LAST UPDATED: 4/13/23 – Top Travel Experiences 31-40

We all have our bucket lists of places that we want to see and things that we want to do before we die.  If you are like me, your list keeps on getting longer instead of shorter regardless of how often we travel.  It seems like every beautiful place that I see or fun adventure that I hear about makes its way onto my ever-growing bucket list.  This is why I love to browse travel magazines, look thru travel photographs on Instagram and Pinterest, and read travel blogs.

If you are looking for some new destinations and new experiences to add to your bucket list, then you have come to the right place.  I have been compiling a list of great travel experiences to do before you die for quite some time now and I would like to share the top 50 items on that list with you.  In this installment, I am going to review experiences 31-40 on my list of the Top 50 experiences to have before you die.

• Top 50 Travel Experiences to Have Before You Die (41-50)
• Top 50 Travel Experiences to Have Before You Die (31-40)
• Top 50 Travel Experiences to Have Before You Die (21-30)
• Top 50 Travel Experiences to Have Before You Die (11-20)
• Top 50 Travel Experiences to Have Before You Die (1-10)

If you have a travel experience on your list that didn’t make it onto my list, please let me know about it in the comments section.  Not only would I be excited to hear about it, but I am sure that other travelers reading this would appreciate hearing about it as well.

40.  Bicycle thru the Rice Fields of Vietnam

Among the most widely recognized landscapes in Asia is undoubtedly the beautiful rice fields of Vietnam.  In addition to being the breadbasket of the country, these rice fields are also an exquisite way for travelers to get up-close-and-personal with the culture and traditions of Vietnam.  The growing and harvesting seasons for rice are in the Autumn months, so visitors to Vietnam during this time of year will be treated with seeing the crop being cultivated and ultimately harvest.

I believe the best way to take in these gorgeous landscapes filled with terraced rice fields is to take a bike ride.  I can think of few things as peaceful or beautiful as a nice bike ride thru Sapa, which is located in Northwest Vietnam.  Here you will find some of the most beautiful terraced rice fields in all of Vietnam.  A bike ride thru these Vietnamese rice fields is an experience that I think all travelers should have at least once before they die.

39.  Swim in the Cenotes in Mexico’s Yucatán Peninsula

For travelers that are looking for a unique travel adventure, you should look no further than the Cenotes in the Yucatán Peninsula.  These underground labyrinth-like caves carry water throughout the region and number over 6,000 in the Yucatán area.  These caves were used by the Mayans for human sacrifices hundreds of years ago, but today the people entering the caves are doing so to dive and swim in their crystal blue waters.  If this sounds amazing to you, perhaps you should put swimming in the Cenotes of the Yucatán Peninsula on your travel bucket list.

38. Take the Bergenline Train in Norway

There are a lot of really great train trips that you can take in this world, but few of the train trips that you can take can measure up to the beauty and splendor that you will see when you ride on the Bergenline train in Norway.  One of the most difficult railways to build, seeing as though it traverses some of the most remote and rugged mountain terrains in the world, the Bergenline train route is world renown for its beauty.

The 310-mile long route starts in the capital city of Oslo, then meanders thru some of the most breathtaking scenery that Norway has to offer.  In fact, the scenery is so beautiful that the train ride has itself become a popular tourist attraction.  This is why no list of the best travel experiences in the world would ever be complete without a ride on the Bergenline Train in Norway on it.

37.  Take a Road Trip Across the American West

There are few things more American than taking an epic road trip across the country.  With landscapes as beautiful as they are in the American Southwest, it really isn’t that difficult to see why.   Roughly one-third of the national parks in the United States are in the American Southwest, so there is a lot of beautiful things to see in the area.  If you are thinking about crossing a road trip across the American Southwest off your bucket list, I would suggest you start by reviewing my Ultimate American Southwest Road Trip Itinerary to get you started.

36.  Drive the Great Alaska Highway

I may be partial because Alaska is one of the destinations that has captivated my imagination since I was a child, but most people would agree that it is one of the more beautiful destinations in North America.  With its rugged mountains, towering glaciers, and abundance of wildlife, Alaska attracts tourists seeking an adventure from around the world each year.

However, most tourists don’t choose to drive to Alaska from the continental United States.  If you are looking for the ultimate Alaska adventure, the driving to Alaska via the Alaska Highway will certainly deliver.  Known as one of the most rugged roads in the world, it also has some of the most beautiful scenery of any road in the world.

