Every December I write an article recapping our yr in journey. Somewhat than writing a easy overview about what we did, I wish to share with you our travels in 2019 and allow you to know how one can have the identical experiences.
We visited some superb locations in 2019…it was a yr stuffed with adventures and lots of brand-new locations. I hope this listing evokes you as you make your plans for 2020.
A Fast Recap of 2019
Variety of International locations Visited: 6 (USA, Greece, Italy, Switzerland, Iceland and Egypt)
Variety of New International locations: 3 (Greece, Iceland, and Egypt)
Favourite Vacation spot: Iceland
Greatest Journey Second: A tie between mountain climbing the Grand Canyon rim-to-rim and mountain climbing the Fimmvörðuháls path in Iceland
February: Gateway Arch and Mammoth Cave
We’re on a mission to go to all 63 of the nationwide parks. So, Tim and I spent a protracted weekend in February, visiting Gateway Arch Nationwide Park in St. Louis and Mammoth Cave Nationwide Park in Kentucky.
Gateway Arch is among the latest additions to the lengthy listing of nationwide parks, reaching nationwide park standing on February 22, 2018. That is additionally the smallest nationwide park and one of many quickest to go to, taking only a few hours of your time.
Mammoth Cave is the world’s longest cave system, with over 400 miles of explored caves and passageways.
How You Can Do This
Each of those might be related on a brief highway journey. Add in a go to to Nashville, Louisville, or the Kentucky Bourbon Path, and you’ve got your self a protracted weekend getaway.
Our Highway Journey Itinerary: We arrived on a Friday afternoon in St. Louis and went out to dinner. On Saturday, we visited Gateway Arch within the morning, had lunch, noticed a couple of sights on the town, after which drove in the direction of Mammoth Cave. It’s nearly a five-hour drive between the 2 parks, so we spent the evening in Owensboro, Kentucky. One of many distilleries on the Kentucky Bourbon Path, Inexperienced River, is situated on this city, so for those who alter this itinerary a little bit bit, you may embody a go to to this distillery. On Sunday morning, we visited Mammoth Cave, and within the night we drove to Nashville (however Louisville works nice too). We spent in the future in Nashville earlier than flying residence.
This may be achieved year-round. Since you might be largely “indoors” whereas visiting each Gateway Arch and Mammoth Cave, these are nice nationwide parks to go to in throughout the winter months.
Go to Gateway Arch Nationwide Park in St. Louis
Plan Your Go to to Mammoth Cave Nationwide Park
April: Greece
We make the most of each break that Tyler and Kara get from college and this yr was no totally different. With their 10 days off for Spring Break, why not go to Greece?!
Ten days is simply sufficient time to go to Athens and a number of other islands. It’s nonetheless a bit chilly this time of yr and the islands are simply waking up from their lengthy winter’s nap, however crowds are low and costs are a little bit cheaper.
With ten days, we began in Athens after which used the ferry to hop to Mykonos, Naxos and Santorini.
How You Can Do This
If you’re planning your first journey to Greece and have 10 days, the itinerary under is a good place to begin for planning your journey. Not solely do you get to go to the world-class websites in Athens however you additionally get to go to three lovely islands. Naxos is an island that normally doesn’t make the must-see listing for first-timers, however this was our favourite spot in Greece and we extremely advocate it.
10 Day Greece Itinerary: Santorini, Naxos, Mykonos & Athens
Greece Journey Suggestions: Issues to Know Earlier than Touring to Greece
Go to the Acropolis and Parthenon in Athens
20 Wonderful Issues to do in Santorini
June: Grand Canyon Rim-to-Rim Hike
In June, Tim and I celebrated our twentieth marriage ceremony anniversary and we needed to do one thing epic. So, why not hike throughout the Grand Canyon?
Most individuals do that in two to a few days, backpacking from the north rim to south rim with an in a single day keep down by the Colorado River. Nonetheless, in case you are tremendous match and really quick, you may hike rim-to-rim in in the future.
