When people consider traveling to Budapest, food doesn’t seem to come up on the list often as a reason to visit. The epic parliament building? Yes. Ruin bars? Sure. Thermal baths? Of course. But forgetting about the delights of Hungarian cuisine is a shame–because there is so much delicious food in Budapest. Sure, the names …
Prague, Vienna, Budapest: these illustrious capital cities of Central Europe have successfully emerged from the shadow of cities like Paris and London over the last few decades to become well-deserved tourist hotspots. With their regal beauty, distinct personalities, and storied history, a trip through the cities Central Europe offers an opportunity to see a unique …
Taking an Austria Christmas market trip is a lot like stepping inside a particularly magical storybook. There will be warm drinks, sweet treats, detailed decor, and an atmosphere that tends to make you feel like a soundtrack of Christmas music should be playing 24/7 in the background (or maybe that one is just me). While …
Visiting beautiful Salzburg in winter is an absolute delight. As a city that resembles a fairytale village (complete with a looming castle on a hill), a city that appreciates the glitz and beauty of a winter concert, a city that is home to fabulously cozy cafes, and–of course–a city that is home to some of …
Dreaming of a honeymoon in Paris, complete with cozy walks along the Seine, romantic views from world-class monuments, and delicious meals served in tiny restaurants? You’re not alone: it’s hard to imagine a better city for a honeymoon than the City of Love! Paris has been rightfully tempting lovers from around the globe for centuries, …
Dreaming of staring in awe at the Sistine Chapel, stepping inside the Colosseum, tossing a coin into the Trevi Fountain, and eating some of the best pasta of your life? If so, then this 4 day Rome itinerary is for you! The capital of Italy is an endlessly enchanting place, and one of our favorite …
A 2 week South Africa itinerary is all about adventure: this beautiful country tops bucket lists around the world for good reason. Where else can you see majestic animals like elephants and lions up close in the wild, indulge in a fantastic food scene that rivals the best cities around the world, admire stunning coastline, …
From beaches to mountaintops, from iconic cities to small towns, from wineries to lakeshores, there is no shortage of romantic getaways in the USA. As much as we love traveling abroad, the plethora of romantic escapes in the United States also leaves us with insatiable wanderlust–and with every road trip to visit family or weekend …
For the last several years, we have been traveling to Italy over and over again, each trip deeper and richer than the last… and yet, our Italy bucket list seems to keep getting longer instead of shorter! Discovering all of the best things to do in Italy is a lifelong project and one that we …
This is my third year sharing my personal birthday tradition on the blog, and I am so grateful for that–who knew when I started that this blog would be both my all-consuming passion and income source as I was turning 28, more than 2.5 years later?! Not me, that’s for sure. But I’m getting ahead …
I’m not going to sugarcoat it: planning a 3 days in Cape Town itinerary isn’t a simple feat. Why not? Because in addition to having a seemingly endless list of amazing things to do (and eat–seriously, we are so in love with Cape Town’s food scene), Cape Town is a geographically spread out place without …
When I first set out to put together a list of the best books about Italy, I had planned on including around 10 books. Then that turned into 20… and then 30… because as it turns out, there are a lot of amazing books about Italy! I have written extensively about both my love of …
There are so many reasons to adore traveling in Mexico: its cities, its food, its culture, its people, and more have charmed us beyond measure. It will always be one of our favorite countries in the world, and one of the many, many reasons that we adore it is the abundance of incredible waterfalls in …
Our time in Vilanculos, Mozambique was full of beautiful views, relaxing moments, and plenty of sunshine. It was also, quite frankly, full of some of our most ridiculous travel moments to date. Ultimately we didn’t really do much in Vilanculos–like in several other beach destinations around the world (Hvar, Croatia, Isla Holbox, Mexico, and Koh …
Ah, Paris: the architecture, the food, the art, and the iconic sights are legendary for a reason, and even one day in Paris can be an absolute dream of a quick getaway. One day in Paris may not be enough to work through a long wish list of what to see in the city (we’re …
