What is your dream vacation if money and time were no object? Who would you take it with or why would you rather be alone? What is the best vacation you have ever taken?
England for about a month, avoiding London as much as possible. Prefer rural villages. Would prefer a female companion, but don't have anyone now anyway. The only 'real' vacation I took as an adult that involved going somewhere was around 1988, a week staying at a friend's condo in Lakeland, FL. Of course, I've been on permanent disability and unable to work for most of this century, so it's almost been like a 15 year vacation where you don't have the money to go anywhere at all.
Europe. Especially Britan, but I want to see the museums of Italy and France as well. My degree is in art and I love history. My wife. Bit of a toss up. Had some great trips to Disneyland with my friends in College. My honeymoon at Disney World was fun. And the camping trips to Yosemite's back country were great too.
This is probably not very imaginative, but...I've already realized my dream vacation, and I continue to do so, every year. My obsession with baseball is well known on this board. I talk about it all the time - probably too much. But it's the most fun I have ever had on a vacation, and I don't see this changing any time soon. Baseball is what I love most about life, and it's my favorite way to spend a vacation. Going to a city with a major league park that I love, and getting to experience the excitement of the game...the crack of the bat...the smell of the food...the roar of the crowd...I haven't found anything like it anywhere else. And I don't really want to, either.
It's so hard to decide, because I've never really been anywhere. The highlight of my 35 year life was visiting Chicago for 3 days back in 2010 (it was so much fun). I would love to travel Europe, visit Russia, spend a week on the beach in the Bahamas, see the Dalai Lama in Dharamsala, travel to Australia, eat and drink at a real pub in England, see the Scottish Moors, I want to visit Japan, all of Japan! Also, South Korea, Taiwan, and even sightsee in what would be considered mundane by some, by visiting California (San Diego, San Fransisco, Los Angeles, Burbank), and New York City. I want to see the Grand Canyon, visit the Smithsonian. I want to go to Toronto, Canada. Hawaii, New Orleans, I'd like to travel to Paris, and see the Louvre, visit the Eiffel tower, sample the cuisine, travel to Spain, and Italy, and Greece. There are just too many places out there I am drawn to go. There's no way I could decide what my dream vacation would be. There are too many things I want to see.
I rarely go anywhere on holiday, my last Holiday was to the SW United States last year visiting some of the National Parks.
I was lucky with that good job I had in the 80s. Started in Kansas City, transferred to St. Louis near where I grew up, transferred to Chicago, transferred to San Francisco, and several business trips to Washington DC. Good times.
Right back to New York City. Maybe a trip across the Atlantic.... and a tour across the US. Alone. Meet some friends along the way. Every trip I've ever made to NYC.
I always went to the National Mall and would try to visit at least one building around it. Capitol, Lincoln Memorial, National Archives, Museum of American Culture or something-- George Washington's dentures, Francis Scott Key flag, Superman costumes, Archie Bunker's chair, OR and the Swamp from MASH, Howdy Doody, etc-- and of course the Air and Space Museum while the big Enterprise model was on display.
For those of you interested in visiting Dubai, if you come I will be happy to show you the City and put you up. I have a villa (no, not like that! ) and you would have your own bedroom and bathroom. My Dream Vacation would include a sea breeze cottage on a nice beach, with a hammock for reading and a little boat with a quiet trolling (!) motor for exploring coves and inlets. It would have a mountain and forest behind it with paths for exploring. Single Malt, Primo Beers, Red Zins and Cabernets would be available, but also nice juices and elixirs. Fresh flowers every day, and 1000 count Egyptian Cotton sheets. Would not need many clothes and teacake would be happy to know I would wear a sarong-y thing when covering was necessary, and shell jewelry for adornment. 24 hour free medical care available. Only a Pad for technology, so I could keep abreast of happenings in BBS! Who would you take it with or why would you rather be alone? I would not want to be there alone. Who would you take it with or why would you rather be alone? The best vacation I have ever been on was a week on the Royal Scotsman luxury train, traveling in Northern and Western Scotland. The trip of a lifetime.
^ A princely offer! Wish I could do the same, but a villa continues to elude me. I've been going away to school and work for most of the past thirteen years, so to me, apart from a few short weekend trips here and there, "going on vacation" has mostly meant just plain visiting home. (Which, being the glorious City of San Francisco, is certainly nothing to sneeze at. ) So, while I know it's clichéd, I wouldn't mind a proper tropical beach vacation, as it's been over fifteen years since my last one, and I've seen more than enough of snow and Manhattan in between. As for with whom, well, a certain young lady and a large, well-trained dog would hardly be amiss... If, however, I had to travel solo, I guess I'd go with New Zealand and Australia, or India, if I was feeling particularly adventurous.
To me, the biggest challenge isn't so much the lack of money, but rather insufficient vacation days and the lack of a travel companion. I always seem to use up the vacation leave I've accrued by taking random days off throughout the year, which is why I've hardly done any traveling at all. However, just to entertain the idea of a dream vacation, I have a bucket list of destinations. Hawaii Cancun, Mexico Ireland London, UK Rome/The Vatican Rio de Janeiro I just don't find much enjoyment in going about it alone. In the past I've gone to Vegas with one or two family members, but it's hard to coordinate with others in terms of their personal time and finances. Las Vegas, 2010.
The only two places I'd be disappointed not to visit are Cuba (before it changes) and Australia. I'd also like to take the Orient Express or Trans-Siberian one day. Love train trips. Most of my travel been for work, and I've cut back on even short hop vacations as find the flying experience really tedious now. But probably choose Maldives as best vacation simply because it was sheer relaxing indulgence and lived up to all the brochure hype (including the rusting seaplane taxi!)
Either a massive US East and/or West Coast roadtrip with the SO or a massive Baltic Sea coastal countries roadtrip (Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia) with the SO, preferably in an RV.
Round world motorbike trip, similar to the one done in Long Way Round & Mondo Enduro. Setting off from the UK, riding through Europe, Kazakhstan, Mongolia, the Road of Bones in Russia, Canada, and the USA, but then carry on past NYC and take a long road trip through America. OR a month long journey on the Trans-Siberian railway, stopping off at many of the aforementioned points of interest, winding up in China, before flying home.
Russian and Ukraine, doing genealogical research and visiting the places where my maternal grandparents (and their ancestors) lived. Followed by a week in Turkey, just because it's fascinating and beautiful. For Russia and Ukraine, a trilingual genealogist/guide. For Turkey, the guide we had last year; it would be like traveling with a friend. I've got two: Turkey, Greece, and Italy in April/May 2014. Russia, Estonia, Lithuania (all part of the USSR then) and Poland in Dec 1987 / Jan 1988.