Travel options were once again limited this year, but we tried to keep you dreaming big and reminding you of some of our favourite destinations, even if we couldn’t get to all of them.
We also tried to keep you informed about the places that you could travel to this year, with some domestic destinations still ripe for discovery.
Our five most read destination articles for 2021 showed a very strong bias towards some of the domestic destinations we were still able to get to, and if you didn’t manage them in 2021, they might be something you’d like to consider next year.
Read: National Geographic announces best of 2022 travel list
Without further ado, here are the top five destination articles you read on YourLifeChoices in 2021.
1. Eight of the best day trips from Melbourne
Going right back to the start of the year, when Melbourne had made it through what we thought was the worst of the pandemic lockdowns, you were keen to show support for the southern state.
The article also held plenty of appeal for Melburnians keen to travel after coming out of 2020’s lockdowns and looking for destinations where they knew the border was unlikely to slam shut.
Some of the day trips you might still want to consider taking from Melbourne include travelling on the Great Ocean Road, or visiting history-filled Bendigo.
2. Where you should travel in 2021, according to your star sign
This is always a popular article, suggesting many of you are happy to leave your travel destination in the lap of the gods.
Read: Get a taste of Girona – Spain’s most delicious city
Unfortunately, this year’s star charts predicted that international borders would be open again at some stage but, just like 2020, things didn’t go quite to plan.
Some of the destinations we recommended in 2021, according to zodiac signs, were San Sebastian in Spain, Estonia, Indonesia, Canada, Thailand and Austria.
The only star sign we really feel we helped this year is Aquarius. We suggested that travelling early on in 2021 was going to work out best for Aquarians and we recommended a trip to Melbourne.
One out of 12 isn’t too bad. We’ll try and do better next year.
3. The most scenic small towns in Australia
One of the good things about not being able to travel overseas, was the ability to shine a spotlight on some of the smaller destinations, and you seemed to enjoy them too.
Read: How Mauritius is bouncing back
Not only are small towns full of interesting characters and unique experiences, they also provide some of the most stunning backdrops you could ever experience on a holiday anywhere in the world.
We listed the top 15 small towns in Australia, according to global travel website Touropia, although we might have disagreed with some of them, particularly when it came to their controversial No. 1 choice.
4. Six must-visit volcanoes in Victoria
Those who know Victoria well may be surprised to hear that the southern-most state of mainland Australia is home to many volcanoes. More than 400, in fact, making the state home to the third-largest volcanic plain in the world.
Though they’re not extinct, it has been more than 7000 years since the last eruption.
Our story ran well before the earthquake that shook the state in September, but it was a prescient prediction of what was to come, suggesting Victoria might not be as geologically stable as we had come to expect.
5. The best places to see the southern lights
Also known as the aurora australis, the southern lights occur when solar particles collide with atmospheric gases and become excited.
The result is a brilliant glowing light show, which can last for several minutes or even days. The range of colours is based on what the particles collide with, resulting in hues of red, green, yellow, violet, or blue.
Fortunately, some of the best places to catch a glimpse of the southern lights were still possible for us to get to in spite of travel restrictions.
If you didn’t manage to get to one of these destinations during the peak period between March and September, it might be something you want to consider next year.
Where would you like to travel to most next year? Why not share your thoughts in the comments section below?
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