What was/ were some of the most beautiful places you visited on your vacation? Mine was Ireland and the Grand Canyon.

[debm55]

[applegrove]

1. I had a job at a tea house 1500 feet above Lake Louise on a waterfall.

Did I mention I showered in the waterfall every day? It was stunning.

[debm55]

3. That sounds wonderful. Thank you applegrove for sharing.

[MoonlightHillFarm]

2. Canyon de Chelle and Machi Piccu (sp?)

[debm55]

5. Thank you very much, MoonlightHillFarm, Wonderful.

[electric_blue68]

57. Amongst I and a friend's trip around the Navajo & Hopi Nations, plus NE AZ we stopped at

Canyon de Chelle.

He took the donkey/mule down. I could not !

I walked around the rim, which was still impressive, and waited for him in the restaurant for lunch.

[debm55]

61. Thank you very much, electric_blue68. I wanted to take the burro trip down. But when I looked at the small amount of

Space I chickened out.

[flying_wahini]

4. New Zealand by far.

Absolutely eye candy everywhere you look. At least 4 (5?) different eco systems so there is everything from volcanos, pristine beaches, redwood forests and glaciers/ penguins.

Unbelievable to see.

[debm55]

6. Thank you flying_wahini. That sounds absolutely wounderful.

[Botany]

7. Zermatt Switzerland

[debm55]

8. That is outstanding, Thank you for sharing with us, Botany.

[Botany]

13. I skied on one of the lower sides of the Matterhorn @ one time. I didn't fall but it was steep.

Btw Dolly Sods W.V. Is beautiful too.

[debm55]

15. Botany you must a great skier. I couldn't do it. I like the photo of Dolly Sods, WV. I live in SW PA , It would nice

to take a week end trip in the fall. Thank you for sharing the area.

[Botany]

19. It is worth the trip.

And not too far from you is my heaven New Germany State Park in Western MD.
The cabins are to die for … no t.v., cell phones don’t work, and the quietness in
winter is awesome. I don’t know if I can cross country ski like I used to do but
I might be able to stay on the lower elevations and flatter terrain.



The park is just south of Grantsville, MD and the Casselman Bridge.

[CrispyQ]

35. That bridge is an optical illusion!

Sometimes it looks like the arch is facing more to the left & other times more to the right. That little point at the very top-center of the bridge looks like it juts out just a bit toward the river. ??? Either that or they've built an illusion into the stone work. Very cool, regardless.

[debm55]

37. Thank you very much. That sounds like a great weekend spot not to far from me.

[Botany]

42. The cabins are great and the paneling is American Chestnut.. it is beautiful

Although bring your own skillet because the ones in the cabin are trashed. The cabins book up
quickly on the weekends but you can have the park to yourself on weekdays. Nice hiking, the lake
and it’s stream … Poplar Run … are very nice, and lots of wildlife too. If you bring groceries you don’t
have to leave the park. But the Casselman Inn in Grantsville can be good.

[debm55]

44. Thanks for the information, Botany. It looks beautiful.

[Botany]

53. Btw the drive from New Germany State Park to Dolly Sods is under 2 hours and beautiful...

Great fall colors. U.S. 219 is one of the prettiest drives in America although you might want to
hide any liberal bumper stickers.

[CrispyQ]

32. Whoa! That is gorgeous!!

We don't have much red in Colorado (except for our dirt—lol), mostly orange & gold in the fall. It's pretty, but damn, that is spectacular!

[Botany]

43. That is an alpine meadow/wet land..... the reds are cranberries and blueberries the oranges are sugar maples.

N/t

[ailsagirl]

109. I forgot (how could I?)-- we were in Zermatt also

What a beautiful place!!! 💕😁

[customerserviceguy]

9. Want to see something other-worldly?

Go to the Badlands National Park in South Dakota, for me, it was as amazing as the Grand Canyon.

[debm55]

11. Yes, it is. customerservice. We visited Badlands National Park, the summer after the Grand Canyon and I agree with you.

Lovely. We visited all the National Parks from the southern to northern border of the US over the years.So many wonderful places to see.Thank you for sharing.

