
Traveling Joyfully
A blog about my travel adventures
Come and Say G’Day to Australia
Australia: The Basics Australia is one of those places that people dream about for years, but for one reason or another, never get to see. I was fortunate to visit with my family for the first time in 2020 (just before the pandemic), and fell in love with this beautiful country. We all loved it so much we vowed we would come back. When I was starting Travel Made Joyful, I knew I wanted to focus on a few countries that I really had a passion for, and Australia was at the top of the list. So, I pursued and…
Keep readingLiving the Good Life in Umbria
Umbria: The Basics You’re not alone if you haven’t heard of Umbria before now. I hadn’t until listening to an amazing podcast called Untold Italy, where they were interviewing Sarah, the owner of an agriturismo in the region called La Cuccagna. Umbria is sometimes called the “Green Heart” of Italy, and I can totally see why. it’s nestled in the center of the country between Tuscany and Le Marche, south of Florence and north of Rome (we flew in and out of Rome, rented a car and drove 2.5 hours to get to La Cuccagna). As Sarah said during our…
Keep readingSpring Break 2023: Ecuador (mostly) for free!
Ecuador on Points and Miles If you hear me talk about travel, one thing you’ll hear me repeat over and over is that leveraging points, miles, and rewards are a key part of my strategy. Paying for everything out of pocket at its cash value is one reason why people think travel is so expensive. In 2019, my husband and I decided that we wanted travel to be one of our family’s core values, setting a goal to visit at least one new country every year. Like most of you, we have a limited travel budget. We resolved to explore…
Keep readingPro Tips on Packing for Travel with Kids
One of the biggest things I hear from parents about getting ready to travel on a long flight with kids is how to keep them occupied. No one wants to be the parent on the plane with the crying kid or kid who won’t stop playing with the tray table in front of them. Now, first, to speak some truth to all my fellow parents out there: You have every right to travel with your child. Don’t let anyone make you feel bad for bringing a kid on a plane, or that that child might not be a perfect angel.…
Keep readingDisneyland 2023
Disneyland: The Basics First of all, DisneyLAND is in California. There were at least four people who thought we were heading to Florida when I told them our destination. Disneyland was the park that started it all back in 1955 with a dream by the man himself, Walt Disney. As someone who has been to both parks, I can say that they have some key differences, and the vibe is much more low-key in California. We speculated this is because it’s more of a locals park than a true destination, and our first day (a Thursday) wasn’t crowded at all.…
Keep readingLoading…
Something went wrong. Please refresh the page and/or try again.