Bassinet List: Once-In-A-Lifetime Trip

[gathermewool]

My wife has dealt with my hectic schedule this past year incredibly dutifully. Before we start our family, she has what she called her "bucket list" of things to do before she gets preggers. After some discussion, we figured "bassinet list" was more appropriate hahah.

Anyway, our short list of places to go, is:

Hawaii

New Zealand

Australia

We spent part of our honeymoon (and I've previous been to and enjoyed) the Mediterranean, including the islands off Greece (Santorini and Mykonos are amazing, if you haven't been!).

Friends have been to islands closer to home and been very, very happy, as well. I have no desire to go back to Africa, and Mexico doesn't appeal to me. She has been to Vietnam and I've been to Singapore, so those aren't out of the question, but some where English-speaking and 1st-world would be nice.

I've enjoyed camping and hostels, but she hates bugs, heat and other non-niceties; however, she doesn't mind slumming it so long as there's an A/C involved.

What I'm looking for is a once-in-a-lifetime vacation. I'm hoping to do a good enough job to be able to start our family sooner than later

I've busted my [censored] and given up enough time this past year to afford, both financially and vacation-wise, to take a decent 2-3-week vacation anywhere in the world! HELP!

 

[Kuato]

Lots of ways to do it...it is 13 hours across the pond from the west coast, so NZ and Australia might be better combined, if you have the time. Since you can take3 weeks, you could do all 3, hitting HI on the way there, or on the way back.

I have been to Oz, spent 3 days in Sydney (with a native guide friend) then to the capitol, White Mountains (Thredbo) then to the West of the mts and Tumba Rumba, dog on a tucker box then back to Sydney. 10 days was far too short and another trip is in Order.

Depending on finances vs time (isn't that always the question). You could drive or fly to Ularu, or see the jungle/Darwin, and the Gold Coast. Oz is about the same size as the US but has far less people which are mostly concentrated in the SE part of the country. Perth and the west coast are beautiful and remote, almost like another country entirely, or so I've been told.

Any way you look at it, great vacation, great and friendly people and plenty to see and do.

 

[gathermewool]

Thanks, Kuato. Multiple destinations has been suggested, but 2-3 weeks is the max my schedule would allow. For once-in-a-life-time, finances can support, and vacation allowance can be worked around, but schedule demands require 2-3 max, which I hope will be enough for not only a once-in-a-life-time visit, but a once-in-a-life-time experience!

Our main goals, in order, are:

1. Food! Mmmm

2. Locale: beautiful scenery and experiences

3. People: We both love to meet new people, and experience new cultures.

I've had bad experiences in Africa and ok to great experiences while in-port in Europe. I've never heard any one say anything bad about the aforementioned state/continent/country. Not only that, but every one I've heard talk about Hawaii has said it was [censored] near magical! I've heard others say that Australia and NZ are also incredibly awesome places to visit!

 

[Kuato]

Ok, so 21 days max. Figure 1 day to get there from CT, and one day back. You will need a day to adjust either way (with light activity LOL) so that leaves 19 for play.

Food is what you make of it. Found plenty of good eats in Sydney, especially the shepherd's pie from a trailer on the waterfront....almost a legend and lived up to it. Seafood was great, and there were some exotic things I was scared to eat but with a little beer the resistance was overcome and they were delicious.

Beaches in Sydney were great, plenty of them, lots of little cantinas alongside. Too much to mention but plenty there. Went to Maroobra beach, nice beach and friendly folks. Cliffs and beaches to the south of Sydney were very striking to see; hiking trails run along the rim and I think down the cliffside.

Wish I could comment on NZ or HI, but haven't been there. Enjoy, and pics on BITOG or it didn't happen!

 

[expat]

Well Hawaii would (IMO) only meet #2 on your list.
And is likely not normally rated as a 'once in a lifetime' visit for an American.

My Money would take me to NZ or the South of France.

2-3 weeks is a trip, to me, 4 weeks 'feels' like a vacation.

 

[Azeem]

Spain would be my # 1 but it's not on your list, so OZ would be next.

 

[gathermewool]

My list is by no means exclusive. My vacation duration is based upon only being able to carry over 2 weeks of vaca and wanting to travel sooner than later in the new year. I can go a week in the hole, too, so immediately in the new year wouldn't be too soon.

We're also FULLY open to suggestions. We have a Portuguese friend who recommends Portugal (I'm a big fan of Tawny Port - i 10 yo, at least
!) and her Ecuadorian husband makes Ecuador sound like the greatest place on earth. Unfortunately, my Spanish AND my Spanith both suck.

