30 for 30

At the beginning of 2019, at 29, I took one of those silly little quizzes that pop up on Facebook. A friend had posted about their goal to visit 30 countries by the age of 30 and as a travel junkie I thought I’d easily be there. The quiz results surprised me. 22.

I was shocked. I go abroad multiple times every year but with family in Spain and the US and a holiday home in Turkey my trips had often expanded new experiences and adventures in the same countries. Not to mention some of the locations that I had classed as countries in my mind but are not officially independent countries in their own right, such as Grand Cayman, Gran Canaria and Hong Kong. This was a wake up call and a challenge I couldn’t let defeat me.

I already had a pretty big trip planned for April, road tripping across the states with my cousins from California to Florida. We were going to dip in to Mexico which I’d never visited before so that would be one new country but it wouldn’t leave a big budget or time to take out of my business to cram in another seven countries.

Luckily I thrive on finding a bargain and am a firm believer in affordable travel. I’ve flown to Rome and Milan for £1 on Ryanair. I’ve stayed in a hostel in Malaga for £7 a night, including breakfast and dinner. I’ve had a completely free all inclusive holiday to Turkey on the back of an estate agent when house hunting. I wasn’t phased by the challenge I’d set myself; the only thing that phased me was the idea of reaching 30 and not having seen more of the world. If I want to call myself a traveller I have to prove that title.

Ryanair January sales were the starting point. Scanning down the list to the first country I hadn’t visited before gave me the cheapest option. Simple as that, I was going to Copenhagen, Denmark, for £20 return. We’d been chatting with some friends about a mini break so I sent the details over and my husband and our couple friends were all roped in. A quick google maps view showed me how close Copenhagen was to Sweden and for an half hour train ride there was my second country all on one £20 flight!

Me and the husband always take a trip for our wedding anniversary so rather than go somewhere new in a country we’ve already visited we picked Germany this year. So close but neither of us had made it there so far (well, I apparently stopped for a few hours on my coach trip to Austria when I was 7 but I don’t remember at all so it only counts if I have photographic evidence and can remember the country!). Berlin was beautiful and we treated ourselves to the Radisson as it was our anniversary and the balcony overlooking Berlin Cathedral was breath taking.

Then our three week road trip ticked off Mexico with a day trip across the border to Ciudad Juarez. It was really fun to make use of my Spanish in a Latin American country and I helped ease my cousin’s nerves about the sketchy border crossing from the states by being able to ask questions to make sure we were processing our visas correctly. The danger of the city couldn’t penetrate my heart, it felt like home.

Summer is always my busiest time at work and I couldn’t take time out after my three weeks away in April so it got to September and I still had 4 countries to tick off if I was going to make 30 for 30. The pressure was on if I wanted to catch up by my 30th birthday in January.

People often think travel has to be lengthy as well as costly. Time off work, days wasted just getting to and from your destination. When you’re in Europe that’s never true and even more so if you haven’t made time to visit some of your closest neighbours. I’ve visited five continents but never made time to see some of Northern Ireland, always thinking it was so close I’d get to it at some point. Flights from Edinburgh are frequent and this made it easily possible to get up early and fly back all in the same day. I learnt about the ‘bog men’ and discovered Dublin has the best bacon sarnie I’ve ever had. Return flights £26.

Mum likes to take a trip together when we can and loves Spain as we’ve lived there before. Similarly to my predicament with Ireland though, neither of us had made it across to Portugal yet, always assuming we’d fit it in at some point as it was so close. So this time we flew to Faro and checked out the Algarve. The language similarities and differences were fascinating and the culture seemed to mix Spain and Turkey (although our Turkish interpretations could well have been the Moroccan trade influences as the haggling culture and lifestyle has a lot of similarities here too).

Having exhausted all my travelling companions I decided to end my epic journey as a solo traveller. I’d never done a full international trip on my own and wanted to experience the true backpacker, nomad essence. Back on Ryanair sales this time I swiped down the menu until I saw Tallinn, Estonia. The Christmas markets are iconic and I’d seen photos of the beautiful town square before so was instantly smitten as there were still cheap flights in November once the markets had started.

Only down £47.50 for return flights (see how I did this entire trip, EVERYTHING, for only £250 on my previous post) I still needed to tick off country number 30! Looking on a map showed me the ferry routes to Finland seemed extensive and a boat could carry me to my final country without the need for another plane. I absolutely loved the freedom and serenity of travelling solo and was proud to end this part of my journey as a fearsome solo traveller.

As we welcome the 20's I am also saying goodbye to them. For my 30th year I am not letting time pass me by again and already have 5 new countries locked in for this year, as well as revisiting some I have already touched my feet down in previously. I have reawakened my passion for exploring new cultures, new countries, new continents; not just new cities. I intend to keep travel at my core for the ’20’s but am thankful to have so much to look back on already and am entering my 30's with excitement and renewed passion for travel. 

Here’s my 30 countries in chronological order for some inspiration. Of course, there have been many more explorations and adventures but this goal was about countries and I think that’s a pretty great one to mark a new decade:

1. England - born and bred, Jan 1990.

I grew up with Golden Retrievers constantly surrounding me as my aunt bred them for many years. They were my first loves in a very lengthy love affair with dogs. RIP Dusty & Gemma.

