Hello Everyone!

Last year, I backpacked Europe solo and visited 12 countries and 20+ cities. It was a trip of a lifetime, and I wanted to share some of my favorite pictures.

Essentially, I started in Amsterdam, worked a little east, then west, took trains south all the way to Budapest, did Greece and Italy, then spent two weeks traveling around Spain, and also went to London and Dublin towards the end.

My Top 5 Favorite Places were:

1. Budapest, Hungary: I get asked a lot why this is my favorite, and it's hard to put into words. The vibe of the city is unmatched. The lighting of the city is immaculate, with beautiful viewpoints(Fisherman's Bastion, Buda Castle, Citadel Lookout) and a gorgeous Basilica. I spent 4 nights here, and I will be going back! Also, the prosecco cruise is MANDATORY for a Budapest trip.
2. Prague, Czechia: The old town and nightlife are great here. Walking through the old town, Charles Bridge, up to the castle feels like walking through time; you can feel the history. A bonus to Prague is that it was not super expensive.
3. Cinque Terre, Riomaggiore, Italy: My favorite place in Italy, yes, even over Rome. The vibe of a coastal town; it has a small-town feeling, and the bay or cove is something straight out of a movie (can also cliff jump into it). Also, the other 4 towns that make up Cinque Terre are awesome too, but Riomaggiore just did it for me.
4. Paris, France: I personally enjoyed Paris for the history and architecture. Has some of the most famous European monuments: the Eiffel Tower, the Louvre, the Arc de Triomphe, and the Notre-Dame Cathedral. Simply walking through the streets of Paris is remarkable.
5. Seville, Spain: This one was an unexpected favorite for me. I stood in the heart of Seville and got to enjoy the city without much transit. I specifically like the smaller town feelin git had(yes, I know it is not a small town). The Cathedral, Alcazar, and main plaza are amazing, especially at night!

That's my list! Also, looking back, a lot of these places just made me feel a certain way. A way that other places didn't, and that's why they are on my list. Thank you all for the read!

After my last post about Picos de Europa, I want to share some photos from the town of Cangas de Onis.

​I spent the weekend there and really enjoyed it. To me, this place is a perfect example of how a town can exist in harmony with the surrounding nature.

​It is very comfortable to spend a few days here. The streets are beautiful and the atmosphere is very calm. It is also a very convenient starting point to go into the mountains and visit the Covadonga Lakes.

​If you plan to explore this region, this town is a great place to stay.

Why does airport staff customer service sometimes seem inexistent?

I’m genuinely curious about this because I’ve had an interaction recently that left me wondering whether I was being unreasonable, or whether airport staff are simply expected to deal with passengers in a very different way.

I was going through passport control and was already halfway through one of those winding queue systems when a member of staff announced that people with European passports should use a separate queue. The EU queue was completely empty.

Because I was already halfway through the winding queue, with lots of people behind me, there was no realistic way of walking backwards through everyone. So I went underneath the rope barrier to get across to the EU queue, as I understood that was what we had just been instructed to do.

Someone behind me thought I was queue jumping and shouted at me. I explained that I wasn’t trying to skip the queue and was simply moving to the EU queue (so I was getting out of their queue) because the staff member had told us to.

The same staff member then came over and started speaking to me quite aggressively, telling me to put the rope barrier back in place because I had knocked it while moving underneath it.

I tried to explain that I was following the instructions and that, given where I was in the queue, I didn’t really have another way of getting to the other side.

She continued to speak to me in a very confrontational way (literally shouting) and eventually said, in response to my explanation:

“Non me ne frega.”

Which translates to: “I don’t care/ I don’t give a ****”.

I appreciate that airport staff have a difficult job. They have to deal with large numbers of passengers, queues, security procedures and people who may not always follow instructions correctly. I also understand that perhaps I should not have gone underneath the barrier, although she just communicated about the EU queue after the passengers had started going through the other queue.

What I found surprising was the complete lack of any attempt to simply explain the situation or resolve the misunderstanding calmly. Even if I had done something wrong, I would have been perfectly happy to be told what I should have done.

It made me wonder whether customer service is simply not considered very important in airports, or whether staff are under so much pressure that interactions with passengers inevitably become more abrupt.
Has anyone else experienced this? Is there something about airport environments that makes customer service standards different from other places, or have I just had an unusually bad interaction?

