Hola amigos! As I sit here on this windy and rainy Tuesday, I am day dreaming about sipping on a strawberry mojito in Bali but alas I might have to wait a few months (or years) for that to happen. For anyone who knows me, or if you don't, I love making lists (and travelling). I even have a 'travel listography' that asks you everything from oceans you've swam in to the most memorable people you've met on your travels. Like a lot of people, I have this desire to travel but forget that I hopefully have another 60 years on earth to do so and don't have to rush to see the world now. However, we all know life can throw a lot of surprises your way that may get in the way of that, so I have embarked on a challenge to visit 30 countries before my 30th birthday.
The Journey So Far
1. Spain 🇪🇸
So for those of you who don't know I live in Gibraltar which borders the South of Spain, which means I pretty much visit this country on a weekly basis. Now that I've finished uni and back in Gibraltar indefinitely I'd like to explore more of the country - particularly Seville so I can pretend I'm in Game of Thrones.
Read my Barcelona guide here.
Read my Barcelona guide here.
2. France 🇫🇷
I first went to France (Paris) when I was 5 years old and then again when I was 9 to spend my birthday in Disneyland. I'd like to visit again as an adult and maybe skip on the theme parks, mainly to eat and practice my French.
3. United Kingdom 🇬🇧
3a. England - Ok so I basically lived in Bournemouth/London for 4 years so this kind of became home, but before that I did venture to Brighton, Bath, Sheffield and Manchester to name a few. I'm still yet to visit Newcastle and Liverpool!
Read my Bournemouth guide here.
Read my Bournemouth guide here.
3b. Scotland - I was originally going to study in Edinburgh, but decided I'd probably be a block of ice by second semester, so opted for the slightly warmer South of England. My first night out in the UK was spent in Glasgow and it definitely didn't disappoint.
3c. Wales - I actually 'lived' in Swansea for a month whilst I was having corrective jaw surgery, I didn't get to see Cardiff at this point because frankly my face looked like a balloon and I didn't want to be seen in public/student central. However I paid another visit here to see my friend/cousin who both studied there, and now my sister and cousin are there too so I'll probably be back.
4. Germany 🇩🇪
I visited Berlin last year and after a sunny few days in Amsterdam the cold hit as hard, there's nothing worse than doing a walking tour when it's raining and you can't feel your fingers, but the club we went to was 5 rooms and was POPPING.
Read my Berlin guide here.
Read my Berlin guide here.
5. The Netherlands 🇳🇱
I tried to visit Amsterdam 3 times before finally going last year, and it was as if I had stepped into a postcard. We had a lot of cheese samples, tried bitterballen and I almost got hit by a tram whilst on a bike ride.
Read my Amsterdam guide here.
Read my Amsterdam guide here.
6. Portugal 🇵🇹
We can be in Portugal within a 3 hour drive so I've seen a few areas here, my first trip was just after MM had gone missing so 13 year old me was a bit creeped out. I quite enjoyed Lisbon and the Algarve is always nice for some summer relaxation.
Read my Lisbon guide here.
Read my Lisbon guide here.
7. Italy 🇮🇹
I definitely need to go back here as my experience wasn't the best. We stopped in Rome on our cruise and it was beyond hot, beyond busy and my pizza wasn't the best. However I do love Italian food so I need to give it another shot, maybe in Milan.
Funnily enough, Milan was my next Italian stop. I spent a weekend here reuniting with my friend Sarah-Jane who I hadn't seen in 3 years to see 5 Seconds of Summer, and of course have a night out partying until 5am.
Read my Milan travel guide here.
Funnily enough, Milan was my next Italian stop. I spent a weekend here reuniting with my friend Sarah-Jane who I hadn't seen in 3 years to see 5 Seconds of Summer, and of course have a night out partying until 5am.
Read my Milan travel guide here.
8. Hungary ðŸ‡ðŸ‡º
Budapest is probably one of the most beautiful cities I've visited - it's got culture, history, great food (Goulash) and if you fancy it you can get your 10,000 steps done in a morning in 'Buda'.
Read my Budapest guide here.
Read my Budapest guide here.
9. Denmark 🇩🇰
This is probably the shortest and most packed trip I've ever done as we were here for literally 48 hours as I couldn't take any more days off work. I came back 1kg heavier and with chilblains (and a book about Hygge), but was worth it.
Read my Copenhagen guide here.
Read my Copenhagen guide here.
10. Sweden 🇸🇪
This was a memorable trip for many reasons. Firstly it was my first time seeing snow, secondly it was a fam trip so it was complimentary, and we got to see the best of everything. That meant Abba museum, dinner on ice and I even got to experience the Northern Lights.
Read my Stockholm/Lulea guide here.
Read my Stockholm/Lulea guide here.
11. USA 🇺🇸
Read about my study abroad semester here.
Read my New York guide here.
Read my Miami guide here.
12. India 🇮🇳
Read my guide to accommodation in Kerala here.
Read my Kerala travel guide here.
13. Morocco 🇲🇦
I can't believe it took me so long to visit since it's just a 45 minute ferry ride away, but I finally did in September. The beef Tagine was the most delicious thing I've ever tasted.
Read my Tangiers travel guide here.
Read my Tangiers travel guide here.
14. Czech Republic 🇨🇿
I'd seen many pictures of Prague and as soon as we reached the city centre it was exactly like i'd imagined. I tried pork knuckle because it seemed to be a delicacy, and I really wish I hadn't.
Read my Prague travel guide here.
15. Poland 🇵🇱
Out of our mini Eurotrip Krakow was probably my favourite. It was a lot prettier than expected, it felt like we were in a fairytale. The food was cheap and delicious, and of course the place is full of fascinating history.
