10 Travel Challenges To Shake Up Your Next Adventure

In today’s world, we read more and more, but actually learn less and less. We travel more, but change less. We’ve seen infinite tourist destinations a thousand times on the Internet and are no longer easily amazed, even when we visit the place. So why do we bother to travel at all? The following challenges will help you to travel differently—to see, hear and try things you’ve never thought of seeing, hearing or doing before.

The slow return challenge

Choose a destination and go there as quickly as possible, but on the way back home, choose the slowest possible transport and way of returning. Change the several-hour flight for a several-day exciting trip. Stop, change transport, take detours, postpone your arrival—even if only by five minutes. Enjoy every place, every encounter and situation on the road.

Go to the airport and buy a ticket for the cheapest destination of the day

Go to the airport with your luggage packed. You can even go together with your friends. The destination is not important, it’s all about the adventure. Spend the weekend there.

See a shooting star and make a wish come true

Seeing a shooting star and making a wish on it may seem like a waste of time these days. The truth is, you can increase your chances of making a wish or several wishes, by being in the right place at the right time. Every year, between July 13th and August 24th, but especially around the 12th of August, the night sky fills with hundreds of shooting stars (or meteorites to be exact). The reason is the annual meteor stream called Perseids, so called because the shooting stars seem to be coming from the constellation Perseus. So, get your travel wishes ready and start looking up to the sky this summer!

Trust a friend to organize your trip

Set a budget and leave the organisational side to a close friend. It could be a surprise—in the end, you simply receive an envelope with reservations, GPS coordinates and a list of the necessary items to pack. You in turn organise the next trip for a friend.

Recreate your childhood memories

Pick your favourite photos from your childhood. Go to the places where they were taken and pose for a photo to replicate the original. See how the world has changed (or not) while you were growing up.

Jump into The Blue Lagoon while it’s snowing

There are plenty of warm, mineral pools in the open air around the world. But however pleasant they may be in the summer, there is nothing like getting into one in the winter, when snowflakes are falling from the sky and you are nice and warm. The Blue Lagoon gets its name from the incredible colour created by the mixture of fresh and salt water. It lies 40 km (24 miles) from the capital of Iceland—Reykjavík. The Blue Lagoon contains around 6 million litres (1.5 million gallons) of geothermal water, which renews itself naturally every 40 hours.

Visit Rome’s most famous attraction at night

In Rome, Italy there are many attractions that stay open even when it’s dark outside. There are also events created to make your night more interesting. It’s a different world when you trade the light of the sun for the light of the moon and the stars, especially when the Colosseum is involved. Every summer from May until October, the Colosseum in Rome is open until midnight on Mondays, Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays (reservation necessary).

Find the world’s largest… whatever

Everything that exists has its LARGEST version somewhere around the world. Whether you’re looking for the largest pumpkin, the largest aquapark, the highest observation deck, this will be a challenge full of dangers and adventures. Do you accept the challenge?

Walk the narrowest street in the world

The Old Town of Reutlingen, Germany is home to the narrowest street in the world according to the Guinness World Records. Spreuerhofstraße was built in 1727 and at its narrowest point, it is only 31 cm (12.2 in) wide. Skip breakfast on the days you decide to squeeze through some of the narrowest streets in the world, because most of them look like a crevice rather than something that has an official name on the city’s map.

Bathe under a waterfall

Enjoy a free shower from nature. If you find pictures of the world’s most beautiful waterfalls, without a shadow of a doubt, you will want to stand under them the next chance you get. Head to Ouzoud, Morocco to experience a waterfall that looks like it appeared straight from a fairy tale.
This is an excerpt from 203 Travel Challenges. To discover 193 other challenges, check out the book by Maria Angelova and Ivalina Nenova and take the online quiz to discover what type of traveller you are.

Since you are here, we would like to share our vision for the future of travel - and the direction Culture Trip is moving in.

Culture Trip launched in 2011 with a simple yet passionate mission: to inspire people to go beyond their boundaries and experience what makes a place, its people and its culture special and meaningful — and this is still in our DNA today. We are proud that, for more than a decade, millions like you have trusted our award-winning recommendations by people who deeply understand what makes certain places and communities so special.

Increasingly we believe the world needs more meaningful, real-life connections between curious travellers keen to explore the world in a more responsible way. That is why we have intensively curated a collection of premium small-group trips as an invitation to meet and connect with new, like-minded people for once-in-a-lifetime experiences in three categories: Culture Trips, Rail Trips and Private Trips. Our Trips are suitable for both solo travelers, couples and friends who want to explore the world together.

Culture Trips are deeply immersive 5 to 16 days itineraries, that combine authentic local experiences, exciting activities and 4-5* accommodation to look forward to at the end of each day. Our Rail Trips are our most planet-friendly itineraries that invite you to take the scenic route, relax whilst getting under the skin of a destination. Our Private Trips are fully tailored itineraries, curated by our Travel Experts specifically for you, your friends or your family.

We know that many of you worry about the environmental impact of travel and are looking for ways of expanding horizons in ways that do minimal harm - and may even bring benefits. We are committed to go as far as possible in curating our trips with care for the planet. That is why all of our trips are flightless in destination, fully carbon offset - and we have ambitious plans to be net zero in the very near future.