[customerserviceguy]

20. And the good thing is

that I have a lifetime senior pass to get myself and up to three or four other people in the car with me to get into the national parks. It was very affordable to pay $20 a year to get the annual pass, and after having done that three times, I turned in all three cards along with another twenty, and got the lifetime pass. Heckuva deal!

[kimbutgar]

10. Moorea Tahiti

It was in the early 80’s and always wanted to go back. it kind of ruined Hawaii for me for years. I hope to return someday. Went with my ex husband and he was drunk the whole time but the scenery made me still enjoy the trip.

[debm55]

12. Thank you kimbutgar, I am so glad despite your husband that you had a wonderful time and enjoyed the sites.

[kimbutgar]

14. When I divorced him in 1985 I never saw or spoke to him again !

[debm55]

16. You are a strong woman. kimbutgar. You didn't need his bagage. Good for you.

[BarbaRosa]

17. Blue Mountains, NSW.

We lived just north of Sydney for two years.

[debm55]

18. Thank you very much for sharing with us, BarbaRosa. How wonderful to live there. Japan and Australia are two places that

I would love to visit.

[sinkingfeeling]

21. Antarctica, Italy, and New Zealand.

[debm55]

38. Wow, Thank you very much for sharing, sinkingfeeling. That is outstanding. I would love to go to Italy and New Zealand.

I don't know about Antarctica. Were you part of a research team?

[sinkingfeeling]

54. No, a tourist to see penguin colonies and check off my 7th. continent.

[debm55]

66. Thank you very much, sinkingfeeling. What an achievement--7 continents.

[LogDog75]

22. Germany, Switzerland, and Wales

Stationed in Germany twice so I got to do a little bit of traveling. Ths, e Hunsruck area of Germany is rural with mountains and rivers. The towns of Bernkastel-Kues Zell along the Mosselle River. In the While on a bus returning from Ramstein, we were going through a mountainous area with a lot of turns climbing from the valleys. Being in the back of the bus I happened to look up out the back window and saw an incredible sight. There was a stag standing on an outcropping of rock about 100 feet high overlooking the valley below. Behind him were some does and fauns. I wish I had my camera ready at the time because it was like a picture out of National Geographic.

Taking the cog-wheel train up the Eiger region Switzerland to be in snow in the summertime. Visiting and crossing the Chapel Bridge in Lucerne.

While In England, I took a bus trip to Ireland via Maidenhead Wales. The countryside in Wales was beautiful with broad valleys and wooded mountains. So peaceful and serene.

[debm55]

67. Breathtaking adventures. Thank you so much for sharing us, LogDog75

[Earl_from_PA]

23. I had moved to Phoenix in 1984

When I went back home, to Western PA, the first time after... Landing at Pittsburgh International, and driving into the city, when you exit that tunnel and the city is in front of you, there is no finer sight on the planet ..

[debm55]

46. I agree with you , Earl _from_PA The view coming out of the Liberty Tunnel is great.

[Earl_from_PA]

48. It just screams

Home!

[Squeaky41]

24. Good Parks

Bryce/Zion in Southern Utah late afternoon

Yosemite any time, Breakfast or Supper at Ahwanne Inn.

[debm55]

47. Yes, I agree. I went at noon and sweated like crazy. Especially at Arches. Thank you Squeaky41.

[NameAlreadyTaken]

25. Yosemite Valley

Most beautiful so far. 360 degree beauty no matter which direction you look.

[debm55]

49. Thank you very much, NameAlreadyTaken

[mwmisses4289]

26. Most beautiful: Switzerland.

2nd most beautiful: Pacific Northwest and British Columbia.
Most fascinating: The ruins of the Goddess Ix Chel, on the island of Cozumel. Not as well known as other Mexican ruins, but i found them way more interesting.

[debm55]

50. Very interesting travels, mwsmisses4289. Thank you very much for sharing your travels with us.

[doc03]

27. The Grand Canyon and Tetons. I haven't been out of the country other than Canada and Germany

I liked Niagra Falls. Was in Bavaria in the army, it was like home in southeastern Ohio with a different language.

