How to Write Your Travel Bucket List (2024 edition)

I’ve had a travel bucket list for years, and don’t understand the negativity surrounding travel lists.

I love lists. I’ve always loved lists. I use lists daily for a good reason – to keep track of things important to my life and to help me enjoy every minute of every day. Lists make sure I don’t miss deadlines, keep track of books I want to read, movies I want to see, wines I want to try, wineries to visit, and recipes I want to make at home.

I’m not rushing around trying to do, see, or experience everything before I kick the proverbial bucket. I use lists as a roadmap to living the very best life that I can with the years I’m granted. It’s one of the best ways to help me make sure my life priorities – travel is one of them – are kept front and center. What’s not to like about that?

Because travel is so important to me, I began writing down places I wanted to go, things I wanted to see and do, and experiences that captured my interest. Since I’m a history lover, I keep a UNESCO World Heritage Site list so I don’t miss one when I happen to be in the area. I have a list of wineries in Washington State so I can visit when I’m in the area.

I set a top limit of 100 things that could be on the list, because, let’s face it, without a limit it could go on forever. These aren’t necessarily the best places to visit or the best things to do. It’s a more personal collection of things that matter to me.

My list includes big travel bucket list items like a safari in Africa (country not specified) and staying in an overwater bungalow in a destination with beautiful white-sand beaches. There are also more practical, real life experiences like going to a Red Sox game and going whale watching in Hawaii.

Your bucket list will be different than mine – and it should be. I have some prompts to get you started on your own travel bucket list.

Think local – It’s easy to overlook what’s close to home when you’re dreaming of the Greek Islands, Machu Picchu, or some other “must-visit destination.” Here’s tip, maybe something closer to home is the perfect place for you to visit. Think about all the nearby places you keep telling yourself you’re going to visit over the weekend, but then never get around to it. Those are great to start off your list of things to do, see, and experiences.
Think family – Whether it’s your family of origin, or a family acquired, getting back to our roots has been in vogue for years. Put a family reunion, a trip back to the “old country” or a return to your childhood home, on your list. Croatia was on my list for a long time as my family came from the Dubrovnik area. I visited in 2019. Madrid is still on the list as genealogy roots trace Tony’s family there.
Think adventure – Despite my efforts at climbing Mt. Etna, I’m more of a soft adventure type of gal than a rugged outdoors fan. Your definition of adventure may vary, but this section of your bucket list can contain all sorts of exciting experiences, no matter how you define adventure. For me, this includes going on a safari in Africa (country undecided), visiting a casbah in Morocco, visiting the Pyramids, seeing Antarctica, and seeing polar bears in their natural habitat (extinction looms). Do you enjoy diving, snorkeling, climbing, or hiking? What’s that once in a lifetime experience that calls to you?
Think luxury – Whether it’s an over-the-top hotel, a luxurious spa, or some fabulous adventure, these dreams are the stuff that bucket lists are made of. Here are a few of the luxury items on mine: staying at an overwater bungalow, staying in a decadent penthouse (in any number of cities), a luxury train trip similar to the Orient Express, crossing the Atlantic to New York on a luxury, and traveling by private jet. There are so many beautiful places in the world – what calls to you?
Think destinations. This is where you can lump everything else. Whether local, exotic, or somewhere in between, start making a list of general places that you want to visit and worry about filling in the specifics later. Think of it as mind mapping with a real map. Here’s a small sampling of what’s on this part of my list: Malta and Iceland have both been on my to-visit list for decades. Destinations with rich history always call to me, like Egypt, Gettysburg, and the British Museum. Unusual destinations that don’t appeal to many people, places like Gibraltar, Tunisia, and Sri Lanka.

My bucket list is ever-changing – when something is accomplished or I’ve changed my mind about it, it gets crossed off the list and something new is added. The continual nature of how the bucket list evolves means that I will never accomplish everything on the list. And that’s just fine with me!

Here are the things that I crossed off my bucket list since I last updated it three years ago (2020, pre-Covid, you can see it here):

We sailed coastal Maine on a windjammer cruise, visited a lighthouse, and ate lots of lobster.. We wrote about sailing here.
I rode a camel in Jordan, and also visited Petra, two different items on my list. The country surprised me in so many ways; you can read about it here.
We went to Barbados recently and are in the midst of preparing content about that destination.
We laid down a better at the Grand Casino in Monte Carlo (you can read about visiting it yourself here). And, in full disclosure, it was a slot machine, not a table game, but it was all that was available when we visited.
We visited a European Christmas Market in two destinations, Barcelona and Marseilles.
I drank Chilean wine in Chile as part of an expedition cruise on Seabourn, and also crossed the equator on that journey. You can read about that here.
I stayed in a treehouse in Kazakhstan, a country full of surprises. Learn more about it here. I’m also keeping an eye on the evolution of the Kazakh wine industry.
We visited Hungary, both Buda and Pest, at the end of our Eastern Europe itinerary on Emerald Cruise. Our friend, Peter, was living there at the time and he gave a day tour of both sides of the river.
New countries: Kazakhstan, Romania, Bulgaria, Serbia, Hungary, Barbados, St. Lucia, St. Kitts, Antigua, Dominica, Jordan, Peru, Chile, Monaco (see a map of countries visited below)
New states: Maine, Wisconsin (see map below).

Here is my newly updated Travel Bucket List, a total of 100 items with new items replacing those I have crossed off. I already have some tentative travel plans that will cross a couple off the list and there are a few more that could easily be arranged. If you want to join me or help in checking off any of these things in 2019, get in touch!