A Look Back at 2016: Vinz Ideas’ Best Features of 2016 and Travel Goals for 2017

I can't believe that 2016 is about to end! But before the year officially changes, allow me to share with you some of the highlights of my 2016 travel journey and some of my travel plans for 2017.

One of the greatest achievements that I've received this year was when Vinz Ideas, a travel blog, was born. I've been blogging for 3 years already but it was just January of this year when I planned and shifted my personal blog into a travel blog. It started when I jotted down all my goals for year 2016 and one of the goals was to travel only around my country Philippines since I still have full-time job, but I never imagined that I'll be able to travel outside the country. Here are some of the highlights and stories of my travel journey this 2016.

February 2016 - Ilocos Tour: Vigan, Laoag and Pagudpud

This will definitely one of my best trips of 2016. Aside from the fact that Ilocos has a lot of stunning places, this tour opened my mind to a lot of things. It taught me to discover the beauty of traveling alone, to know more about myself, to reach out to other people I just met and to create my own stories that will live forever.

March 2016 - Baler, Aurora

This tour in Baler Aurora was extra-special for me because I had a chance to go on a tour with friends from the office and my local church. Taking the zigzag road going to Baler was just crazy and fun. One of my unforgettable experiences on this tour was when I tried surfing for the first time. Looking forward for another tour next year with these awesome people.

April 2016 - Laiya, Batangas

Of all the tour I had this 2016, this one deserve the top spot in my heart. I had the opportunity to use my God-given gift of administration and organized this trip in Batangas to be with my family on a tour.

May 2016 - Tanay, Rizal

Out of boredom, I spontaneously booked this tour in Tanay Rizal. I was alone when I went on this tour but I left the place with a lot of new friends. The tour was unforgettable also because I received a lot of questions from different people of why I really wanted to travel alone. It made me realized the reasons and purpose of why I love to travel on my own that until now, I am living with that reasons and purpose.

August 2016 - Manila City

After two months of not hitting the road, I was craving for an adventure. But the problem was I needed to save up money for my out of the country trip on the upcoming month. So with a budget of $10 only, I visited some of the historical places in Manila and it was one of the best decisions I've ever made.

September 2016 - Malaysia

Another milestone in my travel journey was when I've got the opportunity to have a tour outside my country. A lot of unforgettable things and first time experiences happened. Firstly, I was held in the Philippine Bureau of Immigration due to the need of further establishing the purpose of my visit and fortunately enough they allowed me to re-book my ticket on that same day. It was also my first time to ride on an airplane and first time to tour outside my country. The experience of touring in a foreign land was an eye-opener that the world has a lot to offer and we need to discover it. This tour opened my mind to crave for more travel outside the country I live in.

September 2016 - Singapore

Singapore may not be the perfect place for a budget-traveler like me but I'm glad that I have a good friends from other Asian countries like Singapore. When I visited Singapore, I've meet-up one of my old friends here in the Philippines. He toured me around Singapore and even paid some our transportation fees and food.

October 2016 - Mt. Daraitan, Tanay

Far from the image of the relaxing places that I've visited prior to this tour, going to the summit of Mt. Daraitan was quite challenging. The road was slippery and it took me 5 hours just to get to the summit. But everything was paid off when I finally reached the summit of Mt. Daraitan. The view was stunning.

October 2016 - Southern Cebu: Mactan City, Lapu-lapu City, Badian, Car-car and Oslob

Of all the places that I've visited this 2016, I must say that Cebu is the best place of all by far. Beautiful beaches and falls, different fun-water activities, jaw-dropping marine life creatures, great people and delicious food delicacies.

What's next on 2017?

2017 will be the first ever anniversary of Vinz Ideas as a travel blog and part of my plan is to take it to a whole new level of blogging. It's actually hard to manage a blog if you have a full-time job, but then I believe that with passion, hard work and dedication, everything is possible. I'm planning to apply all that I have learned in SEO and Digital Marketing to this travel blog. My main goal is not to get profit out of this blog but to share and help other people and traveler-at-heart to travel in whatever means they have.

Also, some of my goals on 2017 is to visit other part of the Philippines that I haven't visited yet like Palawan and Aklan.

The Ultimate Goal on 2017

Right after my Singapore and Malaysia tour this 2016, the passion to know more about other countries' culture arose. My main goal for 2017 is to visit Laos, Myanmar, Vietnam and Cambodia on June and Thailand on December. I started to have my own travel funds to save up for these trips. Also, another reason that excites me is that my good friend and future travel buddy Peter from Hungary will join me on this tour in June or December (still depends on his examination period). We already planned this three months ago before his solo tour in Thailand this December 2016. And we also have a plan to visit him in Hungary.

That's it! Biggest thank you for those people that I've got the chance to travel with and met along the road. 2016 was just overwhelming and full of surprises that's why I'm really excited for what's coming on 2017. To end, I will leave you with one of my favorite quotes from Mark Twain.

Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines, sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.

Hope to see yah on the road! 🙂 Happy New Year Everyone!

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