Any Travel Plan for 2019?

[NW-Bound]

Thank you I enjoyed reading about your trip!! Many years ago we had a driver take us to Hana. That way, we got to shut our eyes for some of the Hana Road.

Our 1st trip to Maui many years ago, I attempted to drive to Hana, but turned back because we ran out of time and would not make it back before dark.

A few years ago, in the 2nd visit, I drove all the way, and saw that the road had been greatly improved although still narrow in spots. When I got to Hana, I decided to continue to go around the island to get back instead of backtracking. The road indeed got worse, but nothing really serious as I drove slowly to navigate pot holes. The reward for it was the stop at Kipahulu, part of the same National Park as the Haupa‘Akea Peak but on the ocean edge. Of course, one could get to Kipahulu going the other way from Kahului too.

Ah, this brings back wonderful memories.

PS. Shops used to sell T-shirts that declared "Hana or Bust". They stopped selling it as the drive was no longer a big deal.

 

[WPauley]

Been on a Caribbean cruise. Nice on the ship, but the port stops were nothing but trying to sell you something, St Thomas must have 100 Jewelry stores and nothing much else. Went to the top of the island in a jalopy ford bus, to a great view and shop to sell you more trinkets. Prayed we would make it back down the hill. Told the owner that his U joints were failing and were the worst I ever heard, He said that he was going to repair them in the off season but did not get to it. We were told to not venture out of the tourist areas or get into cabs that will take you out of the area and rob and dump you on the side of the road. Not My idea of a great vacation. Waiting along side the Road in Aruba in the 100 degree heat Trying to flag a cab is not fun either. Love the USA and plan to see more of it now that I have time. D.C. to see what I missed in 2010 and Back to the 50's Car show in St. Paul Mn in June. Happy and safe travels to everyone.

 

[Winemaker]

PS. Shops used to sell T-shirts that declared "Hana or Bust". They stopped selling it as the drive was no longer a big deal.

In July 2017, DW and I returned to the islands and Maui for the 6th or 7th time, we always heard about the road to Hana. So we took the ride out, stopped at various falls, hiked a few different trails and spent the night in Hana. We spent some time at beaches and went to the Sacred pools. All very pretty but not out of the ordinary. So I guess the "drive" was the thrill in the past, but in a modern vehicle with r & p steering, assistance, and better roads not so much now.

I'd love to surprise the missus and go this summer, but hope to return next year for sure.

 

[Cassius King]

Since I'm still a w*rking stiff:

Taking the wife and daughter to Chicago February 15th -20th for their annual valentines weekend of shopping and staying on Michigan Avenue.
We'll have our yearly trip to the beach in August. NSB, Florida.
Then our mountain trip in the fall, Asheville.

Can't wait for more free time and luxury to do some extended trips. I could spend the rest of my days only exploring the U.S.

Enjoy your travels everyone.

 

[Winemaker]

Since I'm still a w*rking stiff:

Taking the wife and daughter to Chicago February 15th -20th for their annual valentines weekend of shopping and staying on Michigan Avenue.
We'll have our yearly trip to the beach in August. NSB, Florida.
Then our mountain trip in the fall, Asheville.

Can't wait for more free time and luxury to do some extended trips. I could spend the rest of my days only exploring the U.S.

Enjoy your travels everyone.

Your time will come, Grasshopper! I spent 35 years in the bowels of Mother Earth, all times of the day, all times of the year! DW spent 35 years teaching the "Youtes" in various jungles in PA and WV.

 

[Scuba]

Been on a Caribbean cruise. Nice on the ship, but the port stops were nothing but trying to sell you something, St Thomas must have 100 Jewelry stores and nothing much else. Went to the top of the island in a jalopy ford bus, to a great view and shop to sell you more trinkets. Prayed we would make it back down the hill. Told the owner that his U joints were failing and were the worst I ever heard, He said that he was going to repair them in the off season but did not get to it. We were told to not venture out of the tourist areas or get into cabs that will take you out of the area and rob and dump you on the side of the road. Not My idea of a great vacation. Waiting along side the Road in Aruba in the 100 degree heat Trying to flag a cab is not fun either. Love the USA and plan to see more of it now that I have time. D.C. to see what I missed in 2010 and Back to the 50's Car show in St. Paul Mn in June. Happy and safe travels to everyone.

So sad you saw such a limited amount of St. Thomas and got a bad impression. We’ve stayed on St. Thomas many times, including a 3 month retirement celebration trip, and to us it is paradise. We found it to be quite safe with stunningly beautiful beaches, nice hikes, and wonderful people. YMMV

 

[Fshnfool]

We are lucky enough to have three great trips planned for 2019. March is Fiji, mostly for diving, but hopping around a few smaller islands and a home stay to get to meet more people a bit more. Then Iceland in late June with some friends (I’ll be having one of those “round number” birthdays then) renting a car and traveling around the island for hiking, fly fishing and maybe a dive if we get our dry suit certification by the. Finally, in September heading to Australia to run a half marathon over the Sydney bridge with my running buddy, several cities, Uluru, then diving on the Great Barrier Reef on a live-aboard for five days. Of course, Australia is so big that you can’t do/see everything on one or even several trips. Mixed in the year will be several trips to see the kids in other states and maybe a trip over to Vegas to finance all this (Ha!).

 

[brett]

We have been thinking of going back to the UK for some time. If the GBP drops a little more and we can get good air we may decide to go for a few weeks. Last time we were in Scotland, many years ago, it rained for three weeks solid in the middle of summer. We want to see it in good weather.

 

[TDub]

Another w*rking stiff here:

- 5 days in Destin with the DW
- 5 days on Lake Michigan with the kids and in-laws
- Long weekend solo in Santa Barbara

...the end!

