These places are so wonderful, we can’t wait to go back.
The ultimate travel quandary: go experience a new place, or return to one of your favorites? This question plagues most travelers on a daily basis. While there’s nothing quite like visiting a new place for the first time, returning somewhere can be eye-opening. Once you’ve seen all the touristy sights and eaten at the essential restaurants on a first trip, you can explore a little more off-the-beaten-path on your next trip. Returning somewhere is the chance to relax, settle into local life, and find a new routine. Here are the places we went in 2018 that we can’t wait to get back to—consider them our new favorite places.
Top Picks for You
Miami
I can’t get enough of Miami. I’ve been a few times this year and am already planning to go back when it gets cold–to bask in the sun, yes, but also to explore the incredible changes I saw happening across the city. Cool cocktail bars, down-to-earth dives, and rooftop spots are multiplying, and the art scene in Wynwood is still going strong. I had one of the best meals I’ve had all year at Chotto Matte, a Peruvian Japanese fusion restaurant on Lincoln Road. I also loved the wide range of amazing places to stay, from the quiet luxury of Acqualina Resort & Spa in Sunny Isles to the impossibly glamorous Faena in Mid Beach to the brand new–and affordable–Generator Hostel, (the first U.S. location for the young cool brand). And seriously, there’s nothing like escaping a blizzard for South Beach.
—Kayla Becker, Assistant Editor
California’s Highway 1
In April, I drove up the Pacific Coast from LA to San Francisco, including the winding Route 1 from Carmel to Big Sur (the road was still closed then just south of Pfeiffer Big Sur State Park). I’m not a great lover of long drives, but this one (with plenty of stops along the way for wine-tasting and Hearst Castle) was the best road trip you might imagine. Now that Highway 1 is open again, I want to do the full route, including the stretch between San Simeon and Carmel. I also went to the Arabian Peninsula for the first time in 2018 (to Doha, Qatar). I was impressed enough to recommend the destination for our Go List and would love to visit more places in the desert, perhaps Abu Dhabi and Dubai next time.
—Doug Stallings, Print Editorial Director
The Redwoods
I spent a weekend up in Humboldt County, CA at the Redwood National and State Parks earlier this year, and my jaw still has not recovered. I can’t wait to go back and bring every single person I know with me because nothing will prepare you for how magical it is to walk through this prehistoric forest with the world’s tallest trees. It’s such a beautifully remote part of the world with a fascinating history and is in dire need of preservation support. If you visit one place in the U.S. this year, make sure it’s this National Park. I promise it will not disappoint.
—Allison Gretchko, Photo Assistant
The Badlands & Disney
One of the most transformative travel experiences I have had in 2018 was driving through Badlands National Park. I’m pretty sure I will never get to see the likes of that landscape anywhere else, and I cannot wait to go back again to experience the same euphoric “Oh, my god” moments again. I have never been a big Disney fanatic, but spending a week on a Disney Cruise with my children has proved otherwise. The look of pure joy and amazement on my daughter’s face when she met Ariel and Cinderella, or, when she got to see herself post-Bippity Boppity Boutique princess makeover will stay with me forever. I now get it.
