Exotic Travel Suggestions - May/June 2018

Old Jul 30th, 2017, 01:36 PM
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Exotic Travel Suggestions - May/June 2018

Heya,

So I need some help…. I'm looking for a vacation spot outside North America and I'm hoping someone here can advise me based on our interests. There are so many places in the world that I don't know of – I'm hoping for many suggestions (aka ideas for future trips).

Time frame: 2 Weeks – 4th week of May and 1st week of June.

People: Me 33, Brother 28, Mother 61

Interests: Things we like to do: BEACH, swimming, beach, swimming… We LOVE a beautiful beach/water. We love water sports – snorkeling, Scuba (for me alone ^_________^). We also love hiking (tougher ones for my brother and I – like mountains or volcanoes), forests, mountains wildlife and culture/cultural shows. Basically we like to spend our vacation with activities and then R & R at a beach in front of our Hotel- either at the end of the vacation or in the afternoon.

The problem I'm encountering is – locations have one of each… either super nice beaches… or mountains/forests and "okay" beaches or long long long travelling involved (with limited time – that's no ideal). Okay I feel VERY greedy with my interests. I guess my issue is… my brother is a travel virgin (been to 1 trip before)… and he finally collected enough money/will get time of for "1 big trip" and I don't want to disappoint my mother or brother – since I'm the planner. It's 2 weeks – I know that's not considered a "big trip"… but considering I only get 1 week off 90% of the time (in my brother's case 100% of the time in the last 5 years) – this is big. However, it's not big enough to explore a large location either.

Scrapped Ideas:
1- Egypt - Week #1 in Cairo, Pyramids and a Nile Cruise and Week #2 Sharm El Sheikh (diving!!! And Snorkeling + relaxing)…. In light of recent events that plan has been scrapped.
2- Fiji is another location – but that's too expensive and I want to group that with a trip to Tonga for whale swimming sometimes in the next few years (has to be between July-September). Idea is 1 week on a Fiji cruise, then 1 week in Tonga


Other Thoughts:
Bali - Culture, Mt. Agung Hiking, White Water Rafting, snorkeling/diving at Amed… but the beaches are only okay in front of the hotels unless you go to super secluded areas. Man I feel selfish.. but I would really love to relax at the end of a day on a nice beach in front of our hotel.
Cook's Island (great deals from Costco) – But it's just gorgeous beaches! Not a whole lot of anything…
Mauritius island – against stunning beaches… $$$$... Not a whole of anything…


Any other suggestions/thoughts/help??
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Old Jul 30th, 2017, 02:10 PM
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The first thing I'd do is feed your ideas to this site and see how high temps & precipitation line up with expectations for an ideal trip: http://www.weatherbase.com/
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Old Jul 30th, 2017, 02:51 PM
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Where are you coming from, and is budget a concern?

In terms of time, places like the Cook Islands or Mauritius take a very long time to reach from North America. Also don't forget that May and June in the southern Hemisphere is the beginning of winter, which can be a dry season in some areas, wet in others.

The first place that came to mind, frankly, is the Big Island of Hawaii. It's easy to get to, there are some excellent beaches, but also mountains (Mauna Loa and Mauna Kea are the two tallest mountains in the world, measured from their underwater bases) and upland forests, an active volcano, great cultural and historic sites, fabulous food...

Other side of the world, but also look at Eilat in Israel. (I'd go in May before it becomes impossibly hot.) The Red Sea is fab for diving, you can visit Petra or go hiking in the mountains nearby, and it's pretty quick to get to - a couple of hours by car from Tel Aviv airport. Add a day or two in Jerusalem, on the beach in Tel Aviv or visit the Galilee.. great stuff.
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Old Jul 30th, 2017, 04:58 PM
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I suggest you go to Egypt.
Your plan sounds great! Book everything a month or two in advance to get the best prices.
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Old Jul 30th, 2017, 05:06 PM
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Egypt is where I'm going on my next trip but you might want to check the temperatures that time of year in the places you have in mind. I'm going in November which, overall, seemed the best weather.
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Old Jul 30th, 2017, 05:25 PM
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If it is not already too hot then, Turkey has everything you seek.
I believe Greece or Morocco would work too.
What about Peru?
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Old Jul 31st, 2017, 03:23 AM
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Peru wouldn't work so well. Although I think that is an ideal time for Machu Picchu before the crowds start. But the west coast is cold Pacific, foggy coastline and really more a surf than snorkel place.

I had though of Ecuador with a side trip to the Galapagos although the water is warmer it still can be cool in the middle of winter (I think June is the start of fog weather) you would want to check about that and water conditions as far as diving/snorkeling...it might be okay. It can be expensive but probably not worse than going to the Middle East from the US. The good part about South America is that the travel there from the US is easier and no jetlag.

For the interior Ecuador the hiking is good and mom would like some of the cultural things, look around Otavalo, also Cuenca area has some interesting village markets and Cajas National Park.
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Old Aug 1st, 2017, 07:35 AM
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Perhaps not "exotic" enough, but the Hawaiian islands offer everything you request (exactly everything in that first paragraph titled INTERESTS).
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Old Aug 6th, 2017, 07:41 PM
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What about Punta Cana, Dominican Republic? It's not too far from the United States and is popular for zip-lining, windsurfing, kayaking, and sailing.
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