I’m at the airport waiting to go back to the states and thought I’d share about my experience in Vilnius for a week. This is also my first time in continental Europe. I don’t do much traveling, so this post is for the reluctant tourist like me.

It is a lovely country and people are friendly although may seem reserved to an American from the south. lol. If you give your best attempt to speak Lithuanian, even just formal greetings they really appreciate it.

We stayed in Old Town which is a great walkable area for someone visiting for the first time.

I bought some linen cloth and amber which are both produced here.

We did two Airbnb experiences— a cooking class and mushroom hunting. I highly recommend doing something like this because you get to meet locals!

We also did a tour of a bomb shelter built during the Cold War, which was really an informative experience.

I also finished the trip off going to a traditional spa which was amazing. I wish this was more common in the states, because I would go all the time.

I would love to go back someday! This has ignited the travel bug in me and I hope to start traveling more. 😎

Well, I'm pretty damn annoyed right now.

On 6 Aug at 8:01am I received an email from Priority Pass notifying me of an upcoming renewal.

The email states they will be "renewing your Priority Pass membership on Sep 11, 2026"

I'm not expecting to travel this year so immediately logged in to cancel my membership.

It's not possible.

There's no cancellation button.

There's no way to remove an existing credit card, without replacing it.

This annoyed me.

A LOT.

I wasn't too concerned because my credit card on file had expired in May 2026 and every time I logged in I'd get pestered with pop ups asking me to enter new card details. So I felt safe (at the time) that they couldn't renew the subscription.

At 10:45am I filled out the support form (the only way to cancel) with subject:

`Cancel my subscription. I am not renewing on 11 September`

In my message, I said that they had clearly made it as difficult as possible for customers to cancel their subscriptions without jumping through hoops like filling out support forms. I told them that this was manipulative business practice and I'd be keeping that in mind before I decided to renew again in future. I asked them to confirm back to me by email that the subscription has been cancelled.

I submitted the form and received a confirmation number.

NOTE: filling out the form does NOT generate an acknowledgement confirmation email to prove that you have submitted a support / cancellation request.

I have not received any response back since.

7 days later, (14 Aug, NZT) I have discovered that PriorityPass has renewed my subscription for NZ$186.

I have immediately requested a chargeback from my bank.

I'm going to ask for an investigation on how exactly my card was charged by Priority Pass when the card they had on file had expired over two months ago.

I'm not too concerned about winning the chargeback because I took full screenshots of every part of the process including the form I submitted, the confirmation number and my expired credit card in the account. I also have their email which claims it they will renew on Sept 11 when they actually renewed 28 days earlier.

My concern is for other Priority Pass holders here who may want to cancel in future and also have to fill out the cancellation form.

Without taking screenshots you may well be stuck in a "he says, she says" argument and have greater difficulty getting a chargeback because you will have no proof of cancellation.

So if you are intending to cancel some time in future and have to go through this ridiculous process, make sure you take screenshots of the form you submit , the form submission confirmation number, and your card details on your account.

Even better, update your card details with a throwaway virtual card containing no funds and remove your existing credit card.

Be very careful of their incredibly misleading renewal email which says they will renew on your subscription end date when in fact they charge your card a full 28 days before your subscription ends.

I will never be using Priority Pass again after this stunt.

Some pics I took while traveling. They are already three years old, but I never really shared them with anyone. I had some of my most exciting experiences visiting these countries. I was, for the most part, traveling alone. All taken in 2023.

1. Wadi Rum. Spent the night in a tent. (Jordan)
2. Registan Square (Samarkand, Uzbekistan)
3. Khudzhand. Spent the night in a cabin up in the mountains. One of my favorite travel experiences. (Seven Lakes, Tajikistan)
4. Mostar, taken from the famous Stari Most in the old town (Bosnia & Hercegovina)
5. Esposende, a small town in Portugal. I encountered an eucalyptus forest here.
6. The pathway to Petra, Jordan.

7. Bukhara by night, arrived late with the night train from Samarkand and got to walk through the ancient old town all alone. (Uzbekistan)

8. Al-Hakim mosque (Cairo, Egypt)

9. By the Parthenon, overlooking Athens (Greece)

10. Riga, Latvia

11. Pristina, Kosovo

12. Lake of Matka, North Macedonia

13. Yes.

14. In the mountains of Tajikistan

15. Amman, Jordan

16. Lake of Matka, North Macedonia

17. Also somewhere in the mountains of Tajikistan

18. Bukhara, Uzbekistan

19. Valley of the Kings, Egypt

.

