GTKY 2/6

calimom2524

I'm trying to stray from my usual romance type question 

What's the best vacation you've ever taken? Don't leave out the details! 

ashleyandjody

Best vacation (aside from my honeymoon) was this past year when we decided to travel around Texas for 2 weeks. We loaded up DD (18 months at the time) and went to Surfside Beach, Corpus Christi, College Station, and then lake Conroe. We had a BLAST! We made several stops to zoos and aquariums, plus DD ended up being a total beach babe. It was just awesome seeing her experience new things and being so happy!

elsieisamoocow

Hmm... Tough one! I'm just gonna list a few

My honeymoon in Kauai. So gorgeous, so relaxing, best steak dinner we've ever had.

I didn't get to study abroad for a semester/year like I had always hoped to because my art school didn't offer it. Instead, over my summer break, I took a solo two week trip to England and stayed with a friend who lives in Coventry, smack dab in the middle of England. I took trains all over and met up with several friends, went to London a few times, went on a road trip through the Cotswolds one day, visited lots of castle ruins, but probably my favorite day was taking a 5 hour train ride up to Edinburgh and getting lost in the city. I walked up to the castle, shopped, ate delicious fudge, and got on the train back that night. It was awesome, and surprisingly nice to travel alone like that.

We are big Disney fans and have annual passes to Disneyland (the only thing I like about living in SoCal), so our best family vacations so far have been Disney related. We went to Disney World as a family in September 2016, when DS was about 18 months. It was a trip for our 5 year anniversary, and my parents came along with us, so they were able to babysit at night while we went to fancy dinners and back to the parks. And then in April 2017, my Oma brought the entire family on a Disney cruise - it was short, only 3 nights, but soooo amazing. We definitely want to go on another one in the near future, and DS is still talking about it! 

calimom2524

I have a couple of them too. 

I think my favorite vacation of my life was when my family went to Cancun when I was 15. We did all of the touristy things we could, I had my permit so I drove a jeep for the first time, we rode ATVs, went to the jungle, swam with dolphins, I just have so many happy memories from that trip. It's also the trip that determined what I wanted to do with my life, I decided while we were at our Resort that all of the employees looked like they loved their job so I was going to go into Hotel and Resort Management. I ended up going to school for that and I'm still working in the industry to this day. 

Also an amazing trip was my wedding/honeymoon. Even though we are now separated it was still an amazing time. We eloped in Napa 4 days before Christmas. We got married at a Bed and Breakfast that had an elopement package so they handled all of the details and we basically just had to show up. There were 11 people who attended and it was just so intimate and romantic. We went on a limo tour of vineyards the next day after getting in room couples massages. I felt like royalty that whole weekend and there was no letdown when we had to leave because then it was Christmas. 

Finally was our trip to Disney World, also in September 2016. DS1 was 3 so it was such a magical time. DS2 was only 1 at the time so he spent the day in the Tula (OMG it was HOT) but still so much fun seeing a magical place through your kids eyes. I wanted to wait until they were a little bit older but we were in town for my grandpa's 90th birthday so it seemed silly not to go. 

lalala2004

Definitely the best vacation was our 12 day Mediterranean cruise. We started in Venice, stopped in Athens, Istanbul, Kusadasi (Ephesus), Naples (where we drove to Pompeii), Rome, Florence, Toulon, and ended in Barcelona. It made it so much easier to plan not having to figure out transportation and where to stay in each place.

elsieisamoocow

@lalala2004 a Mediterranean cruise is one of my dream vacations! What cruise line?

lalala2004

elsieisamoocow said:

@lalala2004 a Mediterranean cruise is one of my dream vacations! What cruise line?

We did Norwegian. Would totally do it again in a heartbeat!

calimom2524

lalala2004 said:

elsieisamoocow said:

@lalala2004 a Mediterranean cruise is one of my dream vacations! What cruise line?

We did Norwegian. Would totally do it again in a heartbeat!

I did a college final project on Norwegian Cruise Lines and they seemed like the best company out there. 

Firemanswife11

Our honeymoon in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic (11/2011) was probably the most magical/relaxing and we fully intend to return for our 10-year anniversary, but I have some other really wonderful vacations as well. We travel so much ... this GTKY is kind of unfair to make me choose lol. 