It is a huge day hike. Throughout the course of in the future, we hiked 23.5 miles, descended after which climbed again up almost a mile in elevation, all whereas battling excessive temperatures. It was an extremely superior expertise.
Plenty of planning, coaching, and preparation want to enter to creating this hike profitable. We discovered a lot from this expertise that it couldn’t match into only one weblog publish. So right here two articles about the best way to hike the Grand Canyon rim-to-rim. Get pleasure from!
Hike the Grand Canyon Rim-to-Rim
Grand Canyon Rim-to-Rim Hike: Planning Information & Guidelines
June: Petrified Forest Nationwide Park, Saguaro Nationwide Park, and Sedona, Arizona
On the identical journey to the Grand Canyon, Tim and I additionally visited a number of different locations in Arizona.
Petrified Forest Nationwide Park
I used to be not anticipating a lot from Petrified Forest Nationwide Park however we beloved it right here! The mountain climbing trails are so distinctive and this was the primary time that we’ve ever hiked a path in a nationwide park and didn’t see one different individual the whole time! How superior is that?
The hike via the Blue Forest was the spotlight of our go to to Petrified Forest. This brief path takes you thru the zebra-striped mountains of the Blue Mesa area of the park.
Visiting Petrified Forest Nationwide Park is like taking a step again in time. This park will get its title for the petrified logs which might be a whole bunch of hundreds of thousands of years outdated, to a time when this land was as soon as lush and fertile. However you additionally get to discover the colourful hills of the painted desert and hike some very distinctive trails.
If in case you have plans to go to Arizona, all you want is in the future to go to Petrified Forest. Hopefully, you be as enthralled with this place as we have been.
Petrified Forest Nationwide Park: Journey Information & Itinerary
Saguaro Nationwide Park
Saguaro Nationwide Park is known as for the Saguaro cactus, which grows solely within the Sonoran Desert. That is a straightforward park to go to, with scenic drives and brief walks among the many towering cacti.
The park is split into two sections, an japanese district and a western district, with town of Tucson operating down the center.
We cut up our go to over two days, with a keep on the great JW Marriott Tucson Starr Cross Resort and Spa. We bought upgraded to the Presidential Suite for our twentieth anniversary (they knew nothing about our journey weblog since we guide and pay for all of our travels) and it was an superior shock!
8 Wonderful Issues to do in Saguaro Nationwide Park
Mountain climbing in Sedona
We now have pushed via Sedona a number of occasions in our life however have by no means stopped to hike right here, till now. Over the course of 24 hours, we hiked two trails…the superb Devils Bridge path (a brief, simple path with gorgeous mountain views and the prospect to face on a slim bridge of sandstone rock) and the difficult Bear Mountain path.
Sedona is stuffed with nice day hikes. In June, it may be sweltering, however in case you are on the lookout for a terrific spring or fall mountain climbing vacation spot, put Sedona in your listing.
Hike Devils Bridge
Mountain climbing the Bear Mountain Path in Sedona
Our Arizona Itinerary
Day 1: Arrive in Phoenix, drive to the Petrified Forest
Day 2: Go to Petrified Forest Nationwide Park, drive to the south rim of the Grand Canyon within the night
Day 3: Shuttle to the north rim of the Grand Canyon
Day 4: Hike the Grand Canyon rim-to-rim, sleep on the south rim
Day 5: Drive to Sedona, hike Devils Bridge
Day 6: Hike Bear Mountain, drive to Tucson, go to Saguaro East
Day 7: Go to Saguaro West, drive to Phoenix
Day 8: Fly residence
June & July: Summer season in Europe
As soon as once more, we took benefit of Tyler and Kara’s break from college (and Tim’s skill to have the ability to work remotely) and headed again to Europe for a part of the summer season. The vast majority of our time was spent in Switzerland and Iceland, however we couldn’t resist a fast day journey into Italy from Lugano.