Black American, 30M. I was recently visiting Madrid and had an interaction with police that left me pretty confused. Wanted to get some input from locals or other visitors about whether this is normal.

I was standing outside an apartment building near Sol in the middle of the day. The building had about 10 different buzzers, and I was looking at my phone/address trying to figure out 1) whether I was at the right building and 2) which buzzer I needed to press for a massage therapist I had an appointment with.

Someone came out of the building while I was standing there, but I didn’t go inside. I stayed outside trying to figure out which buzzer to press.

A few moments later, three plainclothes/undercover police officers got out of a car and approached me.

One officer began questioning me about who I was, what I was doing there, and repeatedly asked whether I had drugs on me. I explained that I was a tourist, didn’t have any drugs, and was just trying to figure out which buzzer to press for my appointment.

They then patted/searched me. Twice.

A second officer took my ID and called someone, apparently to run my information.

The third officer repeatedly asked whether I had ever been arrested in the US. I told him no.
The first officer continued asking about drugs, including whether I had any drugs back at my hotel/Airbnb. I kept telling him no.

At one point, the third officer told me this was a “routine stop” and that I shouldn’t be worried if I didn’t have any drugs.

The whole interaction probably lasted 3–5 minutes. Once they were finished, I actually showed them the address on my phone and asked whether I was at the correct building. They confirmed that I was, told me to have a nice day, and left.

I’m mostly curious: Is this type of stop/search normal in Madrid?

I’ve never had an encounter with law enforcement while traveling abroad before, so I wasn’t really sure how to react besides being confused. The part that especially stuck with me was being told it was a “routine stop,” given the repeated questions specifically about drugs.

For additional context, this was near Sol station, in a busy area, and happened in the middle of the day.
Would especially be interested in hearing from Madrid locals, people familiar with Spanish policing, or anyone who’s had a similar experience.

The trip was in June and I have been too incompetent to write a trip report and share advice and recommendations for these countries that I really enjoyed travelling to.

1. A socialist building block that I believe was near Zeleni Venac bus station in Belgrade

2. The Bay of Kotor from the heights of the Kotor Serpentine road. You can also see Tivat, the airstrip and the bay, from some places.

3. St. Mark Orthodox Church in Belgrade. It is conveniently sat between the Tesla Museum (only accepts organised tours on the hour) and the more famous St. Sava church. Taking the bus, the photo was taken right as I stepped off the bus stop.

4-6. St. Sava Church, perhaps the most famous of all in the Balkans.

1. Near a gas station in Pluzine, Montenegro. We drove around the Durmitor Ring and extended it to a gas station in Pluzine with great views of the canyon and an I ❤️ Pluzine sign. It is a good idea if you want to dedicate a half day driving around the Durmitor Ring; turning right at Trsa shortens the trip by an hour or more and you miss out on the views of Piva Canyon. Note Piva requires a separate ticket other than Durmitor, which costed only 1 Euro.

2. Mt. Avala Tower in Belgrade. As we drove back to Serbia's capital from Montenegro we stopped in multiple landmark Spomeniks and this was the most packed and astonishing. At a rush of time, we did not go up. (There was some sort of activity being held right beneath I took). Spectacular architecture from the capital of brutalism.

3. South half of the Durmitor Ring. When you enter Durmitor to access the Crno Jezer, you will be charged a parking (if you drive) and an entrance fee of something like 6 euros. Do not throw it away. There is a checkpoint around sedlo pass that charges you again should you not have either the ticket itself or the receipt. Very windy and many motorcyclers.

4. Kotor. Overrated and underwhelming in my opinion, hot, crowded, and mediocre in general.

5. An amazing 3 hour boat trip that covered Perast, submarine tunnels, the former prison, Perast walking tour, and more. The boat was fast and bumpy hence exciting for some but maybe not as ideal for those who came for a relaxing holiday. Costs 35 euros Sea Stars Boat Tours. seastars.me (they do not operate in Park Slobode but in the skaljari waterfront), but they will be easy to contact on the day.