This last summer we went on an Alaskan cruise with my family, which was a lot of fun. We stopped in Juneau, Ketchikan, Sitka, Victoria, BC, and got to stay in Seattle for a day, too. DS was a 2.5-year-old holy terror the whole trip but it was on the whole very memorable because it's something we will likely never have the opportunity to do again. We got to go to a real dog mushers camp and do a lot of unique and interesting shopping. My son jumped into a river when it was like 40 degrees outside so he could swim with salmon. That was not on the agenda. Neither was being diverted 4 hours south to another airport and having to rent a car to drive all night so DH could get back to work, but we got free tickets to fly to Boston out of that fun memory. Haha. 

Probably the most overall fun I've had on a trip was when DH and I went with his best friend and his then-girlfriend to Mexico in summer 2016. We've been there a few times by ourselves but it was really different and fun traveling with a couple. We did a bunch of excursions, ate a lot, drank all day (we brought huge thermoses and filled them to the brim all day long with rum and coke!), rented a Jeep (stick, because I LOVE driving standard) and drove down the coast in Cozumel. My husband even got pulled over by the policia federal! We took our GoPro on this trip and made an after-trip movie that turned out so cool ... I'm really glad we did that because I probably would have forgotten a bunch otherwise.

elsieisamoocow

@Firemanswife11 An Alaska cruise is another on my bucket list! So gorgeous. Sounds like though things didn't all go according to plan it was a very memorable trip haha!

scottishlass1213

Because it was exactly a year ago, to celebrate DH and I's 10 year anniversary, we went to Sandals in St. Lucia.  OMG, so good.  I mean I have literally been depressed thinking about it the last few weeks because I would just love that right now.  Stupid Zika.

mrs_drc_rn

Definitely our honeymoon in Europe! Enjoyed some coffee shops in Amsterdam, went paragliding in Switzerland and then finished with Oktoberfest in Germany. 

+1 for wanting to go on an Alaskan cruise!

delujm0

I'm a bit of a world traveler, so it's hard to pick!  I'd probably say my honeymoon though.  We figured it would be our last big trip for a while so we really threw down.  We went to South Africa and Mauritius for 2.5 weeks and it was awesome.  I can't wait to go back.

We go to Disney world a lot (I have a time share there) but our most recent trip was fun because DD1 knew what was going on and just loved seeing all of the characters and going on the rides.

hfooter

Best vacation was our honeymoon I think. We went to Kauai and stayed at a resort. Went scuba diving a few times and snorkeled a bunch. I could snorkel or dive all day everyday. We ate lots of good food and had a blast together. One day DH and i will go on a Europe trip with out kids. That I hope will end up being my favorite vacation.

omg and I forgot about our 9 day trip in a boat in the BVI. That was amazing as we got to go diving almost every day!

livinthesunnylife

When DH and I were dating we went on a 14 day trip all over Italy.  Venice, Florence, Siena, Cinque Terre, Positano (Amalfi Coast), Rome.  For me, planning the trip is half the fun so I loved every minute of researching and studying the cities we were going to.  Since then several of our friends have followed my itinerary.  I am better than Rick Steeves.

Funny Story:  When we were leaving Siena to take the train all the way down to Positano I somehow messed up and didn't realize the bus we needed to take to connect to our train didn't run on Sundays.  I started to have a massive panic attack.  DH flags down a cab driver and says, "Can you get us to this train on time?"  and the driver says, "sure, but it will be expensive".  DH is usually cheap, but he was like- "do you see her right now?  there's no price tag on her happiness". 

We've also done the Alaskan cruise (when I was pregnant last time), Maui (honeymoon), Costa Rica, Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic, you name in Mexico I've probably been there.  I love traveling.  But kids make it a little harder.

jsnakehole

I want to preface by saying my honeymoon with my husband was amazing and I loved every second of it. 

But it probably my favorite trip was my Birthright trip (Birthright is this program that sends young Jewish people to Israel for 10 days for free. They also attempt to brainwash you into moving there, but mostly you just get drunk). I went when I was 25, had just finished my first year of teaching, and was seeing a guy six years older than me who was definitely stringing me on. 

