A smarty pants friend of mine (shout out to itsjustvanessa) gave me the idea that I should have a blog post about the hottest destinations for 2019 – based off the itinerary requests I was receiving. I don’t have the super duper tourism statistics like big companies do, however, because of the volume of personalized itineraries I do and what seems to be popular on my blog, I do have some idea of where folks are off to in 2019.
Do your 2019 travel plans align with any of the top five?
#5: Wynwood, Miami
I don’t know what it is with you artsy hippies, but boy do you love yourself some Wynwood. I’ve never even been to Miami but I do know if I want to see a lot of nice murals and cheaper stays (in comparison to South Beach) apparently I should make my way over to Wynwood.
There must have been at least one request a week this year where people were asking me for flights to Miami and places to stay specifically in Wynwood. I’m not exactly sure if the Art Basel event takes place in and around there as well, but that might also have something to do with it. So if you are planning to go there, you are obviously on trend.
#4: Da Nang, Vietnam
This is one of those place I really wanted to go visit because of how nice their beaches looked and also, the great costs of being there. But in 2018 the city of Da Nang added something so incredible, it seems to have really boosted the rate of tourism.
The ‘Golden Bridge’ that opened in June is the current main attraction and booooyyyy is it working. Last year I maybe had 2-3 itinerary requests specifically for Vietnam and that number really skyrocketed this year. I guess the influx of pretty pictures and YouTube videos of this bridge really increased traffic, both for the city and in my request forms.
An example of a 2019 itinerary I had posted on the blog was Toronto to Singapore & Da Nang for under $1500.00 per person which can be found here.
#3: Santorini, Greece
I went to Santorini in 2015, yes, BEFORE RICK ROSS HAD A SONG ABOUT IT. Kidding, who gives a shit when I was there. What matters is, in 2019 people are still fawning over the island of Santorini and nowhere else in Europe came with THIS many requests to travel to it.
The funny thing was in the middle of 2018, people started to post a lot of their own pictures in Santorini. To the point that social media turned on those posting and began calling Santorini ‘overrated’ or just being jerks because obviously, they never got to experience such an enchanting place. I took advantage of the situation and amidst all the bullshit posted a Toronto to Paris and Santorini Trip for under $1500.00 per person which can be found here. I felt that if I could show people that you can get to Santorini for a damn fine price, maybe people would travel there more and understand what the obsession with the place is. Plus, capitalizing off a social media topic is ALWAYS a win, amirite?
That specific post ended up being one of the most popular posts I’ve ever had on the blog. People were very interested in going to see Santorini for themselves and for a good price. I must have done 2-3 itinerary requests per week that included Santorini in 2018.
So if you are planning Santorini for 2019, you are well on trend. (even if people want to talk shit about it)
#2: Bali, Indonesia
Let’s talk about Bali.
This island is on MANY people’s bucket list destinations, whether from when they watched Eat, Pray, Love or just because they see the influx of amazing photos that come from there on their IG feed.
I went to Bali for my 30th birthday back in 2016 and I have been telling people to go visit from timeeee. I tell so many people to visit Bali that just last week I made my own Things to Do In Bali post because once people finally do choose to go, they want to know what activities to do.
Bali is expensive to get to (from Toronto) but if you can find a good flight? Oh man. Once you get there you feel like royalty. The Canadian dollar kind of sucks so anywhere we can go and actually enjoy some benefit to the exchange rate, I would highly encourage going.
Recently I posted an itinerary that was Toronto to Bali for $1500.00 per person with all flights and stays included, that you can find here. Aside from that post, I easily get 5-10 personalized requests for Bali-related travel from all across USA and Canada every week.
Get going, once you’re in Bali your soul will feel better.
#1: Jamaica
This was the only place I didn’t put a specific city for, because….. THE WHOLE ISLAND IS FRIGGING POPULAR for 2019.
I posted an itinerary for Jamaica Dream Weekend 2020, shit went viral. (Negril)
I posted the costs associated with traveling to Carnival in Jamaica AND a Carnival in Jamaica 2019 itinerary, they’re both in top FIVE for Google searches related to Carnival there. (Kingston)
I should also add for this, I myself was in Jamaica for carnival earlier this year and posted my recap here.
My throwback post about My Trip to Hedonism as a Single Woman is the #1 most visited blog post on my site that gets traffic from literally everywhere in the world constantly. (Negril)
And finally, the continuous requests I get for people wanting solo trips, baecations or group trips to Montego Bay made Jamaica easily the most popular destination for 2019 on my end.
Whether you’re planning to skin out in Kingston for Carnival, get up to some shenanigans in Negril at Hedo or just relax in Mobay – I probably had a request about it this year. Over and over these requests came in and I’m happy to do them because Jamaica is a super fun place, they have delicious food and they have excellent music. Why wouldn’t you want to go?
Furthermore, now that the new low-cost carrier Swoop has roundtrip flights from Hamilton to Montego Bay sometimes for under $350.00? I bet I’ll be finding even cheaper deals for all.
So there you have it, my top 5 most popular travel destinations for 2019 based off what I experienced with my blog.
I hope many of you go to some/all of these places in 2019 (or even after, just go!)
Happy travels!
- Mirna