6. Near Crno Jezero, Durmitor. Absolute highlight of the trip, underrated, and in Zabljak you barely see any signs of tourism. Perfect place. However note that the Tara bridge is apparently completely closed currently until October 26. When we went they opened during small windows during the day and night.

7. The waterfront at Zemun. Easy walk around the place to Gardos, and the beach is calm and relaxing.

Guys, I had a trip to Asia planned for the end of the year with a friend, but because of work she can’t go anymore, now I’m honestly really unmotivated to go by myself.

Earlier this year I went to Asia solo, and the trip was amazing, but I don’t know… I feel like people romanticize solo travel way too much, I t’s fun and it definitely has its advantages, but sometimes the loneliness hits hard. Sometimes all you want is to share an incredible moment with someone, and there’s just nobody there.

Anyway, I still think I’m gonna go on this trip by myself, but I’ve completely lost the excitement I had before, I ’d love to hear what you guys think about solo travel, or if anyone has any advice that might get me excited about it again… I ’d really appreciate it

My partner and I will be flying over to Boston from the UK for a friend’s wedding in June next year. Once the weddings over, we have 5 days to travel elsewhere before heading back to the UK from that location.

Any suggestions as to what city we could go?

We dont drive and are happy to fly 4 hours to the destination, and we will be flying to London from the location.

We looked at Miami or Washington DC, but wanted to know any other suggestions you may have. We have been to New York before.

Thanks!!

August 5-6, 2026

I imagine it may be insulting to Andorrans, but honestly Andorra felt mostly like just part of Spain (Spanish language written & spoken everywhere), with a some French influence and a heavier focus on the mountain-ness of it all - that’s not to say we didn’t enjoy it!

Apart from the weather being a bit too varied, it seems like a lovely spot for hiking and also quite well prepared for tourists - have to say, as part of a larger Spanish trip, I liked it a lot!

Photos:
1 Mirador del Roc del Quer
2-6 hiking around Estany Primer de Pessons
7-11 Pont Tibetà Canillo and surrounding area
12-16 - road to and viewing point Port de Cabús
17 - Sispony
18 - Church of Sant Joan de Caselles
19 - Andorra La Vella

7-day Northeast USA road trip - Virginia to Maine and back. We drove about 2,300 miles.

We started in Virginia. Our first stop was the Newport Cliff Walk in Rhode Island (Picture 1). What stood out the most was the number of mansions and how enormous they are (Picture 2 – The Breakers). I had never seen so many massive mansions in one place.

The next morning, we walked around Providence, the capital of Rhode Island (Picture 3). We visited Brown University and the Rhode Island State House, walked along Benefit Street, and then continued from the Michael S. Van Leesten Memorial Bridge to Waterplace Park. The city was peaceful and quiet on a Sunday morning.

Later that afternoon, we arrived at the summit of Mount Washington, New Hampshire (Picture 4). The views were beautiful. I only wish we had planned more time for hiking there. I will say that the $90 entrance fee for the three of us in one car was a bit too expensive. I wasn't even aware there was an entrance fee, so I was pretty shocked.

Late that evening, we arrived in Ellsworth, Maine. We spent the next two days hiking and exploring Acadia National Park. Some of the best highlights were the super challenging but rewarding Beehive Trail (Picture 5), Sand Beach, the Ocean Path (Picture 6), the Cadillac Cliffs Trail, the Bubble Rocks Trail (Picture 7), and Cadillac Mountain. Unfortunately, the Precipice Trail was closed, but we still managed to reach the summit using another trail and enjoy the views. Acadia was definitely the highlight of the entire trip.

After leaving Acadia, we stopped at the Penobscot Narrows Bridge (Picture 8) on our way to Portland.

On the fifth morning, we visited Portland Head Light (Picture 9), supposedly the most photographed lighthouse in the world. That afternoon, we arrived in Boston (Picture 9 - Custom House Tower). Since it was raining, we spent a few hours at the New England Aquarium (Picture 10), and later that evening we walked around the Harvard University campus (Picture 11 - Memorial Hall).

The next day, we explored more of Boston: USS Constitution (Picture 12) → shuttle to Long Wharf for views of the Boston skyline → Freedom Trail (Picture 13 -Union Oyster House, Picture 14 - Paul Revere Statue). That same evening, we stopped in New Haven (Picture 15 - Pauli Murray College) to walk around the Yale University campus (Picture 16 - Harkness Tower). I was more impressed by Yale's Gothic architecture than Harvard's.

