We commonly get asked about our favorite places around world. In today's video, we share 5 off-the-beaten-path places that we love. Each are different, but simply spectacular! Let us know your favorite destinations in the comments. Happy trails, John and Bev retirementtravelers.com/
As an aside that has nothing to do with "Bucket Lists"... I'm a retired motion picture Editor and Producer who worked in Hollywood for more than three decades. Your videos are very well shot and edited. As someone who is now in their early 60's, I can't tell you how much I appreciate the pacing of your editing. Nowadays, you can't watch a TV show, movie, commercial, or RU-vid video without being bombarded with absurdly frenetic editing. You guys are doing a great job!
Thank you so much. Bev has taught herself from scratch on learning FCPX and becoming a great editor. She is very creative and I am so proud of her. Thanks again for this compliment. It meant the world to her. John retirementtravelers.com/
Canadian bias here 😊 but hike Cape Breton trails, stay overnight in an igloo to see the Aurora Borealis from up North, wander the old town of Quebec City and stay overnight in the ice hotel and my personal fav to hike the rain forests in pacific rim national park. There is so much in Canada to explore, this just touches the surface.
Oh wow! Some great suggestions. We love Canada as well. We recently did the Rocky Mountaineer train ride to Banff and Jasper. We used to live on the Canadian border in New York and went to Quebec City a few times. We visited the Ice hotel at the Winter Carnival, but didn't stay there. Thanks again for sharing and hope you enjoy our channel. Safe travels, John and Bev retirementtravelers.com/
After watching one of your videos, my husband came to me and said that he wanted to really retire in two years. I say "really" because he supposedly retired from teaching 14 years ago, but some school always seems to convince him to return to the classroom. We are actually beginning the process of cleaning out and getting ready to sell our house. This time I believe him and have created a file for places to go and these 5 places will definitely be included in our plans.
My favorite destinations so far (26 countries and counting), in no particular order, Katmai National Park for the brown bears, Uganda for gorilla trekking, Galapagos, Paris (so many great museums), and scuba diving in Indonesia. And like you guys, we LOVE the USA National Parks!
When at university, as soon as exams were over, my friends and I would hop on a bus to the Kineret (sea of galilee). We would stay in a hostel in Taveria. It is still my most favorite place in the whole world. Bonus for John- there's a really fun marathon around the sea!
Hiking the Kumano Kodo in Japan -- the ancient pilgrimage trail located on the Kii peninsula south of Osaka. It is one of only two pilgrimage routes that is registered as UNESCO world heritage (the other is the Camino de Santiago/Way of St. James). We were fortunate to hike it this past spring, and it was an unforgettable experience of Japanese spirituality, ancient traditions, nature, hospitality, and cuisine!
That sounds so cool. We will be heading to Osaka area next year and again for the World Expo in 2025. Thanks so much for this information. Love it. Safe travels, John and Bev retirementtravelers.com/
🤣 That's funny. You put a smile on our faces. Hope you can follow along on our journey and perhaps our paths will cross someday. Safe travels, John and Bev retirementtravelers.com/
I’ve been to Lake Atitlan several times with a friend who is a missionary to Guatemala. I was thrilled to see you’ve been there - it’s certainly isn’t a mainstream tourist destination.
It is one of our favorite places. Glad you got to go there a number of times. Safe travels and hope you enjoy our channel. John and Bev retirementtravelers.com/
it was such a BLESSING TO HAVE YOU ON MY FLIGHT!!!! I hope that you enjoyed you FAMILY VACATION!!! THANK YOU. THANK YOU THANK YOU!!! Your SWA FLIGHT ATTENDANT ❤️🩷💕
It was so wonderful to meet you. We had a wonderful family vacation. Thanks for making our flight special. Many blessings and safe travels, John and Bev retirementtravelers.com/
My wife and I have the Faroe Islands on our list. On our recent trip to Alaska, a couple that we met from England said it was like Iceland but not nearly as touristy. The other places sound great too, I guess our list will keep growing.
Wow! Just Wow! As for our favorite, I think the hike from Wengen to Grindelwald in the Swiss alps is amazing. Not as exotic as some, but accessible to many. The Dolomites in Italy are also beautiful places to hike. Both were done in early September.
Antarctica should be on everyone's bucket list. It's magical in it's stunning scenery. You can get up close encounters with wildlife in their natural habitat.