Bellagio & Lake Como
We spent one great, scorching day at Lake Como. It was the tip of the loopy European warmth wave and temperatures bought as much as 94°F (34°C). Good factor we have been acclimated to the warmth after our go to to Arizona in June!
Bellagio (drone photograph)
Ravenna
How You Can Do This
At some point is all you might want to go to the “golden triangle” of Bellagio, Varenna and Menaggio. From Milan, Italy and Lugano, Switzerland, it is vitally simple to day journey to this a part of Lake Como. With extra time, plan on spending the evening in Bellagio, so you may expertise the quiet streets as soon as the day trippers go away.
Plan the Good Day Journey to Lake Como
8 Wonderful Issues to do in Bellagio, Italy
Switzerland
We spent nearly three weeks in Switzerland. Three motion packed weeks stuffed with mountain climbing, cable automobile rides, trains, fondue, alpine views, costly meals, and visits to charming mountain villages and bustling cities.
We began with a number of days in Lugano, utilizing this as a house base to discover southern Switzerland.
Gandria
Cappella Santa Maria degli Angeli on Monte Tamaro
After in the future in Zurich, we journeyed into the Bernese Oberland, the spotlight of our go to to Switzerland. This space is so quintessentially Swiss, an alpine wonderland with Swiss chalets, rustic farms, alpine meadows, cable vehicles, and mountain villages.
We stayed in Mürren, a mountain city that actually clings to the aspect of a cliff. Each morning and evening, we have been handled to jaw-dropping views of Eiger, Mönch and Jungfrau.
Mürren
Mürren by way of ferrata
Mountain climbing Schynige Platte to Faulhorn to First
Mountain climbing the Eiger Path
Practice to Jungfraujoch
After the Bernese Oberland, we spent two great days in Zermatt. Wow! The views of the Matterhorn are unbelievable and our go to right here beat all of our expectations. If you’re planning a go to to Zermatt, don’t miss Gornergrat and the superior hike to Riffelberg. It’s one in all our favourite hikes in Switzerland (and it’s soooo simple!!).
We wrapped up our go to to Switzerland with a protracted keep in Lausanne. This nice metropolis additionally makes a helpful residence base for exploring the French aspect of Switzerland. Mountain climbing across the Gastlosen and visiting Gruyere have been the highlights for us.
Lausanne
Day journey to Chateau Chillon
Western Switzerland
Mountain climbing across the Gastlosen
How You Can Do This
We don’t have an itinerary revealed but, however when you’ve got 10 days in Switzerland, I like to recommend spending a number of days in Lucerne or Zurich after which placing a majority of your time into the Bernese Oberland. You will want a number of days to go to the highlights, and to offer you some contingency time for those who get unhealthy climate. Zermatt can also be a beautiful place to go to and it wants two days minimal.
20 Wonderful Issues to do within the Jungfrau Area of Switzerland
One Good Day in Zurich, Switzerland
12 Wonderful Issues to do in Zermatt
The Mürren By way of Ferrata: Certainly one of Switzerland’s Most Thrilling Experiences
Lugano, Switzerland: What to do, The place to Keep & The place to Eat
Iceland
Iceland is a rustic that has been on our listing for a very long time. We stored placing it off as a result of a lot has already been written about it and it sounded very touristy. However, on the recommendation of lots of you, we determined so as to add Iceland to our summer season itinerary.
Thanks to everybody who wrote to us and informed us that we must always go to Iceland. You have been proper!!
On our go to to Iceland, we didn’t wish to simply see the everyday spots…the Blue Lagoon, the Golden Circle, Reykjavík, and so forth. If we have been going to go to Iceland, we needed it to be epic. That meant renting a 4×4, driving throughout the distant inside of the island, visiting out-of-the-way waterfalls and mountain climbing previous volcanoes that erupted only a few years in the past, strolling on the most important glacier in Europe, and mountain climbing the unforgettable Fimmvörðuháls path.
