See, you shouldn't stick your fingers into where they shouldn't be 😉

My ex boyfriend (in the late 70's) did a VSO in Kenya & brought back tales of how the children tried to pick his freckles off his arms &, when he moved his one false tooth at the front of his mouth, they ran 😁

Elephants are spectacular, you're so lucky. They are up there with meerkats & monkeys as my favourites. 👍

Its a toss up for us between Barbados and South Africa., with Kenya an honourable third!
Barbados was our first trip to the Caribbean for our 25th wedding anniversary - couldn't get over the perfect pink sand beaches and the warmth of the sea. Still look at the photos with great fondness - one beach is actually my screen background on the PC.
South Africa was just amazing - we spent 5 days in a lodge just outside Kruger park and saw virtually everything on the "must see" list ,including the biggest gathering of rhinos in the world on one reserve. Went to Cape Town for the balance of the trip, went up Table Mountain in good weather and visited the Cape of Good Hope amongst other trips.
We have also been to the Baobab on Diani Beach -fantastic hotel and beach -and flew up to the Mara in a small plane for a 4 day safari - got VERY close to several prides of lions and saw the end of the Great Migration over the Mara River.

Sounds great Dave 👍

Great holiday memories there Dave, particularly liked your Barbados beaches, we were there in January.

Another fan of Barbados
Have never been on a safari yet.

A six week round the world trip in 2002. Calling at Singapore, Sydney, New Zealand, Hawaii and California. The highlight was New Zealand where we rented a large camper van and spent three weeks driving both the South and North Islands. The awesome scenery, empty roads and welcoming people all helped to make this a memorable holiday. We liked the place so much we tried to emigrate there.

South Africa in 2012 comes a close second though. We loved Capetown and the Cape Provence. OH hiked up to the top of Table Mountain though I chickened out of the hike and rode up to the top in the cable car.

Way back in 1987 we visited Kenya and had a holiday similar to the one Kiltman describes . The animals, the open spaces and the wonderful light made the holiday something to remember.

Next year will be our Golden Wedding celebration so I'm looking for somewhere special to visit which could possibly become our new best holiday ever.

I'd love to go to New Zealand Judith 👍 The scenery looks spectacular.

I'd also love to visit somewhere without light pollution. When I see films of the sky filled with thousands of stars I'm so envious, I just want to be there.

Also the mountains in Pakistan are stunning, really picturesque 👍

Glynis- you could try camping in my back garden :). Many a time I have spent hours there watching meteor showers.
Judith it will be difficult for you to find a new destination. Have you been on a cruise before?

I've been on river cruises Fiona, The Nile, Yangtze and Volga, but not a sea cruise , I don't really fancy one but would never get OH on a boat surrounded by lots of people even if I did. Outdoor spaces and mountains are normally his thing.

Glynis, one of my top memories of my second trip to Australia was being out in the outback one night, miles from civilisation, it was pitch dark with no lights showing anywhere and the sky was absolutely full of stars..magical.

Have you any ideas for next year? The planning is the fun part. ☺

Would really like to go to Namibia but I'm not sure my back would stand up to the long journeys over rough roads. Problem is OH really dislikes longhaul travel and though I'm finding travel a real hassle these days I would still like to visit a few more places but can hardly go on this trip on my own as I have often done in the past. I really liked Oman when I was there a few years ago and I think OH would like the country and as it's a medium haul destination it's a possibility.
I would love to return to some of the the places I have been to previously that I know OH would like, we'll see.

A twin centre that could break up the journey?

That's something I had thought of Fiona..

I would like to visit Iceland, but that will have to be a summer trip. Our anniversary is in February.

I

Norwegian Fjords cruise would be nice as well 👍

I've suggested the Norwegian Fjords, but it's getting OH on a boat that is the problem. Maybe the Hurtigruten Postboat option would suit him. I know he would love Norway it has the scenery he likes and I wouldn't mind returning to the country.

Hi Judith, just a thought but it might be worth looking at Cruise and Maritime ships - though their European cruises always start from UK ports which might not be convenient. On the other hand, picking a Norwegian Fjord one that starts from either Greenock or Rosyth would mean that the only full days at sea are the one travelling north and last one. I've done 2 Norwegian cruises with them and apart from that they stop at a new port every day and apart from Bergen they are all small ports that you can explore on your own plus of course the scenary is spectacular. A friend and I are seriously tempted by doing one of their Icelandic cruises for 2018

I always thought I wouldn't like cruising until I did the first one as a means to an end - it was an easy way of doing a fjords tour. I still don't think that I would like to go on one of the really big ships but the C & M ships are vey small by today's standards and are adult only. Also, whilst there is an entertainment programme it is all very low key and there are plenty of nooks and crannies and quiet areas to escape to. It was never a problem to find somewhere to go and sit with a book (or in my case the knitting!) plus there was plenty of outdoor seating to just sit and watch the scenary glide by of an evening or early morning. In fact on the 2 days at sea there was never a problem finding a sunlounger to stretch out on if you wanted to be in the fresh air.

Booking now for 2018, there are some really good bargains to be had for their Icelandic and Norwegian cruises. You never know, he might be tempted!

Sorry Sm

I've just seen your post, don't know how I missed it. Thanks for the info.

No worries, Judith, it was just that it occurred to me that you might be able to sell it to him if you could get him to think of it as a touring hotel that moved location each night while he slept :-)