[debm55]

41. Thank you very much, doc03. The Grand Canyons and the Tetons are something else. At the Grand Canyons, we stayed on the

North Rim.Yes. they were the cabins that burnt last week. Sad.Been to Niagara Falls a half dozen times on the Canandian side.Bavaria sounds wonderful and I bet their meals and desserts were great too.

[Ritabert]

28. Grand Canyon and Bahamas on a sailboat

[debm55]

29. Thank you very much, Ritabert. I have been to the Bahamas. But not on a sailboat. We took an airplane. The water there

was gorgeous shade of blue. That was the first time I swam in salt water. I jumped in with my mouth open and you know the rest of the story.

[rso]

30. Croatia

Plitvice National Park, Croatia.

[debm55]

31. Thank you very much, rso. I have heard that it is beautiful. Thank you for sharing with us.

[LogDog75]

79. I was in Croatia for four months with our medical unit

Beautiful country and the food there was great. We were stationed at the Zagreb (Capital of Croatia) airport and in our free time we went white water rafting, twice. We also went to a ski resort in early April, when there wasn't snow, riding the cable cars to get up and down the mountain.

Zagreb is a beautiful old world city with a great public transits system. I used the free trolley and I could travel around the city. It's also a fairly easy to walk anywhere. There are many parks for people to relax and many of the homes reminded me of the homes in Amsterdam with different painted front doors. Just off the main plaza and up a small hill are a number of restaurants as well as a fresh food market. One of my favorite areas to visit was the underground mall, about one-story underground.

One area I didn't make it to was the Split or Dubrovink. People I know who've been there loved it.

[brush]

33. Sabino Canyon in the foothills of the Catalina Mountains in Tucson, AZ.

[debm55]

34. Thank you very much for sharing with us brush.

[sinkingfeeling]

55. I lived right there back in the mid-80s.

[brush]

56. Cool. It's beautiful there.

[wryter2000]

36. New Zealand

I hated to leave

[debm55]

39. I can see why, Thank you wryter2000, People I know who have gone there, say it is absolutely beautiful.

[Mark.b2]

40. Glacier National Park is my first...

South Caicos, an island part of Turks & Caicos, would be in second place.

[debm55]

45. Thank you very much Mark.b2. Thank you very much for sharing. Two beautiful place to see the beauty of nature.

[spooky3]

51. Norway nt

[debm55]

68. Thank you spooky3 for sharing your travels with us.

[IbogaProject]

52. Olympic National Forest

So much green in that rain forest in Washington state.

[debm55]

70. It sounds perfect.IbogaProject. Thank you for sharing.

[Bayard]

58. Santa Fe National Forest

Stayed at a little B&B with cabins. Trail ride on up into the higher elevations where there was still snow in August.

[debm55]

69. Wonderful trip, Bayard. Thank you for sharing.

[Bayard]

59. Santa Fe National Forest

Stayed at a little B&B with cabins. Trail ride on up into the higher elevations where there was still snow in August.

[electric_blue68]

60. Monument Valley, Teal/Turquoise Waters of Puerto Rico, The Grand Canyon, The Continental Divide [NW of Denver in The Roc

...The Rockies. My cousin took us up to Echo Lake ?10,500 ft, on his motorcycle!
The CD was north of there. Atmospheric more distant blue mountains with snow sections.

My friend and I (he) drove to MV in the day. The fascinating dull orange, orange brown colors of the formations - which glowed orange-red at sunset. Then we slept out in sleeping bags. Went to sleep w the Moon up. Woke up at 3:30AM w the Moon set, and The Milky Way spanning 2/3rds of the night sky over us!

While the ocean waters of north PR just east of San Juan weren't clear bc the waves kick up too much sand - oh, the colors! Even the deeper ocean further was a vibrant dark blue!

GC! From Flagstaff, AZ by bus. There Noon - 4PM.
At first strange bc at noon it was all blues, very pale blues, red purples. It looked flat- like a painted diorama!
NOT Till 3PM did the sun get at enough of an angle; did all the warm colors emerge.
Then, it was Glorious!

Such vibrant, happy memories to recall!

[debm55]

64. The colors of the varied land and sea, sound spectacular. Thank you electric_blue68 for sharing the colors of nature.

