Travel Guides

Find travel guides, planning tips, advice, and resources for where you want to go for all the destinations I’ve visited! Everything is sorted by country and/or state for easy searching. Great for dreaming, planning, and making your trip a reality!

Places to Visit in Barcelona: A Perfect Day at Montserrat

Thirty miles from Barcelona sits a whole different world. Montserrat is a mountain-top monastery situated against very unusual rock formations (the name Montserrat actually means “jagged (serrated) mountain” in Catalan). Though there’s plenty to do in the city itself, this easy day trip is one of the best things to do in Barcelona. There are

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Learning Gladiator Secrets in Rome

competitours rome gladiator tour

Just about every traveler who passes through Rome visits the Colosseum. Inside the world’s largest amphitheater, can you imagine being there with 50,000-80,000 other spectators, all watching gladiatorial contests? Standing in the midst of ancient Roman ruins, it’s possible to appreciate the city’s long history and how its earlier culture has shaped Rome into what it is

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Kayaking the Channel Islands, California’s Unknown National Park

santa cruz channel islands

Eighteen million people live within sixty miles of Channel Islands National Park but that’s nothing compared to the number of animals that make their home there. Just like the Galapagos, long-term isolation created a home for unique animals and plants.  The Channel Islands and the surrounding waters are preserved the way coastal southern California once

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Sometimes Solo Travel Sucks: Lonely in Livingston and Rio Dulce Guatemala

steamy waterfalls guatemala

As much as I love traveling solo, it’s not always a picnic.  I struggled when I arrived on the Atlantic coast of Guatemala.  I had spent the past two weeks or so traveling through the country, first with my husband and then with my mom.  We had great experiences, funny stories, and lots of memories.

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