about Mt Vesuvius while looking at the volcano itself. Packed with food and local artisan experiences, you and your kids will get a real taste of Italy while also getting the chance to appreciate the country’s breathtaking coastal scenery and learn about its captivating past. 

Where we stay

We take a lot of care in choosing your accommodation and try to avoid the big chain hotels. Your accommodation could be a locally run hotel in Europe, a jungle lodge in Latin America, or a small, family-friendly hotel. No matter where you stay, it will be of good quality and most rooms will feature en suite bathrooms and air conditioning as standard. We also prefer hotels that provide triple or quad rooms and always try to offer adjoining rooms for parents and kids when they are available.

Learn more about accommodation

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Looking for a tailor-made vacation?

If you like the sound of our style of travel but would rather vacation with just your family and friends, we can help. Most of our trips are also available as private departures and come with all the excitement and inclusions of a regular departure, but we can tweak and adjust the details until they fit just right.

Get in touch with our team , who will work with you to provide the best family travel experience for you and your family. 

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Read our Family FAQs

Read more about family travel.

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Nov 28, 2023

7 ways for kids to live a day in the....

From samurais to Santa, there are big shoes to step into on Intrepid’s newest...

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6 amazing new trips for families only 

The newest additions to Intrepid’s family range pack heaps of adventure into some...

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Nov 08, 2018

How to have the ultimate family....

If you’re after a family adventure beyond the gated mega-resorts, here are 5...

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Jun 23, 2021

Family fun for every age in australia....

Even if your family has already seen a lot of Australia and New Zealand, these kid...

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We’re no strangers to rucksacks and know that using every inch of space is key, so...

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Taking your pint-sized people travelling in India would likely be out of the...

Responsible travel

A family of travelers gathers with a local at Ait Benhaddou in Morocco

Little travelers like to ask big questions. That’s where we come in. With so much for kids to learn about around the world – we believe in doing our bit to bring up the next generation of responsible travelers. This means educating the travel community about low-impact, sustainable travel practices and sharing ways in which we can all travel responsibly.

Learn how to travel responsibly as a family

Why traveling to witness a total solar eclipse is so worth it

It’s an indescribable, life-changing experience; a partial eclipse doesn’t come close.

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In my life, I’ve chased tornadoes, stood in the eyes of major hurricanes and gazed at epic displays of the aurora borealis — none rival the grandeur of a total solar eclipse. I’ve now traveled to three.

On April 8, a total eclipse will sweep over the United States , but it will only appear for those inside a roughly 115-mile wide path, where the moon will fully block the sun. The scene is mind-boggling: day turns to night, stars and planets appear, the sun’s atmosphere shimmers and a 360-degree sunrise surrounds you.

Although a partial eclipse will happen outside this path throughout the Lower 48 states, it’s just not the same. The magic of the total eclipse will occur only within the narrow path of totality. It’s a scene so dramatic that it moves some to tears. Others find it spiritual, altering their perspective on the universe. Many can’t even describe it.

2024 total solar eclipse

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Fortunately, the path of totality is pretty accessible. It cuts through Dallas, Little Rock, Indianapolis, Cleveland, Buffalo and Burlington, Vt. Over half of the nation’s population lives within 250 miles of the path.

Until you experience totality, it’s impossible to understand what it means, and why people like me invest considerable time and money into traveling to see it. But I’ll attempt to explain why it’s more than worth it.

Is almost totality good enough?

You may think you’re getting close to the total eclipse experience if you’re in an area with a 90, 95 or even 99 percent partial eclipse. But that’s just not even close to the truth.

As long as any part of the solar disk is exposed, you can’t take off your eclipse glasses. The sun is still shining. Even at 90 percent, the ambient dimming of the landscape will be curious, but wholly unremarkable.

The streetlights don’t usually come on until the sun is about 95 percent blocked — at which point you’re close enough to totality, and the menagerie of awe-evoking accompaniments, that you might as well hop in the car and drive. Parts of Houston, for example, will see a 95 percent eclipse, but Austin is within the path of totality. That’s only a two-hour 35-minute car ride.

Driving 95 percent of the way to a restaurant isn’t the same as dining there. Journeying 95 percent of the way to the Grand Canyon isn’t so grand if you can’t see the actual thing.

