Whether it’s the blue waters of Cancun or the mountains in Big Bear, we all enjoy spending time on vacation. While the average American spends an average of 3% of their annual income on vacations, not all of us take one each year. Of the people who don’t take vacations, their most common excuse is that they are trying to find the money, bad planning or work as a reason why they didn’t take one. No matter when you finally are able to save up for a vacation, the most important question that you will ask is where to go on vacation? No matter where you choose, we can all agree that a vacation should be special and relaxing. To make your decision easier, we have shown you where to find the most beautiful vacation spots in the world.
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Pamukkale
Pamakkale’s English translation is “Cotton Castle” and is located in Southern Turkey within the Denizli Providence. The picture below is of the carbonate mineral “shelves” created by water flowing over the edge.
Photo Credit: eleephotography on Flikr. http://www.flickr.com/photos/47096398@N08/5864262845/
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Lake Como, Italy
Lake Como is the 3rd largest lake in Italy and is home to many celebrities and wealth people around the world since Romain times.
photo source: Daniel Peckham on Flikr. http://www.flickr.com/photos/davaodude/5371116584/
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Maldives
The Maldives Islands are located in the Indian Ocean and is the smallest country is Asia. Maldives is known for their island resorts as pictured below.
Photo Credit: margory.june on Flikr. http://www.flickr.com/photos/margoryjune/7468230282/
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Crystalline Turquoise Lake, China
Crystalline Turquoise Lake, Jiuzhaigou National. Park, China. This is one of many lakes and ponds in Jiuzhaigou National Park that are famous for how crystal clear they are. The picture below is of Five Flowers Lake.
Photo Credit: Chensiyuan http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:1_jiuzhaigou_valley_wu_hua_hai_2011b.jpg
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Karijini NP, Western Australia
Karijini National Park is located in Western Australia and is known for its famous pools, waterfalls, flowers and wild animals.
Photo Credit: Christian Fletcher. You can purchase this at http://www.christianfletcher.com.au/photographs/north-western-australia/karijini-national-park-pilbara-north-western-australia-kj302d/
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Bora Bora Hotels and Resorts -Tahiti
During WWII, Bora Bora was a U.S. Military stronghold that housed different parts of the military, weapons and huge canons (still there today). Today, Bora Bora is a breath-taking vacation spot where tourists can stay in gorgeous resort bungalows, water sports and hiking.
- Image Credit: http://www.fourseasons.com/borabora/
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Trolltunga, Norway
Trolltunga, located in Odda, Norway is a large flat rock that extends out past the mountain. It is a famous tourist attraction which usually takes a full working day to hike and climb. As a bonus, on the way up,vyou will see beautiful sites such as Ringedal lake and Dam.
image credit: tonibm on Flikr. http://www.flickr.com/photos/tonibm/6073606406/
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The Gardens at Marqueyssac
Open 365 days a year, the Gardens at Marqueyssac is an extremely popular tourist destiation for people visiting the French Providence of Perigord. The gardens were originally planted in 1861 by Julian De Cerval with the mindset that they would be a attraction for people from around the world to enjoy. While you are in Marqueyssac, don’t forget to walk around their many walks around the town and castle as well as see the gardens at night for their Gorgeous candlelight display.
Image Credit: Marqueyssac http://www.marqueyssac.com/index1.html
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Ice Canyon – Greenland
Ice Canyon is one of the most popular and most photographed attractions in Greenland. The canyon was formed by glaciers that melted and created rivers forming the canyons. Ice Canyon is probably not the best family spot as it is mainly popular for photographers and mountain climbers because of te steep canyons.
Image Credit: National Geographic. http://photography.nationalgeographic.com/photography/photo-of-the-day/ice-canyon-greenland-balog/#
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Skaftafeli – Iceland
Skaftafeli National Park is known for its Alps-like landscape and beautiful scenery and is Icelands second largest national park. The picture below is of the Crystal Cave of Svmnafellsjvkull in Skaftafell national park and was formed by the iceberg crashing into the shore. The Ripples in the roof are formed from compressed air from the islands volcano. What a geographic miracle!
