As a travel agent, I get requests from potential clients, “I want to go somewhere, but I don’t know where.” My next question is always, “What do you like to do?”
Lots of people end up doing a beach vacation or a cruise because it is what everyone else is doing or what they have always done. Don’t get me wrong – beaches and cruises are how I spend many of my vacations, but sometimes, you just want to shake it up.
Nowadays, pretty much every activity offers an opportunity to explore a new city while doing something you know you enjoy. Here are a few examples:
Golfing
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| Moon Palace Golf Resort and Spa in Cancun, Mexico |
Caribbean – Several luxury all-inclusive resorts have partnership with golf clubs to offer golfing as part of your Caribbean getaway. This is a great fit for families with one or two golfers and one or two non-golfers. The non-golfers can enjoy the beach, the pool, and the spa while the golfers hit the links.
Ireland – Some of the large tour operators have begun offering Small Group Golf Tours to Ireland for around $2,000 person (land only). This new development makes it easier to book this type of travel. Historically, golfers would have had to find a pre-arranged group or made all the arrangement themselves.
Scuba Diving
Some of the all-inclusive resorts chains include dive trips in the all-inclusive rate. For example, Couples’ properties in Jamaica or Sandals’ properties offer at least one diver trip per day and beginner to advanced instruction.
Running
Destination Races – If you know you are interested in visiting a certain city, search online to see when the big races are. You get to accomplish your goal of competing in a race while having a mini-vacation in a new city.
5K at Sea – Royal Caribbean offers 5K events in ports on several of their cruises.
Special Interest Conventions
Most activities have conventions or big events. Food and Wine events occur all over the country all year round. You can read my post on the Great American Beer Fest here.. I know people who have attended scrapbooking, knitting, yoga, running, and gaming conventions.
Sports
Olympics – Some friends and I are planning a trip to the Olympics in the next 10 years. We are narrowing down our choices. We want to make sure the trip creates an opportunity to experience a part of the world while enjoying the sporting events.
Away Games for your favorite team - My husband and I spend at least one weekend every summer checking out a new MLB Stadium. It’s a great way to have a weekend exploring a new city while enjoying one of our favorite sports. After we finish the baseball stadiums, we will visit all the NFL stadiums. This year, our ballpark was Busch Stadium in St. Louis.
Whatever your activity, I can help create a terrific itinerary for you . For more information, email me at tripswithangie@gmail.com. Thanks!