A totally incomparable experience

Here are several of the spectacles you’ll see within the path of totality that you’d miss even a few miles away:

Sudden nightfall: The moon’s shadow will be sweeping overhead at speeds of 1,600 mph in Texas and 3,000 mph by the time it gets to northern Maine some 68 minutes later. In that narrow zone, day will abruptly turn to night, with twinkling stars and several planets emerging from their slumber. You’ll also be stunned by how quickly darkness falls — in a matter of seconds, compared with more than an hour each evening.

The corona: The corona, or the sun’s atmosphere, is arguably the most fantastical sight you’ll ever see. It’s a diaphanous plasma superheated to millions of degrees, and it spans millions of miles into space. The plasma is contorted by the sun’s magnetic field; during totality, you’ll be able to look directly at the corona and see it tracing magnetic field lines. Prominences, caused by enhanced solar activity, will look like interstellar spikes, reminiscent of hairlike protrusions fanning outward in the “solar wind.” This is the only time anyone — civilians or scientists — can directly observe the corona.

The 360-degree sunrise: With the moon’s shadow only between 100 and 120 miles wide, it will be dark overhead — but the horizon will still be dimly illuminated, since locations a few towns over outside the shadow will still be in the daylight. That will make for a peachy twilight enveloping the horizon. But unlike a typical morning or evening twilight, it’s not just a fraction of the horizon — it’s in every direction. Delicate pastel hues will transition from pink with an amber tinge at the horizon to a deep, regal blue overhead.

Baily’s Beads: As the moon almost fully hides the sun, the last rays of sunlight poking through the valleys of the moon will form luminous pinpricks known as “Baily’s Beads.” After a moment, they’ll congeal into the diamond ring — a lone, final searing beacon of light as totality concludes.

Shadow bands: During an eclipse, the sun appears to get smaller in the sky. Eventually it’s just a tiny point of light. That means all the rays of light are coming from that one lone point, rather than from all over the sun’s disk. Since they originate from the same point, all the rays are parallel. But those parallel rays become slightly misaligned when they get bent at slightly different angles by warm and cool air pockets in the atmosphere. The now-misaligned rays interfere when they hit the ground, producing a bizarre pattern reminiscent of the shadowy wavelets on the bottom of a pool. They’re tough to spot (look for them on white backgrounds or bring a white sheet to lay on the ground), and only appear within 90 seconds of totality ( before and after ).

While this eclipse is very accessible, options for getting into the path are becoming more challenging. Flights and hotels are either booked or very expensive.

But driving and camping are options for the budget-conscious. If you’re on the fence about whether to travel to the eclipse, stop hesitating. Make your plans now.

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Illustration of stars blurring past from the perspective of moving quickly through space

Why does time change when traveling close to the speed of light? A physicist explains

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Assistant Professor of Physics and Astronomy, Rochester Institute of Technology

Disclosure statement

Michael Lam does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

Rochester Institute of Technology provides funding as a member of The Conversation US.

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Curious Kids is a series for children of all ages. If you have a question you’d like an expert to answer, send it to [email protected] .

Why does time change when traveling close to the speed of light? – Timothy, age 11, Shoreview, Minnesota

Imagine you’re in a car driving across the country watching the landscape. A tree in the distance gets closer to your car, passes right by you, then moves off again in the distance behind you.

Of course, you know that tree isn’t actually getting up and walking toward or away from you. It’s you in the car who’s moving toward the tree. The tree is moving only in comparison, or relative, to you – that’s what we physicists call relativity . If you had a friend standing by the tree, they would see you moving toward them at the same speed that you see them moving toward you.

In his 1632 book “ Dialogue Concerning the Two Chief World Systems ,” the astronomer Galileo Galilei first described the principle of relativity – the idea that the universe should behave the same way at all times, even if two people experience an event differently because one is moving in respect to the other.

If you are in a car and toss a ball up in the air, the physical laws acting on it, such as the force of gravity, should be the same as the ones acting on an observer watching from the side of the road. However, while you see the ball as moving up and back down, someone on the side of the road will see it moving toward or away from them as well as up and down.

Special relativity and the speed of light

Albert Einstein much later proposed the idea of what’s now known as special relativity to explain some confusing observations that didn’t have an intuitive explanation at the time. Einstein used the work of many physicists and astronomers in the late 1800s to put together his theory in 1905, starting with two key ingredients: the principle of relativity and the strange observation that the speed of light is the same for every observer and nothing can move faster. Everyone measuring the speed of light will get the same result, no matter where they are or how fast they are moving.