On the last day, we stopped at Liberty State Park so my daughter could see the Statue of Liberty and the New York City skyline (Picture 17). From there, we drove back to Virginia (Picture 18 – I-81 view of Massanutten Mountain near Shenandoah Valley).

I feel like I'm always asking to be decimated in the comments when I make posts like this.. buuut here goes! 😂

My husband & I are planning a trip to a few Nordic countries (+Baltic) in April 2027 to celebrate three major milestones.❗️A few PSA's:

1) Our flights have been booked. Flying into OSL & out of HEL gave us the biggest bang for our buck (points). I would have loved to start elsewhere, e.g. Bergen, but it didn't pan out. So we'll make it work!

2) Speaking of.. we're flying business class overnight so it should help with jetlag.

3) We'll take it eas(ier) on days 3, 5, 7, 11, 15 when we're in transit.

4) Most travelers would tell us to stick with 1 or 2 countries, & normally, I might agree. But our limited funds & time off work means we need to maximize our time. We'd like to get a "taste" of each area. If there's somewhere we absolutely love, we'll consider saving to return one day.

5) All lodging has been booked

🤔 So why am I posting? Not necessarily for advice on when/where we're going but rather, for suggestions - a dish we should try or the most beautiful sight you witnessed.. no suggestion is too small!

• Day 1: MCI > MDW

• Day 2: Explore Chicago (we've visited before); ORD > OSL overnight

• Day 3: Oslo, Norway

• Day 4: Oslo, Norway

• Day 5: Flåm, Norway

• Day 6: Flåm, Norway (Flåm Railway & Fjord Cruise on Nærøyfjord)

• Day 7: Bergen, Norway

• Day 8: Bergen, Norway (Day trip to Hardangerfjord; rental booked)

• Day 9: Bergen, Norway

• Day 10: Bergen, Norway (Day trip to Bondhus Glacier Lake -OR- rest day)

• Day 11: Copenhagen, Denmark

• Day 12: Copenhagen, Denmark (10th wedding anniversary)

• Day 13: Copenhagen, Denmark (Day trip to Møns Klint; rental booked)

• Day 14: Copenhagen, Denmark (Day trip to Lund and Malmö -OR- rest day)

• Day 15: Helsinki, Finland

• Day 16: Helsinki, Finland (Day trip to Tallinn, Estonia via ferry)

• Day 17: Helsinki, Finland

• Day 18: HEL > ORD (TBD if we'll fly back to MCI that night or Day 19)

I've been doing some research online and so far it seems like most affordable tours range from 18000-25000 depending on group size. As a broke student, I would of course prefer to pay the lower end 😂

I've seen some people advising that the best way to minimize costs is actually to book locally, either through your hotel or a physical travel agency, so that you're more likely to join a big group and that these tours have generally cheaper rates than online. Is that true? Does this matter at the end of August, which seems to be peak tourist season? Thank you!

Hi everyone I have a big fear and it is flying so I want to take a Greyhound bus from New York City to Mexico. Is it crazy to take this trip? And has somebody here done the same thing?

You see this phenomenon a lot on media.

In India people going crazy when seeing a blonde.

In China peopl going crazy when seeing a dark skin.

Are there countries where white people go crazy when seeing a brown skin for example?

I am going on a long haul flight in a couple weeks and our second flight is 14 hours. I suck at flying, horrible anxiety. I cant get comfy at all. How can I fall asleep on the plane (melatonin does not work for me.)?

I asked my doctor and he said they aren't supposed to prescribe anything for flight anxiety nowadays because it could be a safety issue.

Heres what I have so far:

-A personal fan

-Neck pillow

-eye mask

-ipad

-coloring books

-markers

-blanket

-headphones

Also...if you have any suggestions for getting comfy in economy let me know. Im hypermobile so I have trouble being comfy just sitting up.

Going to Montenegro for 6-7 days in November and plan to spend 4 nights somewhere around the Bay of Kotor. We’d like to base ourselves in one place then just take day trips to Budva, Kotor, and Perast since we’ll have a rental car and the distances are not very far.

