A little girl with big travel dreams. Photo by Susan Lanier-Graham
Do you have a bucket list? One of the most popular travel trends today is traveling off the bucket list. Create a list of the things you want to see and experience before you die, then travel to make those dreams come true.
I have a large bucket list. Some of my items may seem unattainable, but I keep them on the list. You just never know where life can take you. I’m going to share my list here and I’ll keep checking back and marking off items as I achieve them — and adding more as great things come to mind.
(Note: Anything in italics with a ♥ indicates that I’ve accomplished that item on my bucket list.)
Destinations I most want to visit…
- Vienna, Austria
- South of France ♥
- Thailand ♥
- Fiji
- Castle tour of Scotland and Ireland
- Whitsundays in Australia
- Jackson Hole, Wyoming
- St. Petersburg, Russia
- Greek Isles
- Slovakia
- Croatia
- Slovenia
- Disneyworld – but this time with all 4 grand kids
- Hawaii
- Zanzibar, Tanzania
- Egypt ♥
- Madagascar
- Seychelles
- Nice, France ♥
- Key West
- San Francisco ♥
- Jamaica ♥
- Quebec ♥
- Amsterdam ♥
- Dubai
View of Nice from Hotel Negresco. Photo by Susan Lanier-Graham
Sailing in San Francisco Bay. Photo by Susan Lanier-Graham
Jamaica. Photo by Susan Lanier-Graham
Amsterdam. Photo by Susan Lanier-Graham
Things I want to experience…
- Hot air balloon ride ♥
- Train ride across Canada’s Rocky Mountains
- Ride on the Orient Express
- Barefoot cruise in the Caribbean
- Play with dolphins ♥
- Shop in a street market in Istanbul
- Cruise to Alaska
- Visit Cuba
- Stand in Red Square in Moscow
- Train ride up the California coast – in first class
- See Ground Zero in NYC ♥
- Visit the Christmas market in Nuremberg, Germany
- See the Dalai Lama
- Ride in a race car ♥
- Take a river cruise down the Mosel or Rhine in Germany
- Stand in Tiananmen Square in China
- Visit the Taj Mahal
- Return to Trier and Bitburg in Germany
- Visit Kennedy Space Center
- Go to the top of the Eiffel Tower
- Shop at Harrod’s in London ♥
- See the Leaning Tower of Pisa
- Watch glass blowing at a glass factory in Murano, Italy
- Ride in a helicopter ♥
- Visit Times Square ♥
- Visit the Smithsonian’s Air & Space Museum ♥
- Visit the Ice Hotel ♥
- Take an off-the-beaten-path cross-country trip ♥
- Go on a road trip with my sister
- Stay at the new Armani Hotel Dubai
- A week-long writing retreat with my 3 writing critique partners – destination unknown
- Take a spa trip with my mom (we went to the Mexican Riviera north of Tulum) ♥
From inside a hot air balloon. Photo by Susan Lanier-Graham
Dolphins play off the coast of Catalina Island. Photo by Susan Lanier-Graham
Ice Hotel in Quebec. Photo by Susan Lanier-Graham
Esencia Resort, Mexico. Photo by Susan Lanier-Graham
Luxury desires…
- Spend a week at Mii amo spa in Sedona, AZ
- Go sailing off the coast of the French Riviera ♥
- Spend a week in a villa in Tuscany
- Take an around-the-world cruise
- Stay in a suite at the Ritz in Paris
- Fly first class on Singapore Airlines
- Stay at a chateau in France (This was Chateau de la Messardiere in St. Tropez) ♥
- Spend a luxury week in New York City — hotel, shopping, shows, food, the works
- Spend a month in Europe with my husband
- Spend a week in Provence to experience the best food and wine
- Stay at Amanpuri Resort in Phuket, Thailand
- Fly first class to Europe ♥
- Spend Christmas in London
- Spend Christmas at a mountain lodge with snow, fireplace, someone serving meals, complete luxury experience
- Rent a Caribbean island for a week
- Stay at Hotel del Coronado in San Diego
- Stay at the Beverly Wilshire
Sailing off the coast of France. Photo by Susan Lanier-Graham
Chateau de la Messardiere, St. Tropez. Photo courtesy Chateau de la Messardiere
Eat, drink and be merry…
- Dinner at French Laundry in California
- Sushi prepared by Chef Morimoto (personally, not just at one of his restaurants)
- Sushi in Tokyo
- See an episode of Iron Chef America live
- Dine at Jose Andres’ Minibar in Washington, DC
- Take a champagne tasting tour in France’s Champagne region
- Take a wine tour of Australia
- Take a wine and food tour of Santa Barbara, CA
- Take a tequila tour in Mexico
- Take a wine and food tour in Northern California
- Eat an entire truffle-themed dinner (This was at a lovely chateau in the South of France) ♥
Natural wonders/great monuments…
- Explore the Great Wall of China
- See the Great Pyramids in Egypt ♥
- Visit Stonehenge in England
- See the Panama Canal
- See the Great Barrier Reef
- See (but NOT climb) Mount Everest
- Visit Teotihuacan in Mexico
- View Niagara Falls from both sides of the falls
- See the Grand Canyon ♥
- Visit an active volcano
I’m sure there’s more to come…
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Twitter: pen4hire
says:
If I didn’t know better, I’d say you’re just plain GREEDY!
I want to go to Vietnam, Istanbul (and the Aegean coast of Turkey) Morocco, Jordan, Syria, Libya, Sicily, Chile–or actually ANYWHERE in South America. But I also want to keep going back to Greece, again and again and again.
Ken and I keep talking about the Alaska cruise and the train ride across Canada. We’ll have to discuss that with you!
A great list, Sus. I’m exhausted just browsing through it!
Twitter: slaniergraham
says:
Thanks, Vera.
Since you know me, you can attest to the fact that it’s mostly just an amazing sense of curiosity. I guess it is a form of greed – I want to experience everything! There’s just so much in the world. We’ll definitely have to talk about the cruise and the train ride.
So, my list exhausts you, Sus? I’m pacing myself!
Now you can put a heart beside Thailand on your bucket list.
I just did one from my bucket list when I visited Israel by floating in the Dead Sea.
Twitter: slaniergraham
says:
Yep – Bucket list is updated. Yay! I will be writing about Thailand in the days to come. So much to see and do there. But – I want to hear all about floating in the Dead Sea!