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Finding Sparkle in Every Trip: My Travel Essentials & Inspiration

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Travel planning: sometimes stressful, sometimes a source of escape & sparkle! ✨ Sorting through decisions is tough, but dreaming of getaways is pure fantasy. It helps me escape daily life stress. Here are tools I use, plus trips I'm hoping to do ...
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General Trip Planning Tools

There are some tools I start with for every trip I start planning.

 
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Great way to look through many airlines, dates, etc. It can help to find cheap travel dates and locations.
Find Cheap Flight Options & Track Prices
 
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I love Vrbo especially for group travel. Can be a great way to find a home with space for everyone.
Vrbo
 
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I almost always start here when looking for hotels. I like being able to see a ton of options and get a feel for what's available and how much an area will cost.
Expedia
 
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Scrolling through here helps me learn what there actually is to do in all the places I'm thinking about traveling to
GetYourGuide
 
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Another great way to explore what activites are available in dream destinations
Viator
 
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Joining groups for places you are interested in is a great way to slowly learn more about the place! You see what other people are doing and learn from their questions. I've found it so helpful. Inspires so many ideas I hadn't heard of before.
Travel - Groups
 
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Get alerts for cheap flights from your airports. This is great if your want to travel, but aren't super picky about when and where. You select what type of flights you want to hear about and get notified every time there's a deal that fights! Can sav...
Going™ | Flight Alerts, Mistake Fares & Cheap Tickets

Seattle/Tacoma for Zoos and Seahawks

This will be a family trip with a group of us. Across the group, there's interest in zoos, Seahawks, water parks, and forests.

 
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NFL games are EXPENSIVE.. but training camp and preseason games aren't. We're looking into these as a more budget friendly way to get a Seahawks experience.
Seahawks 2025 Preseason Schedule Announced
 
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Fun outting for the whole family!
Point Defiance Zoo
 
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About an hour outside of Tacoma, a great place to stay for water park fun
Indoor Water Park & Resort in Grand Mound, WA

Iceland for those not physically adventurous

Iceland looks gorgeous! But I'm not really feeling like hiking volcanoes and ice caves. Slipping on ice terrifies me haha. But I'm thinking there are still great ways to enjoy Iceland without being the outdoorsy adventure type.

 
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Icelandair is a borderline budget airline, so it doesn't offer as many amenities. However! It does offer free 1-7 day stopovers in Iceland. So it could be a great option to go to Iceland and another destination on the same trip.
Flights to Europe, Iceland and Greenland | Icelandair US
 
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Torn between this one and Blue Lagoon, but I feel like I NEED to include at least one of them on this trip.
Sky Lagoon
 
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Torn between this one and Sky Lagoon! Not sure which I'll go for, but I definitely want to do one of them.
Blue Lagoon
 
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There are several types of boats for whale watching tours! Easy to find one at your price and adventure point
The Original Classic Whale Watching from Reykjavik
 
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Free re-try if you aren't able to see the Northen Lights on your tour! Plus, multiple pickup spots, hot chocolate, temperature controlled vehicle, and knowledgeable guides. Sounds like a great way to try to see the north lights to me!
Northern Lights Midnight Adventure from Reykjavík

Scotland for castles and culture

Scotland has so much to offer! From castles (both functional and in ruins), pubs, hairy coos, hiking, great views, great fish, shopping… A bit of everything! I'm planning this with my mom and grandma, so we'll be focusing on castles, food, and cultur...

 
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I've learned so much from this group!
Scotland Travel Tips | Facebook
 
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Everyone seems to rave about these guys! They have a ton of different Scotland tours, from a couple hours to several days. They seem to primarily be small group tours. Looks like something for everyone! I'm considering several of these.
Rabbie's Tours Head Office
 
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Not something I typically go for, but everyone says how amazing this is! And the bags are cute!
Islander Workshop Experience

Greece Cruising for multispot fun

There is so much to see and do in Greece! So many ways to go about it too. We're leaning towards a cruise for our first visit so that we can see multiple stops without having to pack up and move constantly.

 
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I just heard about this, so I haven't explored it a ton. But you can filter through a ton of cruises and then request quotes from travel agents for specific cruises. Then you select the offer that fits your needs and book with that travel agent. A gr...
Cruise Compete
 
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These ships are smaller than a lot of other cruise lines, so they can reach other ports. They have a ton of Greece cruises that look really interesting. The ships aren't completely decked out, because they focus more on ports. So if you're looking mo...
Celestyal Cruises
 
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They are having some great sales on premium economy! I can't normally afford to upgrade, but these deals make it a lot more possible. I'd love extra legroom for these long flights!
Cheap flights to your dream destination | Book with Condor
 
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Interesting itinerary with decent prices from a reputable cruise line.
7 Night Greece & Croatia Cruise from Ravenna (Venice)