Best Vacation EVAH!?

I enjoyed my trip to Israel. It was in January and still enjoyable. It would be even better in March. In the south, you can go to a Bedouin tent and get some great food, music, coffee, and ride a camel or donkey. There are also many other things to do and see, like the Dead Sea Spa, Eilat, Ein Gedi, and of course Jerusalem and all the other holy cities.

New Zealand! For trips <3-4 weeks, pick one island and have fun. Longer trips demand extensive exploration. And there's hostels and a good bus network for backpackers (though you can't get off the beaten path very easily). I did a combo of backpacking then renting a car and staying in B&Bs a few weeks ago. I went kayaking, horseback riding, tramping, swimming snorkeling diving, birdwatching and all sorts. There's always tons of activities to choose from no matter where you are, and lots of caves and cliffs and forest and sea to explore. In the past I've gone hangliding, parasailing, jet boating, white water rafting, and tons more.

Plus their tourism is collectively stellar. http://www.tourism.net.nz/ is one of many sites to help us spend money there

It's not an exotic place, but Arizona (Phoenix/Scottsdale) is a wonderful place to visit for 10 days. I was there for two weeks, and I just about moved there (in fact, Phoenix and Albuquerque are the two places my SO and I are talking about moving to next year). The weather is amazing in March, there are many things to see and do, and you don't have to deal with traffic or bad weather (the loop highways eliminate traffic, and it rains 6 weeks a year there).

CaroGirl said:

Thanks to both of you! I haven't been to Israel or to NZ. We have 10 days and are in Canada, so I think NZ might a bit far to go. Some day!

Anyone else have a great vacation destination to share?

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i'm still on a high from getting back from there 2 weeks ago, but i'd say Kenya. safari and beach. culturally rich and educational...trip of a lifetime.

but you're probably thinking of something more touristy? something relaxing?

LAMU, KENYA:



did i mention safari? elephants? giraffes? zebras?

oh...and cool museums.

and mountains.

might be an expensive plane ticket...but it's sinfully cheap when you're there.

Yeah, you can't do NZ in 10 days, especially since it takes over 24 hours to travel there.

Yellowstone and neighboring parklands? Something further south and really warm? Avoid the Eastern Caribbean in general. Some of those islands have scary crime.

i'm going to be in cozumel in march. they have some cool tours on the island we're going to try out. 4 wheeling...ruins, etc. 7 days. relatively inexpensive...and all inclusive outside of the excursions we're planning. but i've never been...so i can't tell you ahead of time how good it is. sigh.

If I had a work bonus and ten days to play in March...

I'd probably stay in Canada. Banff, Whistler, Quebec City--any one of those would do.

(A work mate of mine loves to go to Cuba, and it's not all that expensive, if you're looking for someplace that's warmer than Canada.)

KTC said:

i'm going to be in cozumel in march. they have some cool tours on the island we're going to try out. 4 wheeling...ruins, etc. 7 days. relatively inexpensive...and all inclusive outside of the excursions we're planning. but i've never been...so i can't tell you ahead of time how good it is. sigh.

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Chichen Itza is awesome. And if you're there on March 20th this year, you can watch the giant serpent god crawl down the side of the pyramid.

Marrakesh - my favourite holiday destination. It's Teh Awesome! It's also cheap, and not shut at all ( though things are slower during Ramadan, won't be a problem in March) In fact March is one of the best times to go, because it's not so overpoweringly hot ( about 70f), though there are occasional rain showers.

I'm going back again this year ( for free too! Whoop!). I can recommend a couple of really fantastic hotels. This is where we stayed last time - it is fabulous, small, great food, reasonable rates and the owner is uber, uber helpful.

Chichen Itza (and Mexico in general) is great and it's pretty close to Canada.

Personally, however, I highly recommend Peru. It's INCREDIBLY cheap once you're there and a beautiful country. Oh, and the food is the best I've ever had (and I've lived in Uruguay, Canada, Guatemala, India, UK and been to Mexico, Sri Lanka, Nepal, France and Germany - that's a lot of good food to try...). If you book now, you should be able to go to Machu Pichu which is an unforgetable experience. Count 3-4 days in Cuzco - Machu Pichu to visit the ruins in the area (lots of them) and get used to the altitude before heading to Machu Pichu.
10 days is plenty to do Lima, Machu Pichu and Arequipa (with Puno and Lake Titicaca nearby too).
And did I mention how cheap everything is in Peru? And how good the food is? If you do go, my suggestion is not to stay in a hotel, eat out every meal and try the different restaurants and cantinas (trust me, the food will be much cheaper and delicious), especially helpful when you have kids. And in March the temperature is just right.

Egypt.

I really really enjoyed my time in paris. Being able to speak french was quite helpful.

CaroGirl said:

LOVE Paris and would definitely go back (my husband hasn't been there) but I hesitate to go in March. The weather's still pretty crappy then, isn't it?

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It is. I went in March last year only because of my graduation date [the UK/Ireland are also not so great in March].

Italy?

I'd say Costa Rica, for sure, but you'd have to look up whether March is rainy season. I can't remember.

Mexico is really nice. I've been to Oaxaca (umm, I went before all the civil unrest and fighting and stuff...but I think they've finished with that by now?) and it was amazing. Jungles and beaches and a really cool old city. Baja California is really cool also, and it's great weather year-round. The less touristy spots are good (like Ensenada and Loreto) but they also have the tourist resorty places like Cabo if you go for that kind of thing. Lots of empty beaches, sailing, sea kayaking, and exploring.

I've also heard that right now, what with the US economy in its death throes, it's very cheap (like cheaper than hotel+food expenses) to charter a captained sailboat around Florida and the Caribbean. They sail you around to different islands and cook for you and stuff. And it's not hurricane season!

I highly enjoyed the cruise my husband and I took in the French Polynesia. Being on a cruise ship affords a bit more flexibility (different foods and activities for everyone's taste), and lets you see more places.

I do not know what dates the cruise I went on would be available, but I do remember that there were sporatic dates (and a mixture of different destinations) available throughout the year.

To give you an idea of MY trip, since that's the only thing I can comment on specifically:

The cruise started in Tahiti, and lasted for 10 days. We started in Papeete, where I did a 4x4 expedition into the mountains and played in the waterfalls.

Then went to Huahine where we did the island tour, saw the Vanilla Plantations (Tahitian Vanilla is their biggest export, and the orchids are stunning), and played (literally got in the water and played) with the island's sacred blue-eyed eels. They're tame, and swim right up to you... and it's the only place in the world that has blue eyed eels!

Then we went to Rarotonga, which is actually in the Cook Islands and spent the day on Muri Beach.

Then we went to Raiatea and took a day-trip to Tahaa (which is, btw, the MOST GORGEOUS PLACE EVAH). We went drift snorkeling there, where the current pushes you through the coral reef. It was the best snorkeling I have ever done in my life, and we go someplace EVERY year. The highlight was then watching the sun set over Bora Bora in the distance.

From there we went to Bora Bora for two days, and went scuba diving, then stopped off in Moorea for a day and did I THINK the ancient ruins? I know we did that somewhere but I can't remember where....

And then finally ended up back in Tahiti. That day we went to the other side of the island and visited the black sand beaches, and Teahupo'o (pronounced Cho poo) which is one of the largest (and deadliest) surfing waves/locations in the world.*

*We did not surf!!! Haha

We used Princess Cruise Lines because of the dates/locations available at the time (we wanted to go specifically at the end of September). But there were other cruise ships available. Regent is another one that comes to mind.

Good luck picking a location!