Winter Travel Goals in 2023
Winter may seem to be melting these days to make way for the new season (hello, spring and sunshine!) but that’s for specific countries who have four seasons. Some countries have winter all year round or some have the tropical season all year round.
If you’re living in a tropical country; the hot weather might be too unbearable for you. You need some place to cool off and chill. However, if you’ve been enduring the cold and harsh winter for the past months, you are literally crying out loud for the glorious sun to come out.
Wherever you are right now, you want to escape to a holiday far away from home, work, and stress. While it’s still the first quarter of 2018 and the next round of winter (or the lack of it) may not be due until a few more months, it’s never too early to start setting goals for your future destinations. This way, you can save up money and resources that you may need for your perfect winter getaway.
This early in the year, you have a lot of time to plan and set a goal in your travel plans for the winter season. Since you have the luxury of time to prepare, you need time to map out and save some extra cash. Before the coming months will come and go, put some time aside for some thoughts on careful preparation for your ultimate dream winter vacation. Here are some considerations that you need to give more thought about:
Dough Saving Activity
And, that doesn’t mean dough that can be baked into a bread. It’s about saving money to have funds for your expenses in your winter vacation. Unless if you already have the money and you want to go to your dream winter wonderland right away, you may skip this part, but this is the essential part when you are planning to travel.
The money will support you heavily on your journey. You can’t travel without it. If you don’t have savings. then as early as now, start saving money and spend less on things you don’t need. Start a journal that you can track your expenses; bills and utilities, groceries, stuff that needs to be replaced, transportation, etc. so you know how much money you are spending. Resist the urge to splurge on things that are eye-catchy but you don’t actually really need. Set a goal to set aside some money and keep it so you won’t be tempted to use the money.
If you want to save more money, find cheaper alternatives that you can purchase. If your usual purchases consist of pork meat, chicken breasts, and T-bones, you may want to spend less on these things and opt to buy vegetables instead. If you really want to travel, you can make some sacrifices. It’s all gonna be worth it when you see the majestic beauty of the Alps once you get there.
Make a Bucket List of Places You Want to Go
We all have our own, individual bucket lists. Of course, we all list down the places we want to go and to visit. And unfortunately, you cannot travel all the countries in the world in one travel alone, you need to list down and select a few places you want to visit in your winter getaway plan. Research on the internet about the places that you want to go and choose which countries that are cheaper to travel. Consider what landmarks are available during the time you travel. You either want to travel during the peak season of the tourist attraction in a certain place or probably the time you want to go where tourists are not numerous.
Read reviews on travel or tourism websites about a certain landmark if it is worth to see it. List down the pros and cons of every situation you expect that you might encounter when visiting a certain country.
Take Note of Previous Experiences in Your Traveling Days
If you’ve traveled frequently in the past, look back at your experiences and see what were the flops that happened that you don’t want to happen again in the future. You over packed your last summer vacation and was forced to lug all your baggage for 3 days. Or you forgot to bring your cell phone charger. Or you forgot to change your currency in some foreign country. These are just some of the mistakes that you don’t want to happen again in your winter vacation.
Check everything if all is in tip-top shape. Plan your schedule. Look up on the internet on what are some travel mistakes that you should avoid.
Shop for Necessities
You need to have everything you need once you are already traveling. These things include bags, clothes, passport, money, camera, etc. In every object you will bring; weigh in the pros and cons of each item you usually take with you and see if it’s something worth replacing or not. Maybe you need a bigger luggage that could fit all your winter clothes. Or a portable camera that you need to bring everywhere and you don’t want anything heavy to bring.
Get Some Suggestions From Other People
Since you’re trip is still faraway, there are still things or occurrences that might happen that will change your plans (unless you already booked your ticket for your trip). There might be some changes of plans. If this happens, don’t fret. If you really want to travel, then you can go and travel where you want to go.
You need to compromise a few things just to be able to travel. Don’t forget to seek advice from your friends, families, travel blogs or vlogs, the perks of visiting a foreign country; what are the affordable bed and breakfast accommodations, where to eat, stuff like that. This is especially helpful if you are traveling alone.
Obsess Over Your Destination
Obsessing over where you plan to travel is totally natural. You’re hyped to go and visit the dream place you wanted to visit. Naturally, you’re always looking up in the internet over the majestic pictures of the place you want to go. Obsessing over this goal can make it more likely that you’ll truly go there. If you’re not doing this yet, you can do the following: Example, you plan to go to France. You can-
- Find someone who’s been to France and ask their experiences in their trips.
- Use google map as a simulation for you to discover the different streets in France and see the images of how it currently looks like. You can go imagine yourself walking down the streets of Paris. or Nice.
- Look at videos of France on social media websites.
- Get yourself a book based on France, French people or the French culture.
- Find a nice image of the famous landmarks in France (Eiffel Tower, the Louvre, Notre-Dame Paris, and more) and make it as your wallpaper in your gadgets.
- Make a list of the top ten things to do when you’re in France
- Watch French movies, such as French New Wave movies or TV shows from France (If you don’t understand French, find a video with subtitles).
