The Perfect Place to Go for Every Milestone Birthday
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Dreaming of all the places to go for your birthday? It's a naturally ripe time to imagine making your wishes come true, and those aspirations feel even more important when it comes to those milestone years that are truly worth celebrating. Whether you're a parent marking your young one becoming a precious six years old, a newly minted young adult ready to embark on an epic adventure, or someone heading into your golden years while being still young at heart, one thing’s for sure: the gift of travel never gets old.
Here are some of our favorite ways to celebrate each of your birthdays, from a formative trip to Alaska and an absolutely cinematic European adventure, to a rowdy trip down to Nashville and a once-in-a-lifetime safari. After all, no matter your age, birthdays that require a travel itinerary and change of scenery are always guaranteed to be most memorable.
This article has been updated since its original publish date.
6th birthday: Alaska
It's never too early to instill a love of travel in kids—and celebrating your child's graduation from kindergartener to elementary schooler is worth a memorable getaway. Mix learning and immersive experiences with a trip through Lindblad Expeditions’ National Geographic Global Explorers Program, which guides kids and teens up to 18 years old on adventures around the world through the lens of science. Certified instructors mentor young ones, inviting them to record observations in a field notebook. While offered in places from Antarctica to Baja, California, set your six-year-old's sights north to Alaska, which for most kids will offer scenery they've only seen in science books. Choose from itineraries like six-day Wild Alaska Escape to explore icebergs and fjords or the 8-day animal-themed Voyage to the Great Bear Rainforest, with chances to spot bears, orcas, golden eagles, and river otters.
Stuart Westmorland13th birthday: Costa Rica
The transition from tween to teen years is the perfect time to introduce the joys of international travel. Intrepid offers a line of fun family vacations specially designed with kids ages 10 and older in mind. The 9-day Costa Rica Family Holiday with Teenagers (with 10% off for kids 17 and younger) combines just the right amount of high-adrenaline adventure (like rafting on the Balsa River and traipsing on a sky walk high above the Monteverde Cloud Forest) with chill down time. Relax in the hot springs near Arenal Volcano National Park, overnight in a tented cabin in the rainforest, and keep those eyes peeled for animal antics—there are toucans and sloths in La Fortuna, and spider monkeys and armadillos in Manuel Antonio.
Getty15th/16th birthday: Paris
Whether it’s a Quinceañera or a Sweet 16 you’re celebrating, the coming-of-age birthday is a time of wonderment—and that’s exactly what you’ll find in the French capital. A city-based getaway is the right primer for a proper European vacation, giving teens the opportunity to navigate a foreign-language environment while gaining critical cultural perspective. Give them a taste of travel planning by letting them stitch together a custom itinerary through GetYourGuide: They can choose from a rooftop tour of the Arc de Triomphe, teen-centered shopping tour, macaron-baking class, and more. If that doesn’t fill the hours, consider a Louvre treasure hunt with ThatMuse and an evening stroll through Montmartre’s Place Dalida. (As any Emily in Paris fan knows, pics or it didn’t happen.)
Pol Albarrán/Getty18th birthday: Barcelona
Turning 18 can feel like you're stepping across the threshold to a whole new world of adult responsibility: you can vote now, open a credit card, go to college. All the more reason to welcome your new, distinguished age with a celebration, and Barcelona might be just your party. Find world-renowned museums, markets rich in local produce, and panoramic viewing platforms to take in the iconic architecture. If it’s sun you want, it’s sun you shall get—but the beach is only one option. From a secret maze to a hilltop fairground, Barcelona’s to-do list is every bit as varied as it is pure fun; Antoni Gaudí’s color-pop architecture ensures that dull moments simply don’t exist here.
Nina Dietzel/Getty21st birthday: Nashville
This is no year for the Memphis blues. Instead, head east to the middle of the Volunteer State to celebrate your 21st in Nashville belting Dolly on honky-tonk stage like Robert's Western World and stamping your fresh-out-the-box cowboy boots. But don’t forget to venture off of Broadway—way off Broadway. Look around and you'll find a burgeoning art community, eclectic indie boutiques, and a food scene that has grown immensely from its local Southern roots and into one of America's most exciting dining destinations. While hot chicken institutions like Hattie B's are must-hits, Music City's classic French staples, modern Mediterranean, and Japanese kakigōri are equally worth your reservation.
