Embrace Your Wanderlust

My first trip out of the continental United States happened when I was just a baby. I was fortunate to grow up with a family who loved to travel and had the means to do so. As a kid, we went mainly to places like Cancun or the Caribbean, but we went on international trips to countries in Europe as well. My first trip to Europe, I was 11 years old and my dad took me to the United Kingdom and Ireland where we visited London, Dublin, Edinburgh, and Glasgow. It was only the start of what would become an incurable travel bug.

Years later, while in high school, I took a trip with other students from school to Ecuador and the Galapagos Islands. This was my first foray into traveling without my parents, though it was by no means a solo experience as we were all still minors and had adult supervision the entire trip. However, it got me thinking about all the places I could one day see.

My first true solo travel experience was when I went to Israel in 2016. While I did meet up with a group once there, it was my first experience flying internationally by myself and being in another country without knowing anyone. Of course, over the week I was there I made new friends within my group but it can be a nerve-wracking thing to go on a trip abroad without knowing a single soul to start.

I didn’t travel internationally again until 2022, when I took a week-long trip to Paris. This trip is what truly set off my wanderlust and had me starting my travel bucket list. It’s also the trip that made me realize I would be perfectly content to travel solo.

Finally, my 2 week trip to Italy in November 2023 is how I found that I love doing my own trip planning. I created my own itinerary for this trip, researched the best sites to visit, restaurants to eat at, and day trips to take. While I don’t consider myself a budget traveler at this point in my life, there is a lot to be said for off-season travel to make trips more budget-friendly.

Adventures with Carly will be home to itinerary planning tips, things to do in certain cities and countries, the best way to maximize your budget, and other recommendations to make your travels easier and fun. Most of these posts will be related to solo travel, as that is what I’m most familiar with, but I will be cognizant of the fact that others may not be able to or want to travel that way and add some suggestions accordingly.

The world is waiting for you so go embrace your wanderlust!