5 of My Favorite States to Visit and how Prioritizing Travel has Changed my Life (for the better!)

Exploration, adventure, and nature are hugely important to me, so much so, I have made travel a huge priority in my life. I plan most of my trips around hiking and spending time outdoors. I’ve had the opportunity these past two years to take domestic trips that took me to places I had never been and only fueled my travel lust more. My best friend and I took two weeklong road trips visiting 16 states! I also hopped on a plane a few times these past few years visiting Florida, Arizona and California (twice!) I fell in love with these states. I’m so entirely grateful for the opportunities I’ve had to travel. Each trip has left me fulfilled and happy. I now have an ongoing goal: to always have a trip planned and in the works. The next trip on my radar? First, I’m flying to Phoenix, Arizona for a week. And I planned a road trip to southern Tennessee to visit family this summer. I hope to visit all 50 states in America.

Here are 5 states I have visited and what I love about them:

1. Colorado

Road trip! My bestie and I hopped in the car and drove 15 hours one way from Chicago to Colorado. Colorado quickly and easily became my favorite state I’ve ever been to. We stayed in a beautiful hotel in Colorado Springs. (Look for deals! Nice hotels don’t always mean it will break the bank.)  We stayed at the SCP Colorado Springs Hotel. This property had all of the amenities we wanted and more: an outdoor pool with a mountain view, indoor gym, smoothies in the lobby, close to downtown/ the mountains and overall clean and trendy. This was probably the coolest hotel I’ve ever stayed at. We hiked in the Garden of the Gods. The huge red rocks were something I had never seen before. The trails were very well organized. There is a center where employees will direct you where to hike based on your desires. The views were breathtaking. We also brought backpack water packs which I recommend bringing. We also went on a train ride through the mountains called the Royal Gorge. It was an hour drive from our hotel. For $80 we got a ticket for a two-hour ride with food and drinks inside the train. Let me tell you— it was the best $80 I have ever spent. It was an experience I will never forget. We road on this train and saw the rivers throughout the beautiful mountains. You can also stand in an open cart to take in all the views. If you’ve never been to this state and you love to hike, go to Colorado. There are many cute coffee shops and thrift stores that we went to. Overall, it was an amazing vacation.

• California

I have flown to California three times now. My favorite cousin lives out there in Los Angeles. I stay with her. She is so amazing and the best tour guide! We have the best times together. She has shown me so many parts of California which I am so grateful for. We explored LA, Santa Monica, Malibu, Hollywood and more. We went to Disney Land and Universal Studios which I loved. Going as an adult, it feels like you’re a kid again. We did the Star Wars “Ride of the Resistance” at Disney Land. It’s not just a ride, it’s an experience! You are in trackless vehicles with motion simulators and even an elevator drop. It’s one of their biggest attractions. And if you ever go, you need to get the famous dole whip. It’s pineapple juice, ice cream and frozen pineapple chunks. Santa Monica Pier is beautiful with so much to do. Pacific beaches, restaurants, shops and a ferris wheel! My favorite beach is now Malibu Beach. We packed a picnic lunch and tanned for hours. I also think everyone should experience Hollywood atleast once in their lives. Such a cool experience seeing all the stars of your favorite celebrities. I also fell in love with Los Angeles. My cousin and I went on multiple hikes in this area. In these mountains we walked through river streams, balancing on huge rocks to get to the beautiful waterfall. It’s such a different world out there compared to where I live in the Midwest. It’s way more my vibe. The weather is perfect in California. It’s dry heat which feels so nice when you’re outside. It’s a state I would move to in the future for sure.

