As I enter the final year of my 30s, I thought I s As I enter the final year of my 30s, I thought I share with you some pictures of mine at 9 months, 9 years, 19 years, 29 years  to today 39 years old of age. Looking back at each decade, I feel both ‘older’ and ‘younger’, I see the change in my features, the change in my way of life, the change in my personality and the experience itched on my face. I am grateful for the life I have lived thus far and excited for the life I am yet to live. 
••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

2026 - 39, (Home, England), I am ready for this final year before my 40s but also ready for this next decade. 
2016 - 29, (Oslo, Norway), this decade was about self discovery and building the life I dreamt about. The life that I am super proud of and truly grateful to be living. This decade, I built my financial life and in later years choose to heal from the trauma gained in the last decade and now I feel well equipped for the future. 
2006 - 19, (Glasgow, Scotland), I thought I was grown (look at the cheekbones 🤣🤣) and ready for the world, chiiiild was I wrong, let’s just say, I am still resolving the trauma the decade brought me but I am grateful because I met my best friends and made decisions for the future I wanted to have. (Spoiler alert - I did better than I dreamed). 
1996 - 9, (Home, Zambia) this was my birthday but my little sister insisted she had to be the one in the middle. The only way we knew whose birthday it was, was by standing in the middle but this year I remember baby sister crying her eyes out and refusing 🤨
1988 - 9 months, (Chililabombwe, Zambia) although my mother looks tired and traumatised😟, I know I was loved and happy. 
#happybirthday #happybirthday❤️ #newera #39
Attended #ascotraces for the second year running a Attended #ascotraces for the second year running and I am glad to have experienced the ‘Village enclosure’ this year, whilst I loved ‘Windsor enclosure’ last year, it’s not for me. Next year, I want Queen Anne’s enclosure. 💕 #girlsdayout #girlslikeus #ascotfashion
How I missed you my love 🥰🥰🥰 #hertripsabroad #bla How I missed you my love 🥰🥰🥰

#hertripsabroad #blackgirlstraveltoo #maldives #neverstopexploring #welltravelled
Tried being a #touristforaday and we chose #london Tried being a #touristforaday and we chose #london because why not. My feet still hurt from the thought of how much walking we did, the fact that we walked from #bigben to #buckinghampalace is still fresh on my mind. 

#neverstopexploring
🖤🖤MARCH PHOTO/VIDEO DUMP🖤🖤 So much happened and 🖤🖤MARCH PHOTO/VIDEO DUMP🖤🖤 

So much happened and yet I can’t find the words.
It has been an amazing week here, definitely recom It has been an amazing week here, definitely recommend @iberostar in Agadir. 
#neverstopexploring #wanderlust #welltravelled #lifeofadventure #hertripsabroad
I spent a week in #dohaqatar and had the most rela I spent a week in #dohaqatar and had the most relaxing and fulfilling time of my life. Sometimes taking it slow and living in the moment is what the soul needs. 🥰🥰🥰
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 #hertripsabroad #solotravel #solotravelingisfun 
#blackgirlstraveltoo
I had such an amazing week in Doha, Qatar after no I had such an amazing week in Doha, Qatar after not visiting for almost 8years. 📍

#qatar #doha #qatarphotoinstagram  #solo travel #travelbug bestvacations igtravel travelpic travelblog beautifuldestinations tlpicks instatravel roamtheplanet traveldeeper travelgram travelinspo wanderlust instapassport exploretheworld travelpics travelmore passionpassport travelawesome lonelyplanet travelblogger travelphotography traveltheworld worldtraveler
Happy New Year, happy 2026 #firstpicture of the ye Happy New Year, happy 2026 #firstpicture of the year.
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A July Dreamer

A Travel & Lifestyle Blog

Tips and Tricks · December 14, 2018

How to Choose a Travel Destination When You’ve Never Been on Holiday Before

Even though travelling is quite popular and accessible due to there being more flights nowadays, there are some people who have never been on a proper holiday. Your definition of going on holiday might be staying away for a week or more and visiting an exotic location. You might even consider taking a flight to another country so that you can go backpacking to be the perfect holiday. In any case, when planning to go away for the first time, you probably want all of your plans to be detailed and well laid out. Next you will read some wonderful suggestions on how to choose a travel location for your first official holiday.

Going on Holiday Based on Your Wants

While there are many who have never been aboard an airplane or seen the Pacific ocean, there isn’t a right or wrong travel destination. When it comes time to book a flight, you ideally should know where you are headed as well as how much cash is going to be spent. Consider whether an ideal holiday includes snowboarding and sipping hot chocolate or walking along the beach with a fruity drink in hand. Your ideal holiday might mean that you spend time in a secluded cabin far away from humanity, where you can enjoy nature, fishing, hunting, and trapping in peace and quiet. Another person might enjoy a trip where they meet many other travellers from around the world. Undoubtedly, the destination you visit will be based on your wants as well as what you consider to be a relaxing setting

Seeing Your Travel Options

In the end, once you have a mental image of a destination in mind, you can narrow things down and make a selection. If you enjoy seafood and cold weather, heading over to Boston might be a great travel destination. Ultimately, your travel options will be closely related to the airports nearest your home. You can browse options on flyporter.com to learn which cities will be the most convenient for you to fly to. First, scanning your options will enable you to see how long flights last on average as well as how often flights are available daily. Second, you can see which airlines include the best fares as well as the most direct routes. Looking things up can also give you access to options that you have never thought of before. You may opt to go on holiday somewhere where there are more historical landmarks instead of a more tropical place simply because you want to see something new and interesting.