Have you rafted down the Colorado River? If not, you may want to put this adventure on your list! I've had to good fortune to travel a bit, and when I think of all the places I've been, and all the experiences I've had, traveling this river is an experience I will never, ever forget. We took the 8 night journey. Camping, hiking, meeting new friends, learning, and riding thrilling rapids. It's just a magical experience. Thanks for the great video, I'm really inspired by your content⭐
Not yet, but we had some friends do it and they loved it. The more we do the bigger our bucket list keeps getting. 🤣 Thanks for the suggestion and follow along on our journey. Safe travels, John and Bev retirementtravelers.com/
Excellent video. I enjoyed the length of the video, and the way you communicated the information. I can tell that a great deal of work went into producing it! Thank you.
The places I visited and would like to visit again are Gaoxiung in Taiwan, El Calafate in Patagonia, Palau, Berlin, and like yours, lake Atitilan. I have been to Iceland and Norway, so Faroe island is not on my list, I also went diving in Palau so the Indonesian city is not that attractive to me. And I had bad experiences in those Greek islands, and don’t think I’ll go back to any one of them. But I definitely will go back to lake Atitilan. That area is so enchanting and I went back twice already. I love Taiwan where you can go climb a mountain in the morning and go to the beach in the afternoon, everything is so convenient there. Patagonia is so beautiful and vast, I’d like to go camping again. Berlin is the big city that I like the most, just because it has so many museums and beautiful parks, rivers.
Thanks for the additions and wonderful insights from your travels. We are so excited to visit Taiwan again next year. Thanks for following along with us. Safe travels, John and Bev retirementtravelers.com/
Angkor Wat and Siem Reap. My hubby wasn’t keen on the idea until we got there. For a little closer to home, I went to Golden BC this year. Also lovely. Africa is on my list for next year. Don’t know which country.
We loved Angkor Wat and Siem Reap. We will be heading to Cape Town next year and look forward to our first trip to South Africa. Safe travels, John and Bev retirementtravelers.com/
@@RetirementTravelers I may only have time for a short ferry ride from Spain. If lucky, we’ll be able to do a safari or the West Coast. Looking forward to your future video of South Africa 🇿🇦
Wow, thanks for sharing this list of destinations for world travel in 2024! 🌍 Can't wait to see more of your travel adventures and get inspired to plan my own! 🗺✈
Though with only 24 countries visited (just returned from Uganda last month), the Wolgangsee area outside of Salzburg, Austria 🇦🇹 is breathtaking. St Gilgen and the Himmelspforte Schafberg are amazing. Wife & I love your channel and we hope to retire in the next few years and travel even more! - Robert & Jill
Thanks for the suggestion. We've been through Salzburg and it is a wonderful town. Good luck with your retirement planning and perhaps our paths will cross someday. Safe travels, John and Bev retirementtravelers.com/
St Wolfgang with its beautiful church and the famous White Horse Inn is also worth a visit if you go to Wolfgangsee. St Wolfgang famously tricked the Devil into building this church, as the previous one had burnt down, and it has two gorgeous altars.
Love your channel and your website. US places I’d go back-Painted Rocks National Seashore, UP, MI-Black Hills SD-Kauai, HI-Ogunquit, Maine, White Mountains, NH Intl-Ometepe, Nicaragua-Amazon Rain Forest, Ecuador, Scottish or English Highlands On my list: Mongolia, Bhutan, Mafia Island, TZ, Madeira, Portugal, Vietnam and Cambodia, Botswana, Rwanda, Kenya, Ghana, Morocco, Dolomides-Italy
Thanks so much and glad you are enjoying our channel. So many great additions for our viewers to get ideas. Thanks. Safe travels, John and Bev retirementtravelers.com/
Hi Bev and John, Another beautiful video! I loved the drone footage! Here are a few more places to add to your list: Norway (Lofoten and fjord areas), Patagonia, Japan (Kyoto, Tokyo, mountain towns), Swiss Alps (Jungfrau, Zermatt), Italian Dolomites, Barcelona and nearby towns, Bahamas, Alaska, and French Polynesia! Just so many places and wonderful people to meet! Keep traveling and continuing to share your awesome videos! We are here with your grandkids watching them intently and cheering you on! Cheers!
Those are all amazing places. There are just so many beautiful places in this world. Heading to Norway next, Japan for 2025 Expo, Bahamas and French Polynesia in the last year. Thanks for following along. John and Bev PS We hope you mean YOUR grandkids and not OUR grandkids. 🤣
We watched all of your videos because my husband and I are planning to become Flexpat as well in two years! You inspired us! More power to you guys! Have a safe travel all the time!