• Tennessee

My second home… oh how I love Tennessee. In my life, I’ve probably gone to Tennessee 30 times. (Not exaggerating) My entire dad’s side of the family lives there, so my family road trips 1-2 times a year. My grandparents, aunts/uncles and my 16 cousins live there! I have seen a lot of Tennessee over the years. My family lives in a small town an hour south of Nashville. We’ve been to Nashville and gone to Predator games which are fun if you enjoy NHL hockey. Lynchburg is one of my favorite towns where the Jack Daniels Distillery is if you enjoy whiskey. Chattanooga is a beautiful town with a huge aquarium that we’ve visited. The Tennessee Aquarium and is a home to 10,000 animals. But my favorite part of Tennessee is Gatlinburg. I went this past summer and hiked in the Smokey Mountains. That National Park was a top 10 experience of my life. We hiked over 12 miles, and the views were unreal. When you’re in the mountains there is “smoke” hovering over the top of the mountains. It’s actually fog but now I know why it’s called the “Smokies”. One of the hikes we went on lead us to massive waterfalls that we actually went into. The rest of our hike we were soaking wet, but it surprisingly felt nice after sweating for hours. From the balcony of our Air Bnb, we saw a black bear walking through the parking lot! Everything in Gatlinburg has a black bear/cabin vibe which we loved. Gatlinburg is one of the cutest towns I’ve been to. There is so much to do downtown my head was spinning. We went to live country music restaurants, local coffee shops, gift stores and walked/ explored the area. One restaurant I recommend is Ole Red—the best spot for live music in the Smokies. The food was so good. Highly recommend the brisket mac and cheese. There is so much to do in Tennessee, and I believe one day I will move there (fingers crossed).

• Arizona

For my 22nd birthday this past October, my best friend and I flew to Arizona to celebrate. We share a birthday, so it was an excuse to travel together. We stayed with one of our best friends who lives out there in Tempe. Tempe is where University of Arizona is, so I got to see the beautiful campus. Not going to lie, my favorite part was eating burgers and fries (monster style!) at In-N-Out and getting coffee from Dutch Bros. If you’ve never been… you have to try it! Dutch Bros was awesome and gave me a free coffee on my birthday. I ate at In-N-Out three days in a row while I was there lol. We also hiked in Phoenix at a place called Hole-In-The-Rock. I absolutely love hiking and I am glad I got to experience it in Arizona. We also explored Scottsdale. It was super cool driving around and admiring the luxury homes. I also loved the palm trees and the desert vibe. The one thing about Arizona is it is HOT. I went in the fall, and it was 90 degrees. I loved Arizona and I already planned a trip to go back in a couple months!

• North Carolina

My friend and I drove through North Carolina on our way to Virginia on a road trip. We stopped in Ashville. It was the cutest town. The highlight of it was the best coffee shop I’ve ever been to. If you are ever in the area, you need to go. It’s called Double D’s Coffee & Desserts. It is a red double decker bus that they converted into a coffee shop. As a coffee shop lover, I was thrilled to go to such a creative spot. The white mocha was amazing. Walking around Asheville was such a fun experience! We went to a local craft show. We also had a picnic at Pilot Mountain State Park. We set up a blanket in a secluded spot and enjoyed our sandwiches on the road. As someone who loves nature this was a very peaceful experience. We drove through the entire state and the scenery was beautiful. My favorite part was the mountains of course. I am making another trip to NC for sure.

There are so many other places I’ve been to like Virginia Beach, Maryland, Washington DC, and Kansas City that I would love to write about. Maybe I can make this a series. Writing and traveling are my two main hobbies so why not combine them! I love to write lifestyle blogs and I want to incorporate that more into my website. Lifestyle is a big part of mental health. Having traveling become a part of my lifestyle has improved my mental health overall. I want to write more about it on my platform. I cannot wait to see where I travel next. Hopefully I’ll start traveling internationally one day and write about my world traveling adventures. So far at 22, I am very happy with the vacations I’ve been on. I am also proud that I’ve done most of this on my own and with friends. I also learned that I love flying on planes by myself. Another goal of mine is to go on a solo trip. How freeing would that be?

Thank you for reading this blog and learning more about the experiences I’ve had so far. I love sharing it. I hope this inspires you and gives you some ideas of where to go next. Happy traveling!