By obsessing over France you are more likely:
- You’ll be making the idea of visiting France much more realistic.
- You’ll be setting your brain to look for ways to achieve the goal of visiting France.
- You’ll become more enthusiastic about visiting France.
Okay now, you’re ready and all set to travel to your dream winter land (or if you want to take a break from winter, your dream tropical island). However if you really want to travel and don’t know where to go, here are a list of the few countries that you can visit, either in the tropics or in the blizzard.
Winter Travel Goals for Those Who Seek Sun or Just Want to Get Away from the Snow:
Rome
All roads lead to Rome. It has been a popular city for many centuries ever since the Romans once conquered the world. Rome is one of the most magical places on Earth. The city is filled with history dating back to Julius Caesar and in it has the center of Roman Catholicism; the Vatican City. It also has the majestic historical and beautiful architectural designs like the Colosseum, Pantheon, or in Piazza Navona.
You can visit lots of churches with beautiful designs that were built centuries ago or gazing at art pieces in Vatican Museums. You can try the famous gelato while you’re there. Being in Rome can give you the opportunity to taste authentic Italian cuisine. The weather in Rome during the winter months are not too cold and brittle to stop you from exploring Rome, so go out, take pictures, befriend some Italians, and learn some Italian phrases. When in Rome be a Roman.
Las Vegas
This may be the Sin City of America but with the warm weather in this city, you might need it to get away from the Midwest blizzard. The great thing about visiting Las Vegas is that the extravagant shows they usually have are discounted, shorter lines at clubs and easier reservations in their first class restaurants. Las Vegas also hosts the National Finals Rodeo during December so you might not want to miss that. Of course, lots and lots of casinos are sprawled around the city so take your time (not your money) to go and see the incredible sights in the casinos. (Just don’t gamble if you don’t have extra money with you.)
Colombia
If you want to spend winter in South America, Colombia is one of the places to go to. It’s the perfect place for a tropical summer vibes in the middle of the winter season. This country, with its own paradise, has lots of beaches for you to wade and swim. The beaches of Cartagena are the go-tos of tourists. Aside from beaches to chill, they also have a colorful nightlife in Medellin, which is sometimes referred as Colombia’s Miami.
Your costs here are slightly lower compared to being in the real Miami. If you’re not into night life, you can go visit the historical locations of Colombia like in Cartagena, Historic Centre of Santa Cruz de Mompox, National Archaeological Park of Tierradentro and so much more. Aside from getting a tan from the beautiful beaches you also get to party and learn new culture at the same time.
Winter Travel Goals for Those Who Long to See Snow:
Quebec City
Canada is usually cold all year round and even if for some it seems gloomy, for someone like who loves snow, this is your dream place. And the best place to go is in Quebec City, Canada. This French city in North America is a winter wonderland make the winter blues go away. Covered in snow, Quebec City is literally the real life version of a Christmas village. The old fashioned cobblestone streets in this city are filled with stores warm with their baked goods and their delicious food and pubs.
During Christmas, the city lights up filled with Christmas wreaths, Christmas lights and delighting the air with music from carolers. They also have an authentic German Christmas market too. Truly a European city in North America.
New York City
Probably the most exciting city on Earth! New York City is beautiful to visit all year round, being the paradise of Broadway, a shopping capital for fashionistas, home to big skyscrapers; the Big Apple is much more fun, exciting, and glamorous during Christmas Season. So, if you want to bask in the Christmas Spirit in a big city during December, NYC is the place to go. December in the Empire State is not too cold that you might freeze to death.
Snow flurries might fall in the city as you go window shopping down in the Fifth Avenue, peering at the dazzling window displays in every store. You can literally shop til you drop in this city. You can also go visit the Rockefeller Center, and skate in the rink while beneath their most popular Christmas tree in the world. You can also visit their Central Park with its laid back ambiance compared to the other bustling places in the city.
And if you have extra cash to splurge, You can also watch Broadway shows in the city. Christmas is bright in NYC and everybody cheers up at this time of year. Think of the New York based Christmas themed movies you’ve seen (Home Alone 2 for example) and imagine yourself being there.
Reykjavik
If it’s your dream to see the Aurora Borealis or famouly known as the Northern Lights, you can go visit Reykjavik in Iceland. This place is the closest location to the North Pole where the Northern Lights are prevalent. It may not always be there, but there are other sights to see in Reykjavik.
They have the Oslo Christmas tree standing over the city and a public skating rink in Ingolfstorg Square. You also get to meet the 13 official Santa Clauses walking around town posing for pictures. A huge exhibit in the City Museum is devoted to Nordic Christmas, where you’ll hear some songs that sound somewhere between Viking war chants and familiar carols. The Christmas Village at Hafnarfjordur is also the ultimate weekend destination for both travelers and locals. How’s that for a dream Christmas village come true?
Those are just few of the suggested places that are beautiful to visit someday. Traveling is what most of us long to do but when the perfect time and opportunity comes for us to have the chance to travel, then strike while the iron is hot.
Share :