Read my Krakow travel guide here.
16. Norway 🇳🇴
I wish we would have had time to venture out of Oslo as that's probably where we would have found the nicer Fjords and picturesque views. We did have some great waffles here.
Read my Oslo travel guide here.
17. Malta 🇲🇹
This was probably one of the funniest trips I've had in a long time, and funnily enough the 3 people I travelled with didn't even know each other that well. Goes to show mixing your company sometimes leads to great memories. Malta had a great mix of everything - history, beaches and nightlife.
17. Malta 🇲🇹
This was probably one of the funniest trips I've had in a long time, and funnily enough the 3 people I travelled with didn't even know each other that well. Goes to show mixing your company sometimes leads to great memories. Malta had a great mix of everything - history, beaches and nightlife.
Read my Malta travel guide here.
18. Slovakia 🇸🇰
19. Austria 🇦🇹
20. Romania 🇷🇴
I was luckily enough to be chosen as a participant for #ExperienceBucharest so I found out only two weeks earlier that I was going. I got to reunite with my Kerala roommate Diana, dance on a mary-go-round eating candyfloss, and relax in the thermal spa with a cocktail in hand.
Read my Bucharest travel guide here.
21. Belgium 🇧🇪
18. Slovakia 🇸🇰
When my mum asked what I wanted for my birthday, I went on Skyscanner and searched 'Everywhere' and flights to Bratislava popped up for £80 return so that was that. As you can imagine, we spent most of our trip making Eurotrip jokes.
19. Austria 🇦🇹
We literally had less than 24 hours in Vienna, and that my friends, was not enough. We literally got to Museum quarter, had a 360 look and then had to run back to make our walking tour in time. I must return!
20. Romania 🇷🇴
I was luckily enough to be chosen as a participant for #ExperienceBucharest so I found out only two weeks earlier that I was going. I got to reunite with my Kerala roommate Diana, dance on a mary-go-round eating candyfloss, and relax in the thermal spa with a cocktail in hand.
Read my Bucharest travel guide here.
21. Belgium 🇧🇪
I'm proud at how much my mum and myself accomplished in a weekend here - a day in Brussels and a day in Bruges. We somehow still managed to see all the points of interest, ate 3 waffles and sampled chocolate in almost every shop.
Bruges travel guide is coming soon!!
The Booked List
Unless the airlines I have booked do something crazy like cancel all their flights or go into administration, these places are all on the cards for this year. If you've been to any I'd love to see your travel guides!
22. Japan
23. Philippines
24. Singapore
25. Australia
The Wish List
Ok so this is hard because I practically want to go everywhere (where the likelihood of me being eaten alive or murdered are relatively low) but I've managed to narrow it down to where I'd like to and can probably visit in the 7 years.
Europe
Iceland
Russia
Finland
Slovenia
Asia
Japan
Philippines
Singapore
Thailand
Cambodia
Vietnam
Sri Lanka
Malaysia
China
Indonesia
Africa
South Africa
North America
New Orleans, USA
Nashville, USA
Canada
South America
Peru
Argentina
Brazil
Ecuador
Colombia
Oceania
Australia
New Zealand
Fiji
Asia
Japan
Philippines
Singapore
Thailand
Cambodia
Vietnam
Sri Lanka
Malaysia
China
Indonesia
Africa
South Africa
North America
New Orleans, USA
Nashville, USA
Canada
South America
Peru
Argentina
Brazil
Ecuador
Colombia
Oceania
Australia
New Zealand
Fiji
I know travel isn't about who's been to more countries, but as I said I love lists, and having this post means I have a reminder of each place I've visited, the experience I had and the memories that were made #cringe. What's on the top of your travel bucket list?
Side note, if any of you fancy adding a postcard to my wall I love receiving them with a little message about your trip!
Side note, if any of you fancy adding a postcard to my wall I love receiving them with a little message about your trip!
G
Such a fab idea for a post Gi! I've never thought to count how many countries I've been to but top of my list are Thailand, the UAE (Dubai) and New Zealand! x
ReplyDeleteThis is such a brilliant post idea, hats off to you! You really have been on some amazing travels so far, I certainly am jealous! Iceland is at the top of my bucket list currently has well, if only I could find some cheap flights, I'd set off tomorrow if I could! Seeing the Blue Lagoon and the Northern lights is a real dream of mine! New Zealand would also be incredible, one of my friends travelled there a couple of summers ago and her photos were absolutely stunning!
ReplyDeleteAbbey xx
http://www.abbeylouisarose.co.uk
Omg this is such a cool post Gi! I can't believe how many incredible places you've been to! I can highly recommend visiting New Zealand as I lived there for 9 months a few years ago! xx
ReplyDeletewww.imjustagirl16.co.uk
What an incredible challenge, I absolutely love travelling so love this so much. I'd love to visit so many of these, but New Zealand would be an absolute dream xx
ReplyDeleteWhat a brilliant idea, you've made me want to do this for myself too! I'm hoping to start travelling more this year so hopefully I can tick some off!
ReplyDeleteSarah | http://www.sazsinclair.com xx
I love Wales so much and we go every year!! Iceland is on my wish list too! Great post Gi! It’s made me want to dig my passport out and go on holiday haha xxxxxxx
ReplyDeleteLucylovesbeautyxo.com
I LOVE this post! I love seeing other countries too (Florida is one of my favourite places in the world so we clearly have similar tastes) this has given me some major travel inspo - https://sophiehearts.net x
ReplyDeleteI'd love to go back! It's a shame that when I lived there I wasn't 21 aha! x
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