Some trips are born twice.

Ours was supposed to happen in 2020. Everything was ready: the itinerary, the flight tickets, the hotel reservations and Machu Picchu, the rental car, the dreams of high altitudes and wide-open spaces. And then the world stopped.

Who among us hasn’t dreamed of having a ticket to Tahiti, Bora Bora, or the Marquesas in their pocket—preferably a one-way trip to "paradise"?

À la recherche d’un coin qui allie mer et montagne, nous regardons le nord de la Norvège avec notamment le Finnmark et son cap nord continental. Deux villages pourvus d’un aéroport permettent d’envisager une traversée de 250 km environ à travers des plateaux peu escarpés avec comme but ultime les falaises côtières qui marquent la fin du vieux continent.

Les Dolomites... Voilà une destination qui me faisait envie depuis quelques temps. Entre les ouïes dire et les photos, j'avais envie de découvrir cette région italienne. Mon mari a suivi mes envies sans problème et mes enfants aussi, alors, une fois rentrés de notre dernier séjour en août dernier, il a cherché des locations (c'est le chef pour dénicher les bons plans).

This journal recounts a trip to Rajasthan that’s already over a year old and that I’m only now getting around to writing up. The summer of 2024 marked my return to India—my tenth trip—after six long years away since my last solo wanderings in Tamil Nadu back in 2018 (the journal for which is published on this site).

Let’s catch up with a new travel journal from July 2024—only 6 months late, no biggie!

We’ll chat about this gorgeous island, its tail, animals (old habits die hard), and the fun we had 🙂

Hey everyone! We see some amazing plans—and also posts that go unanswered despite being for pretty popular destinations. We want to liven things up to help you travel more often with travel buddies and in total safety. Let us know what you're missing!

We’ve noticed we’re having issues with sending out the newsletters. Could those of you who signed up to receive it let us know if you didn’t get the December 2025 one?

I’ve noticed more and more people planning their trips down to the last detail, mapping out day-by-day what they’re going to do and asking for technical advice for their 4x4 routes. That’s not my style of traveling at all—I mostly rely on the unpredictability of public transport (and the weather) and the people I meet along the way... The tips I share below come from real-time experiences, the kind of chance encounters that make unplanned trips special, and the strong connections you build when you take your time without knowing what tomorrow will bring.

Travel is, above all, a story of encounters. Those that inspire us, guide us, and make us dream. That’s why we’re happy to announce a partnership between Petit Futé and VoyageForum—two worlds that share the same passion: travel as lived and told by those who truly set off.

Over-the-top skyscrapers? You’ll get the idea when you see the photo illustrating this travel journal—though it might change as the trip goes on.

The sheer number of markets is what makes them larger-than-life, not necessarily their size (though Chatuchak is a beast!). Day markets, night markets, floating markets, fresh produce markets, fish markets, meat markets, spice markets, fabric markets… and even amulet markets. For luck, good fortune, protection.

So Kate and I spent a week in Istanbul. For her, who had already visited, it was a return; for me, a discovery.

As we’ve now made a habit of, I write the texts and she posts her photos. We hope this illustrated story, crafted together, will revive beautiful memories for those who know the city and inspire others to discover it.

Hi there, Not only do I love the countryside, but I’m also really into trains, so I’m starting this photo thread dedicated to trains in Thailand (I bet most of us have taken one at some point...).

Before I begin, I’d like to thank Michèle Buisson and her “Misha’s travel journals,” which really helped me plan this trip. It’s tough to find information about this part of India—it’s so different from the “more traditional India.”

As mentioned in the title, this will be a trip around Tuscany in parts that aren’t the region’s most visited. No Florence-Siena-Pisa trilogy, no San Gimignano; there’ll be a quick stop in Siena, but without visiting the most famous sites. This choice, plus traveling in September, should help avoid overtourism.

Greece. Again, always. To nestle into the only European promise we’ve been given. To lull ourselves with illusions, just for the pleasure of it.

I'm restarting my travel journals with my 2023 trip that took me from Costa Rica all the way to Suriname in a month and a half. First stop: Costa Rica. I arrived in San José at the end of September—a city I know well and never linger in.

Une courte escapade dans le «Top West End», une expression locale qui désigne la partie tout au nord de l’Australie Occidentale, à la frontière du Territoire du Nord.

After our amazing experience in the Lofoten Islands in the summer of 2023, I suggested to Jean Marie another trek I’d been wanting to do for a long time: the Skye Trail.

A few photos of this stunning island and he was sold and ready to go.

I’ve kept quiet about them... to preserve them. Those are the words of a passionate traveler who recently wrote to us. For years, he’s been discovering rare, authentic places... and chooses to say nothing. Out of respect. Out of fear of ruin. Out of love for secrecy. What would you do?

I remember that before leaving, I was a bit afraid I wouldn’t feel that same sense of wonder I had 2 years earlier in Botswana (see my travel journal). That fear was unfounded... the magic worked its charm once again!

While borders were closed, I started imagining what an ideal itinerary might look like—one that strings together all the Southwest’s must-see spots in just two weeks, during the best time of year: September to October. When the U.S. announced in September 2021 that borders would reopen in the coming weeks, I regained hope and began scanning for flight tickets for a departure in September 2022.

Je suis heureux de vous accueillir à bord de ce nouveau carnet de voyage. Ce voyage est à 1000 lieux de ce qui était prévu à la base pour cette année. Notre besoin de grands espaces vierges nous avait poussés à réserver le Wyoming. La Suède nous offrira-t-elle la même chose?

All aboard our tuk-tuk! Yes, you read that right: a real tuk-tuk, a tiny, colorful, rattling box on wheels that putters along at a snail’s pace. The idea? Well, first off, Sri Lanka and its winding roads leading to vast expanses of lush nature are *perfect* for this kind of ride. And since it’s one of only two countries in the world that let foreigners rent and drive these mini speedsters, we’re gonna crisscross the island behind the wheel of our rolling two-square-meter adventure.

In 2026, traveling becomes a choice. While the same destinations are buckling under mass tourism, there are still preserved alternatives—often just a few hours away from the well-trodden paths. This guide doesn’t ban any countries but instead suggests different approaches and destinations that still have room to breathe.

The next day, it's pouring rain when we wake up, but after a good breakfast, the rain has calmed down... off to the medersa, which allows for a relatively sheltered visit. We had visited this palace 15 years ago—it’s been renovated since then.

Not usually a fan of organized trips, during my stop in Labuan Bajo on Flores in May 2024, I started looking for a fisherman who could show me the islands around Komodo. At the port, I met Ari, a former spearfisher who knows the islands well—especially the best spots for fish and coral.

It’s busy today because it’s Sunday and Moroccans, especially from Casablanca, come here to spend the weekend. In town, the café terraces are packed with people having breakfast—msemens (flaky pancakes) spread with kiri and honey. Every café has little stalls on their terrace to cook these delicious pancakes, and we can’t resist buying some for our lunch...

I was a little worried that this new visit to Uncle Sam’s country wouldn’t be as "wow" as the others, but we still discovered some extraordinary places. For those who don’t know us, we’re a couple in our seventies who speak very little English, but that didn’t stop us from fully enjoying our stay. For this 6th road trip across the USA, we spent 21 nights there and covered 4,160 km by car and nearly 160 km on foot in a loop starting from Phoenix.

During our walk in Higashiyama, we happened to stop by Café Kikaku, run by a former geisha. A lovely encounter with this colorful person who—while we waited for our lunch—shared some facets of the geisha art with us (music, fan handling, dice games). A truly wonderful moment.