I didn't go with anyone I knew, so it was a really big opportunity for me to branch out. Everyone back home knew me as some shy, quiet girl but I was able to be outgoing and fun with the people I met. I made friends with a girl at the airport and we got so close that people thought we knew each other before the trip. 

We toured the country, got super drunk most nights, got to connect with our Judaism (which was pretty cool), and ate our collective weights in hummus. We also had 8 Israelis join us for part of the trip and I, after deciding I wasn't going to be strung along anymore by the guy back home since he wouldn't commit, hooked up with the hottest one. I also made a great friend who I visited when I taught in Israel the following summer. It was a little scary- there were a lot of rockets coming from Gaza that summer, but our tour guides and friends did a great job of making us feel safe. 

It it was just so great to feel so free after an incredibly stressful year, and I saw such amazing things (Israel is a beautiful country) and had so much fun. I still see some of the people who live in NYC once in a while, and I just had the best time. By the following summer I had met DH and was living with him, so my worldview had changed. 

hfooter

@jsnakehole that sounds like an amazing trip.

Im sad that DHs dads family didn’t tell him about this trip because he would have gone but he found out about it after he was too old. They aren’t hard core practicing though so that is probably why they didn’t tell him. We celebrate most of the holidays though! It’s super fun. I love learning about the holidays and the culture. I’d love a trip over there myself.

multifariousmermaid

Hard to choose just one because they all have their highlights but if I had to choose... probably a trip I earned through work. All expenses paid trip to Cancun! Hubby and I stayed in a gorgeous room overlooking the ocean with a jetted tub by the window lol. We had so much fun drinking at the pool all day with colleagues and then eating and drinking all night at private beach parties. We got to see so many things too like the cenotes, xel-ha water park, chichen itza and four wheeling to hidden swimming spots. Funny story, we went shopping in the market there and I left my husband in a rum shop for just a little bit to go find our friends. I came back and they took him for $300USD for 2 bottles of rum! I found out that day he had no sense of the value of a peso! I still tease him about it but I still let him carry the money when we travel. It bites us in the butt every time but I guess that's the price I pay for not carrying a purse.

nll0803

Another Kauai lover. Loved being able to hike, snorkle, and just sit on a beach, without it being too touristy. I am dying to go back even though we were just there in October.

 I also love going to Sanibel. Hubby travels for work 120 nights a year, and our vacations typically consist of sitting on a beach, and eating delicious seafood. If we want to kayak or go biking or fishing, the opprotunity is there. 

neeraja_k

My honeymoon in 2003 at my husband's family cabin in the Crazy Mountains in Montana on 1200 acres. It was us and our dog for 9 days surrounded by beautiful snow covered mountains, wildlife, and not a single human soul. 

aj1327

I have several too!

When I was 15, my mom, step dad, and I traveled in a motor home all the way to Yellowstone. We were gone a little  over a month during the summer and saw and did so many fun things along the way, some planned, some random. We hot air ballooned, went river rafting, and obviously Yellowstone was amazing. I really want to do that trip with DH and our kids when they are old enough. 

Second is when DH and I went to Jamaica. We stayed at The Rockhouse, which was a resort on the cliffs. We got this cool little villa, there was no TV, or distractions. We would swim, snorkel, and do touristy stuff during the day, then at night drink beer and play games like the dorks that we are. We did go to a reggae show (Yellowman), which was a really fun experience too. 

Third is going to Florida with DS this summer. He was old enough to love the water and it was so fin watching him explore new things and spend that time together as a family away from home. 

hfooter

@nll0803 did you do the big hike to the fall? We did that and almost died on the switchbacks lol. We went through so much freaking water.

we also saw shayleen woodly (not sure on her spelling) she had one bottle of water and was wearing toms. I was like wtf! And by herself. She was very nice and friendly though

edit to say we were also there in October!! We stayed a month in princeville! Where do you guys stay?

nll0803

@hfooter we spent 12 days at the marriott resort in lihue. Wish we could have spent even more time, but got to do the hike to the falls, and the Kalalau Trail, which kicked my behind numerous times. Towards the end of our stay there were a few storms that limited snorkling, and fishing, but that's just an excuse to go back. We got to see most of what we wanted, and still had relaxing days. I appreciate that the island wasn't so massive, and easily accessible. Jealous that you were able to go for a month!! 

hfooter

@nll0803 that’s where we stayed on our honeymoon. I loved it!

staying for a month ended up costing about what we would have paid to stay for two weeks. Staying at a Airbnb and making our food helped. The rate was cut by 45% because we stayed a month. Luckily DH is self employed so he just worked a few hours each day and I worked my businesses from there was well.