Martin Katler30th birthday: European Adventure
Let's face it, at this point in your life, the rise and grind is starting to get static—and there's no better way to rip yourself away from it all than with a totally over-the-top trip, straight off the silver screen. Bespoke luxury travel adventure company Black Tomato has leaned into the set-jetting trend with thrilling limited-edition 12-day James Bond 007-themed itinerary simply dubbed The Assignment. Among the possible experiences: a high-speed boat chase down the Thames River and a training session with Bond stunt coordinator Lee Morrison in London; a tour of Cote d'Azur with Bond Girl Carole Ashby; and special access to Venice's Glass Museum to see the Coppa Barovier, as highlighted in 1979's Moonraker.
Jon Bilous/Getty33rd birthday: Joshua Tree National Park
The legend has it that the first Western pioneers named the trees in Joshua Tree National Park after the biblical figure of Joshua, their outstretched branches seeming like arms beseeching guidance along the unknown journey ahead. Though the National Parks Service notes that, “this tale is not substantiated in the historical record,” the overall mystical vibe of Joshua Tree feels appropriate for kicking off your Jesus Year. Entering into 33 is a time to reset, recalibrate, and reflect. The backdrop of the American West, full of hiking trails, flora, and fauna from desert tortoises to bighorn sheep makes for a beautiful bookmark in this new chapter.
Marco Bottigelli/Getty40th birthday: Torres del Paine National Park
It's a great feeling to have it all together, a mythical benchmark that feels inherent to passing your 30s. And what better way to celebrate your newfound zen than embracing the unpredictable and ruggedly gorgeous Patagonia? Torres del Paine National Park sits at the southern end of the region and is noted for its unique transitional landscape that includes craggy mountains, mirror-like lakes, and stately glaciers. The jewel of the park, the Cordillera del Paine, saddles the verdant and fertile Magellanic subpolar forests and the Patagonian Steppe, the largest desert in Argentina. Venturing through the park feels beautifully metaphoric for entering your 40s, like you have all the adventure you could ask for before you.
RenHo50th birthday: The Galápagos
Classic Journeys’ 8-day land-based multisport itinerary brings you closer to the Ecuadorian islands’ unique wildlife (marine iguanas, warm-water penguins, blue-footed boobies) than most liveaboards. After swimming and kayaking alongside sea lions and sea turtles, trek eight miles to the rim of Sierra Negra, one of the world’s most active volcanoes. Then head over to Santa Cruz Island, where you'll be greeted by 500-pound giant tortoises and manta rays swirling just below the water's surface.
60th birthday: The Berkshires
By this age you know the importance of taking time for yourself. At the Kripalu Center for Yoga & Health in Western Massachusetts’ Berkshires, no yoga experience is required to partake in a Zen retreat. Instead, choose your own adventure at the 100-acre hilltop property overlooking Lake Mahkeenac: taking a reflective walk through the meditation garden or communing with nature on a network of surrounding wooded trails; observing presentations about ancestral healing or creative expression; and tucking into healthy legume- and veggie-centric meals at the Ayurveda-inflected Buddha Bar.
Michael Bennett/Unsplash70th birthday: Botswana
Toast your seventh decade with the trip of a lifetime. Rothschild Safaris' 10-day Classic Botswana Explorer packs equal parts adventure and luxury, two things you need more of in life. Enjoy game drives in the Chobe National Park, the Moremi Wildlife Reserve, and Okavango Delta, keeping your eyes peeled for elephant herds and perhaps even the zebra migration (depending on the time of year). Also on the agenda: leopard tracking and elephant bush walks. Then, reach for the skies with a helicopter ride to see the delta's winding waters from above, perhaps even catching an aerial view of hippos.
Peter Thomas80th birthday: Himalayas
Whether or not you've been around the world, it's time to go the distance. There's no better way than with the three-nation, 20-day Himalayan Odyssey through Tibet, Nepal, and Bhutan with Nomadic Expeditions, specialists in luxe Asian travels. Among the bucket list items you'll check off: Tibet's Gyantse Kumbum's storied shrines, Nepal's World Peace Pagoda, and Bhutan's Paro Taktsang. And, perhaps most impressively, you'll even set your very own eyes on Mount Everest from a private plane.
Rottet Studios100th birthday: Mississippi River cruise
Of all the places to go for your birthday, we say hit a few at once by sailing into your twilight years with a tour of the Big Muddy. Two years ago, Viking Cruises unveiled Viking Mississippi, a new vessel with 193 state rooms. The eight-day Heart of the Delta itinerary runs between New Orleans and Memphis, with stops in Darrow, Baton Rouge, St. Francisville, Natchez, and Vicksburg. Optional excursions include a canoe tour of the Atchafalaya Basin and a visit to one of the Civil War’s most pivotal battlefields.