Running 1,422 miles from Dawson Creek, British Columbia, through the Yukon Territory to Delta Junction, Alaska, the road unofficially continues on to the large city of Fairbanks, Alaska.  If you are up for the adventure, driving the Alaska highway to Alaska is one travel experience that you will never forget.

35.  Dive the Blue Hole in Belize

For readers who are avid scuba divers and snorkelers, you are probably intimately familiar with the Blue Hole in Belize.  For those of you who aren’t familiar with this amazing diving location, it is one of the premier scuba diving and snorkeling locations in the whole world.  At roughly 350 feet deep and nearly 1,000 feet across, it is the largest ocean hole in the world.

In 1836, Charles Darwin visited the Belize Barrier Reef and declared that it was one of the “most remarkable coral reefs”.  In addition to the beautiful reefs and the amazing variety of fish and other marine animals, the Blue Hole also has a plethora of stalactites and stalagmites that were formed when the Blue Hole was an above-ground cavern that divers can explore.  Named the Number 1 Most Amazing Place on Earth by the Discovery Channel in 2012, it is a no brainer that diving Blue Hole in Belize is one of the top travel experiences in this world to have before you die.

34.  Drive the Great Ocean Road in Australia

This is another adventure that I will get to cross off of my bucket list this year, and I could not be more excited about that.  If you like a stunningly beautiful ocean coastline, then the Great Ocean Road in Southern Australia should be near the top of your bucket list.  Starting at Torquay and traveling westward to finish at Allansford, the Great Ocean Road takes you past some of the most beautiful coastlines in Australia.

In addition to the beauty of the infamous Twelve Apostles, there are numerous other stops on this beautiful road trip that will take your breath away.  If you like road trips and love beautiful ocean coastline, then driving the Great Ocean Road is one of the best experiences you can have before you die.

33.  Kayak on Lake Moraine in Banff, Canada

Of all of the places in this world that I have been, Banff National Park in Canada might just be the prettiest.  With crystal blue mountain lakes that are so blue that you don’t believe they are real until you see them with your own eyes and mountains that are snow-capped year-round, Banff is an outdoor enthusiast’s dream.

Established in 1885, Banff is Canada’s first national park, and the third national park to be established in this world.  It is also a UNESCO World Heritage Site, so 20,000 square kilometers of this beautiful Canadian Rockies wilderness is protected.  This means that there are a lot of beautiful lakes to explore in the park.  However, the most beautiful has to be Moraine Lake, which sits just outside of the town of Lake Louise.

Lake Louise may get all of the accolades because of the beautiful Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise that was built on the lake, but Moraine Lake is even prettier.  It sits in the Valley of the Ten Peaks, so its crystal blue waters are completely surrounded by mountains.  When you are on the lake, you feel like you are the only person in the world.  If you would like to plan a visit, I suggest you start by reviewing my Banff National Park Visitor’s Guide.

32.  Lose Yourself in the Salar de Uyuni in Bolivia

When it comes to unique and amazing landscapes, they don’t get more unique or amazing than the Salar de Uyuni in Bolivia.  This remnant of an ancient sea sits at 11,995 feet above sea level and encompasses roughly 4,085 square miles of land.  This makes it the largest salt flat in the world.  In fact, it is about 100 times as large as the Bonneville Salt Flats in the United States.

While the Salar de Uyuni is an amazing landscape year-round, it is especially beautiful during the rainy season.  The area only gets about 0.04 to 0.12 inches of rain during the months of April thru November but can get as much as 3.5 inches during the month of January.  When the rain comes, the dry salt flats transform into a mirror-like surface.  With amazing views like this, losing your worries exploring the Salar de Uyuni in Bolivia is definitely a travel experience everyone should have in their lifetime.

31.  Seeing an Active Volcano in Hawaii

It almost feels like a crime to have this experience ranked where it is, but that just speaks to the quality of the other travel experiences yet to come on this list.  If you are interested in seeing both the power and the beauty of mother nature, nowhere else is it so visibly on display than at one of this world’s active volcanoes.  Of those volcanoes, no other gives visitors as good of access to witness the power and the beauty than in Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park in Hawaii.

This 323,431-acre park was named a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1987 and has captivated the imaginations of visitors for decades.  The park showcases two active volcanoes: Kīlauea, which is one of the world’s most active volcanoes, and Mauna Loa, which is one of the largest shield volcanoes in the world.  Together, these volcanoes continue to reshape the landscape of the park with the unending flow of lava.  If you are looking for an out of this world adventure, then seeing an active volcano in Hawaii should be near the top of your list of travel experiences to have before you die.

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