Iceland lived as much as our very excessive expectations. From begin to end, this was one in all our favourite journey experiences but and we’re so glad to have lastly visited this superb nation.
We spent two and a half weeks in Iceland. Throughout this time, we road-tripped alongside the Ring Highway, visited Landmannalaugar, spent the evening in Kerlingarfjöll, drove throughout the inside of Iceland on filth roads, noticed puffins, visited Reykjavík, relaxed in scorching springs, photographed extra waterfalls than we are able to depend, and hiked some superb trails.
Kerlingarfjöll
Sigöldugljufur
Mountain climbing Landmannalaugar
Tim, Tyler and Kara in Landmannalaugar
Kirkjufell
Aldeyjarfoss waterfall
Mountain climbing on Vatnajökull Glacier
Dettifoss
Skogafoss
I’ve a lot of info to share with you. You may take a look at our Iceland Vacation spot Web page for our full listing of articles or take a look at the listing under.
How You Can Do This
Ten days permits you to expertise a variety of what Iceland has to supply. With 10 days, you may plan a highway journey on the Ring Highway, go to Iceland’s most well-known and iconic locations, or plan a 10-day journey stuffed with adventures. Take a look at our Iceland Itinerary for overviews of 4 other ways to spend 10 days in Iceland.
Iceland Bucket Listing: 40 Epic Issues to do in Iceland
10 Days in Iceland: 4 Wonderful Itineraries
Fimmvörðuháls Hike: A Step-By-Step Information to Iceland’s Greatest Day Hike
20 Greatest Issues to do on the Snaefellsnes Peninsula
The Important Information to Landmannalaugar for First-Time Guests
Iceland Journey Suggestions: Issues to Know Earlier than You Journey to Iceland
August: Grand Teton, Yellowstone, Glacier & Waterton Lakes Nationwide Parks
The 4 of us returned residence the very finish of July. Tyler went off to Cross Nation camp, Tim went again to work, and Kara and I went on a “lady’s journey” in August.
For 11 days, we road-tripped via Grand Teton, Yellowstone, and Glacier Nationwide Parks within the USA, with a one-day go to to Waterton Lakes Nationwide Park in Canada.
Grand Teton Nationwide Park
Grand Prismatic Spring in Yellowstone
Bison in Yellowstone
Lamar Valley, Yellowstone
Glacier Nationwide Park
Wild Goose Island
Mountain climbing the Highline Path in Glacier Nationwide Park
Waterton Lakes Nationwide Park
Kara and I had such a good time. I’m so lucky to have been in a position to spend this high quality time with my daughter. It gained’t be lengthy till each she and Tyler are off to varsity…it’s loopy how shortly time is passing by.
How You Can Do This
With ten days, you may plan a highway journey via Grand Teton, Yellowstone, and Glacier Nationwide Parks. The most effective time to do that is in the summertime months, when the roads are open within the parks (in all three parks, the roads can shut in October or November, relying on climate situations). For extra info, take a look at our 10-day itinerary.
Grand Teton, Yellowstone & Glacier Nationwide Parks: 10 Day Highway Journey
Greatest Issues to do in Grand Teton Nationwide Park
The Full Information to Yellowstone Nationwide Park
18 Wonderful Issues to do in Yellowstone Nationwide Park
10 Greatest Issues to do in Glacier Nationwide Park
Prime Ten Issues to do in Waterton Lakes Nationwide Park
October: Acadia Nationwide Park
Our timing couldn’t have been higher for our journey to Acadia Nationwide Park. The autumn colours have been spectacular.
One of many issues that makes Acadia so distinctive, and so thrilling, is the big variety of trails with ladders and metallic rungs. Just like a by way of ferrata, you may hike alongside slim ledges and climb up sheer rock faces with assistance from these metallic rungs.