You are welcome. Glad you like Fridays. It seems to be working pretty well. Thanks for following along on our journey. Safe travels, John and Bev retirementtravelers.com/
That is so cool. We stayed about a mile out of town and would walk in to town each day. Folegandros was such an incredible experience. And yes, the cats were doing well. Great memories. Safe travels, John and Bev retirementtravelers.com/
Wow what a great video. I love your channel. You two are so inspirational. I’m retiring at the end of the year and can’t wait to start my adventure too.
Thanks. So glad you are enjoying our channel. Congrats on your retirement and hope you have some amazing travels. John and Bev retirementtravelers.com/
Patagonia!!! Hike to base of Fitzroy (the mountain on Patagonia's logo!) from El Chalten, Argentina AND hike the "O" or "W" through trek in Torres del Paine Nat'l Park in Chile. And while you're in Paragonia, don't miss the Perito Moreno Glacier. AWE-inspiring!!!
Many thanks! Glad you enjoyed it. Those are some great places. We are heading to Krakow in a couple months! Safe travels John and Bev retirementtravelers.com/
Love, love, love your videos. I’ve watched them all. Because of you, I’ve been able to plan my retirement of slow travel in 2 years and the considerations that go in to it. That being said, will you all return to posting videos of your actual travel excursions? I miss seeing your “real time” videos of your trips. Keep up the good work! Peace.
Thanks so much. We are doing our best trying to produce a variety of content our viewers like. We hope to add some more . Thanks for being so supportive of our channel and efforts. Many blessings, John and Bev retirementtravelers.com/
I have been to only Milford Sound from your list, which I would definitely agree with you on. Others look really enticing, too. But I would also add to the list: 1) Hiking Mt Kilimanjaro, 2) Overland Trucking from Cape Town to Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe through Namibia and Botswana (Deadvlei and Tented Lodging in Okavango Delta were fascinating), 3) Zanzibar in Tanzania, and 4) Trekking in Patagonia. Keep traveling! Cheers!
Those are some amazing additions. Thanks for sharing. We will be going to Victoria Falls area next year. Thanks for following along with us. Safe travels, John and Bev retirementtravelers.com/
Those are some great suggestions - I’ve added Guatemala and Indonesia to my list. Thank you! I just got back from an expedition cruise to north-west Svalbard (Spitsbergen) and the fjords of Eastern Greenland. Spectacular! Like the Faroe Islands, very remote and amazing scenery - I highly recommend them. My other favourite destinations are Antarctica, South Africa, also New Zealand, and Alaska. I’d go back to any of those in a heartbeat. My big 2024 trip is Namibia and Botswana. Look forward to your next video! ❤
Great video again - thank you. With all of that walking, can you tell us about the footwear you choose pls? Might be a future video ... Till the next trip -Paul
Thanks. We both wear Hoka running shoes for all of our hiking and walking. We love them. We buy a new pair each 6 months. Safe travels, John and Bev retirementtravelers.com/
Woohoo NZ made the list! My favourite place in NZ is actually Lake Tekapo. And our favourite place (so far) in the world, is Banff in Canada. Just something about alpine villages.
Great list - retiring in April 2024 and looking to become a world explorer as I move to climbing the third mountain in my live. Your 5 best hit a home run on where my head is at and thank you for your exploration it truly points me in the right direction!!!
Thanks and that's awesome. Congrats on your upcoming retirement and hope our channel continues to inspire you to explore. Safe travels and many blessings, John and Bev retirementtravelers.com/
Anguilla: East Shoal Bay Beach (all beaches are beautiful in Anguilla). Wonderful people…sunshine people (always a smile to greet you). Now, it is expensive for local restaurants & hotels (18% new taxation charge). But worth every penny!
Breathtaking! My current five: The Dordogne River Valley around Sarlat France, Zion National Park + Capitol Reef National Park in Utah USA, the less touristy parts of the Great Wall of China, the many fresh water cold springs in Florida USA, and in/around Oaxaca, Mexico.
Nice! We’ll check our your France suggestion. Agree with Zion, almost made our list, too. We loved the Great Wall, and certainly loved seeing and swimming with the manatees in the spring waters of Florida. We’ll check out your Mexico suggestion, too! Here’s Bev’s blog post on our Great Wall Visit. John & Bev retirementtravelers.com/beijing-china-great-wall-visit
Not in any order but some of our favorites are Zion National Park Utah, Husavik Iceland, Istria Peninsula Croatia, Palau, Raja Ampat/Misool, Indonesia.
