The concept of a travel “bucket” list is not unheard of. Most people have them, but people don’t always have them written down or defined. While I do think that it isn’t great to have a rigid list that never changes, I do follow the adage:
Goals that are not written down are just wishful thinking
So I took a few moments over the past few weeks to write down some of the things that are on my travel bucket list (at least for now!) I’ve attempted to categorize them into a few categories, in no particular order. I did try to give a range of difficulties – some are definitely easier than others. I also totally cheated and put down some thing that were bucket-list LIKE that I’ve already done :-).
I hope that you’ll share with me some things on your bucket list and more importantly take the time to write them down!
Road-geek / map-geek
- Visit all 50 states in the United States – 45/50 just need AK, HI, MT, ND, SD
Progress on United States counties
- Visit all 3143 counties in the United States – currently at 1382 or 44.0%
- Ride my bike on every street in Madeira, Ohio – COMPLETED in 2006 (and then again in 2007)
- Visit all 88 counties in Ohio in 24 hours – COMPLETED in 2006 in 23 hours, 34 minutes, 34 seconds
- Travel the entire Route 66
- Visit every subway station in New York City
- Take a ride on the London Underground
- Visit 6 continents
- Cross the two Bosphorus Bridges in Istanbul
- Visit Baarle-Hertog, Belgium / Baarle-Nassau Netherlands
- Visit the southernmost point of the US (Key West)
- Drive on every Interstate – currently at 104 / 345
See the sights
- See the Grand Canyon
- Visit 4 corners
- See Angkor Wat
- See Macchu Picchu
- See Stonehenge
- See the Great Wall of China
- Visit Galapagos Island
- See Northern Africa across the Straits of Gibraltar
- See Old Faithful
- See the Pyramids
- Take a ride through the Panama Canal
- Travel on a canal boat in Venice
- Drive through a redwood tree
- See the Moai Statues on Easter Island
- See Victoria Falls in Zambia / Zimbabwe
- See Mt. Rushmore
Outdoor adventures
- Hike a 14er in Colorado – we took the railroad up Pikes Peak but I’m not counting that
- Watch the Kentucky Derby
- Hike the Appalachian Trail
- Take an African Safari
- Hike Y Mountain
- See the northern lights (Aurora Borealis)
- Watch the sunrise on the east coast of Maine
- Experience 24 hours of sunlight in the Arctic Circle
- Jump in all 5 Great Lakes in one day – COMPLETED in August 2012 (YouTube video)
Dive in All Five! August 10, 2012 (click for Youtube video)
- Visit all 50 state highpoints
Vendomy-style travel goals
- Stay a night in an overwater bungalow
Overwater bungalows in Bora Bora
- Visit the world’s tallest building (currently the Burj Khalifa)
- Fly first class on an overnight flight
- Swim in the highest swimming pool – Ritz Carlton Hong Kong
- Take an overnight train ride
- Stay a night in an ice hotel
- Take a round the world plane itinerary
- Take the Island Hopper
- See the fireworks in France on Bastille Day
Things specific to who I am / where I live
- Visit Wiesbaden, Germany (birthplace but I left as a toddler)
- See the birthplace of Benjamin Miller in Ireland (my first ancestor to come to the US in the mid 1700s)
- Visit Madeira Island in Portugal (my hometown shares its name, though it was actually named for a guy named John Madeira)
I stopped at 50, though I had a few more on my list that I could have added. Which of these have you done? What did I miss?
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Dan Miller travels with his wife and 6 (SIX!) children. He loves to help families travel for free / cheap, especially larger families. If you are looking for help, drop him an email at 
Visit the southernmost point of the US (Key West).
Sorry Key West, the southernmost point of US is on the big island, which I just went there this June. Been to Key West twice for 2012 and 2013 Christmas, LOL.
LOL. That’s what I have the Internet for – nice catch. I was going to say that Key West was the southernmost point of the CONTINENTAL US, but… it’s on an island too so I guess I’ll have to think about that one 🙂
3.Hike the Appalachian Trail
8.Hike the Appalachian Trail
I did bout 30miles of this when i was in High School, but always wanted to do to the entire thing someday
Over water bungalow made my list too.
Yeah. A few years ago I tried to convince my wife to have the family do a thru-hike during one summer but I’m pretty sure she just started ignoring me until I stopped talking to her about it 😛
This is a great list. Best of luck with it
It sounds crazy, but I’ve been lucky enough to do a lot of these, even before I turn 30 in a few years. Including visiting the house of my great-grandmother in Hastings, UK, safari in Africa, Great Wall, and Machu Picchu. Now that I live in Denver, my plan is to do the “mountain”/mid-west stuff you have listed as well.
PS. You also have “Hike the Appalachian Trail” on there twice ;-).
Thanks – I saw that. And since that left me with only 49, I added in “Drive on every Interstate” to the end of the road-geek section
That’s what I have done in the last three years. Driving in/through all 50 states. Most of the states for at least twice. Lots of fun and great photos so far… Hope to have deeper and longer trip for each state in the future.
I just stayed in an overwater bungalow this past May in Bora Bora. Surprisingly, as gorgeous and amazing as BB is, you need to know exactly why you’re going and what to expect. Above the water: the views are spectacular! Below the water: just ok.
Golf and drive around in Ireland