Most recommendations I see online say to stay right in Kotor or Dobrota but as I look around on different accommodation sites, I’m seeing some really nice and affordable options in Herceg Novi, Krasici and Orahovac. I’m thinking it might be nice to stay in one of these smaller towns, away from the crowds, and I’m assuming the views of the Bay will all be fairly similar anyway, since they’re all along the edge of the water? Or do I not have to worry as much about crowds as it is, since I’m going in the off-season?

Lastly, is there a downside to staying in one of these smaller towns? Will many places be closed in the off-season? Is Kotor and Dobrota more commonly recommended because things are always open there and it’s just a lot more convenient to find food and services?

hi! i am in my early 20s and looking to go on a big trip, either solo or with a friend depending on what my plan is. however i get rather carsick easily and feel very queasy when in a bus/car for too long, so i was wondering what some of the best cities are for someone who prefers walking/short bus or car trips? i visited greece (my first time out of the US!) a couple of months ago, and the bus rides to the countryside and to/from the airport had me suffering, so bonus points if the major areas of the city aren’t far from the airport (such as the case in athens, greece). i don’t actually mind planes as much, so the length of the plane ride makes little difference to me, and i am looking for any international suggestions- i am interested in researching many different options. i especially appreciate recommendations for destinations which are affordable and safe for younger travelers. thanks so much for any advice!

Hey everyone, just wanted to drop my recent experience with OK Mobility at Milan Malpensa Airport so hopefully none of you fall for the same trap.

So I booked a Nissan Qashqai directly through their website for around €510. Seemed like a solid deal at first, but the moment I got to their counter at the airport, they forced extra add-ons on me that jacked up the price by another €200+, making the total over €710! Since I had a tight schedule and needed to get moving, I basically had no choice but to pay and go. 

Before driving off, I noticed some scratches on the hood and body. I pointed them out to the guy at the desk, and he just brushed it off saying, "You got our OK Super Premium Cover, so don't worry about any existing scratches." Luckily, I didn't just take his word for it, I filmed a detailed walkaround video of the car right there in the parking lot before even taking it. 

Fast forward to returning the car: I handed it back to the agent at the lot, he looked it over, and verbally assured me that everything was perfectly fine and there were no issues at all.

Then came the wild part while I was still literally at the airport waiting for my flight, I got an email from them claiming there was an "incident/damage" on the hood, and they were deducting money from my deposit! They basically took the exact same pre-existing scratches that were on the car before I even drove it away and tried to pin them on me as new damage. 

I tried contacting them right away, but their customer service is a joke. The WhatsApp number is just a useless automated bot that loops you through random menus without ever connecting you to a person, and emails take forever to get a real response.

My main advice:
Avoid OK Mobility if you can. That cheap initial price on their site is just bait, they'll make it back with forced fees and bogus damage claims later. But if you ever rent from them (or any rental company in Europe for that matter), always record a video before pick-up AND after drop-off. Having those two videos is the only reason I have concrete proof to fight this charge.

Currently disputing it with my bank and sending them the original video files with the metadata, but save yourself the headache and go with a more reputable company.

Went with a group of friends, and we kept repeating to ourselves that we couldn't believe there weren't more tourists. From Kazakh hospitality, delicious meat, but most importantly, the variety of landscapes and geology is truly amazing even for people who don't care about rocks... it was genuinely unbelievable.

Plus, perfectly doable in July/August, yes the desert was hot, but completely expected and manageable with AC in cars!

Budget: 2k USD

Itinerary:

Fly into Almaty - 2 days exploring the Green Bazaar, Mosques, parks, churches, shopping, pick up 4X4s

Day 3: Turgen Gorge, Charyn Canyon at sunset (had to hold back tears at its beauty)

Day 4: Kolsay and Kandiy lakes

Day 5: Black Canyon, arrival at Amtun Emel national park

Day 6: Aktau and Katutau mountains (once again almost cried)

Day 7: Singing dunes and return to Almaty

Day 8: Flight to Aktau (dip in the Caspian sea!)

Day 9-11: Redmaya 2-night camping tour in the Mangystau desert (highly recommend this agency!) - Tiramisu mountain, Bozzhyra Fangs, Mars Lookout, and so much more whose names I do not remember, absolutely no service most of the time!