That's not to say we couldn't learn enough to get by in the next few months!

 

[HTSS_TR]

Originally Posted By: expat
Well Hawaii would (IMO) only meet #2 on your list.
And is likely not normally rated as a 'once in a lifetime' visit for an American.

My Money would take me to NZ or the South of France.

2-3 weeks is a trip, to me, 4 weeks 'feels' like a vacation.

Maui and Big Island are very nice and very relaxing. When I go to either one I usually stay there for 2 weeks. The problem we Californian are facing is where to go for Vacation. Many people have vacation in California and we need to go away, and the two favorite locations are: Vegas and Hawaii.

I never been to Oahu/Honolulu so I don't know much about it, but I hear that Honolulu/Waikiki beach is very much like a zoo, too many tourist and Waikiki beach is too crowded all day long.

 

[Shannow]

We're going the other way mid next year. stopping Hawaii on way back for a couple of days to break the jet lag up and see something new...Hawaian airlines were half the cost of QANTAS at time of booking...a big thing with 4 of us...and mandatory stopover worked well.

If you fly Air New Zealand, they have a mandatory stop in NZ, so you can stay-over there on the way here or back...YMMV

Food is better in Melbourne than Sydney, if you can start there, I would.

Spend a couple of nights in Melbourne, do the Kultcha stuff, and nosh out at Lygon Street. Oz open tennis is on thrid week in January if that's your timing/desire...strawberries, cream, and champagne

Get a car, do the Great Ocean Road or part thereof.
http://wikitravel.org/en/Great_Ocean_Road

There's some national park stuff around the "grampians"
http://wikitravel.org/en/Grampians

Heading back to Melbourne, go through the Goldfields, Ballarat, Bendigo, and make sure that you do a day in Daylesford/Hepburn. Daylesford is extremeley picturesque, and has the best fish and chip shop anywhere (get the flake (shark)), and a few tasmanian scallops...Hepburn has mineral springs and day spas, and hiking trails through mineral water pumps that have different minerals (iron, sulfur, magnesium etc. etc.)

Sydney (less than 100 miles from here), you can do bridge climbs, toruisty stuff. I like the powerhouse museum and that sort of stuff.

Couple hours on a train, hour by car, and you can be in the blue Mountains.
http://wikitravel.org/en/Katoomba

I've never done gold coast, or the centre (FIL is heading to Uluru in his RV as I type.

My parents did the Ghan train trip, and broke it in the middle to do Uluru. They loved it.

Happy to field any questions.

 

[UNC151]

Originally Posted By: HTSS_TR
I never been to Oahu/Honolulu so I don't know much about it, but I hear that Honolulu/Waikiki beach is very much like a zoo, too many tourist and Waikiki beach is too crowded all day long.

We went to Oahu in 2012 and again in 2013 and the scene you describe for Waikiki is quite accurate. The first time we had a hotel in Honolulu, but we spent most/all of our time on the North Shore. In 2013, we rented a house on the North Shore and to date it was the best vacation that we have had. Being able to tour Pearl Harbor twice was more than a little awesome to me and the people are the friendliest I have ever met in any of the other 48 I have visited thus far (have not made it to Alaska yet).

With that said, (IMHO) Hawaii would not be a 4 week vacation because these are islands and there is a limit to what you can see/do unless laying out on the beach and the like is the majority of what you wish to do (not that this is a bad thing). Of course, there are plenty of tourist type things to do--diving, beaches, scenery, volcanoes, general sight-seeing, and the amazing water.

I have burned these images into my mind to last a lifetime (taken from my favorite spot at Laie Beach Park, Laie, HI):

 

[andrewg]

In my opinion....to take a 'once-in-a-lifetime' vacation where money isn't a big issue, the places you've noted are really rather common (no insult toward those places or you).
Why not pull out the stops and take a trip to Europe? I've always thought that portions of Italy are very beautiful and interesting. As mentioned by others I've heard that the southern regions of Spain are extremely nice (cheaper than Italy).
Hawaii is truly beautiful....no doubts about that. But 'once-in-a-lifetime'? New Zealand and Australia would be interesting (especially the landscapes) but being that the culture is very similar I wouldn't consider that a plus.
A TV show and extensive website exists out there that can help. Google 'Rick Steves'. He's on PBS very frequently and specializes in areas of Europe that I've always found particularly intriguing.

