We all have dreams about places we’d like to visit and things we’d like to do when we travel to those places. Right now, they may just be dreams, but so what? If we don’t keep those dreams alive, we may never realize them.
Keeping travel dreams alive means you have to create a travel bucket list. While this may seem to be no more than simply making a list of all the places you would like to go, and certainly you can do just that, but a more refined list will serve you better.
A refined travel bucket list is the result of a process, and you are about to review that process – each and every step.
Step One: Brainstorm
Brainstorming begins with making a list of the types of vacations you like – adventurous, rugged, luxurious, quiet retreat, exciting nightlife, beaches, mountains, climate, architecture, cultures, museums, history, etc. This will help you narrow your final list.
Step Two: Do the Research
Get on some travel websites and check out what they recommend for the types of trips you want. Most will also have reviews and comments from travelers who have been to these places. Put the places that seem most attractive on a separate list.
Doing your research thoroughly is key when you are working to create a travel bucket list.
Step Three: Group Your Destinations
If you want to climb mountains, group destinations that will allow that. If you want a tropical beach, that’s another group. Check out this list of 138 Bucket List Worthy Travel Destinations to give you some ideas.
Step Four: Consider Your Budget and Time
If you want a tropical beach environment with a lively nightlife but know you cannot afford a destination on the Mediterranean, then set your sights closer to home within that group. Don’t scratch off that Mediterranean destination, though. It just may be lower on your list for now. Maybe Cancun is a better choice at this point.
Step Five: Who Will Travel with You?
There’s a lot to be said for solo travel if you are single, especially if you are interested in international dating opportunities. Perhaps you have been chatting with someone, and you really want to meet them. Their country may move to the top of your list.
If you have plans to travel with a partner, spouse, or best friend, you must consider their preferences too. Compromise may be in order, and that will certainly impact your bucket list.
Step Six: Prioritize
You’ve got your list; you’ve got your groups. Now it’s time to prioritize. This may be the most complicated part of the process because there are so many factors to consider. You will have to prioritize those factors too. Is budget the major consideration? Or is time? Maybe the preferences of your travel buddy are the most important.
You will have to juggle the factors with your top destination desires and ultimately come up with a prioritized list.
But at least you have a final list to start with – for now.
Step Seven: Follow Your Heart
There is one factor that can’t really be calculated rationally, and that is the emotional draw that a destination has for you.
If that Mediterranean is calling; if the Alps are calling; if a Nile River cruise is calling, even if it is lower on your list, move it to the top. If it blows a hole in your budget; if you have to use up all of your vacation time, you have that right. As the saying goes, “Don’t die with your dreams still in you.”
Your wanderlust deserves your attention, just as any of your goals do. Ignoring it will eventually turn you into someone who says, “Why do I feel so unfulfilled?” Don’t be that person. Dream big, make that travel bucket list, and pursue the items on it.
What’s the first place you’d put on your list?
