Vacations are expensive and your only respite from an entire year of labour that affords you, literally and figuratively, about two weeks of time away from it all. That makes choosing a destination a pretty big responsibility.
And like all responsibility, it’s best to take it upon yourself. Do not rely on others, especially those you share a passport with.
Expedia recently asked Canadians to reveal their top travel recommendations for 2019. The destinations were seemingly chosen for the same reason people glow over SoulCycle: they went once, and so it must be the best.
“The answers were vast and varied,” writes Expedia, disingenuously. They are vast in that there are 19 of them, and varied in that they start with different letters.
“Manitoba showed up more than it ever has before” is a bad way to preface anything, let alone a travel list. So if Dauphin doesn’t tickle your fancy, might we suggest an escape to…. Brandon? Or opt for something more exotic, like Chatham-Kent, in Ontario. That puts you within driving distance of another hot pot – Toronto. Nice.
As you wince your way through the list, you begin to suspect it was compiled by people who live in awesome places and want to keep you from going there.
There’s Las Vegas, an opulent air conditioner in the desert no one has ever regretted spending a fortune to visit. Or you can check out a Caribbean cliché you’ve already endured a thousand times on Instagram? Bathurst, New Brunswick is wonderful if you want to drive a long distance and wonder why. You may remember Puerto Vallarta from such dinner party conversations as “Hurricane season is great for seat sales.”
The only spot outside of the Americas, Tuscany is just something you’re supposed to say. Pincher Creek, Alberta, meanwhile, is something you’re not supposed to say. It was said, and made the list.
Did you know Montreal has a courtyard where you can watch people walk around? Check it out:
This is not to say that these aren’t fine destinations, but calling them “the 19 best places to travel in the world in 2019” is a stretch.
The full list:
- Dauphin, Manitoba
Gulf Islands, British Columbia - Toronto, Ontario
- Stratford, Ontario
- Las Vegas, Nevada
- Hope Town, Bahamas
- Montreal, Quebec
- Tuscany, Italy
- Harrison Hot Springs, British Columbia
- Brandon, Manitoba
- Bathurst, New Brunswick
- Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
- Deer Lake, Newfoundland and Labrador
- Calgary, Alberta
- Bogota, Colombia
- Chatham-Kent, Ontario
- Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia
- Pincher Creek, Alberta
- Solana Beach, California
