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Practical Wanderlust

Responsible Travel on a Budget

  • Home
  • Start
    • Meet Lia & Jeremy
    • Read These Posts
      • Our Year-Long Honeymoon
      • Browse All Personal Posts
      • Travel Stories & Fails
      • Year in Review Posts
      • 30 Things Nobody Tells You About Quitting Your Job to Travel
      • 32 Things Nobody Tells You About Long Term Travel as a Couple
      • More Things Nobody Tells You…
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      • Indonesia
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    • Europe
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      • Belgium
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      • Spain
    • North America Travel
      • Canada
      • Mexico
      • United States
    • Central America
      • Costa Rica
      • Mexico
      • Panama
    • South America
      • Argentina
      • Brazil
      • Chile
      • Colombia
      • Ecuador
      • Peru
      • What to Pack for South America
      • 30 Things No One Tells You About Backpacking in South America
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Travel Fails

Wear a fanny pack. Leave your smartphones at home. Shop for souvenirs at the airport. Are these the worst travel tips ever, or are you just having another cringe-worthy conversation with your mom? Guess you'll have to read this post to find out.

25 Truly Terrible Travel Tips: What NOT to Do When You Travel

As a professional full-time travel blogger, I get a lot of inquiries from my readers looking for travel tips and advice. Most of them refer to me as a "travel goddess" or "the female Rick Steves" and they typically end with something like "why don’t … [Read more...] about 25 Truly Terrible Travel Tips: What NOT to Do When You Travel

What not to do on a France road trip through Bordeaux, Avignon, Seillans, Provence, and the French Riviera!

Winter Road Trip Through France: What Not to Do

Our off-season road trip through France was always doomed. It's not just that Jeremy and I seem to attract disaster like magnets made of whatever the opposite of disaster is. But we have particularly awful luck when it comes to cars. In the first … [Read more...] about Winter Road Trip Through France: What Not to Do

Cataract Falls Hike in Marin California

The Cataract Falls Hike Disaster: Hiking in the Bay Area, California

For Lia and I, "hiking" and "absolute disaster" go hand in hand. It's an unfortunate pattern that popped up over and over again during our year-long honeymoon. There was the injured wrist on the Valle de Cocora hike in Colombia. There was the … [Read more...] about The Cataract Falls Hike Disaster: Hiking in the Bay Area, California

My AirBnB account was HACKED!

My Airbnb Account was HACKED! Why we no longer recommend using Airbnb

Airbnb is one of those luxuries in life that we take for granted in today's age of car-sharing and home-sharing and the sharing-economy and things that start with the word sharing but actually involve an exchange of money and people's actual stuff. … [Read more...] about My Airbnb Account was HACKED! Why we no longer recommend using Airbnb

Our worst travel fails of 2016.

Our 16 Worst Travel Fails of 2016

2016 was an amazing year for us: we got married, quit our jobs, and left for a year-long traveling adventure. I know, it sounds picture-perfect. It sounds like a magical travel montage of tropical drinks and sunsets and smiling selfies captioned … [Read more...] about Our 16 Worst Travel Fails of 2016

Gazing at the sunset over the desert dunes in Huacachina, Peru.

Why we’re leaving South America early

When we first began planning this amazing year-long honeymoon, we planned to spend 7 months backpacking through South America: starting in Colombia, working our way down through Ecuador and Peru, popping into Bolivia, and spending a month bouncing … [Read more...] about Why we’re leaving South America early

Hiking the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu

Hiking Machu Picchu: Failure on The Inca Trail

We're sitting in a restaurant in Aguas Calientes, the gateway to the Inca Ruins of Machu Picchu. Around us are five couples, two solo travelers, and two tour guides. All fourteen of them are tired, dirty, and covered in dried sweat. They just … [Read more...] about Hiking Machu Picchu: Failure on The Inca Trail

The stunning Quilotoa Lake in

Hiking the Quilotoa Loop in Ecuador: Reverse Route Travel Guide

The Quilotoa Loop is a self-guided multi-day hike in the Andes mountains in Ecuador. It's a must for many backpackers who want to trek in Ecuador (or Trekuador, a word I just invented). The hike either begins or ends at Quilotoa Lake a stunning … [Read more...] about Hiking the Quilotoa Loop in Ecuador: Reverse Route Travel Guide

Mud Baths in a Volcano Cartagena Colombia

Mud Baths in a Volcano: Cartagena’s Most Ridiculous Tour

Cartagena, Colombia: a hot, historical city on Colombia's tropical Caribbean coast. We originally planned to spend a week here, our very first stop on our year-long travel adventure. But due to forces beyond our control, we've ended up here for a … [Read more...] about Mud Baths in a Volcano: Cartagena’s Most Ridiculous Tour

Cascadas de Juan Curi in San Gil

Cascadas de Juan Curi: My Waterfall Rappelling Catastrophe in San Gil, Colombia

San Gil is the adventure capital of Colombia. It's a haven for the adventurous, adrenaline loving outdoorsy traveler: you can go canyoning, hiking, white water rafting, or bungee jumping. But the star of the show is the Cascadas de Juan Curi, a … [Read more...] about Cascadas de Juan Curi: My Waterfall Rappelling Catastrophe in San Gil, Colombia

Hiking Valle de Cocora in Salento, Colombia

Hiking Valle de Cocora in Salento, Colombia: What You Need to Know

Salento, Colombia is one of the major destinations in Colombia. It's a small town in Eje Cafetero, Colombia's picturesque coffee region, located a few hours west of Bogota as the bus drives (OK, so more like 12 hours). The region is popular … [Read more...] about Hiking Valle de Cocora in Salento, Colombia: What You Need to Know

We went surfing in Morro Bay, California. It did not go well.

Why My Wife Will Never Go Surfing Again

When it comes to your partner or companion, it's important to be able to read each other. Lia and I have a few different check-ins that we say to each other that hold different meanings in our partnership. One of them is "Is this surfing?" This is … [Read more...] about Why My Wife Will Never Go Surfing Again

mono hot springs in sierra nevadas

The Mono Hot Springs Camping Incident: The Importance of A Good Travel Companion

Hidden in one of the most scenic parts of the Sierra Nevada lies the beautiful Mono Hot Springs. A visit here makes for the perfect weekend getaway for any enthusiastic traveler and adventurer in search of nature, peace, and tranquility. A trip to … [Read more...] about The Mono Hot Springs Camping Incident: The Importance of A Good Travel Companion

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