Galapagos?

Kind of hard to recommend places without a list of where you’ve been and where you want to go, though, no?

Being in the work two times better than yours (2 times 2 weeks per year I was thinking about Thailand – Cambodia 2 week itinerary.

Have you been anywhere in Canada yet? I find I have traveled a bit overseas but not seen any of my own country. So I am taking a 3 week road trip out East to Nova Scotia and Newfoundland in a few weeks. Not sure what part of Canada you are from but something to think about.

When I get back into the working world and I get my two weeks a year I think I would do these trips as my first four: Norway/Sweden, Vietnam/Cambodia, Nepal/Tibet, Alaska/B.C. (maybe not in that order)

I’m also really looking forward to going back to Scotland where you could easily spend two weeks…..

Where were you thinking of going?

Have you been to Cosa Rica? If you’re looking for a cheap place with plenty of nice beaches/surf, Costa Rica is a good place to go in the Western Hemisphere.

In order for us to narrow it down a bit, think about these few things:

Do you like beaches or mountains?
Are you indoorsie or outdorsie? (culture vs. nature)
Do you want to go local, Euro, or somewhat exotic?
And how big/small of a budget do you have?

Oh, I’ve been around this board for a while and I know none of you can really tell me where to go. It’s more that I need to feed my travel addiction so I was hoping to hear some of your wonderful stories for inspiration. I’ve got a long list of places I want to go, but most of them require more than 2 weeks.

EMTraveler, you’re so right… us Canadians are great at going overseas but not so great at learning our own country. Sadly I’ve seen precious little of it. As a Montrealer I’ve of course gone to most of the spots in Quebec and Ontario, and I’ve been out west a few times (Rockies, Banff, Vancouver, Whistler, etc.) but I’ve yet to go to the Maritimes so that’s a definate possibility for the near future.

Javman, Costa Rica is also a possibility. I was originally thinking this winter but I don’t want to go Christmas week, too touristy, and unfortunately that’s the only week I get. Maybe in the spring.

Basically I just want to feed my addiction like I said. Planning and daydreaming is half the fun anyway. I never plan out trips in detail but I do love to read up on locations and get excited.

segacs

You are so close to the east coast of our own beautiful country that you could use 1 of your weeks to do some touring there. I have done that trip twice from Northern Ontario and will probably just do Newfoundland next time. I’ve been there before but only to St. John’s and area but people tell me that is nothing compared to the "backwoods".

Jack

Well, it helps now that we know you want to travel in the winter. I like the idea of Thailand and Cambodia, where it’s hot year-round. Or what about Australia? It’s a big country but somehow I managed to see everything I really wanted to in two very busy weeks. You can definitely do Sydney, Uluru, and Cairns in that time, and I even managed to squeeze in Melbourne and the Great Ocean Road! What about South America? You can do something like Rio, Buenos Aires, and Iguassu Falls in that time, if you like beautiful cities, waterfalls, and beaches.

But I’d stay away from New Zealand for the time being. I really want to go there myself, but thanks to that choadslurper Peter Jackson, I can’t find winter (their summer) airfare for less than $2000, and that’s departing from LA! I refuse to pay that much money for a direct flight to a destination two hours closer than Sydney, which itself cost me ~$1400.

Northern Ireland would be one of my suggestions. Just spent 10 days there with my wife in April. We had a blast! (no pun intended) Seriously, we had heard so many stories about Northern Ireland being "not very safe", but it’s all hype as far as I’m concerned. Sure, I wouldn’t suggest going to Belfast or Derry during their marching season (I believe it’s July), but we felt as safe in Belfast & Derry as any other large european city. There are a lot fewer tourists; as it is only now becoming a major destination. They have very affordable accomodations, tons of sights/history & amazing scenery. We stayed in Derry, Bushmills & Belfast. We did day trips/drives from those locations (Glens of Antrim, Donegal, Giants Causeway, Carrick-a-Rede rope bridge, Malin Head, Glenshane Pass) the list goes on & on. We did a black taxi tour in Belfast, which was awesome. The only time we felt unsafe was on a Sunday afternoon/evening in Belfast when we were walking through a pedestrian area full of shops (which were closed) & there was a creepy guy hanging around, acting suspicious. We just turned around & walked the other way, but that has happened in just about every major european city I’ve been to. My wife who didn’t really want to go on this vacation, because of all she’d heard; ended up having the time of her life. We’re hoping to return someday soon.