DS1 keeps asking to go back lol. I’m like me too bud me too.

I did learn that I don’t really want to live there so that was nice to realize. I don’t want to really live in Oregon either lol but being so far away in a climate with no seasons isn’t ideal for me either. 

lakesideknitter

These are so fun to read! 
We didn't spend much on our wedding, so we went all out on our honeymoon. We flew to San Francisco and toured the city and then wine country. Then we got a rental car, and spent 2 weeks driving up the PCH. We originally planned the trip around visiting national parks, but the government shut down like 2 days before our wedding, so all the national parks were closed. We still got to visit a lot of cool state parks tho. We ended with a day-trip ferry ride to Victoria, BC and then few days in Seattle (one of my favorite cities). It was the most amazing trip, and I can't wait to do it again in a few years; we have the excuse of still needing to visit the national parks!
I also can't wait to visit some of the national parks in the Southwest. Zion and Bryce Canyon look AMAZING. 

derbysquirrel

My best vacation was to Aix en Provence, France in 2015. I spent 5 weeks total in France while my mom did a language course, and I was mostly left to my own devices while she was in school during the week. I had a ton of time to explore the city, and had a great time! I'd go to the bakery each morning for baguettes and croissants, and the farmer's market every day and pick up produce to make my mom lunch when she got out of class. A few times I took a side trip from Tues-Thurs to Geneva, Barcelona, and down the Mediterranean through Monaco and just into Italy. I stayed in hostels and a couple of amazing AirBnbs. I skated with the local roller derby league for the four weeks I was in Aix, and ran a couple of practices for them. I made some friends that I still keep in touch with. On the weekends we toured Provence, and got to see Arles, Menerbes, Avignon, and many other fabulous Provencial towns, cities, and Roman ruins. The last week my mom and I took a train to Paris, and then to Boune to tour an underground winery. Everything about that trip was amazing, a truly once in a lifetime experience!

mrslittlemac

Never been on vacation, unless camping counts. Anything involving an airport stresses me the eff out. But getting "lost" in the middle of nowhere with nowhere else to be? Sign me up! 

redheadbride15

+1 to Kauai! We honeymooned there too, spent 3 days camping in Kalalau valley, which was terrifying and gorgeous.

My other favorite was 2 weeks of backpacking in Glacier National Park. That’s where we got engaged!

ladygali

I love all these travel stories. I think my favorite trip was our honeymoon to Scotland. It started off rough with delayed planes and lost luggage, but ended up being fabulous. We booked a driving tour of the Isle of Skye and the Outer Hebrides and while it was supposed to be a small group tour, we were the only ones who booked it so it was a private tour!! So awesome! We felt like rich badasses, lol. Then we spent some time in Edinburgh and took a train to Stirling Castle one day. It was just fantastic. I love Scotland so much. 

Other top trips were Iceland with DH, Russia in college, and study abroad two summers in Italy. I sometimes regret coming home from Europe at all. 

scottishlass1213

ladygali said:

I love all these travel stories. I think my favorite trip was our honeymoon to Scotland. It started off rough with delayed planes and lost luggage, but ended up being fabulous. We booked a driving tour of the Isle of Skye and the Outer Hebrides and while it was supposed to be a small group tour, we were the only ones who booked it so it was a private tour!! So awesome! We felt like rich badasses, lol. Then we spent some time in Edinburgh and took a train to Stirling Castle one day. It was just fantastic. I love Scotland so much. 

Other top trips were Iceland with DH, Russia in college, and study abroad two summers in Italy. I sometimes regret coming home from Europe at all. 