Let’s say you’re in the car driving at 60 miles per hour and your friend is standing by the tree. When they throw a ball toward you at a speed of what they perceive to be 60 miles per hour, you might logically think that you would observe your friend and the tree moving toward you at 60 miles per hour and the ball moving toward you at 120 miles per hour. While that’s really close to the correct value, it’s actually slightly wrong.

This discrepancy between what you might expect by adding the two numbers and the true answer grows as one or both of you move closer to the speed of light. If you were traveling in a rocket moving at 75% of the speed of light and your friend throws the ball at the same speed, you would not see the ball moving toward you at 150% of the speed of light. This is because nothing can move faster than light – the ball would still appear to be moving toward you at less than the speed of light. While this all may seem very strange, there is lots of experimental evidence to back up these observations.

Time dilation and the twin paradox

Speed is not the only factor that changes relative to who is making the observation. Another consequence of relativity is the concept of time dilation , whereby people measure different amounts of time passing depending on how fast they move relative to one another.

Each person experiences time normally relative to themselves. But the person moving faster experiences less time passing for them than the person moving slower. It’s only when they reconnect and compare their watches that they realize that one watch says less time has passed while the other says more.

This leads to one of the strangest results of relativity – the twin paradox , which says that if one of a pair of twins makes a trip into space on a high-speed rocket, they will return to Earth to find their twin has aged faster than they have. It’s important to note that time behaves “normally” as perceived by each twin (exactly as you are experiencing time now), even if their measurements disagree.

You might be wondering: If each twin sees themselves as stationary and the other as moving toward them, wouldn’t they each measure the other as aging faster? The answer is no, because they can’t both be older relative to the other twin.

The twin on the spaceship is not only moving at a particular speed where the frame of references stay the same but also accelerating compared with the twin on Earth. Unlike speeds that are relative to the observer, accelerations are absolute. If you step on a scale, the weight you are measuring is actually your acceleration due to gravity. This measurement stays the same regardless of the speed at which the Earth is moving through the solar system, or the solar system is moving through the galaxy or the galaxy through the universe.

Neither twin experiences any strangeness with their watches as one moves closer to the speed of light – they both experience time as normally as you or I do. It’s only when they meet up and compare their observations that they will see a difference – one that is perfectly defined by the mathematics of relativity.

Hello, curious kids! Do you have a question you’d like an expert to answer? Ask an adult to send your question to [email protected] . Please tell us your name, age and the city where you live.

And since curiosity has no age limit – adults, let us know what you’re wondering, too. We won’t be able to answer every question, but we will do our best.

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How to cut your time in line at Disney World, Disneyland without buying Genie+

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I remember waiting in line at Walt Disney World for what seemed like forever as a kid.

That was a time long before mobile phones, when Magic Kingdom still had the Skyway and 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, EPCOT still had Horizons and World of Motion, Disney’s Hollywood Studios was still called Disney-MGM Studios, and Disney’s Animal Kingdom didn’t exist. 

Back then , the only way to check wait times was to look at the physical signs outside attractions. 

Nowadays, you can do that and much more with your phone. That doesn’t mean you have to be glued to your screen, but you can save a lot of time and energy if you know how to use Disney’s free apps to your advantage.

Navigating Disney parks

Unlike other theme parks, Disney World and Disneyland still offer paper maps. However, you can also find interactive maps on the Disneyland app and Disney World’s My Disney Experience app . 

Not only do they show real-time wait times for attractions, but also forecast waits throughout the day, ride restrictions , and accessibility information for guests with disabilities . You can change categories to find restaurants, restrooms and more. Disney World’s app also offers directions to points of interest across the Florida resort.

The free Disney Genie tool can further help plot your day by offering suggestions based on your interests. This is different from the paid Genie+ service, which gives guests access to shorter lines for attractions.

Travelers with disabilities need a card for accommodations at some theme parks

Finding showtimes and Disney characters

Rides are only part of the experience at Disney parks, which are famous for their entertainment offerings and seasonal celebrations . You can check times for things like parades, stage shows and nighttime spectaculars using the app’s search function or by selecting Entertainment from the map’s drop-down menu. Showtimes may also be posted on display boards in the parks and outside show venues. 

Guests hoping to meet their favorite Disney characters can see where and when to find them using the app’s search tool or by selecting Characters in the drop-down menu. Some characters have regular meeting spots, like Figment at EPCOT ‘s ImageWorks and BayMax at Disney California Adventure’s San Fransokyo Square . Others appear in various locations across the parks, which guests may also find on physical maps or simply walking by.