Those are some incredible places. Thanks for sharing. We will be visiting Iceland next summer and can't wait. Safe travels, John and Bev retirementtravelers.com/
So glad NZ made it to your list! I know you’ve already been, but the Cinque Terre in Italy is our family favourite. Our kids were 8 & 10 when we went, so it ticks the boxes across a range of ages. Just posting this for others reading the comments. If you come back to NZ, our personal idyll is the Marlborough Sounds at the top of the South Island. Very peaceful. Safe travels.
Thanks for sharing. We loved Cinque Terre as well. There are just so many incredible places on this beautiful earth. Marlborough Sounds is on our list. We just couldn't make it last time. Safe travels, John and Bev retirementtravelers.com/
Four years until retirement! I've added all these places to our bucket list. One of our favorite trips was to India--hard to narrow it down to one site. We really want to go back.
Thanks and early congrats on retirement. We are planning a month long trip to India next year. There is so much there! Hope you get to return sometime. Safe travels, John and Bev retirementtravelers.com/
Obviously, everyone has their own "bucket list" choices, but for adventurous travelers who are sick of seeing a Starbucks (or two) at every corner, India should be at the top of the list. I have been a couple of times and have traversed much of the sub-continent. It is absolutely incredible. My partner and I are at 54 countries...and counting!
I am from India and would recommend…making an entire trip to the south…Kerala is absolutely amazing with houseboats and beaches. If you love food, go to Hyderabad destination for best Biryani…and 1 hour from Hyderabad you can visit the largest gravity fed irrigation system, it aired on National Geographic for modern marvel.. also amazing palaces and temples everywhere
Have you two been to Ydra (Hydra Island) Greece, yet? Other than Emergency vehicles, they don't use cars. It's still horses, donkeys, etc. You take a ferry to get there. Apologies if you've already posted a video about Hydra, and I missed it!
Thank you for another great video. I am learning so much from your clips and website as I try to plan my own travel. I have looked at all the information from your website and each country. Would you be willing to share the itinerary that you followed in the countries and accommodation you may recommend? Thank you
Thanks so much. We would be happy to answer any specific questions you have, but we don't really have our itineraries in sharable format. Happy trails, John and Bev retirementtravelers.com/
I loved having gone to (1):Hadrian's Wall with jump-off point from Carlisle visiting first the Carlisle Castle, Carlisle Cathedral, Tullie Museum & Art Gallery in Carlisle, urban capital of Cumbria which is in the far northern corner of England and near the Scottish border; (2) visit to the Highlands seeing Loch Lomond, Lochness, Three Sisters (mountain ranges), Glencoe, Lochness, Fort Williams with jump-off point in Glasgow, Scotland; clear aquamarine waters amidst limestone cliffs and white sand beaches that goes on and on but still shallow waters of Coron and El Nido in Palawan Philippines; Batan Island (main island) in Batanes, northern tip of the Philippines but visit must be in summer months of March & April if wanting to visit the thick stone-walled old houses in Sabtang Island because of rough waters if rainy months; and sights of Bohol, Philippines like the many Chocolate Hills, the smallest primate called Tarsier, white sand beaches of Panglao island, Hinagdanan Cave with subterranean waters to bathe in the cool waters. Many more like going Badian Canyoneering in Kawasan Falls in Cebu, Philippines where you play in waters from one place to another like walking on waters, sliding on rocks (like slides in park) from flowing waters, swing from rope jumping on waters, etc. with a guide.
Thank you for this. It’s fabulous!!! We’ve looked up your suggestions of the Philippines. We’re heading back there in 2024. Now, more excited than ever! John & Bev
I'm new to your channel and love what your doing. Having been to Milford Sound and LOVING the south Island of NZ, I found Milford Sound to be much too touristy. And there are more beautiful Fyords in Norway. I would have included Patagonia. (Ushuaia and El Calafate and Petro Morano glacier.
Welcome aboard! So glad you found our channel and hope you enjoy our content. At the time we did this video, we had not been to Norway yet. We just spent 10 days there and agree it was fantastic!!! We can't wait to get to Patagonia someday. Safe travels, John and Bev retirementtravelers.com/
Many thanks, another great video which I keep returning to - needless to say these are all on my list. Can I ask about travel insurance? This seems to be restrictive as you get older, so how do you tarvel so long during each year - with, or without insurance?