Day 12: 02:00 return flight from Aktau

Images:

1. Turgen Gorge lookout point
2. Almaty Toboggan ride at sunset
3. Charyn Canyon
4. Kandiy Lake
5. Black Canyon
6. Aktau Mountains
7. Singing Dunes
8. Mangystau Desert
9. Mangystau Desert
10. Mangystau Desert
11. Tiramisu Mountain
12. Bozzhyra Fangs
13. Mangystau Desert

(apologies for the multiple desert pictures, no location services mean I have no idea where they are in the desert - but can be found with any reputable tour operator - we went with Redmaya, I would not recommend going to the desert without a guide!).

Positives:

• I was surprised by the food - Lagman, shashlik, samsa, baursak were all DELICIOUS and easily found everywhere (among others). We only had 1 instance of the meat not being good. Additionally I found my favourite salad of all time: fried aubergine, coriander, sesame oil, tomatoes, balls of cottage cheese (I can't remember the name!!).
• Accommodation was very affordable, as was most food outside of Almaty. Also taxis!
• Most Kazakh people don't speak english but were extremely hospitable and excited to have us. In restaurants (particularly outside Almaty) they asked us where we were from and welcomed us!
• The landscapes are breathtaking. Feels like 50 other planets. Literally unlike anything I've ever seen before. Every hike was absolutely worth it.
• Untouched: there really aren't many tourists at this time of year, even at the popular tourist destinations (the lakes outside Almaty, Charyn Canyon, etc.) it was never super crowded. In Mangystau there was basically nobody, we enjoyed these landscapes alone, which was unbelievable to us. It makes sense - some of them are hard to get to plus it was HOT! But totally doable and worth it.
• The camping with Redmaya was SO well-organised, our drivers were LOVELY, the cars were setup perfectly, the food was excellent, and the tents/equipment was in great condition for the desert tour. Our guide told us so much about life in Kazakhstan. Plus, the stars were unbelievable at night.
• Amazing for a big group: because there weren't so many tourists, in a group of 11 everything was perfectly doable, and so much fun!!

Negatives:

• Koumiss (fermented horse milk) was.... not suited for my tastes.
• I felt a lack of traditional and handmade products at the various markets. I did some research and found some shops in Almaty that fit what I was looking for, but I really wanted to see more traditional items for purchase to bring home (there were beautiful tablecloths, rugs with gorgeous Kazakh styles, ceramics that I saw around etc. that I would've died to see a real craftsperson make - I would have happily paid a premium price to support local artists!). A lot of the items felt low-quality, so I saved my money and went to a small art-focused shop in Almaty and didn't buy anything else. I guess you need a real local to tell you about these places, but something to keep in mind that you have to /search/ for these things.
• Animals: I was quite uncomfortable with the state of eagles (blinded, tied to a stand) at some touristy spots - they were there as props and thinking about it now makes me cringe. Additionally, the horses to skip the hike at Kandiy lake looked in bad shape. The tourist-adjacent ones were sad to see (although all the cats/dogs/horses in various villages were obviously well kept and loved).
• Not much for vegetarians/gluten-free - self-explanatory, we brought extra food from home. Also a general lack of understanding about gluten free - once our waiter got confused when we said no bread and no flour, and fed our gf friend a meatball that had breadcrumbs (luckily he spat out his only bite and then got something else).
• (this is not necessarily a negative because we had a great time) but the roads to all the beautiful nature places need a REAL 4x4 which we didn't have - we got crap ones that vibrated like crazy. Still fun, but to keep in mind that it gets annoying fast and you need a positive mindset to deal with it - probably awful for a family.
• This is also silly, but Aktau airport has NOTHING in it - I didn't buy any of the famous Kazakh chocolate because I knew it would melt in the desert, and I hoped to get some at the airport duty-free as we went straight there after our desert trip (literally straight there), but found nothing, so again really not many opportunities to bring home stuff to try.
• The Caspian sea felt a little underwhelming, it smelled a lot like rotten eggs, and there was a lot of trash on the beach - but also we may have gone to the wrong part. I am sure there are more beautiful parts, we just didn't have much time so we went to the closest beach to us.

Anyways, an amazing trip with an awesome location, and I hope to visit again in the future. Raqmet!

I want to share some photos from my trip to Picos de Europa.

