Any Travel Plan for 2019?

[NW-Bound]

A bread roll and a portion of olive oil. (They did call on morning # 2 and ask if I would prefer jam.)

Quite different than an English breakfast, eh?

But that helps keep the hospital costs down, and the patients' girth too.

 

[tulak]

Whistler in February and Puerto Vallarta in March.

I’ll most likely visit family in Europe this September, along with a side trip somewhere. I’m thinking southern Spain or Croatia.

 

[Scuba]

We are counting down the days to leave snow and cold weather behind us.



We leave in just under two weeks for a month in Thailand followed by a month in Australia, and a short stop in Hawaii on the way home.



This will be our fourth winter in Thailand. We are very much looking forward to it.

What are you thinking of doing in Australia? DH and I are considering a trip there in October or November for 4-5 weeks. It’s impossible to see everything interesting even if we limit ourselves only to the East Coast. We want to go diving for a week or so, but the rest is open.

 

[DrRoy]

Southern Caribbean cruise, Sedona/Kanab, England (London to Cornwall), Myrtle Beach, Glacier NP, Acadia NP.

 

[hilltide]

Taking mom, wife and mother in law to bucket list trip to Rome and Sicily.

 

[brett]

This trip we plan to spend time around the Gold Coast. Our schedule is fairly open for two weeks. We plan to meet up with friends. After that we fly to Tasmania (from Brisbane) for a week or so of touring. Then to Sydney for five days.

Australia is huge. We have been there twice before. On our last trip we rented a car and toured from Gold Coast to Sydney. Then did another rental from Sydney, drove to Melbourne, and then up the Great Ocean Road. It was wonderful. We spent time in Port Douglas and the Great Barrier Reef area so many years ago that we can hardly remember it. We very much liked Adelaide as well. We have yet to go into the interior.

On the last trip we also picked up a last minute 21 day Australia/NZ cruise from Sydney that ended in Perth.

 

[Lsbcal]

A lot of adventurous travelers here!

Our choice is about a month in Italy visiting:
Varenna for relaxation after the long flight (north of Milan on Lake Como)
Castlerotto for hiking (in the Dolomites)
Venice ... hopefully will survive the crowds, last there in 1972
Florence
Siena
Orvieto
Rome in a VRBO accommodation

During this time I'm getting deeper into reading about Italian history. Specifically reading Ancient Rome: the rise and fall of an empire (link: https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B003ZDO8S4/ref=oh_aui_d_detailpage_o00_?ie=UTF8&psc=1 )

We like to do watercolor sketching so hopefully this trip is not too busy to allow some slowing down and drawing. Did some of this in 2015 in Italy. Here is a pic of my ultralight art kit with converted Altoids paint box:

 

[Teacher Terry]

Some of you go for so long. After a month I am always ready to come home.

 

[pacergal]

So far: Nashville with friends and Alaska cruise with siblings/spouses.

 

[chrisaukcam]

Hmm my post did not 'take', so I will try again.
First a cruise to the Bahamas in February with my son to celebrate our 40th anniversary and my retirement.

Then in the spring a trip west with a travel trailer to visit relatives and to sight see. Missouri; Houston; Carlsbad Caverns; Rodeo, NM; Grand Canyon; Las Vegas; Yellowstone;Great Falls, Mt; Badlands; Wisconsin.

 

[grasshopper]

Hmm my post did not 'take', so I will try again.
First a cruise to the Bahamas in February with my son to celebrate our 40th anniversary and my retirement.

Then in the spring a trip west with a travel trailer to visit relatives and to sight see. Missouri; Houston; Carlsbad Caverns; Rodeo, NM; Grand Canyon; Las Vegas; Yellowstone;Great Falls, Mt; Badlands; Wisconsin.

Rodeo NM, half my friends live in Rodeo NM I have a PO Box there.

 

[chrisaukcam]

Grasshopper, my mother recently bought a 40 acre ranchette there for her horses. So we are going to spend a week with her.

 

[capjak]

Jan/Feb: Leaving for 1 month trip next week to Maui.
March going to Orlando for a week
October going to Orlando for 2-3 weeks

Planning 35th wedding anniversary trip but not sure where, investigating Greece (Santorini/Mykonos/Athens) via land or maybe cruise or may Italy or maybe something closer to home just do not know....

 

[ohyes]

These trips you guys have planned....and I want to go on all of them.

For 2019, we have two cruises booked, both out of New Orleans - one in January and one in February. February is with two adult offspring; it was this year's Christmas present.

Sometime in September and/or October, we plan on a 2-3 week road trip. Thinking it will be Road Scholar in San Francisco. We had to cancel that trip a few years ago because of late FIL's illness. Neither DH nor I have ever been to SF.

 

[NW-Bound]

Our choice is about a month in Italy visiting:
Varenna for relaxation after the long flight (north of Milan on Lake Como)
Castlerotto for hiking (in the Dolomites)
Venice ... hopefully will survive the crowds, last there in 1972
Florence
Siena
Orvieto
Rome in a VRBO accommodation
...

In 2017, when staying in Bellagio, we took the ferry across the lake to Varenna to go on the "Walk of Lovers", and have lunch in a restaurant with a terrace overlooking the lake. I don't remember what I had for lunch, but the glass of Aperol spritz hit the spot. Varenna is not as crowded as Bellagio, and a nice place to relax.

 

[Souschef]

These trips you guys have planned....and I want to go on all of them.

Sometime in September and/or October, we plan on a 2-3 week road trip. Thinking it will be Road Scholar in San Francisco. We had to cancel that trip a few years ago because of late FIL's illness. Neither DH nor I have ever been to SF.

If you go to SF, try to get tickets to Beach Blanket Babylon. It is hysterical. Like SNL on steroids and no censor. We loved it

 

[Scuba]

Jan/Feb: Leaving for 1 month trip next week to Maui.