I think two weeks would have been perfect for Morocco. Traveling around the country is pretty quick and easy, so it’s not hard to see a lot in a short time. The four main cities, Marrakech, Fes, Rabat and Casablanca each have a distinctive style and atmosphere. Marrakech was my favorite of the four. It’s the one with a really magical feel. You can wander for hours through winding streets surrounded by walls that block out noise from only a few feet away. The market has the best shopping in all of Morocco, with tons of beautiful leather slippers, filigree lamps and cool antiques like cameras. Hotel Ali (really a hostel), just off the main square, can arrange 3- and 4-day excursions into the Sahara desert all the way out to the sand dunes. Fes was my least favorite, though it’s high on a lot of other travellers’ lists. Its sights are similar to Marrakech’s, but with more chaos and grime. Casablanca gets poor reviews from most travelers, but I really loved it. The faded elegance and the combination of Muslim and French architecture sucked me in. The mosque there is probably the most impressive building I’ve ever been in and it gives you a real sense of the history and religion of Morocco. Rabat was a pleasant surprise for me. I particularly liked that it wasn’t very touristed. It was neat to be in a place where the locals seemed to enjoy the attractions as much as the tourist crowd. You can walk along the ramparts of the old kasbah (fortress) for a beautiful view of the coastline and the shining white city of Sale. The market there is much smaller and less colorful than those in Marrakech and Fes, but the prices are the least expensive in Morocco.

I would have loved to get out into the country side more. What little I saw from the bus was green and covered with wildflowers — not at all what I expected! I heard great things about the mountains and the Dades Gorge.

It’s also a very safe and friendly place to travel. Although just about every guy I passed felt obliged to declare his love, I didn’t experience the hassle that I was expecting. The guides were surprisingly low-key too. Most disappeared when I pretended not to speak English; all but one left me alone when I threatened to go to the police. The remaining persistant one backed off when I turned around and swore a lot. As a woman traveling by myself, I did prefer to go out with guys at night, but I never felt threatened, even after dark.

On a short trip, I like going to places very different from home — it makes me feel fulfilled even when I haven’t been traveling for very long. Morocco was perfect for that because it’s a different culture, but it’s not so hard to navigate that you feel like you need 2 weeks just to get your bearings.

quote:

But I’d stay away from New Zealand for the time being. I really want to go there myself, but thanks to that choadslurper Peter Jackson, I can’t find winter (their summer) airfare for less than $2000, and that’s departing from LA! I refuse to pay that much money for a direct flight to a destination two hours closer than Sydney, which itself cost me ~$1400.

That’s surprising, keep looking around I am sure you can find something for cheaper then $2000. Try around November if you can, the weather is still pretty good and it’s not quite touristy season yet, you may be able to find some good deals.

A few clarifications:

My vacation time is (sadly) limited to Christmas week and two weeks in the summer. Due to the high airfares, crowded vacation spots, and general need to wind down, I don’t really intend on going anywhere at Christmas this year. Which leaves me two weeks sometime in the summer to travel (dates are flexible as long as I clear them with my company in advance).

Jack, Maritimes is a definite possibility.

Homeskillet, Australia/NZ is a trip I absolutely must do… but I want to wait till I can swing more vacation time at once, and go and do the trip right. It might be another couple of years till I can get there, which will hopefully give prices a chance to normalize.

Espo, I’ve been to Dublin and Western Ireland but never to Northern Ireland. If I can get there I would love to. I’m not really prone to believing nonsense about it being "unsafe" (a lot of people asked me that when I just went to Israel, and I looked at them a little funny… the buses were perfectly safe… the cab drivers on the other hand…)

Meredith, paradoxically I’d feel less safe in a Muslim country like Morocco at the moment, being Jewish and having travelled to Israel recently. That’s just me. I know you loved Morocco and from what I’ve seen and heard it’s a beautiful country. Maybe someday…

How about Japan, or Hong Kong, China, Taiwan, Macao, or Singapore?
I admit I’d be a bit reluctant to try China without a tour, though.

Try Australia. Two weeks is perfect, 1 week for sightseeing, 1 week for laying back and relaxing. (though if you live on the east coast Australia may be a VERY long flight, its manageable though if you route through LA)

Yep, Australia is definately on my list. I’m waiting till I have more time though. I do live on the "east coast" (well, Montreal) and you’re right, it’s an insanely long flight. Once I’m flying that far I might as well fly a little further and go to NZ as well. So I’m hoping to put together at least 6 weeks of vacation time and do it right.

Croatia! It is my new favorite country! I rarely go back to the same country two years in a row but my boyfriend and I are seriously considering going to Croatia again next year. It is beautiful, the people are friendly, the food is great, the beer is cold, the wine is good, transportation is excellent… I could go on and on but if you search for Croatia you will see my recent posts and also posts from Kahunna. Both of our posts include links to photos.

Cheers!

I really want to visit a country in East Asia some day. How about samlping a country in this part of the world, if you haven’t done it yet? (assuming you can afford it right now.) Although, I don’t know if I would visit Japan/Korea/northern China in the middle of December. It’s probably the same as Canada and the northern USA. How about tropical Thailand? Or southern China + Hong Kong?

Forget all these suckas, go to Alaska. I can’t think of a better place in the entire world to spend two weeks in the summer, and that is why I live here.

How about the lake Baikal area in Russia?