I’m crossing the quarter century mark on January 1st. In America, that means I have to pay for my own health insurance — the last legal milestone as an unmarried “grown up.”
My personal milestones include moving overseas (that was hard!), [formerly] running two non-profits, and starting my own business.
I’ve also had the luxury of world travel and doing more cool things at twenty-five than most people will get to do in their lifetime. I’ve had the privilege of experiences I didn’t know existed!
As you write up your New Year’s Resolutions and I look at turning a year older, consider some of my moments that pop the most.
I can’t say that these are the BEST 25 world travel experiences because I haven’t done it all. These are all activities I have personally stumbled upon and will never forget. Some were done as a blogger, some as a study abroad student, and others I financed in my gap year (aka why not all of these photos are professional).
I enthusiastically recommend my top 25 world travel experiences at 25:
[In no particular order]
1. Canoe through the Amazon Jungle, hold an anaconda and venture Machu Picchu, Peru
Read: 5 Peruvian Sites You Missed Haulin’ Bum to Machu Picchu (Photos)
2. Rock Climb the Dolomites at sunrise – South Tyrol, Italy
Read: Where Nature Breathes: Dolomites, South Tyrol (Photos)
3. Run with the bulls and splash sangria at the San Fermin Festival, Spain
4. Catch Sunset in the Abu Dhabi desert after touring the Shiek Mosque and a 7 Star Hotel
Read: 5 Reasons Abu Dhabi is the Most Fascinating City in the World (Photos)
Read: The 7 Star Emirates Palace Hotel, Abu Dhabi (Photos)
5. Hang-Glide in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Follow me on Instagram @StephBeTravel
6. Wake up in Halong Bay, Vietnam
7. Shark dive in Sydney, scuba dive the Great Barrier Reef, sail Whitsunday Islands, camp at Fraser Island, pet a koala, and road trip the Great Ocean Road, Australia
Read: Who Needs Exotic When Aussie Beaches Look Like This (Photos)
Read: 14 Aussie Phrases Americans Should Start Using
Read: 5 Reasons to Move to Sydney — Or at Least Visit (Photos)
8. Motorbike from Chaing Mai to Chiang Rai’s White Temple of Death, play with elephants, and drink from a bucket at the Full Moon Party, Thailand
Read:
Thailand is the New “EuroTrip”: Why You Should Visit Bangkok
Thai Massage, Thai Food, Swim, Drink, Repeat (Photos)
10 Tips for Thailand — Invaluable, Must-Know Advice
Restless City Guide: Chaing Mai + Chaing Rai
9. Look for four-leaf clovers on the Cliffs of Moher and Giant’s Causeway, Ireland
10. Experience Yacht Life, Hvar, Plitvice Lakes, Krka National Park, and take a seaplane over the Dalmatian Islands, Croatia
Sea plane photo via @TaylorMichaelBurk
Read: The Green Mediterranean: Plitvice Lakes and Krka National Park, Croatia (Photos)
Read: 5 Reasons Not to Visit Hvar Island, Croatia (Photos)
Read: Yacht Life or Yacht Family? Beyond Croatia’s Craziest Parties (Photos)
11. Capture sunrise over Angkor Wat, Cambodia
12. Row a boat to the clock tower on Lake Bled, Slovenia
Read: Slovenia: Lake Bled, Ljubljana, and Triglav National Park (Photos)
13. Play laser tag in a real private combat jet plane – Las Vegas, Nevada
Read: The Craziest Thing to Do in Las Vegas, Nevada (Photos)
14. Shark Dive in Sydney, Australia
15. Bungee Jump in Queenstown, New Zealand (or anywhere)
16. Cover up for the Blue Mosque, Istanbul, Turkey
Photo of me by @LaurieSatran
17. Zip Line Upside Down in the Dominican Republic
18. Amsterdam. Amsterdam. Amsterdam, The Netherlands
19. Take a helicopter ride or hike volcanoes in Guatemala
Read: The 7 Wonders of Guatemala (Photos)
20. Walk the Old City of Jerusalem, swim in the Dead Sea, and crater rappel in Israel
Read: Israel Photos: Treasures of the Past and Present
21. Chase waterfalls on two continents at once – Iguazu Falls, Brazil/ Argentina
22. Dance in the Caribbean, Curacao
Read: Curacao or Cura-Wow: 3 Secret Caribbean Beaches Revealed (Photos)
23. Chase the electric city of Akihabara, stroll through Harajuku, and eat sushi in Tokyo, Japan
Tokyo, Japan Photo via Travel Blogger James Kelley, EscapingAbroad.com
24. Glacier hike in Patagonia, Argentina (or Chile)
25. London. Just as much as you can of it.
Read: 5 Things the World Can Learn from London (Photos)
I’ve done so much, but there is so much to do. What would you add to this list?!
TravelBreak Posts You Might Like:
10 Best Places in the World to Watch the Sunrise (Photos)
10 Places in America to Watch the Sunset and be Grateful (Photos)
S H O P
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So many wonderful experiences at such a young age! I envy you :) You’ve done so many things and have seen so many places, and you still have the rest of your life ahead of you. So inspiring <3
Thank you so much, that’s so encouraging :)
Looks like you’ve crossed a lot of things off your bucket list already! Do you have goals for where you want to go/what you want to do before the next milestone?
I’d like to spend some time in Africa and do Antartica. Right now, my priorities are on focusing on the longevity of my travel lifestyle and business. I finally learned to spend some time and energy on solo travel and “me time” and now I look forward to spending more time with family, friends, and the travel community. Travel isn’t just about the thrill anymore, it’s about integrating it into my lifestyle — and navigating to have a life outside of travel too. I’ve been traveling for four years now, and blogging for almost two. The next milestone is in learning to keep what I’ve worked for without making it my everything :) Thanks for reading!
