My 2023 Travel Review: Exploring Europe & Moving To Japan
2023 is now over, and we are already 23days in 2024. So it’s time for my 2023 Travel Review! I don’t understand how time is moving on so fast!
We saw all the Spotify-wrapped reach everyone’s stories last month, so I think it’s about time I post my own wrap for the year of my travels.
So, if you’re curious, know what I did this year. Then you’ll enjoy this article (but I will also recommend you to follow my Instagram so you can follow my adventure in real-time, head over at @cpt_lyne)
Of course, this kind of post is clearly not SEO-friendly, but who cares? I am learning to also post things that I enjoy and wrapping up my year of travel is one of the things that I really enjoy. You can find some of my travel reviews all the way from 2016, when this platform wasn’t really a travel blog but more of a travel diary, as I was counting my adventures.
Read more: My 2023 Travel Review: Exploring Europe & Moving To JapanMy 2023 Travel Review: Europe & Moving To Japan
Truth be told, I don’t feel like I travelled a lot this year; if it wasn’t for my move to Japan, I don’t think I’d have seen many new places.
The places I visited in France were to see my family, and I often went to London because of my work and Croatia because my boyfriend lives there; so all, while this is great, it’s not as exciting as visiting new places.
London
With work, I, again, just like last year, spent a lot of time in London. But I also visited London on two separate occasions for holidays, one in April and one in August.
London is a city that is very dear to my heart; it was my first trip outside of France with a friend back in 2011 when I was 17 years old. So, I have very fond memories of London. So, I’ll probably visit London a lot more in the future.
In April, I visited London with my best friend; she had already been to London before, so we didn’t have a distinct plan. We just hit places we felt like.
However, in August, I went to London with my boyfriend, and it was his first time visiting London, so we hit most of the famous landmarks and activities; it was a really fun trip to re-discover the city with someone that had never been to London, also, the weather was much nicer than the gloomy weather I experienced in April with my friend. I even got sunburnt, yes, in London…
Croatia: Zagreb & Plitvice
My boyfriend being Croatian and living in Croatia (LDR, ftw) means I spent a lot of time visiting Zagreb again this year; of course, by now, I feel like I’ve seen most of the city, but it’s still fun, and I enjoy spending time there.
It feels chill and laid back compared to Paris, which is always pleasant as life can feel too fast-paced in this day and age. spending time with my boyfriend is always nice, obviously.
It was my second time in Plitvice National Park, so this time, we tried a different route with a bit of a twist to it as we mixed two routes. I added this experience to my already existing post about how to plan a day trip to Plitvice Lakes National Park; if you haven’t added it to your Croatia itinerary, I highly recommend it.
I hope you’ll be more lucky than us, as, so far, both times we have been to Plitvice, we got rained on at some point!
Moving To Japan On A Working Holiday
Moving to Japan, albeit temporarily, was something I have always wanted to do. The original plan was to move there on my working holiday in 2020, but we all know what happened this year.
So, 3 years later, this plan has finally come to fruition. I am living in Japan and will be there until late August 2024. My main goal is to visit all 47 prefectures of Japan. Although I like to take my time, I feel like I won’t succeed, but it’s the plan!
I have been to Japan 6 times before, so I have some prefectures I have already checked out (10 in total). I might not revisit some prefectures I visited in the past again, but I would love to if I have the time and means.
I had a lot of visits while I’ve been living in Tokyo, so it’s always fun to show around the city to my friends, and I expect a lot more visits in 2024! If you’re visiting Tokyo for the first time this year, make sure to check out my travel guide!
While the blog’s main focus is on Paris and Europe, I have already been blogging about Japan in the past, but you can expect a lot more content to come about this beautiful country.
That’s a wrap on my travel adventures for 2023; make sure to follow my Instagram (link below) to see all my adventures in Japan and discover places to add to your own travel bucket list!
Also, follow me on Instagram to check out my travel adventures around Europe and more lifestyle content @cpt_lyne!
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My 2023 travel review: Exploring Europe and Moving To Japan!
✈ Best Travel Ressources To Plan Your Next Trip
✈ How To Find Flights?
– Skyscanner; it is a good comparator for finding the cheapest flights.
– Google Flights is also a good help when comparing flights.
✈ Where To Book Accommodations?
– Booking.com: plenty of options and ways to get discounts the more you book.
✈ Best Sites To Book Activities
– GetYourGuide when I can’t get a ticket directly on the website or if it’s easier to go through them.
– Klook if you need to book more than just activities and would like to get everything from the same website or different day trips—(i.e. transport cards, car rental, hotel…).
✈ Other helpful travel resources
– Radical Storage: If you need a place to keep your luggage for an extended period when you travel, I recommend using them.
– TheTrainline: If you love to travel by train like me, then TheTrainline needs to be your go-to website for train travel in Europe.
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Disclaimer: This resources box contains affiliate links, which means I earn a small commission if you book anything through my links at no additional cost. These links help me support the blog and generate more content. Happy travels!