[electric_blue68]

71. Since I'm an artist - it makes sense I'd talk a lot about the colors I saw....

I got one more for you.

On the same trip up into The Rockies after the lake, and continental divide we rode further on up.

We stopped at a point where we looked out upon a roadless valley of thousands of fir trees with the rocks around it. Starting narrow at the top, and widening as it went down. Hundreds of feet.

A "carpet" of medium darkish green trees!

[NEOH]

63. The Napali Coast of Kauai, Hawaii

The Napali Coast of Kauai, Hawaii…actually the whole island of Kauai!!

[debm55]

65. Thank you NEOH. That sounds beautiful.

[Emile]

72. Northwest Ontario numerous wilderness lakes.

Last edited Tue Jul 29, 2025, 08:48 AM - Edit history (1)

[debm55]

81. Thank you very much, Emile, for sharing your beautiful place to vacation.

[beaglelover]

73. Just got back from French Polynesia. The islands down there are really spectacular and the colors of the sea

are incredible. I would say it's probably the most beautiful place I've ever visited.

[debm55]

85. Thank you very much, beaglelover. It does sound absolutely beautiful.

[Laffy Kat]

74. It was 1975, and there was still a Yugoslavia.

Beautiful country and the people were salt of the earth and lovely. I just asked my sister, who is visiting right now, if we were in what would now be Serbia or Croatia. She said Croatia and I think that's right because we were on a rocky island. Neither of us can remember the name of the island, but I remember one part of the resort was clothed and the other was clothing optional. Tito was big on naturism.

[debm55]

75. Thank you , very Laffy Kat. That is very interesting. I have a very good friend who is a terrific Croatian dancer and

cook.

[PufPuf23]

80. Spent two weeks in Yugoslavia in Spring 1981 and agree about the country and people.

Yugoslavia was still in mourning from Tito's death. Never expected such a beautiful and welcoming place. Great food too.

Took train from Athens to Belgrade with spouse.

Friends from Cal were living in Belgrade. Both spoke Serbo-Croation, one was doing fieldwork on Cal PhD Archeology. He lived in Belgrade growing up when father in State Department. Lived in a beautiful flat near the University of Belgrade.

After time in and around Belgrade, drove a rental car through mountains to Dubrovnik then up the Aegean coast to Split. Most places we stayed were family friends of pur host. Hosts flew back to Belgrade from Split. Drove up the coast for two nights in Opatija. Dropped car (Zastava 101) in Ljubljana and took bus through the Dolomite countryside, then train to Trieste.

[Ocelot II]

76. Glacier National Park, the Badlands, the Scottish highlands,

Chippewa National Forest, the Apostle Islands, Grand Teton National Park, Olympic National Park.

[debm55]

84. Thank you very much, Ocelot II for sharing. I have been to the Badlands and Grand Teton National Park. Beautiful. I

would really like to go to Scotland.

[gopiscrap]

77. coast of portugal

[debm55]

83. wonderful, gopiscrap, Thank you very much for sharing.

[greatauntoftriplets]

78. Venice.

It's frozen in time, and the quality of the light is amazing.

[debm55]

82. Wonderful, greatauntoftriplets , for sharing with us.

[Danascot]

86. Keukenhof this spring

https://www.democraticunderground.com/1036144371

[debm55]

88. Thank you very much, Danascot.

[ProfessorGAC]

87. Not A Vacation, But...

...when in Venezuela, i took a day off and the plant manager & I flew Canaima, the chartered a small plane to fly us by Angel Falls. Magnificent.
Another; our plant in France is in the foothills of the Alps. The view from that parking lot was awesome.
Another day off, I flew from Mumbai to Agra just to see the Taj Mahal. 8 hours on the plane for a 90 minutes walk-around!
Also took a day off in Beijing to see the Great Wall. Didn't want to drive in China so I took the train. Was cool seeing the countryside.
Finally, took the rental car and drove a couple hours west of Sydney to the Blue Mountaibs to see kangaroos in the wild. That was fun.
There are others, but that's enough.