When it came to researching our trip to beautiful Tofo, Mozambique–the tiny backpacker enclave set on the east coast of the country–I quickly discovered what it must have been like for travelers planning vacations in oh, say, 2006 or so. It’s not that there was no information about visiting Tofo (technically named Praia do Tofo) …
Lively piazzas, a Roman amphitheater that’s still in use today, gorgeous viewpoints, and vibrant colors bursting from every angle are just a few of the enchanting things you’ll find when looking for the best things to do in Verona! As the home of the most famous pair of star-crossed lovers of all time, Verona definitely …
Istanbul, Constantinople, Byzantium, The City on Two Continents: no matter what you call it, having the chance to spend 2 days in Istanbul is an opportunity to relish. This city is a place of history, legends, delicious food, and endless tea–it is impressively large, occasionally confusing, and utterly captivating. We have been lucky enough to …
A honeymoon in Tuscany: can you picture anything more romantic? Though we (before our Italy addiction set in) honeymooned in the Bahamas, we have long said that Tuscany is our perfect honeymoon destination and that if we were getting married today, it’s where we would go. In Tuscany, romance reigns supreme–from the lighting to the …
We have now visited Paris in winter several times, and we have to say–as if returning voluntarily for more than one helping wasn’t hint enough–we adore it. Sure, the weather is generally gray, cold, and wet, there are no cherry blossoms or colorful gardens to speak of, and bundling up in coats and scarves to …
Oh, beautiful Bologna: as the capital of the Emilia-Romagna region and a foodie paradise, there are dozens of things to do in Bologna, Italy to captivate you during your visit (and yes, many of them are related to stuffing your face). Bologna is one of our favorite cities in Italy–admittedly a hotly contested designation–and one …
Beautiful mountains, a quaint village nestled into a valley, waterfalls, and a stunning castle perched above it all: with a description like that, is it any surprise that our Munich to Neuschwanstein Castle day trip completely lived up to the hype? When I was at university, I had never been outside the USA before–but I …
Mexico is both enormous and endlessly captivating to visit: a 2 weeks in Mexico itinerary has almost limitless cities, towns, mountains, deserts, and–of course–beaches to choose from… so how do you narrow it down? After spending 6 weeks carving a Mexico backpacking route through some of the country’s most beautiful spots, ranging from wildly popular …
Our 4 days in Lisbon were a new experience for us in a few exciting ways. Visiting Lisbon marked our first time in Portugal, our first stop on the Atlantic coast of Europe (unless you count Tarifa, Spain, which straddles the Mediterranean and the Atlantic), and our first time using a free airline stopover to …
When you only have 3 days in Paris, you need to get your Paris itinerary just right. As we’ve learned many times over during our 10+ Parisian vacations, with a nearly unlimited number of incredible things to do (and eat, and see) in the City of Light, it’s important to plan a short trip carefully. …
Incredible beaches, breathtaking valleys, invigorating cities, tasty food, and color around every corner are just a few of the things you’ll find along this 2 weeks in Colombia itinerary! Busy shaking off a negative stigma leftover from drug violence of the ’80s and ’90s, Colombia is working hard to bring tourists into the country–and with …
Playa Blanca, Isla Baru, with its shockingly bright turquoise water and golden sand, is Cartagena’s most famous (and infamous) beach. This beautiful stretch of golden sand paired with the turquoise sea is known for its jaw-dropping beauty, but also its congested crowds, pushy salespeople, and reportedly less-than-stellar levels of cleanliness. Before heading out to Isla …
Oh, Ghent: this small university city in the Flanders region of Belgium may be perpetually overshadowed by the ever-gorgeous Bruges, but it is a beautiful and charming city in its own right–and since Ghent is so small, it’s very reasonable to conquer the best things to do in Ghent in one day. We fell hard …
Have limited time on your upcoming trip to Italy and wondering whether to visit Florence or Rome? You have a very hard choice to make! Each city boasts some of the most magnificent things that Italy has to offer, from artistic masterpieces like the statue of David to world-class archeological sites like the Colosseum. We …
You don’t have to dig deep to know what the most popular thing to do in Guatape, Colombia is: images from the top of El Penol have become Instagram famous in the last couple of years, and deservedly so. But as much fun as climbing 700+ steps up for an overview of the lake surrounding …