March going to Orlando for a week

October going to Orlando for 2-3 weeks



Planning 35th wedding anniversary trip but not sure where, investigating Greece (Santorini/Mykonos/Athens) via land or maybe cruise or may Italy or maybe something closer to home just do not know....

We spent six weeks in Greece last September/October. It was wonderful. I encourage you to consider islands other than Mykonos and Santorini. There are some wonderful alternatives that are less crowded, and more beautiful with more diverse things to do. PM me if you want details on our itinerary.

 

[Scuba]

This trip we plan to spend time around the Gold Coast. Our schedule is fairly open for two weeks. We plan to meet up with friends. After that we fly to Tasmania (from Brisbane) for a week or so of touring. Then to Sydney for five days.

Australia is huge. We have been there twice before. On our last trip we rented a car and toured from Gold Coast to Sydney. Then did another rental from Sydney, drove to Melbourne, and then up the Great Ocean Road. It was wonderful. We spent time in Port Douglas and the Great Barrier Reef area so many years ago that we can hardly remember it. We very much liked Adelaide as well. We have yet to go into the interior.

On the last trip we also picked up a last minute 21 day Australia/NZ cruise from Sydney that ended in Perth.

Yes, even just the East Coast is overwhelming and impossible to do justice to in only a few weeks, from what we’re finding.

 

[folivier]

We're leaving mid-May for Alaska in the motorhome and plan to return home sometime in September or October. Only have a week at Teklanika campground inside Denali scheduled so far. We plan to do day trips to see the glaciers, whales, bears, possibly polar bears, and anything else we want. Looking at a road map of Alaska it's amazing how little of the state is actually accessible by road.

 

[tulak]

During this time I'm getting deeper into reading about Italian history.

If you’ve never listened to it, then I’d recommend the History of Rome podcast.

It’s very well done.

http://thehistoryofrome.com/episodes/

 

[brett]

Morocco is high on our list for later in the year. We are not in a position to make plans yet. I intended to take a solo trip (guided) to India last year however events overtook this. Hope to do it this year. DW has no interest in going.

 

[Lsbcal]

If you’ve never listened to it, then I’d recommend the History of Rome podcast.

It’s very well done.

The History of Rome

I listened to one of these podcasts and it is pretty high quality. Now the task is how deep a dive should I do with this history stuff? The book I mentioned is very good as a starter. Then maybe deeper or in parallel these podcasts. The books on Masters of Rome series by McCullough are an exceedingly deep dive covering just a few years in each and using historical fiction to convey the information.

 

[Teacher Terry]

Brett, my son went to India for a month and enjoyed it. My other son and his wife have been there too. After hearing the stories I have no desire to go but they all enjoyed it.

 

[NW-Bound]

We're leaving mid-May for Alaska in the motorhome and plan to return home sometime in September or October. Only have a week at Teklanika campground inside Denali scheduled so far. We plan to do day trips to see the glaciers, whales, bears, possibly polar bears, and anything else we want. Looking at a road map of Alaska it's amazing how little of the state is actually accessible by road.

Yes, much of Alaska is still wild and inaccessible by vehicles. But the same is true of the Yukon and the Northwest Territories of Canada.

Yet, just to drive whatever roads there are would take a lot of time, particularly with all the pot holes, frost heaves, and gravel and muddy patches. It would take more than one summer.

People who take an Alaskan cruise do not really experience Alaska. And even people who go on an extended land tour only see the corridor from Whittier to Denali, or perhaps up to Fairbanks, along very well traveled paved highways.

Be sure to spend a lot of time at the Morris Thompson Visitor Center in downtown Fairbanks. They show excellent documentary films about Alaskan places that only the really avid adventurers get to see in person. I am glad just to be able to see it on film. Yes, we spent several days in Fairbanks, visited the center every day and got to see all their films. And we were there during the Midnight Sun Run, and the downtown festival. We enjoy Anchorage too, but stayed for longer in Fairbanks.

And when stopping at Mile 0 in Dawson Creek and visiting the Visitor Center, be sure to allow enough time to watch the video on the building of the Alaska Highway that is shown in the back room. It's about 1-hour long, and we really enjoyed it. There was some footage that we did not see in documentaries shown in other places.

PS. We saw a lot more wild life in the Yukon than in Alaska.

 

[Souschef]

Yes, much of Alaska is still wild and inaccessible by vehicles. But the same is true of the Yukon and the Northwest Territories of Canada.

Yet, just to drive whatever roads there are would take a lot of time, particularly with all the pot holes, frost heaves, and gravel and muddy patches. It would take more than one summer.

People who take an Alaskan cruise do not really experience Alaska. And even people who go on an extended land tour only see the corridor from Whittier to Denali, or perhaps up to Fairbanks, along very well traveled paved highways.

Be sure to spend a lot of time at the Morris Thompson Visitor Center in downtown Fairbanks. They show excellent documentary films about Alaskan places that only the really avid adventurers get to see in person. I am glad just to be able to see it on film. Yes, we spent several days in Fairbanks, visited the center every day and got to see all their films. And we were there during the Midnight Sun Run, and the downtown festival. We enjoy Anchorage too, but stayed for longer in Fairbanks.

And when stopping at Mile 0 in Dawson Creek and visiting the Visitor Center, be sure to allow enough time to watch the video on the building of the Alaska Highway that is shown in the back room. It's about 1-hour long, and we really enjoyed it. There was some footage that we did not see in documentaries shown in other places.

PS. We saw a lot more wild life in the Yukon than in Alaska.

We did a land tour that covered Fairbanks and Denali. One thing that was a hoot was riding the rapids on the Denali rive. The word was "Glacial Facial"
I have attached a copy of our trip story.