[debm55]

89. Wow,ProfessorGAC. You had some great, scenic days off.

[ProfessorGAC]

91. Vacationed With The Family When I Was A Kid

So, saw lots of cool US stuff, too.
As a kid, tge redwoods, the Grand Canyon, the Painted Desert, and the Petrified Forest stood out.
Plus how can you not dig Niagara Falls or Hoover Dam?

[debm55]

92. Thank you ProfessorGAC, I enjoyed those places too.

[Jeebo]

90. I really LOVE the Netherlands.

I swear to God, that whole country is literally picture-postcard pretty.

Also, Switzerland. In June 2006 I was in Europe with a Eurail train pass and one of my trips was by train across Switzerland, from Basel through the Alps by Lake Geneva (I think; it was one of the lakes) that had the prettiest blue water with beautiful white sailboats and then south to Milan, Italy. That train had huge picture windows and my nose was permanently GLUED to that window for that whole trip. Unforgettable.

— Ron

[debm55]

94. Thank you very much, Jeebo. Your vacations are wonderful.

[JMCKUSICK]

93. Glacier National Park

[debm55]

95. Sounds great, John. Thank you for sharing.

[VGNonly]

96. NE face of Mount Rainier WA

Last edited Wed Jul 30, 2025, 11:54 AM - Edit history (1)

Cape Flatterty WA
Glacier Point Yosemite CA
Banff to Jasper Canadian Rockies
Knife Edge Mount Kathadin ME
Pictured Rocks MI
McWay Falls Big Sur CA
Angels Trail Zion NP UT
Na Pali Coast Kauai Hawaii
Never Summer Range Rocky Mountain NP CO

[debm55]

97. Terrific sites, Thank you very much, VGNonly

[Dulcinea]

98. Greece & some of the western national parks.

The Parthenon is absolutely breathtaking, as is Meteora.

A few years ago our family went to see Zion, Bryce Canyon, Arches, & the Grand Canyon. All are beautiful! I can't pick just one favorite! Next on our list are Joshua Tree & Rocky Mountain National Parks. We also loved the Dry Tortugas & Fort Jefferson.

[debm55]

100. I would love to visit Dulcinea. As you posted it sounds breathtaking. What a wonderful experience. I have been to the

National Parks you have mentioned . All were equal in beauty and spender. My top two were the Grand Canyon and Arches

[catbyte]

99. Maui and Glacier National Park

[debm55]

102. Thank you so much for sharing with us, catabyte. Two beautiful wonders.

[electric_blue68]

106. Quite the contrast. Wonderful in their own ways!

[MuseRider]

101. Jim's Silverload, Guanaha, Honduras

https://www.scubadiving.com/guanaja-sacred-island

We went there 3 times in a row it was so wonderful. We got to dive with the sharks and you had to push them away they were so thick but so focused on the enormous Grooper they were going to have for dinner. We were a small mini bite compared to the Grooper. It was a yearly thing for the Grooper to make little Groopers that is how we knew to go at that time.

It was a little, almost unknown place then. The airport was a dirt path to a tiny little palm shack. Every time we went there we were the only people there. 7 people from Topeka, Kansas. We had such a good time but back to the point, it was absolutely beautiful. Wiped out a few years ago by a hurricane but apparently they have brought it back. It was rustic then, likely not now but...What a beautiful place it was.

[debm55]

103. Oh how wonderful that sounds. MuseRider. I don't know about the sharks, though. It sounds so great. Thank you for the

link.I have only went scuba diving once--down in the Bahamas, I was scared of possible sharks. You are envied by me for having the courage to swim with the sharks.

[Aristus]

104. It doesn't show up on a lot of "Most Beautiful Places" lists, but: Loch Ness.

I grew up reading a lot of books about the fabled “monster”, and they all described Loch Ness as a spooky, mist-shrouded, brooding place. And I’m sure there are times when it is. Certainly when you’re writing a book about a monster and its home.

But when I was there in July, 1993, it was absolutely, eye-poppingly beautiful. Lush and green, with lavender streaks of heather painting the hillsides. Stunning. I hope to visit again someday.

[debm55]

107. Thank you verymuch for sharing, Aristus. It sounds beautiful.

[ailsagirl]

105. Scotland, Germany, Switzerland

[debm55]

108. Thank you very much for sharing those beautiful countries, ailsagirl.