A strong case of wanderlust

It's time to talk a little about the trip that Joe and I hope to take this spring. It's not booked yet, and there's still a chance our plans might change, but we're hoping to travel to Europe this April. My little sister is studying abroad, and it seems like a prefect excuse to hop across the pond. Joe and I both love traveling, especially to Europe, and it's been five years since our amazing trip to the Netherlands, Belgium, and France. We've been working hard, and saving our pennies, and I am pretty close to thinking this trip might become an actual reality. Curious where we're planning to go?

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London, baby! It's a city I've dreamed about for years, but I've never made it beyond the airport. I've done a couple trips to Ireland, and have otherwise stuck to mainland Europe. It is time for that to change. Since my sister is studying there, this seems like the perfect time. We plan to spend 3-4 days in London, enjoying historical buildings, bustling neighborhoods, and all the romance that the city has to offer. Joe and I had an amazing time wandering around Paris on our last trip, and I think we'll feel the same charm in London. Even if it's a bit dreary and gray for our mid-April timeline, it still sounds like the perfect getaway.

And then, since it will most likely be dreary and gray, we figured it's probably a good idea to head somewhere a little warmer for the second half of our trip! That part of the trip is still up for debate, but I think we've narrowed it down to two front runners.

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First, there's Barcelona. It's big, busy, coastal, and decently cheap. Plus, everyone we know seems to have visited already, so we'll be able to get lots of recommendations on what to see. I really enjoyed Madrid when I visited during college, and Joe's never been to Spain. I'm pretty confident we could have a laid back yet exciting little trip if this is where we ended up.

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And then there's Lisbon. Everyone we talk to says they've heard great things about Portugal, and that they had a friend who visited and loved it. But no one we've encountered has actually been there themselves. That makes it a little more exotic, which is appealing to us. It's got a lot of the same appeal as Spain, but might be just a little cheaper and a little warmer. Both qualities that we appreciate!

We don't have to decide our secondary destination just yet, thankfully. We're planning to fly in and out of London, and to fly a low cost airline to our second destination. But I'm pushing to get our tickets to London purchased within the next month or so, just to know it's official. Fingers crossed this all works out...