At the end of last year, in a vain effort to make sure I was posting travel content on my Instagram when I wasn’t actually travelling anywhere, I did a little top 10 of my best trips ever. And you know what? I really enjoyed reliving all of the once-in-a-lifetime, pinch-me-this-is-a-dream trips I’ve taken over the years. Because seriously, I’ve done some crazy good stuff on my travels.
So I thought it might be a good idea to list them all out in a blog post, with lots of links to past posts in case you wanted to read more about these sick trips. Let me know what you think of my top 10!
Top 10 Best Trips Ever.
#10: Australia
I’m kicking off my most favourite trips, down under. I actually lived in Australia for a year in 2011-12, mostly spending my time travelling the West Coast, living in Brisbane and living in Sydney. But that’s not actually the trip I’m on about… Don’t get me wrong, doing my working holiday was an awesome experience and I learned a lot about myself during that year. But it was hard work. Finding jobs, making friends, moving cities, living in tiny apartments and trying to fit some kind of travel inbetween, made me realise that I’d rather be based in the UK and fit travels around my home life.
But in 2016 I went back to Oz for a friend’s wedding and had a REALLY great time. I think just being somewhere with all of your friends is what makes a trip tbh. It was a beaut wedding in Adelaide, then a few of us hired campervans and drove the Great Ocean Road. We had a few days of amazing food and cool bars in Melbourne and then Josh and I had a few days in Sydney. I loved showing him my favourite parts of the city – like the Coogee to Bondi Coastal Walk and getting the ferry through the harbour.
#9: Deep South USA
My trip to USA’s Deep South with Trek America is actually the only Press Trip on this list. I think because you generally have a better time when you’re travelling with friends or family or you’re on a solo adventure. Y’know rather than being shipped off to a new destination with a group of people you’ve never met before.
But actually, the #iTrekHere trip in 2017 was such an epic adventure! It helped that I was travelling with an A+ bunch.
The 10 day trip took us through Alabama, Tennessee, Mississippi and Louisiana and I got to tick off some awesome things that were on my bucketlist. I went abseiling in Alabama, wrote a song with a country music writer in Nashville, went to Graceland in Memphis, experienced the awesome Beale Street Music Festival, drank a LOT of moonshine (regrettably), saw a Mississippi sunset, ate REAL Southern food, saw wild crocs on a swamp tour, and fell in LOVE with New Orleans.
#8: Bali, Indonesia
Bali is a weird one for me. It’s definitely not my favourite destination in Asia and feels more commercial than places like Thailand or Vietnam. But it was my first long-haul with Josh and his first time in Asia, back in 2016. So it felt a lot like I was seeing Asia through his eyes – the awesome food, the idyllic beaches, the lovely people. So this trip definitely has a place in my heart.
Highlights include cycling around Gili T and watching sunset on the beach, hiking the rice terraces of Ubud, having all the fun at Waterbom water park in Kuta, having lunch with a view of Mount Batur, and recovering from it all on Sanur beach. I love trips that have a good combo of fun-filled activities and a bit of R&R, and Bali was definitely that!
#7: Wroclaw, Poland
My long weekend in Wroclaw is not one of my epic backpacking trips. It isn’t one of those destinations that are MUST-VISIT like some others on this list. But it made my top 10 trips purely because I had a lot of fun at the Christmas Market in 2017.
I think because it’s a smaller destination with not that many landmarks/attractions that you HAVE to see, the trip became more about having fun, enjoying each other’s company and having a ball at the Christmas Market! We shopped for decorations, we drank a lot of Gluwein, saw the pretty lights and went on some rides. But we also ate some AMAZING food in Wroclaw. It was all unexpectedly good and I would go back in a heartbeat for the brunch at Foguljemy or the curry at Mango Mama.
#6: An epic USA backpacking trip
Believe it or not, my great big backpacking trip in the States was ELEVEN YEARS AGO now. It was actually my first ever time backpacking, as well as my first solo adventure when I was 21, so it’s high on my list for sentimental purposes.
But also, it was a fucking epic trip.
I spent around 5-6 weeks, and all of my savings, travelling both the West Coast and the Northeast of the USA. I started in LA and did a big loop around Arizona, Nevada and California, including partying in Vegas, taking a hot air balloon ride over the Arizona desert, exploring Yosemite National Park, falling completely in love with San Francisco (I HAVE to go back, if only for the vintage shopping), setting my eyes on the Grand Canyon from a helicopter, and having some pretty awesome parties with my new travel pals.
I then did a few days of theme parks and beaches in LA and flew to New York for a few days of shopping and eating all the best food.
And then it was time for another overland adventure, exploring Pennsylvania Avenue and the Smithsonian in DC, camping in “Bear Country”, experiencing Maid Of The Mist in Niagara Falls and discovering all of the history in Boston.
I did a combo of tours and down time and I think it was a great introduction to both making friends on my travels and staying in hostels. It also massively gave me the travel bug. And the rest is history.
#5: New York
Ok, I know I mentioned NYC briefly above as part of a larger USA backpacking trip, but I felt like New York needed it’s own slot. I’ve visited this kickass city 4 times over the last 10 years and every time I go I love it a bit more.
