Adventures in 2020

Where will you go in 2020?

2019 was quite the year for travel - and, I've been so busy with client work I've barely had time to breathe between working and traveling. It's time to slow down the pace a bit, but I have got some very exciting adventures coming up in 2020.

I'll be traveling to Ireland like I do most years, visiting in late April/early May, a great time to be there with all the green and wildflowers, but far fewer tourists than what the summer springs. From there, I'll fly to Porto, Portugal for a few days and then drive north to Asturias, Spain. That region is rarely visited by American tourists, and it happens to be one of the last places that Anthony Bourdain featured on Parts Unknown before passing in June of 2018. Mountains, ocean, amazing food... there are many reasons I've decided to visit, some of which I've outlined in this article for Trips To Discover: Top 9 Reasons to Visit Asturias, Spain.

In July, I'll return to one of my favorite places on Earth, Newfoundland - this will be my sixth trip, but it will be shorter than usual. Last time I visited the west and north, so heading back to spend more time in St. John's and Trinity, for two whale watching trips. There were hundreds of humpbacks there last year so crossing fingers that it will be just as good in 2020, but it's always a beautiful place to visit. From there, I'll head to the Arctic - Churchhill, Manitoba from there to spend a week with the beluga whales. The Hudson Bay coastline in Northern Manitoba is home to the world's largest population with over 57,000 belugas  congregating in the region in the summer. And, while polar bears don't usually come into town until the fall, I'll be heading out with Lazy Bear Expeditions to go where they are.  Seeing the belugas and the polar bears is something I've wanted to do for years.

Finally, I had such an amazing time in Croatia this past September/October that I'm going back again in 2020. I was fortunate to be able to join a small-ship cruise with Unforgettable Croatia, one of my clients, and I was seriously blown away by the experience. A small-ship cruise is nothing like going on one of those mega ships and it was one of the best trips I've ever had - it really requires a full blog post, and during this "slower" time of the year, I'll  be getting to that soon. The food, the wine, the people, the scenery, the history. Incredible.  For this next trip I'll be visiting Crete in Greece for a week first and then head to Dubrovnik, Korcula Island, Split, the Plitvice Lakes area, into Slovenia (Lake Bled) and the Istrian Peninsula, which is amazing, a lot like Tuscany with hilltop towns and lots of vineyards - the area is famous for its truffles too. 

Just recently I spent a couple of weeks in New Zealand, so I'll be detailing that trip in my next blog post. I'd wanted to travel there since I was a teenager and it was even better than I imagined. While it's always hard for me to pick a favorite place, I have to say, that was it. I really never wanted to leave... but more on that coming soon. I'm already planning a return trip in March of 2021.

Where will you go in 2020? I'd love to hear about it!