Here it is, the end of 2015, and I have not made any progress towards by #60by50 goal (60 unique countries by the time I’m 50 years old.)
But, I did reach my goal of visiting all 50 States! Yay!
While I have significant progress towards the #60by50, I missed an entire year of international traveling. So, I have to buckle down and focus on making a dent in some international destinations for 2016. Remember, slow and steady wins the race. I have started my vision board list with this goal: visit 3 countries that I have not been to in 2016. That is the GOAL. I will not miss on this. Utter commitment.
Where do I start? I have my list of all the places I want to see, ranked in order. But now what?
Here’s what I did:
- Subscribe to e-newsletters/email lists:
– TravelZoo – offers weekly Top 20 travel deals
ProTip: Do Not subscribe to too many – you will be overwhelmed with information and cannot make a choice. Notice, I only listed one – the one I subscribed to – choose wisely. Most of these are FREE – some have premium options that require payment. Before you commit to paying, be sure you find the content valuable. Also, create a folder in your email, and send these emails there (use a filter,) so that your inbox isn’t cluttered.
- Follow these pages on Facebook (Instagram was not in my plan, yet.)
– An Airline – because they often post their deals on Facebook before you will get an email about it! Choose one (or two or three) that service your closest airport. I chose Air New Zealand, lucky break – read on!
– The Points Guy – he offers tips about how to maximize your airline miles, hotel points, etc. He often shares offers and travel deals as well.
ProTip: Do Not follow too many – unless you want your feed to be bogged down and then you get sidetracked, and then… oh, I don’t know what I am saying, there’s great deals on Facebook.
- Joined these groups on Facebook
– Just Get Out of Denver – in the likely event you don’t live where I do, there are usually other groups in your area – search Facebook for your city.
– Groups specific to my interests – I am not going to list these here, as some are private and some are about solo travel, which is not for everyone (and the subject of a future post.) If you like birdwatching and travel, there’s a group for that. If you like cruises, Disney, cooking, scuba diving, eco-adventures – there are groups out there for you to follow. You can be inspired in these groups, or find information on how to travel for your interests.
Now, I am being fed information about what I want to do – travel internationally. And, I did not have to spend hours on the internet, scouring “deal” sites, nor did I have to chance it with a travel agent. I am not against travel agents, if that’s what you want to do, cool – you do you. I like to research and plan my own travel, at my own pace. More on that later.
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