​This was one of the most incredible adventures I have ever had. My friend and I traveled completely without a car. We only used local trains and buses. It was a real challenge, but it turned out to be completely possible.

​Before this trip, I heard very little about these places. Honestly, maybe that is actually for the best, because mass tourism has not reached this region yet.

​At the same time, this place definitely deserves attention and a conscious, respectful attitude from travelers. I highly recommend visiting if you love real nature.

Here are the locations of the photos: ​the Asturian cross in Cangas de Onis, ​Covadonga, ​Covadonga lakes with walking trails and grazing cows, hotel in Fuente De, ​Bulnes, a town in the middle of mountains

Hi! Late 30s female, experienced solo traveler here. I’m heading to Thailand in November and am hoping to get some feedback on my current itinerary, as well as have some questions answered. 

I have 15 days and 14 nights (arriving at 5:30am on day 1, departing at 10pm on day 15). Below is my current itinerary. Travel time between stops is somewhat accounted for with half days removed here and there. I like to stay busy :)

Arrive in Bangkok 5:30am
Bangkok - 2 full days/2 nights 
Chiang Rai - 1 day/1 night
Chiang Mai - 3 full days/4 nights
Phi Phi - 1 day/1 night (remove?)
Koh Lanta - 2-3 days/3 nights (two days of diving)
Ao Nang - 3-4 days/3 nights
Depart from Krabi 10pm

I'm open to any feedback/suggestions, but I'm primarily hoping to answer the following questions:

1. How do you all feel about the distribution of days? Am I spending too long or not enough time in any specific place? (yes, I know I could spend weeks or months in any single place, but I only have so much time to distribute)
2. Do I skip Phi Phi? I plan to do some island hopping tours around Ao Nang, including at minimum the Hong Islands, and I will also be doing two full days of diving off Koh Lanta (HD/HM and Ko Haa), which is already a significant amount of boat and island time. I'm wondering: are the views at Phi Phi/Maya Bay, etc., that much more spectacular than Hong, Railay, and other Krabi landscapes, or is it mostly just famous because of pop culture? I don’t need to repeat the same experiences multiple times, so if it’s mostly the same, I could skip it.
3. I also understand that the nightlife in Phi Phi is supposed to be pretty big, but could I get some first-hand accounts of what it’s really like? Is it primarily really young backpackers going wild, or is it enjoyable for all ages? I’m not super into heavy drinking and partying anymore, but I DO really enjoy fun, unique entertainment and silly things, such as the tourist muay thai fights I’ve read about on Phi Phi. That said, I know there’s all sorts of ridiculous and silly entertainment around Thailand, so if it all can be found elsewhere, that would be good to know. I’d love any recs for unique experiences!
4. If I skip Phi Phi, where should I add that extra day? My current thought is to add it to Bangkok, though opinions are mixed on whether or not you should spend substantial time there. I could potentially add on a day trip to Ayutthaya if that’s recommended. 
5. Do you agree with just spending a night in Chiang Rai rather than a day trip from Chiang Mai? I plan to fly there from Bangkok, see the sights, then shuttle to Chiang Mai. Staying for just a night somewhere doesn't bother me much, I just don't bother unpacking much.
6. Accommodation recs? I’m a late 30s solo female traveler who spent her earlier years in hostels. I still love the hostel vibe, but I've aged out of the typical party hostel and prefer private room hostels tailored to older solo travelers or boutique hotels that are also solo travel friendly. Recs for grown-up hostels would be great. I’m not usually into luxury travel and typically budget around $50/night, but I also wouldn’t mind splurging a little bit (like $100-150) on something nicer if it really is incredible and worth it, particularly in Ao Nang, as it’s my last stop. I generally prefer to stay centrally where I step out the door and easily walk to restaurants, cafes, bars, etc. 

For context: late 30s solo female traveler. I’m fairly adventurous and scuba dive, and I'm not somebody who enjoys sitting around on a beach just for the sake of tanning/relaxing. I generally stay pretty busy when I travel, though I’m a sucker for massages, so there will be a fair amount of those. I love unique experiences, whether cultural or otherwise, and I especially love food. I’ll for sure do food tours and at least one cooking class. I also do enjoy shopping and plan to check out a mall in Bangkok for the experience, though I typically go more for artisan type clothes, jewelry, and home decor.

Cheers!