40 Trips You Should Take Before You Turn 30
You’re not young and free forever.
Your 20s are an ideal time to take on some adventure and travel to faraway places. Chances are you’ll end up having some wild experiences that you’ll never forget.
From partying at the world’s largest Carnival in Rio de Janeiro to paragliding in New Zealand, here are the trips you should take when you can still handle the thrill.
Note: An earlier version of this story included the Naica Mine in Mexico. However, we removed it since it is no longer open to tourists.
Marvel at the icy-blue Upsala Glacier, a valley glacier in Argentina’s Los Glaciares National Park in Patagonia.
Feel like you’re swimming off the edge of a cliff at the Devil’s Pool, a natural infinity pool in Victoria Falls, which borders Zambia and Zimbabwe.
Hike the Pacific Crest Trail through California, Oregon, and Washington. The whole trail is 2,650 miles, but you don’t have to do it all at once.
Dance the night away decked out in neon at one of the monthly full-moon parties in Koh Phangan, Thailand. The beach rave starts at dusk and continues till the early hours of the morning.
Swim with thousands of jellyfish at Jellyfish Lake in Eil Malk Island, Palau.
Spend spring break in Cancun, Mexico, where you can party at popular clubs like Mandala and Dady’O.
Backpack through Southeast Asia. Some popular stops include Chiang Mai in Thailand, Angkor Wat in Cambodia, pictured below, Laos, Hanoi in Vietnam, and Bali and Ubud in Indonesia.
Parade through the streets of New Orleans to celebrate Mardi Gras.
Jonathan Bachman/Reuters
Surf Jaws (Pe’ahi in Hawaiian) in Maui, a spot that has consistently been ranked among the best for die-hard surfers. Waves supposedly reach 120 feet.
Ski the majestic mountains of the Swiss Alps.
Get up close and personal with Japanese snow monkeys who come to bathe in the hot springs of Japan’s Jigokudani Yaen-koen in Nagano.
Swing on the Swing at the End of the World at the Casa de Arbol in Ecuador and catch stunning views of the Tungurahua Volcano.
Get wet and wild at a pool party in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Swim in the To Sua Ocean trench, a 30-meter-deep natural-seawater pool surrounded by stunning gardens in the village of Lotofaga in Samoa.
Trek up to Rainbow Point, the highest part of the Bryce Canyon National Park in Utah at 9,105 feet, to see stunning views of the Aquarius Plateu, Bryce Amphitheater, the Henry Mountains, the Vermillion Cliffs, and the White Cliffs.
Fly to Ittoqqortoormiit in Greenland, which can only be reached via helicopter. From there you can sail the world’s longest fjord.
Party at the world’s biggest Carnival celebration in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
Bungee jump off Bloukrans Bridge, the world’s highest bungee bridge located between South Africa’s eastern and western capes. You’ll fall a whole 709 feet.
Ride in a hot-air balloon above the Rio Grande in Albuquerque, New Mexico. The city hosts an International Balloon Fiesta, but you can also take tours in hot-air balloons year round.
Zip-line above Costa Rica’s lush rain forests.
Dive into the clear blue waters of Australia’s Coral Sea to see the spectacular Great Barrier Reef.
REUTERS/HO/Great Barrier Reef National Park Authority
Climb up to Machu Picchu in Peru to see the impressive and almost untouched ruins of the “Lost City of the Incas.”
Kayak in the Bay of Fundy in New Brunswick, Nova Scotia. Chances are you’ll run into more than one humpback whale.
Wade through the Actun Tunichil Muknal cave in Belize. The cave is full of ancient artifacts such as bones and pots; there’s even a full skeleton of a 1,000-year-old human.
Mountain bike along the Poison Spider Mesa Trail in Moab, Utah.
Climb the 268 steps to reach the France’s historic Saint-Michel D’aiguille Chapel, which was built in the year 962 and sits atop a volcanic structure.
Four-wheel drive across Bolivia’s Salar de Uyuni, the largest salt flat in the world.
Boat across the Amazon River, the world’s second-largest river and home to more than one-third of the world’s animal species.
Explore the Sahara desert, the largest desert in Africa.
Camp out in Nevada’s remote Black Rock desert with over 65,000 other art and music lovers and enjoy music performances, crazy costumes, and massive fire displays at Burning Man.
Flickr/Bureau of Land Management
Go clubbing at the world-renowned Amnesia in Ibiza.
Observe wild animals in their natural habitat on a safari in Kenya.
Paraglide over the mountains and water surrounding the picturesque city of Queenstown, New Zealand.
Raft the waters of Arizona’s stunning Grand Canyon.
Explore the almost 45 active volcanoes in Java, Indonesia.
Skydive from as high as 10,000 feet up in the sky at the Dubai Marina and Jumeirah Beach Residences in Dubai.
Walk through Croatia’s Plitvice Lakes, a UNESCO World Heritage Site with stunning lakes, caves, waterfalls, and an array of wildlife.
Visit the Great Pyramids of Giza in Egypt, the only one of the seven ancient wonders of the world still in existence.
Climb up to the Taktsang Palphug Monastery, known as the Tiger’s Nest, in Paro Valley, Bhutan. Padmasambhava, or the “Second Buddha” of Bhutan, is believed to have meditated here.
Ring in the New Year with a massive crowd in Times Square, New York.
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