Colombia and Ecuador
I feel like because these two countries are less than six hours away from New York, they will work for a summertime getaway. (Also, the two capital cities, Bogota and Quito, enjoy highs of 65–68 degrees from June to August, which is music to my ears.)
While I admit the news reports about safety in Colombia—and to a lesser extent, Ecuador—are reasons for pause, I feel like as long as I stay extra vigilant, I should be okay.
If I’m feeling adventurous, I’ll add La Paz, Bolivia to the list, although I need to secure a visa for that country.
The Lesser Antilles
Confession: This trip is going to be part of a multi-day cruise. Two years ago, when I went on a Virgin Voyages sailing (it went on to become a big highlight of 2023), I specifically picked the ports of the Dominican Republic and Bahamas because I wanted to add them to the list of countries I’ve been to.
This year I’m going with Virgin Voyages again, but this time, on their Lesser Antilles sailing. This itinerary originates in San Juan, Puerto Rico and stops at seven ports in its 10-day journey.
Jungfraujoch
Since I have plenty of friends in Switzerland, I rarely do the “tourist” route that I typically do if I were traveling solo. My parents—and one of my uncles—have expressed their desire to visit the highest part of Europe (so the press release says). Since I haven’t been there myself, I thought, “why not?”
Greece, Albania, and Montenegro
I went on a capital city tour of Southeastern Europe two years ago, and because of time constraints, did not get to visit these three countries.
There was an attempt to book a private tour of Thessaloniki from Sofia (Bulgaria) that proved difficult after I found out that it will take eight hours round-trip with a driver that does not speak a lick of English. (Plus said driver won’t even accompany me in Greece…I have to walk around on my own!)
For 2025, I’d love to head back to Europe and stay for at least two months, just so I can both stay with friends and then have time to explore. Who knows, maybe this is the year that I finally get to visit every country in the continent—at least as much as my passport will allow.
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