Image Credit: ezioman on Flikr http://www.flickr.com/photos/ezioman/3914802071/
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Lake Paterswoldse Meer, Groningen, Netherlands
I’m sure that ice skating on Lake Paterswoldse is on a lot of peoples’ bucket lists. The lake freezes over and often is safe enough to skate on during the months of December – February.
Image credit: kapturer on Flikr – http://www.flickr.com/photos/kapturer/3184924717/
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Plitvice Lakes – Croatia
Plitvice Lakes National Park hosts an average of 1.2 million visitors every year and is famous for its gorgeous blue and green cascading lakes (pictured below). The travertine cascades are formed from air, bacteria and algea and grow at a slow rate every year.
Image Credit: Minestrone on Wikipedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Plitvice_Lakes,_Barrier_between_Gavanovac_and_Kaluderovac.JPG
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Sagano Bamboo Grove, Arashiyama, Kyoto, Japan
Located in Kyoto Japan, Sagano Bamboo Grove is used for construction and to build baskets, mats and different products. During the early morning, you can walk or bike through the grove and see the sun shining through the Bamboo and see the trees moving back and forth in the breeze.
Image Credit dewynter on Flikr -
http://www.flickr.com/photos/dewynter/4900499765/
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Rock Marble Caves of Chile
The Marble Rock Caves of Chile; Cuevas de Marmol translated in Spanish are some of the most beautiful caves of the world and are a well known tourist attraction in Chile Chico, Chile. Tourists can take boat tours through the cave and see what 6,000 years of waves crashing against the marble have done to create this beautiful sight.
image credit: http://static.panoramio.com/photos/original/9363990.jpg
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Capilano Suspension Bridge, Vancouver, BC.
Built in 1989, the Capilano Bridge was built as a tour of the Caplano River. stretching 450 feet long and over 200+ feet tall, this is one longest pedestrian only suspension bridges in the world. Nowadays, vacationers can not only go and walk the bridge but, check out the treetop amazing treetop platforms and cliffwalk that wraps around a granite precipice.
image credit: kju on Flikr – http://www.flickr.com/photos/kju/5464415/
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Na Pali Coast, Kauai, Hawaii
Na Pali is the most northwest shore of Kauai and is made up of beautiful green tinted cliffs and crystal clear water. Most of the shore is made up of these steep cliffs and the only way to get to it is either by an 11 mile hike or by helicopter ride.
Image Credit: Howardignatius on Flikr.
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Hindu Temple – Nadi, Fiji
Nadi is the center of tourism and has the largest concentration of hotels in Fiji. The Sri Siva Subramaniya temple (pictured below) is one of the largest Hindu temple in the world
Image Credit: heardsy on Flikr. http://www.flickr.com/photos/heardsy/4847147696/
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Great Wall of China
The Great Wall of China, built by over 20 dynasties and dating back over 2,000 years is one of the worlds most amazing sites. The most beautiful time of the year to view the wall is during Autumn where you can see the gorgeous landscape in the background and tourist season is starting to die down a bit.
Image Credit: franz88 on Flikr. http://www.flickr.com/photos/franz88/1356943591/
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Golden Gate Bridge – San Francisco
Finished in May of 1937, the Golden Gate Bridge is 1.7 miles long 90 feet wide and at its’ highest point is 746 feet tall.
Image Credit: joedsilva on Flikr. http://www.flickr.com/photos/joedsilva/4416419518/
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Devil’s Den, Florida
http://www.flickr.com/photos/10789705@N05/6074978016/
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Norway
Image Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/michael7601/445693532/
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Santorini, Greece
Image Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/marcelgermain/2856202549/
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Amsterdam’s Canals
Image Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/bcnbits/1535046496/
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Castles of Ireland
Image Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/jvoitus/2596160898/
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Petra
Image Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/5cheherazad3/2201955063/
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Positano – Amalfi, Italy
Image Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/bcnbits/409771804/
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Zakynthos Island, Greece
Image Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/visitgreecegr/4456900386/
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Vatican piazza, Vatican city
Image Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/gaspars/2971485426/
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Zion National Park, Utah
Image Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/sathishcj/5760978080/
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Uxmal, Mexico
Mayan architecture.