If defying gravity on a cliff path just isn’t for you, preserve your toes on stable floor and hike to the summit of a mountain or stroll alongside the coast. Or, go on scenic drives, benefit from the view from Cadillac Mountain, discover the beautiful city of Bar Harbor, and eat the entire lobster. Yum!!
How You Can Do This
A protracted weekend is all you might want to discover Acadia Nationwide Park and Bar Harbor. If you wish to see Acadia with peak fall colours, your finest guess is early to mid-October.
Acadia Nationwide Park: Full Information for First-Time Guests
10 Nice Hikes in Acadia Nationwide Park
November: Kentucky Bourbon Path
This was our second go to to the Kentucky Bourbon Path.
Tim and I visited the Kentucky Bourbon Path for the primary time in 2016. We toured all 9 distilleries, together with Louisville and a handful of sights in Kentucky.
Since our go to in 2016, eight extra distilleries have been added, so, purely within the title of analysis, we deliberate a return go to to tour these new distilleries. 🙂
It’s simply as enjoyable the second time round, and possibly even higher, since we’ve acquired a style for bourbon. Plus, the distilleries are getting extra inventive with their excursions, providing mixology lessons and meals pairings to bourbon tastings.
How You Can Do This
Now, there are a complete of seventeen distilleries on the Kentucky Bourbon Path. If you wish to see all of them, you will want much more time than only a lengthy weekend.
When you solely have a weekend, I like to recommend splitting your time between bourbon distilleries and sights in and round Louisville. Take a look at our Kentucky Bourbon Path itinerary for concepts on how to do that.
Kentucky Bourbon Path Itinerary: Recommendations for 1 Day to 1 Week
Greatest Distilleries to Go to on the Kentucky Bourbon Path
12 Greatest Issues to do in Louisville
December: Egypt
Our yr ended with a go to to Egypt and it was a unbelievable expertise. On this journey, there have been six of us, since my mother, Kathy, and Tim’s mother, Valerie, are becoming a member of us.
For 2 weeks we toured Egypt from prime to backside, with visits to Cairo, Giza, Saqqara, Luxor, Abydos and Dendera, Aswan, and Abu Simbel. We now have ridden camels in entrance of the pyramids, marveled on the detailed art work within the Valley of the Kings, discovered the fundamentals on studying hieroglyphics, sailed by felucca on the Nile River, visited extra temples and tombs than we are able to depend, tried new meals, and made new pals.
Listed here are a couple of highlights from Egypt.
On the pyramids of Giza.
Contained in the tomb of Queen Nefertari within the Valley of the Queens.
Contained in the tomb of King Ramses V and VI within the Valley of the Kings.
Tim and Tyler at Karnak Temple.
Feluccas on the Nile River in Aswan.
Julie at Abu Simbel.
Since being in Egypt, the #1 query we get requested is that if we’ve felt secure. We had the identical query main as much as this journey. Since being right here, we’ve felt secure in all places we’ve been. There’s a robust army and police presence since so much is being achieved to guard Egypt’s worthwhile tourism business, however we’ve by no means felt threatened or uneasy in any manner.
Tourism is on the rebound and vacationer numbers are rising yr by yr. Proper now is a good time to go to Egypt, as a result of customer numbers are nonetheless low so the websites will probably be comparatively uncrowded. Plus, Egypt might use your tourism {dollars}. Ever because the revolution in 2011, tourism has been down and it has had a huge effect on Egypt’s financial system.
Listed here are a number of articles about Egypt, however you may see all of them in our Egypt Information.
10 Day Egypt Itinerary: Cairo, Luxor, Aswan & Abu Simbel
Egypt Journey Suggestions: Issues to Know Earlier than Touring to Egypt
Greatest Tombs to Go to within the Valley of the Kings
The place to Get the Greatest Views of the Pyramids of Giza
We hope this text provides a couple of new locations to your journey want listing.