That’s so great, Stephanie! I admire you so much! You ‘re brave, beautiful and intelligent. You make me want to remove all to travel. :)))
Thank you so much! And thank you for reading :)
I just stumbled on your blog (via twitter) & I am loving the articles. You have definitely done so many things at a young age. I am 26 and I feel like I need to see the world.I cant wait to take my next trip. Love from Nairobi, Kenya.
http://www.thewineandfoodreview.com
I would love to go to Kenya! Thank you so much for reading. Best wishes :)
Oh my goodness, you’ve done so many amazing things!!! Bucket list goals or what!!
Haha the bucket list keeps growing!
Incredible and inspiring. I have so many places to go and things to see!
Happy birthday love! Such a great list already- I’m hoping to get to Argentina and the UAE soon!
Wow– you’ve had a crazy year and walked away with some amazing photos! Of all the adventures I’m most jealous of the shark diving. It’s so high on my bucket list! I hope to cross it off this year!
i love your travel experiences!!! you look you had awesome time!! Love your photos too :-) Happy New Year
You’ve had so many incredible experiences! I need to add many of these to my bucket list! I didn’t get to go up in a combat jet, but I did go up in a helicopter in Vegas :)
You’ve had so many amazing experiences in 25 years! Your adventures in the middle east and South America look especially cool as those are place I haven’t explored yet. Thanks for the travel inspiration!
It’s so wonderful to be able to travel while you’re young. Really inspiring stuff. out of all those experiences, I wouldn’t be able to choose a top one. They’re all so marvelous in their own way. Here’s to another quarter century!
All experiences are great! But I liked that you mentioned the Fiesta de San Fermines as your top experience. I’m from Spain, and truly this is by far the wildest party and celebration I’ve ever been to. I hope any foreigner will agree on that! Good experiences!
Wow…. when I was your age, I was taking care of a one year old son and traveling occasionally. You have seen a lot of amazing things, I’m sure the next 25 will be just as awesome! All of your adventures looks great, but dang, that hang gliding experience looks out of this world.
Amazing experiences! Tou have done so much! From your list I have only been to London. Anyway I wish you that the next years you will have more amazing experiences around the planet
Wow, I’m exhausted just reading all of these ;) But seriously, you’ve done some incredible things! I can’t believe you ran with the bulls! Insane. Thanks for sharing :)
Wow, what a great list. Definitely some amazing experiences it sounds like. Some of mine : Seeing Northern Lights in Iceland, Land and water safari in Chobe Natl Park in Botswana (only feet from lions and elephants), Seeing the Alhambra from inside and from afar in Granada, Enjoying Moroccan Mint Tea from Cafe Hafa in Tangier facing the sea, helicopter ride over Victoria Falls, walking through Bukit Bintang at night in Kuala Lumpur feeling the energy of the city, so many others. Wow, I think I know what I’ll write about next, thanks for the inspiration!
Traveling is the best gift parents can give to their children. My eldest son is 13 and had been in 23 countries. Probably he will be the future travelblogger :-)
Woww, fabulous images I must say. Thank you so much for this wonderful post. Keep sharing such useful articles with us. I am a travel freak and love exploring the world. This a great list. Sounds like a superb and exciting experience. Keep blogging and rocking..
Akihabara, Harajuku, and Tokyo truly deserve to be on this list. But, if you want to savor the fabulous and diverse culture of Japan, we greatly recommend going to Kyoto. Kyoto was the capital of Japan for over a millennium, and it still carries a reputation as the nation’s most beautiful city. Modernization has not destroyed the old charm of Kyoto. There are no jarring skyscrapers marring the landscape of this historic city.
If you want to know more about Kyoto, check out this article:
https://www.magnificentjapan.com/amazing-experiences-kyoto/
You could also visit our website:
https://www.magnificentjapan.com/
You should definitely add skiing in the Iberian Peninsula and classic car rides to the list.
I will recommend Barcelona Private Experiences as they design a tailor-made itinerary.
Amazing post nevertheless, some beautiful spots.
Best of luck with your future adventures.
Thank you! I do love Barcelona :)
I like adventure travel with my friends. you are done some different things.
Thanks god to give me chance to read this blog.
Thanks for sharing your experience. :)
Halong Bay was definitely my favorite place in Vietnam – I was experienced on the sea surrounded by limestone mountains at sea. It is so beautiful.
Awesome Girl!!! I m really very proud of you, you are encouraging even other girls to explore the world on their own!!!!
great to read this Article but i did not see Nepal’s List.
This would be every young adult’s dream! To have traveled to many places whilst also just being as young as 25 years old to have accomplished this! I totally envy you! So many experiences and many places to have been, not to say that all of the places you’ve been are already amazing at one glance or one hear! I hope I would also travel to other countries soon, not trying to top this but I will do my best to accomplish even just one from your list!
Such a great list! Patagonia is definitely at the top of my list but any of them are great options!
really informative travel post. Thank you so much for sharing.
I’ve traveled quite a bit, so I’ve often done many of the same things on lists like this one. However, we only share 4 from this top 25. Looks like I have a lot of exciting places left to explore. However, there’s no way I’m getting on a hang glider. If you like the views from above, one of my top 25 is the hot air balloon sunrise trip over Capadoccia in Turkey. That was a definite bucket list item!
Thanks very much for sharing. As a Vietnamese, it’s such a pleasure to see Halong Bay, being recommended. Hope to see you back there soon!
That’s so great, Stephanie! Thank you so much for your Great post.