My mom is from a small village about an hour and a half north of Edinburgh. I love it all

ladygali

@scottishlass1213 love it! Do you get to visit often? I would seriously consider moving there if it was in any way possible. 

scottishlass1213

@ladygali I lived there pretty much until I was 13 because there was a Navy base there (how my dad met my mom) then it closed. We’ve gone back pretty consistently every couple of years since then because my grandparents were there. I was actually there twice in 2017. One for a regular visit and then the second around Thanksgiving when my grandfather passed. My grandma is still alive but I don’t know when we will get back now with two kids. I know once my grandmother passes we won’t go as often, but I’d like to keep it up for the kids. DS is only 4 and has been 3 times lol. 

However since we we always go there, I’ve never been further into Europe. We’ve talked about DH transferring to a govt. job in either England or Germany though for a little while. DH and I were both military kids and though I don’t want to move around that much, I want my kids to see different places like we did. 

lakesideknitter

@scottishlass1213 @ladygali Glacier is my favorite national park so far. It's so beautiful!!

calimom2524

@lakesideknitter Bryce and Zion are amazing! I liked Bryce better but Zion is beautiful too. 

proudparent2b

Holland America is fantastic for international cruises. They often have the best spots in port, great food, and great excursions. I wouldn’t take them for Caribbean vacations though, as they tend to cater to Florida seniors.

rocknrrollmom

You guys are all giving me a major case of wanderlust!

My favorite trip so far would have to be the study abroad I did in college. We spent a month in Paris and on the weekends we did different excursions; Belgium and Amsterdam one weekend, Nice another, and Rouen another. Paris gets a bad rep for being unfriendly towards Americans but I thought it was lovely. We were there for so long that I learned how to get around on the metro really well and found the people to be wonderful. Can't beat the Eiffel Tower at night, it's gorgeous. Once my study abroad was finished, I flew over to Madrid and met up with my best friend who was on a SA of her own. We went to a rock and roll bar that played pearl jam and a 9 level discoteca where we partied until sunrise. We then flew to Italy and visited Florence, Venice, and Rome. I would easily go back to each of these cities in a heartbeat. So much beautiful architecture and history. Oh, we also went to Vatican City, which unfortunately was closed down because President Bush was in town and people were protesting so I never got to see the Sistine Chapel which was a bummer. I was also so tired at this point that I laid my head down on my purse on the sidewalk and took a long nap while my lovely bff watched out.  After that, we went to Dublin for a few days and I fell in love with it. The city is awesome and very walkable and the people are sweet. I just went back there 10 years later with DH and DD and we had a blast again. Went back to Paris and then flew home. I think I was gone for almost 2 months and I wish I could do it all over again. 

Although right now im dreaming of laying on a sunny beach while reading a book all day and swimming

redheadbride15

calimom2524 said:

@lakesideknitter Bryce and Zion are amazing! I liked Bryce better but Zion is beautiful too. 

DH and I are babymooning in Zion in April! Well I guess technically we can’t call it a babymoon because we’re bringing DS. Anyway, I’m psyched.

ournextadventure

Love reading all these travel stories. 

It's hard to pick a favorite because we love to travel. I think my favorite was when we went to the amazon rainforest. It has been on my bucket list since I was a kid. We stayed at this super nice eco lodge in the middle of the jungle. Everyday they take you on an excursion through the forest. We saw so many cool animals. I especially loved the monkeys! So many Monkeys! We also got to go stay with a tribe in the amazon for a day they fed us and showed us how they live even taught us how to hunt. It was such an amazing experience. I totally recommend.

mrs_drc_rn

For all of you ladies that went to Glacier, where did you stay?! That’s on my bucket list and I’m trying to convince DH to make that our next vacation! 

redheadbride15

@mrs_drc_rn Backcountry camp! But if you're not into that then there are a lot of great lodge options inside the park. We spent a lot of time there so I've stayed in basically all of them. Book EARLY. I love the Many Glacier Hotel, personally. Many Glacier is the ultimate hiking base and the lake is really pretty - you can take boats out into it. Lake McDonald Lodge is also nice. St. Mary is less exciting. For more budget options there is a cheap and nasty but totally functional motel east of the park in Babb, which is on the Blackfoot Indian reservation. There are also TONS of private campgrounds out there because camping in the park is first-come-first-serve and sometimes it's nearly impossible to find a site. There are lots of hotel options west of the park in Whitefish and Columbia Falls but personally I prefer the east side of the park and it's a LONG drive across the park, so it's less convenient.