European Travel Experiences You Will Love

Do you love to travel? Are you constantly adding places to your travel bucket list? I get it. I’ve been there. In fact, I’m still there. These are my favorite travel experiences you should definitely add to your travel bucket list.

Lately I’ve been thinking a lot about the best travel experiences I’ve ever had. Then, with all the things being cancelled and everyone staying in, I began to wonder if my cancelled trips really mattered.

However, that then raised a bigger question of does travel matter?

And I’m here to tell you it does. It’s critical to my well-being personally but I also truly believe it’s critical to a well-balanced world.

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After decades of traveling, there’s 3 companies I tend to use over and over and recommend to everyone:

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So Why Does Travel Matter so Much?

During all the covid-19 mess, I kept seeing things on social media about how I shouldn’t complain about a cancelled trip because other people have lost their jobs, their homes, etc.

And while I completely understand that there are those way worse off than me, I had to learn it’s okay to have my feelings too. So far this year, we’ve had to cancel many a trip, and it has definitely been a hard pill to swallow, and that’s okay.

Now please do not get me wrong, I don’t pretend to downplay other’s pain, but I don’t downplay the importance of travel either. When you really think about it, the whole reason why we know about other’s troubles is because someone somewhere traveled and told you about it. Either that, or you’ve been there yourself.

Therefore, travel really does matter. It allows us to understand other cultures, other beliefs, and other humans in general. You can’t truly understand a place until you’ve been there.

That’s why I’ve decided to share my best travel experiences of all time. This is not to brag (okay maybe a little ;)) but to share the experiences that have shaped me. You can add them to your own bucket lists and hopefully be inspired to travel (once it’s really safe again). Every single one of these experiences is one that really stuck out to me and one that I do believe has shaped who I am.

European Travel Bucket List Experiences

1. British Open in Scotland

This first one had been on my bucket list since High School. See, I played golf growing up and for a year in college and I always wanted to go to the British Open. It’s perfect, you get to travel and watch golf. I just had to see the sand traps first hand. What also made this great was watching Phil Mickelson win it!

2. Kayaking Greece

Greece is another one of those that was definitely on my bucket list, and it’s truly lovely. However, one of my favorite things we did was a kayaking trip. I almost always book some sort of kayaking when we travel as my husband loves it and this one was gorgeous.

3. Climbing the Arc de Triomph in Paris

This next one might seem a little odd. When I was preparing to go to Paris, I had pretty low expectations. Everyone always says it’s dirty and not that great, but I personally loved it. While there are several things about Paris I could put on here, I really enjoyed hiking up the arc de triomph and the spectacular view that’s there.

4. Wine Tasting in Florence and all of Tuscany

I love wine, so this is really a no-brainer.

5. Seeing the Last Super in Milan

I’ll be honest, I’m not a big art buff. Yeah, I know, as an “artist” I probably should be? But, that’s reality. I do like see the famous sites and the Last Super is pretty amazing.

Top Tip:
You MUST book this ahead of time and it’s worth a tour.

6. Exploring the Roman Ruins in Italy

Rome has so much history and I’ve been twice and could go again. I know it’s not everyone cup of tea (it is dirty and crowded) but I can’t get enough.

7. Driving Ireland

For our first anniversary, my husband and I road tripped Ireland. This is the hardest place I’ve ever driven but it was worth it. Rent car, panic, see the beauty. Read about our Ireland road trip and how to do it here.

8. Staying in a Tiny Village in France

Staying in a tiny village is so much better than a big city! Mark this one off your bucket list by heading to Moustiers Sainte-Marie. Visit the lavender fields and Gorges du verdon.

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