 

[gathermewool]

Thanks for all of the suggestions and comments, guys.

We're definitely open to the places that some of you have mentioned, thanks! Maybe I'm being a bit too biased based on my previous travel experiences (and relative lack of imagination?)

My wife hasn't traveled much (trips to Vietnam when she was younger and a med. cruise for our honeymoon are the furthest, most exotic she's gone to. She's a city girl, who doesn't mind getting sweaty or dirty, so long as there's a clean shower and comfortable accommodations waiting for her at the end of the day. We've camped and stayed in [censored] little cabins that she wasn't overly excited about, but eventually admitted to really enjoying.

I've been to Europe, Asia and Africa and had varying experiences. I didn't have a lot of time to explore Belgium, The Netherlands, England, and Germany, but still had fun and wouldn't mind going back some day. I spent a total of a couple of weeks in Athens, Crete, and Santorini Greece back in '05 and had a fantastic time - Santorini is one of my favorite places in the world! We traveled by ferry (man, those old women on the ferry from Athens to Crete had feet stinky enough to choke a donkey! I was with a friend who kept making strange noises while I slept on the floor. Annoyed, I sat up and was about to ask what the heck was the matter when the stank hit me in the face holes! The lesson here, I guess, is that stank is like smoke, and it's best to stay low to avoid it) and a tiny little Panda that felt like we had to wish up some of the hills in Crete!

I spent a couple of months in Africa about a decade ago, which would have been a better experience had I not been stuck working with some really scummy people. I ended up having to work a lot, leaving very little time to really explore Kenya and Mozambique. I was happy with the experience overall, but don't have any desire to go back. That's not to say that a vacation there wouldn't be much more enjoyable than a terrible work trip, but it's not even on my list (yep, the whole continent haha.)

I've also spent a couple of weeks in Puerto Rico, which was really great, but haven't been to any other Spanish (or Portuguese)-speaking country.

More recently, the wife and I went on a cruise for our honeymoon. I was so happy with my trip to Greece that I convinced her that a med. cruise that stopped in Greece was the way to go. We left from Italy and traveled to Turkey, Montenegro, a couple of Greek islands (Santorini and Mykonos - again, amazing!) and Athens, and Split Czech. We had a good time overall, but each port of call we found to be very hit or miss. If any one is interested, see the below digression for my cruise impressions.

A few more things: I guess we're really looking for a once-in-our-young-lives kind of experience, not necessarily our entire lives. We love to try new things (especially food!!!) and are more into exploring and adventuring during the day and relaxing and enjoying food and drinks at night. We're not into partying, but enjoying some night life would be fun, too.



Cruise:
A few of my coworkers and friends who have been on multiple cruises never had a bad thing to say about them, making any cruise seem like the time of any ones life. I usually like to wing it and explore on my own, but decided to go all out and buy a bunch of fun-sounding excursions. A couple were really nice and worth every single penny, but others were filled with old people who slowed the whole thing down and complained about the walking and number of steps (though these things were clearly written into the description of the excursion.) We had a couple of really good tour guides, but others were either incredibly boring or provided no actual value to the tour.

The food was just ok, with the food most nights being 3-4/5 stars IMO - definitely not as good as I was expecting, but nothing to complain about either. For all of the hype surrounding the all-night snack bars, it was disappointing to see that hot dogs and hamburgers were the most appealing selections. By far the worst part of the trip was the coffee. I couldn't believe how absolutely terrible it was! I've had plenty of cups of "cowboy" coffee that tasted better. We ended up spending additional money each day to grab a decent brew at the Starbucks.

 

[Silk]

Originally Posted By: gathermewool
she hates bugs, heat and other non-niceties; however, she doesn't mind slumming it so long as there's an A/C involved.


Not too many bugs in NZ, and nothing dangerous to run into. Not too hot, not too cold, and air conditioning is considered a bit sissy. Nice scenery in both islands, the North Island is more about beaches and native forest, the South Island mountains and lakes, although both islands have some of each. As mentioned we are a western culture, speak English and you will find a McDonalds in every town...I don't think there is a NZ cuisine. I think you'll find us different enough to be interesting.

Do the tourist thing, or get away on your own and find the real New Zealand. In a couple of days I'm heading down to Taranaki on my bike, on the main road I could do this in under 4 hrs, but I'll be taking all day, going into some remote areas and my bike will hardly see top gear the whole trip. Part of my route will be The Forgotten Highway.

http://www.newzealand.com/int/feature/forgotten-world-highway/