The time for satisfying our wanderlust will come one day soon. In the meantime, reading about the travel plans here is giving me some wonderful ideas!

 

[Nick12]

A trip to Orlando to see family. For some reason it always feels right to visit Orlando. There is a very relaxing vibe.


Need to perk up the savings too. Always feels good to do this!

I have a friend whose husband is a TSA employee. Not a very happy camper working for free. Also lets say a prayer that the planes are being inspected the way it should be. The federal inspectors are working for free also.

 

[Breedlove]

Same old , New Orleans for Mardi Gras March , Amsterdam ( cheap Af 606.00 RT for August )
Key West in October FF

 

[Montecfo]

I will be doing some solo travel as DW is working, except summer.

Baseball/basketball trips to SEC and Big 12 country in Feb and March. Get some warmer weather.

Ski trip TBA. Get some good snow.

Probably south Florida in April.

Curacao in June/July with DW.

Savannah/Tybee island Aug.

Texas A&M vs Clemson football game at Clemson in September. This will be with guy friends and including DS.

Texas in October visit family and some football.

Family trip to Georgia in November (including trip to Athens for football game)

Christmas in Texas.

 

[Scuba]

We have been thinking of going back to the UK for some time. If the GBP drops a little more and we can get good air we may decide to go for a few weeks. Last time we were in Scotland, many years ago, it rained for three weeks solid in the middle of summer. We want to see it in good weather.

I worked in the UK for a few years. September is the most reliable month for good weather in my experience.

 

[MichaelB]

Just returned from two weeks in Dubai visiting our son, his DW and our 3 year old grandson. . This was our first real exposure to the Middle East. An excellent trip.

 

[Col. Klink]

East Coast road trip from home in Florida. Youngest daughter is getting married in PA. as part of the trip. Nice part is that now being retired, I don't have to be on a schedule to return to a j*b. We are also on a dog hiatus after 17 years of pet ownership, so no "pet friendly" hotels to book in advance.

 

[Scrapr]

Well, I think Mrs Scrapr has decided on a new Volvo. And that can mean only one thing. A trip to Sweden on Volvo! Going in Friday to finalize and send the request to Gothenburg. She had so much fun on my Volvo Overseas Delivery 2 years ago that she wants her own. I think we are out to May or early June. It all depends on the slots that Volvo allocates for OSD pick ups

We have to figure out where to go from there. Volvo will fly you there & back. Any in between flights are on you. We are tenatively looking at Florence Italy. Our neighbor's girl is doing an overseas study there. We are thinking to meet up with them. Mrs Scrapr knows I want to go back to Paris. But it's her trip and she can decide where she wants to go

Our mantra this time is slow travel. I have already found some Agriturisimos in Florence.

 

[6miths]

Just got back from Ixtapa. Off to Malawi for a couple of weeks in March. England in May.

 

[Sunset]

Will Drive to FL, spend a week at the timeshare, then hop on a cruise ship for a week and drive back.
We take the drive easy, only doing ~500 miles per day, so not rushed.

 

[Doribe]

Eight days in Rome with the family celebrating my longest's college graduation. Another week or so somewhere else in Italy with DH. First time to Rome so I went to the library and got a few travel and conversation books. All tips are welcome from experienced Rome/Italy travelers.

 

[Doribe]

Just got back from Ixtapa. Off to Malawi for a couple of weeks in March. England in May.

I'm planning Malawi for 2020. You must give me the information.

 

[gerntz]

Just decided to go to eastern Europe in May - Poland, Czech, Hungary with a little Austria plus a pre-stop in Amsterdam since we've never been there.

 

[braumeister]

Well, I think Mrs Scrapr has decided on a new Volvo. And that can mean only one thing. A trip to Sweden on Volvo!

I'm green with envy! Our OSD last year was one of our best trips ever. Wouldn't have even known of the possibility without your mention of it here, so many thanks for clueing me in.

That will be a perfect time of year, too. Enjoy!

 

[Sunset]

Eight days in Rome with the family celebrating my longest's college graduation. Another week or so somewhere else in Italy with DH. First time to Rome so I went to the library and got a few travel and conversation books. All tips are welcome from experienced Rome/Italy travelers.

It is a very walkable city, we got lost walking from the train station to the coliseum, so we got to experience a lot of streets.
At the coliseum, the lineup was crazy, and while we had read Rick Steve's advice, we couldn't see any way to get to the front of the line.
The line was about 5-7 people wide and wrapped a long distance along the coliseum.
We took a chance and paid a fellow for a tour who was right there, after talking to him and others and seeing a bunch of other potential suckers that had already signed on.

It turned out fine, and the cost was about 20 euros over the actual price of the ticket pp.
Without it, we would not have gotten in for hours..

Next time for that, I will book a tour in advance.

 

[Lsbcal]

Eight days in Rome with the family celebrating my longest's college graduation. Another week or so somewhere else in Italy with DH. First time to Rome so I went to the library and got a few travel and conversation books. All tips are welcome from experienced Rome/Italy travelers.

There are a few places that are easy train rides from Rome. I believe Orvieto could be a day trip. You might like Assisi, we did and spent 3 days there as I recall. There is a high speed train to Florence which deserves some days visit. From Florence one can do a very nice bus ride to Sienna for a day trip and also to Pisa.

The Rick Steves Italy book would cover this nicely. We prefer a minimum of 3 days in any given location since you burn much of a day just transferring to a new location. The Rome2Rio app is nice for seeing quickly your transportation options on the ground.

 

[53anddone]

I will drive to Utah and New Mexico in April and spend 3 weeks sleeping in the back of the pickup and riding the mountain bike. Bliss.......