Comparing Airfare Prices

Sometimes, going on holiday simply means packing up your car and driving out to the ocean. Other times, going on a real holiday means that you have to leave your everyday life as well as your country of origin behind. Remember that airline tickets are going to comprise a very large part of your budget. In addition, the farther you want to travel, the more you can expect to pay. Even still, prices can vary according to airline, time of day, and even the day of the week that you plan to travel. It can be helpful to play around with the parameters, comparing prices for flying out on a Monday as opposed to a Friday night to get the entire picture.

Traveling Based on Numbers

Travelling solo is not so bad if you are antsy about going on holiday and no one is available to go with you at the moment. On the other hand, travelling as a family or even in a group can make some elements of a holiday much more inexpensive. Consider how much cheaper it is to split a hotel between three or four people compared to one. Sometimes travel packages are cheaper when you make arrangements for several people to go at once. To look at things from a different perspective again, going on vacation solo is also a very good thing if you can fly by the seat of your pants. Solo travellers can book flights that have been cancelled, thus enabling them to fly for pennies on the dollars. People travelling by themselves also only need to pay for food for one, and often have a wonderful time as they enjoy their own company.

Going Away During Different Times of Year

Going on holiday during peak periods is going to be more complicated than say, travelling during the first week in September. Peak travel periods tend to be during summer and winter. In the summer, kids are out of school, young adults have breaks from university, and working parents have often saved up all their vacation time. People ordinarily plan for months, making arrangements well in advance to rent homes, reserve airline tickets, and go wherever their hearts desire. Coincidentally, winter holiday travel can be just as busy and even more hectic. Families fly around the world so that they can be together during the most important time of year. If you want to go to a major city like NYC, where holiday travel is always utterly insane, you may want to adjust the time that you go on holiday if possible

Being Prepared to Go on Holiday

Do you have all of your emergency contacts picked up and do they know when to expect you to return from holiday? Have you called the local newspaper company to have them suspend delivery? Are you stocked up on all your medicines and is your doctor aware that you are leaving the country for a spell? Being prepared to go on vacation is more than just having your bags packed, stacked, and waiting by the front door. You have to check on all of your affairs to ensure that your house will be well maintained and secure in your absence. Being prepared to go on a holiday is buying travellers insurance and checking to see that your cell phone can make international calls. It’s going over all of your plans more than once, then checking again just so you can be relaxed while on holiday.

Being Practical in the Long Run

You might really want to travel to some exotic land, but if you can’t afford it, or you can’t convince your spouse to come along, you really should just try to be realistic about things. Your first holiday might not be exactly what you planned, but it can still be quite enjoyable. Be okay with compromising or even downsizing your plans if it means making your holiday dreams come true. Remember that there will always be another time and other means of having things go exactly the way you want.

There are a small minority of people who are so fortunate that they can literally close their eyes, spin a globe and go on vacation wherever their finger lands. Everyone else has to be practical and paced, which isn’t such a bad thing if you think about it. Anything worth having is certainly worth working and waiting for. So, if your dream holiday means taking a whole month to explore New York, wait until you can make your trip magical and memorable. Otherwise, you will be spending money on a trip that does not live up to your lofty expectations. Travelling is fun, and some destinations are only meant to be visited once in a lifetime.

*collaborative

In: Tips and Tricks

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Comments

  1. Fatima says

    December 18, 2018 at 8:56 pm

    I love traveling and exploring new places and you’ve shared some amazing tips here. Glad to have come across your post!

    Reply
  2. Super Busy Mum says

    December 18, 2018 at 7:37 pm

    Fab post and some great tips there too! I would totally be a close my eyes and go wherever my finger lands on the globe, sort of person!

    Reply
  3. Olivia Jade says

    December 17, 2018 at 10:44 pm

    Travelling can be scary! I never know how some people can do holidays alone. Also I love how you mentioned different times of the year, not all holidays have to be in the summer! 🙂 xx

    Reply
  4. Sarah says

    December 17, 2018 at 9:44 pm

    These are really great tips, especially for such a travelling novice such as myself!

    Reply
  5. Kaz | Ickle Pickles Life and Travels says

    December 17, 2018 at 9:26 pm

    I love travelling but it can be a bit daunting at times. This is a great post. Kaz

    Reply
  6. Yeah Lifestyle says

    December 17, 2018 at 1:21 pm

    I enjoyed reading your post, as a person who loves to travel I am currently stuck on travelling only during school term breaks…your tips offered here is so helpful

    Reply
  7. Emma Raphael says

    December 17, 2018 at 10:48 am

    Lots of great advice here. Totally agree not to rush in to visiting your dream destination, save up both in money terms and time terms so you can see it properly! 🙂

    Reply
  8. Winsze says

    December 16, 2018 at 7:23 pm

    Thanks for sharing a great post there’s a lot of tips about how to travel and what to think about especially when it can make a major hole into your savings. The fly porter sounds like a good site to use for discovering new destinations.

    Reply
  9. Mayah Camara says

    December 16, 2018 at 6:51 pm

    What a great post! Some great tips and tricks here for people who want to get away and might not have a clue about how to start planning

    Reply

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