We typically travel without travel insurance because of the length and type of travel that we do. We do a variety of things to help mitigate the risk. We may do a video on this topic at some point. Safe travels, John and Bev retirementtravelers.com/
Thank you. My Travel Insurance wants to limit me to 100 days in any one bloc. Not bad on the face of it, but tiresome when I have to route back via the UK to get a refresh. With daughters in both Canada and New Zealand, 100 days is just too short 😃
What a delight to see Milford Sounds on your list. I am a NZer currently travelling in Europe so it made me homesick. Did you go to Wellington at all? My city. It is a lovely place to live.
Thanks for the great video. It would have been nice to have an approximate cost for these places as you went through them. Iceland is still my all-time favorite. Can't wait to visit these though.
Faroe Islands and New Zealand were the most expensive and then Raja Ampat (although far less expensive than Bora Bora or the Maldives). Folegandros is much less expensive than Santorini and Lake Atitlan is probably the least because its in Guatemala. They all require transportation that can add up depending on where you travel from. Thanks for watching! John & Bev
We recently did a video on our first trip to the Philippines. We loved it and plan to return next year. See link below. John and Bev ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-2k2SvcH8ilQ.html
Great video. Concise, variety, quality footage. My top 5 bucket list entries: 1. Oddballs Camp (Maun, Botswana) 2. Ilha de Noronha, Brazil 3. Lake Powell, Arizona 4. The Algarve, Portugal 5. Mauritius
I am in the planning phase of which Greek Island to go to in late May. I would like to keep it loose because we are retired as well. Is there many places to stay in Folegrandros or would you recommend reserving a place a head of time? Thanks so much. Love you guys because you are so much like us! Ordering out of your store as well so keep up the great adventures and hope to see you out there.
Wonderful! We loved our time on Folegandros. We stayed on a cliffside place about a mile walk to the town. It was really cool, but your best bet is finding a place in the main town of Chora. Happy trails and let us know how it turns out. John and Bev retirementtravelers.com/
We’re looking at 5 European small towns we want to go live in for a month. 1 Skjolden, Norway 2 Skagen, Denmark 3 Zwolle, Netherlands 4 Visby, Sweden 5 Kirkby-in-Furness, UK
Hi Bev and John, Great Bucket List Destinations, thanks for the info. My wife and I are inspired by your guys, and are planing to live oversea now. Quick questions: while you guys are living oversea, do you still keep USA cell phone number? How do you keep the monthly cell phone bill minimal? What is the plan and with which carrier? Thanks in advance, Jian
Thanks. We recently did a video on international cell phone options. Let us know if you have additional questions. Here is the link to the video. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-mHx1wRMLJ-4.html John and Bev
Hello, we enjoy your videos. Tell me, how do you make local phone calls with Airalo when they just provide data? We have ported our US phone # to Google Voice. Thanks...Jon And Jan
Thanks. Glad you are enjoying our videos. We still use Google Fi for phone and text. We just use Airalo for international data after Google Fi cuts us off after 90 days away from the US. Safe travels, John and Bev retirementtravelers.com/
Can you tell us what kind of drone you use to film yourselves? The guy on Tips for Travelers apparently uses something similar to film himself while walking. And, thanks for all the inspiration!
Hello- I wasn’t sure where to submit a general question so I thought I would start here. What banks do you use or what banking support works best when traveling abroad for a long period?
We use a Capital One card (no foreign fees) for getting cash. All banking is done online using a VPN. We've had no issues at all. Hopefully this answers your question. John and Bev retirementtravelers.com/
Yes, but not recommended. Faroe Islands and Folegandros are perfect in summer. Raja Ampat, Milford Sound and Lake Atitlan are all better during the winter months due to rainy season or cold weather (New Zealand is opposite of US) Safe travels, John and Bev retirementtravelers.com/
Sorry to keep asking you questions, but I'd love to here about your down days. The ones where you have nothing to do. How many do you have or are you always busy planning the next destination? What do you do on those days you have nothing to do?
We try to schedule some days each week when we aren't just touring and visiting places. We always have work to do around RU-vid, social media , website, and trip planning, so we just decide each of the down days how much we want to work. Bottom line is we never have days with nothing to do, but sometimes just choose to relax and take a break. John and Bev retirementtravelers.com/
We loved all the national parks in the US and we would recommend Southeast Asia and also the Balkan States. We loved everywhere we go, but really loved the five we mentioned in the video. Happy Trails! John & Bev