Once in a while, I get asked as a travel agent what’s on my Travel Bucket List. I often have a few answers, but not really a full list.
Today for my first blog post, I decided to change that. Here is my official travel bucket list. I thought I’d start with ten for now, though I may expand in the future. I’m also going to focus on cities, though I may do one on attractions or other options at some point later. They also have to be cities that I haven’t been to before.
So, without further adieu, here are my top ten items for my travel bucket list:
1. Memphis: The main reason that I would like to go to Memphis is to visit Graceland, the residence of Elvis Presley. This is where Elvis lived, died and is ultimately buried at. Right beside the mansion is Elvis Presley’s Memphis which has some cool Elvis memorabilia and interactive exhibits such as quizzes, riding a golf cart and dancing like Elvis! There’s a lot of other music museums here in Memphis as well such as Sun Studios, the Stax Museum of American Soul Music, the Memphis Rock N Soul Museum, the Memphis Music Hall of Fame and the Blues Hall of Fame Museum. If music is not your thing, there is also Beale Street, a lively street full of shops and restaurants and also the National Civil Rights Museum where you can visit the Lorraine Motel where Martin Luther King was assassinated at.
2. Paris: There are lots of interesting sights in Paris. Of course, there is the Eiffel Tower, but there is also the Louvre, the Notre Dame, and the Arc de Triomphe, all of which have fantastic architecture to marvel at. Other places to explore include Moulin Rouge and Luxembourg Palace. It’s a popular place for tombstone tourism since it’s the home of Pere Lachaise, the Pantheon, and the Catacombs. I personally want to visit Jim Morrison’s grave. Two places nearby include the Palace of Versailles and Disneyland Paris!
3. San Diego: One can find numerous things to do in this coastal city of California. One might want to start at Balboa Park being that a number of museums, attractions and festivals take place in this area. Museums include the San Diego Air and Space Museum, The Museum of Us, and the Natural History Museum. History buffs will also love touring the USS Midway. There are a few animal attractions at San Diego such as the San Diego Zoo, the San Diego Safari Park, and SeaWorld San Diego. Other theme parks nearby include Legoland, Belmont Park, and Sesame Place. Belmont Park is notable for having the Giant Dipper, a wooden roller coaster built since 1925. I’m a bit of a theme park junkie as you can probably tell.
4. London: London has some cool things I’d like to do spanning numerous interests. These include touring historical buildings such as Buckingham Palace, the Tower of London, and Westminster Abbey. There are also plenty of museums with interesting exhibits to look at such as the British Museum, the Natural History Museum, and the Science Observatory. Being that I like the weird and unusual, I also want to try Ripley’s Believe it or Not, Madame Tussauds, and the London Dungeon which combines horror, history, and thrills. The latter is not even in North America, so I would definitely be looking forward to that. It would also be great to see a concert in one of the following historic venues: the Royal Albert Hall, Wembley, or O2.
5. Montreux: I always thought that the city looked like a great place to go visit. It has the Montreux Jazz Festival which always boosts big names. For Queen fans, such as myself, there is a small museum called the Queen Studio Experience that resides in the studio where Queen recorded a lot of their huge albums and also a Freddie Mercury Statue nearby. The Queen Studio Experience is located in Casino Barriere de Montreux. Chocolate lovers will love the Chocolate Train which makes a short trip to the Callier-Nestle Factory (Samples? Yes please!). Close to Montreux is the grave of Charlie Chaplin as well as a museum dedicated to the silent film actor.
6. Amsterdam: Amsterdam has a lot of museums to explore and being that I’m a museum fan, it seems like a good place to go. Amsterdam has its most well-known museums that showcase the city’s art collection such as the Rijksmuseum and the Van Gogh Museum, but there’s also others that I’d like to try such as the NEMO Science Museum and the Eye Film Museum. Anybody can tour the Red-Light District, just don’t take any pictures! Of course, there’s still the usual fan favourites such as Ripley’s, Madame Tussaud’s, and the Dungeon. Finally, on a more sombre note, Anne Frank’s House is in Amsterdam and is where she and her family hid from the Nazis and wrote her well-known diary.
7. San Antonio: If you’re into history, theme parks, and good food (which I am), then San Antonio might be the place to go. It’s number one attraction is the Alamo. During the Texas Revolution, Mexican forces reclaimed the Alamo mission from the Texans led William Tavis, James Bowie, and Davy Crocket. All three were killed in the battle, and thus the cry “Remember the Alamo!” inspired Americans to fight back in the Battle of San Jacinto and win. The Alamo stands as an important historic site for followers. For the theme park enthusiast, there is SeaWorld San Antonio, Aquatica San Antonio, and Six Flags Fiesta Texas with plenty of rides to explore. The River Walk has several restaurants, markets, and smaller attractions nearby for those to explore.
8. Hershey: This may seem like a strange addition to the bucket list and to be honest, I was considering putting this on a future list, but the town of Hershey is more than just a theme park. Yes, there is Hersheypark which has lots of thrilling coasters, but there’s also Hershey’s Chocolate World where you can go on a free chocolate tour, create your own candy bar, see a 4-D movie, and of course taste a lot of chocolate! Other things to do in Hershey include ZooAmerica, The Hershey Story Museum, Hershey Gardens, Hershey Mansion, the AACA Museum, and a Falconry Experience. You can also visit Milton Hershey’s grave as well as H.B. Reese’s grave.
9. Tokyo: Japan is absolutely a place to go in my mind. When I was in school, we had to make a study tour about the country. Picking one city is tough, but I decided to go with Tokyo being that it’s the capital. There are many interesting shrines and temples to look at including Senso-ji, and the Meiji Shrine. Tokyo has a very old zoo called Ueno Zoo that has been open since 1882! It has over 3,000 animals and is about 35.6 acres. You can see gorillas, pandas, tigers and more! Several popular theme parks are in Tokyo such as Tokyo Dome City, Joypolis and of course Tokyo Disneyland and Tokyo Disneysea! It’s also fun to explore the various gardens and museums as well as the Imperial Palace, the emperor’s residence. One thing that looked interesting was the robot restaurant where you could see a cool laser show with robots, but it is unclear whether it is open as of this writing.
10. San Francisco: The Golden City has plenty to do including going across the Golden Gate Bridge and visiting Alcatraz Island and Al Capone’s former cell. Museums include the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, the California Academy of Sciences, and the Exploratorium. Golden Gate Park has other museums, statues, gardens. People can go biking near Fisherman’s Wharf or explore other places like the Musee Mecanique which has one of the world’s largest numbers of coin-operated mechanical musical instruments and antique arcade machines. Plenty of seafood to munch on! Have some delicious chocolate at Ghirardelli Chocolate at Ghirardelli Chocolate Experience at Ghirardelli Square! For me, a must-see is the Walt Disney Family Museum. We’ve seen the parks, but a museum all about Walt Disney himself is truly fascinating. Also riding the cable cars is a necessity when visiting San Francisco.
That concludes this top ten list! Do you agree with my list or do you have alternatives? Leave a comment below!
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