2. Spain - Feb 1990.

Me and Mum lived in Sitges, a picturesque town south of Barcelona, for the first couple of years of my life and then again when I was aged 10 - 12 years old.

3. USA - Feb 1994.

My first trip outside of my two places of residence; the dog obsession continues with Pluto.

4. Kenya - Apr 1995.

My only international trip with my Nan before she passed away. She spent many years in Mombasa and met my grandfather there, returning to spread his ashes with me and Mum.

5. Austria - Mar 1997.

My first 'proper' snow! I was a quiet child and this coach trip full of a majority of seniors was no problem to me, I felt right at home and was showered with attention by fellow guests.

6. France - Jan 1998.

OK, so technically our coach trip last year drove through France but this time we stopped somewhere other than the services. I woke up on my birthday to the best surprise a child can get, I was at Disney! Dog obsession continued: this time I have a 101 Dalmatians coat.

7. Egypt - Nov 1998.

Mum took me on a Nile Cruise. Back in this decade Egypt was a desperate nation and the haggling traders terrified me. Revisiting in 2018 I was amazed at how much safer I felt.

8. Andorra - Feb 2001.

Not a pro skier.

9. Turkey - May 2003.

Holidaying near Bodrum, becoming a gangly teenager. Years later this coastline turned in to my first property venture with Mum.

10. Wales - Oct 2003.

The Sun had started doing those holiday coupons and Mum couldn't resist a bargain!

11. Czech Republic - Mar 2008.

Sociology College trip to Prague. Lots of drinking with our teachers and we were all pretty sure the profs 'friend' who appeared one night was a prostitute.

12. Italy - Sep 2009.

Last family trip before me and my cousin started Uni. 

13. Vatican City - Sep 2009.

My mothers photography skills at their finest. A lot of my childhood photos include a thumb over the flash or a nice amount of blur, the good old days of using film cameras!

14. Iceland - Feb 2012.

The snowiest winter in years - loved it!

15. Netherlands - Mar 2012.

In true Amsterdam style this photo is the only memory I could find of this trip with friends?! My actual memories are a bit hazy too but we definitely had fun!

16. China - Oct 2012.

Stop over in Hong Kong on the way to Oz. The Tian Tan Buddha had some gorgeous panoramic views of the surrounding islands.

17. Australia - Oct 2012.

Classic tourists, scuba diving in the Great Barrier Reef.

18. Jamaica - Apr 2014.

Cheeky Caribbean cruise whilst out in Florida for a wedding. Yes that is a giant, freely swimming Nurse shark just plopped on our laps getting fed fish. Check out Dolphin Cove.

19. Scotland - Jan 2015

After deciding just months before our wedding that it would also be a good idea to move from the South Coast of England up past the border in to Scotland I went up for work interviews. By April we were married and completing on the mortgage for our new home in Scotland!

20. Morocco - Mar 2016.

Sat in the desert in a bamboo tent, making new friends over breakfast, cats and dogs cosying up, waiting for our hot air balloon to inflate; what a good day it was.

21. Japan - May 2016.

So hard to pick just one snapshot to encapsulate the totally different culture of Japan! Visiting my cousin, one of the many highlights was this ridiculously cute Bunny Cafe.

22. Poland - Mar 2017.

Lost Souls Alley in Krakow is THE scariest thing I have ever voluntarily paid to experience. I have never clung to complete strangers so hard and am actually proud of myself for not literally pooing myself. Despite this, I went away thinking everyone should try this!

23. Denmark - Feb 2019.

Copenhagen was right up my street. Everything from Top 50 restaurants to little dive bar games cafes. We tried it all and I still rate Geranium restaurant as my best fine dining experience to date whilst also enjoying the smoky little Jazz bar that took me back in time.

24. Sweden - Feb 2019.

We didn't even have to get off the train from Copenhagen to Malmo. Passport control came round to us in the comfort of our seats. Easy day trip if you want to combine two countries.

25. Germany - Mar 2019.

Charlottenburg Palace was worth coming out of the central area of Berlin. Dae Mon leads trends with a tea pairing on the menu as an alternative to wine pairings also - fantastic for the senses and my teetotal hubby.

26. Mexico - Apr 2019.

My cousins living in America were too scared of all the stories of Mexico's borders to come join us on this day trip but these guards were even friendly enough to let us take a selfie!

27. Northern Ireland - Sep 2019.

Dublin has plenty of classic tourist spots but their museums have some really different things to offer too. I loved learning about the Bog Men at the National Museum and seeing the perfectly preserved remains dating back to well over 2,000 years old - Ireland's own mummy!

28. Portugal - Nov 2019.

A lot of resorts around the Algarve can make it feel very 'Benidorm' but take a local bus in to the market towns and there's still plenty of charm and genuine culture on offer.

29. Estonia - Nov 2019.

Tallinn Old Town is an architectural dream and the Christmas market just pops the cherry on top of a ridiculously cute town square. Found out more in my previous post.

30. Finland - Nov 2019.

Helsinki ended this decade for me with a sense of achievement. Never let yourself stagnate too long, give yourself goals and challenges to keep adventure alive in your soul.

Happy Adventuring!