Since I was travelling in the last week of 2018 I am a bit late with the review of my now already last year’s travels. But that doesn’t mean the year was not incredible. I visited a lot of amazing countries and cities, pushed myself to do thing I normally wouldn’t dare to (yes, cycling Death Road comes first to mind), eaten tons of local delicious food and made memories for a lifetime.

1. Travelling done in 11 countries

Austria

Slovenia’s neighboring country is famous for having amazing ski slopes. And this is not an overstatement. In February I spent a day skiing in ski center Koralpe and it was just incredible. Imagine a gorgeous sunny day, great snow conditions and views of snowy mountains. I also hopped to Vienna airport to depart and returned from our trip to Peru and Bolivia.

Bolivia

Exploring Bolivia was truly adventurous and unforgettable. In a week and a half I visited Chacaltaya (hello 5400 meters above sea), Copacabana (amazing overview of the Lake Titicaca), Death Road (still can’t believe I cycled the most dangerous road in the world), La Paz (city that slowly got under my skin), Reserva Nacional de Fauna Andina Eduardo Avaroa (nature wonders never cease to amaze me), Uyuni (oh yes, we also did a bunch of funny pictures) and Valle de la Luna (felt like I’m on another planet).

 

Croatia

Every year I like to hop to neighboring Croatia for weekend getaways and this year was no different. I admired picturesque Grožnjan, enjoyed some beach time at Peroj, had a girls’ weekend in colourful Rovinj and checked out Christmas markets in Zagreb.

 

Denmark

It was my first trip to the north of Europe and I already love Scandinavia. I spent Christmas week in lovely Copenhagen and loved its colourful canals, majestic royal palaces, great coffee and kanelsnegels (aka. delicious cinnamon rolls), green parks and happy people.

 

Germany

Hello interesting Hamburg! It was my first time in the city and although it was cold and windy visiting it in December, I just loved its old canals, warehouse district of the Hafencity and modern buildings, like Elbphilharmonie.

 

Hungary

If you are looking for a laid back, perfect for families and not too cheesy Christmas market, Pecs is a perfect place for you. While you are eating kurtos you can enjoy exploring this fifth biggest city in Hungary. It is also a UNESCO World Heritage site, it has a synagogue, two mosques and many churches. With lively streets it’s a perfect day trip in Christmas time.

 

Italy

I just love public holidays which bring us long weekends. I took advantage of one of those and went to explore Italy’s Emilia Romagna region with a visit to cities Bologna, Ferrara, Modena and Parma. Ate a lot of pasta, gelato and drank aperol spritz. I also visited gorgeous lake Lago del Predil (which is just a few minutes from Slovenian borders) and had a day trip with work. We embarked a sailboat, sailed past the picturesque Miramare castle and stopped at Sistiana for amazing seafood lunch.

 

Peru

I just love Peru! It was a first stop on my incredible trip to South America and I visited Cusco (one of my favourite cities in the world), Lima (loved the historical part of the city and all the food in Miraflores), Lago Titicaca & Uros Islas Flotantes (did you know that the grass, which the islands are made of, is also edible?), Machu Picchu (yes, it’s definitely a sight for every bucket list), Maras (amazing views of salines and Andean mountains), Moray (Inca’s terraces for farming) and Puno.

 

Slovenia

One of my travel goals I set every year is to explore more of my home country Slovenia. This year I visited cities Koper (with its Christmas market), Kranj (cute old town), Marezige (the village with a wine fountain!), Novo mesto (with nearby Terme Čatež), Rogaška Slatina and Seča (Slovenian beaches can be good too). I also checked out some new places in the capital Ljubljana. I took advantage of living in this amazing city and visited its gorgeous Ljubljana botanic garden, attended a few festivals, like the Lighting Guerrilla Festival and Ljubljana wine route, and visited museums Mestni muzej Ljubljana, Modern gallery, National gallery (which had amazing exhibition from Slovenian painter Ivana Kobilica) and Plečnik house.

 

Spain

Since living in Madrid for a year Spain will always be my second home. And I love exploring new parts of this beautiful country. In 2018 I spent a week on Gran Canaria island; enjoyed its beaches, green nature and delicious Spanish food!

 

Sweden

On Christmas day I headed for a day trip from Copenhagen to Swedish’s third biggest city Malmö. It was just 40 minutes by train and we passed the famous Øresundsbron bridge. Due to the holidays everything in the city was closed, but I still managed to walk all around the city and visited the highest building in the country – the Turning Torso. Read about all the places we explored in my Day trio to Malmö blog post.

 

4 new countries visited

This year I visited four countries for the first time: Bolivia, Denmark, Peru and Sweden. The total count of countries I visited so far is 44! I also love all the new stamps in my passport (you can get special ones at Machu Picchu, Uros Islas Flotantes and Reserva Nacional de Fauna Andina Eduardo Avaroa).

 

2. Most popular on blog and social media

Most popular blog post

Who doesn’t love a good road trip? I guess you guys especially love it, since my blog post “Travel itinerary: a week around the (extended) French and Spanish Basque country” was the most read one in 2018.

 

9 best photos on Instagram

You can follow me on Instagram here.

 

Facebook post that reached most people

You can follow me on Facebook here.

 

My blog in media

This year Marshmallow Travels got a short article to Žito’s internal newspaper Drobtinice.

So yes, I complained many times during the year that I don’t think I am travelling a lot. However, once I looked back, this year was quite full with travels (especially if we take into account that I have a full time job). It was also a good travel year in comparison with 2017 and 2016.

Hope everyone’s new year is to a good start! For 2019 I wish you incredible adventures and lots of travels! 🙂

• Share
• Tweet
• Email