Image Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/mexicanwave/73521540/
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Rio De Janeiro, Brazil
Image Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/soldon/2110741961/
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Olympia, Greece
Image Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/domestictimes/4994891239/
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Juan Les Pins – French Riviera
Image Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/christianteillas/6580631429/
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New York, New York
There are too many places to visit in New York City. Statue of Liberty, Staten Island, Times Square (pictured below) and Central Park are just a few. New York is one of the most photographed places on the planet.
Image Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/werkunz/4397246022/
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Bock Promontory – Luxemburg
Image Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/florianplag/6961168486/
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Whitehaven Beach, Australia
Image Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/jeremy_vandel/193986347/
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Potala Palace, Tibet
In order to get tickets, you need to get in line at 4:30 in the morning.
Image Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/vfowler/140140659/
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Stonehenge, England
Image Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/spacial/5752719177/
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Starfish beach, Grand Cayman
Image Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/jeffk42/2795081878/
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Taj Mahal
Image Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/thedevelopmentofbirmingham/4160702095/
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Salar De Uyuni, Bolivia
Image Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/mywayaround/3779032318/
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Reka Soča, Slovenia
Image Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/phantomai/24460645/
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Heaven’s Gate, China
Image Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/boyosep/6058512508/
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St Thomas/St John
Image Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/sel/5306710569/
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Sintra, The Quinta Da Regaleira
Image Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/pedromourapinheiro/3164279231/
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Machu Picchu
Image Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/pedrosz/2115782565/
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Gorges de l’Areuse, Switzerland
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Bonifacio, Corsica, France
Image Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/manu-claude/3778386262/
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De Gooyer Windmill, Amsterdam
Image Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/miltoncorrea/4164038121/
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Fairy Pools in the Cuilins, Scotland – Isle of Skye
Image Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/fs999/4844836382/
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Tadmur, Syria
Image Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/akocman/4601575741/
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Peggy’s Cove, Nova Scotia
Image Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/emmanuelamador/2357383941/
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San Alfonso del Mar Resort, Chile
World’s largest swimming pool in Chile. 1013 meters long covers 80 acres, its deepest end reaches 115ft and it holds 66 million gallons of water
Image Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/wehren/3379730178/
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The Enchanted Lake, Germany
Image Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/jup3nep/7550745422/
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Notre Dame Cathedral Paris, France
Image Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/ranopamas/164963669/
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Abu Simbel Temples, Egypt
Image Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/archer10/2216680889/
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Eifel Tower – Paris, France
Image Credit:Jay374 on Flikr http://www.flickr.com/photos/10512443@N03/1748081732/
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Angel Falls, Venezuela
Image Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/ent108/2184549701/
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Saint Petersburg, Russia
Image Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/oleg_mirabo/3377687811/
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The Tunnel of Love (train tunnel) in Klevan, Ukraine
Image Credit: Amos Chapple / Rex Features
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Casablanca, Morocco
Image Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/zanthia/7251414218/
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Canals in Venice, Italy
Image Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/bcnbits/4311379659/
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Tianzi Mountains, China
Image Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/whertha/2589073599/
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Seven Mile Bridge, The Florida Keys
Image Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/30101895@N08/2819800177/
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Easter Island, Chile
Image Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/mybigtrip/62644661/
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Marble Caverns of Carrera Lake, Chile
Image Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/feffef/436894068/
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Rainforest Canopy Walkway, Borneo
Image Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/maholyoak/5846320893/
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Faraglioni Capri
Image Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/juanillooo/1157334659/
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Parasmatic Steam – Yellowstone National Park
Image Credit: ww.flickr.com/photos/stuckincustoms/4714844002/
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Wat Phu – Laos
Image Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/65984836@N00
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Marovo Lagoon, Solomon Islands – Belgium
Image Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/xploredive/4949490557/
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Ubud – Bali
Image Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/jeffwerner/1416792992/
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Tower Bridge in London
Image Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/chanc/2496126265/
As with any vacation, you want to make it special and memorable. Make sure you plan ahead and leave additional budget for unplanned expenses and pack additional clothes for different types of weather. We hope our list has motivated you to take a much needed trip and if you think of any additional places that we missed, leave a comment below.