I feel a bit ashamed saying that, because let’s face it, it’s a bit ~cliche~ for a 30-something woman to love New York, isn’t it? Maybe it’s all of the years of Friends and Sex And The City and How I Met Your Mother, but I just feel like this city GETS me. It’s got awesome bars, crazy-good food, the skyline of dreams, massive museums, cool shops, Broadway, donuts, nightlife, brunch, street art… I JUST LOVE IT, OKAY?
My last trip to New York involved a lot more of Brooklyn and Queens than Manhattan, and really that’s where the magic happens if you ask me. Now I just need to show Indi this insanely cool city…
#4: Slovenia
I think the reason I loved my 2017 trip to Slovenia so much is that I had quite low expectations before I went. I hadn’t seen much about it, I didn’t think I would like the food, I wasn’t sure if there was lots to do there. But it delivered on all fronts.
Ljubljana is such an incredible city, with colourful buildings, really great food inspired by nearby Italy, a cool castle that makes you feel like you’re in Game Of Thrones, a beautiful river and alternative Metelkova. But I also loved getting out and doing day trips around this fairly small country. Lake Bled was just as beaut as it looks in pictures. Vintgar Gorge was a lovely surprise. Postojna caves made me feel like I was in Aladdin.
I honestly think Slovenia is super underrated and would definitely recommend a holiday here to see for yourself.
#3: Iceland
Iceland is popular for a reason. It’s the only place in the world I’ve visited where I felt like I was on a completely different planet. I mean you don’t see landscapes like that anywhere else, at least nowhere else that I’ve been so far.
But I think the reason it’s so high on my list is that I went there on my own. It was just 4 days for my little solo adventure, but I enjoyed it so much. I just felt FREE. And I think that’s the appeal of solo travel, doing what you want, when you want. I spent way too long in coffee shops because there was no-one to judge me. I spent longer than I would taking photos than I would if I was with someone. It was just the ultimate freedom.
I did the obligatory Iceland experiences like soaking in the Blue Lagoon and visiting some amazing spots on the Golden Circle, like epic waterfalls, insane geysers and impressive national parks. But things I loved most were a bit more alternative – like the Olgerdin micro-brewery tour where I learned a lot about Iceland’s prohibition and got pissed with a group of guys on a stag do. I loved exploring Reykjavik’s vintage shops and eating solo in nice restaurants. Oh and I went horse riding in the mountains on cute Icelandic ponies!
An awesome trip and a fab experience of solo travel. Would recommend it to anyone. (I definitely need to go back to see the Northern Lights though!)
#2: Backpacking Southeast Asia
Ahhhh my 4 months of backpacking Southeast Asia in 2011 were a total dream. I say it was a solo adventure because it started that way, but on my first day in Bangkok I met Kate, my now best friend, and we travelled together for almost the entirety of the trip. We travelled through Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, Cambodia and Singapore and had a damn ball.
It was the highest of highs (beach parties on the Thai islands, taking a cooking class in Chiang Mai, buying too many friendship bracelets, spending too much time in Sihanoukville, The Night Of Two Dinners (don’t ask), cycling around Hoi An, being far too hungover at Halong Bay, tubing in Vang Vieng for not one but EIGHT days, having the Indian meal of our lives in Luang Prabang, to just name a few!) and the lowest of lows (money and phone stolen, death threats from a tuk tuk driver with a face tattoo, car bombs at the Cambodian border, being scammed SO MANY TIMES, following boys we liked to different countries like absolute bellends, lost credit cards). (That might be the longest sentence I’ve ever written.) But it was the ULTIMATE backpacking experience with hostels and guest houses and overnight buses and visa runs and long, deep conversations with people you’ve just met. Even the bad stuff makes for the best travel stories and I got to see such amazing countries and meet some truly awesome people. Obviously the best part is that I got a best friend out of it. The friend that convinced me to move to Milton Keynes. Where I met my fiance. And had our baby. Oh and it’s also the trip that inspired me to start my blog.
So basically it’s the trip that changed my life. No big deal.
I know what you’re thinking, what trip could possibly be better than this one?! I mean, you probably know by now…
#1: Cinque Terre, Italy
It had to be Cinque Terre, right? I go on about the colourful Italian Riviera enough on here.
I’ve been to Cinque Terre twice and will definitely go again. I love the place as a destination as it has everything I love: the BEST Italian food, gorgeous colourful towns, beaut beaches, pretty hiking routes, lovely people and just a chilled vibe where you can grab a glass of wine and some apperitivo nibbles and relax with a view of the coast, y’know? The dream.
But obviously this place has larger meaning for me. On my first trip it was both my first ever trip with Josh AND my first ever blog freebie (I got free accommodation at a couple of places). So it felt like a big deal to me.
Then on my second trip it’s where Josh proposed, at sunset in gorgeous Riomaggiore. Oh and probs a bit too much information but I’m 99% sure it’s also where our daughter was concieved. Yeah probs TMI but hey it’s a special place, okay?
Ahhhh I’ve loved doing this little rundown of my best trips. It’s made me so excited to plan some more! And also, I feel quite proud if that’s ok to say? These days I beat myself up for being a shit travel blogger and not travelling all that much. But actually when you look at it all written down – I’ve done alright haven’t I?
Did you like this top 10 of my best trips ever? Which of these trips would you like to do?
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