Disney dining on demand

This week, both Disney World and Disneyland introduced a new feature on their apps and websites that allows guests to book dining reservations across a range of dates , instead of searching one day at a time. You can now see every table-service restaurant’s openings for up to 10 days and filter by parameters like location, cuisine, price and whether they accept the Disney Dining Plan , which returned to Disney World in January.

Dining reservations open 60 days in advance, but you can check for last-minute openings and join walk-up lists in the app, instead of going out of your way to ask in person. If you already have a reservation, you can check in through the app or in person.

Mobile ordering can save time at popular quick-service restaurants like Jolly Holiday Bakery Cafe in Disneyland and Woody’s Lunchbox in Disney’s Hollywood Studios. ProTip: Order food in advance and select a later arrival window, which you can adjust in the app. If you wait until you’re hungry to order, there may not be any immediate pick-up openings, and you’ll have to stand in line the old-fashioned way.

Mobile check-in and checkout

A growing number of shops, like Emporium in Disneyland and Magic Kingdom, offer mobile checkout so you can skip lines for the cash register. In-person checkout is still available if you prefer to pay with cash or don’t mind the wait.

If you’re staying on property at Disney resort hotels , you can also check in through the Disneyland and My Disney Experience apps. You’ll get a notification once your room is assigned, and then you can head straight there and unlock the door with your phone or MagicBands. In-person check-in and physical key cards remain available.

What if you don’t want to be on your phone?

Unplugging can be a big part of vacationing, and some critics have complained about having to use their phones at the parks, but you don’t have to spend your whole trip on screens. 

When I visit the parks these days, I go in with a plan and a few priorities but largely play it by ear . Even though I’ve tested the value of Genie+ , on most trips, I simply check wait times on the app and decide what’s worth the wait. I mobile order food to save time, but prefer checking in to hotels and checking out at stores in person. You can pick and choose to use the free tools that suit you. 

"Disneyland Resort uses technology to help deliver a great guest experience,” the California resort shared with USA TODAY. “With just a click, a tap or a swipe, guests can use the official mobile app for the DisneylandResort, MagicBand+ and other intuitive digital tools to make the most of their visits."

If you need help, you can always ask cast members in person or through the app’s chat tool.

BREAKING: Trump-backed Bernie Moreno wins the Ohio Republican Senate primary, NBC News projects

A volcano in Iceland is erupting for the 4th time in 3 months

A  volcano in Iceland  erupted Saturday evening for the fourth time in three months, sending orange jets of lava into the night sky.

Iceland’s Meteorological Office said the eruption opened a fissure in the earth almost 2 miles long between Stóra-Skógfell and Hagafell mountains on the Reykjanes Peninsula.

The Met Office had warned for weeks that magma — semi-molten rock — was accumulating under the ground, making an eruption likely.

Hundreds of people were evacuated from the Blue Lagoon thermal spa, one of Iceland’s top tourist attractions, when the eruption began, national broadcaster RUV said.

No flight disruptions were reported at nearby Keflavik, Iceland’s main airport.

Image:

The eruption site is a few miles northeast of Grindavik , a coastal town of 3,800 people about 30 miles southwest of Iceland’s capital, Reykjavik, that was evacuated before the initial eruption in December. A few residents who had returned to their homes were evacuated again Saturday.

Grindavik was evacuated in November when the Svartsengi volcanic system awakened after almost 800 years with a series of earthquakes that opened large cracks in the ground north of the town.

The volcano eventually erupted on Dec. 18 , sending lava flowing away from Grindavik. A  second eruption that began on Jan. 14 sent lava toward the town. Defensive walls that had been bolstered after the first eruption stopped some of the flow, but several buildings were consumed by the lava.

Both eruptions lasted only a matter of days. A  third eruption  began Feb. 8. It petered out within hours, but not before a river of lava engulfed a pipeline, cutting off heat and hot water to thousands of people.

RUV quoted geophysicist Magnús Tumi Guðmundsson as saying that the latest eruption is the most powerful so far. The Met Office said some of the lava was flowing towards the defensive barriers around Grindavik.

Iceland, which sits above a volcanic hot spot in the North Atlantic, sees regular eruptions and is highly experienced at dealing with them. The most disruptive in recent times was the 2010 eruption of the Eyjafjallajokull volcano, which spewed huge clouds of ash into the atmosphere and led to widespread airspace closures over Europe.

No confirmed deaths have been reported from any of the recent eruptions, but a workman was declared missing after falling into a fissure opened by the volcano.

The Associated Press

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