After yesterday’s post you might be wondering if pessimism has got the better of us. Thankfully, it’s quite the opposite; 2015 has been pretty damn good to our little circle.

To prove it we got together to discuss the BEST moments in our 2015 travels:

Hamilton

When I was in a small village in the Austrian alps, a friend and I decided to put on our hiking boots and explore some of the abandoned paths that went up a low lying mountain from the valley floor. Tracing the root of a stream, we found ourselves walking up the side of a steep gorge, with rickety railings sometimes providing a safety net from the otherwise sheer drop. The whole hike was quite scary but extremely exhilarating! I love seeing nature claim back land that humans have left their mark on, and it was beautiful to see where old mine tracks and fences now sprouted plantlife again.

Abi

This is such a tough one. I’ve been so lucky with amazing experiences this year, but after much deliberation I’m going to settle on the moment I got to see the Northern Lights. We were at John O’Groats, the most Northerly inhabited place in Mainland UK (Scotland), where people often go to see the lights. But, any little bit of cloud or bad weather can ruin any chance of getting a glimpse of them.

I’d looked up the reports about the likelihood of aurora activity, and it was looking like a potential, but I still knew that you had to be lucky to see them, so I wasn’t actually expecting anything.

So, come nightfall we went outside and waited… And there they were. With every second they got brighter and more beautiful before our eyes. I will never forget those moments.

Gemma

This is really tricky! Italy as a whole was the highlight. It was such a beautiful, diverse place and I fell completely in love with it. So have narrowed it down to a few:

Lake Garda’s sunsets: I will never get over how beautiful these were. Sitting on the jetty, watching the multicoloured sky reflect into the water, on our last night? Pretty close to perfect, if you ask me! 

Venice: This was somewhere that I had always wanted to visit, and it was everything I wanted it to be! From the beautiful ballrooms, masks, art exhibitions and food, to the 360 degree view from above, I will certainly be returning.

Lucy

Probably when I was on my Contiki tour in New Zealand and we stopped at Moeraki beach for lunch. The sun was shining and we all went down to the beach where we just had the best best fun climbing on the boulders and running round.

Then me and this girl holly were like ‘fuck it’ and ran into the freezing cold sea and just had the best fun. Don’t think I’ve ever felt so carefree or surrounded by such good people before in my life.

Naomi

My best travel moment of 2015 has to be toward the end of our trip to New York a couple of weeks ago. On our last night in the city, we went to the Observation Deck at Top of the Rock, a place I’ve been to before but a view that takes my breath away every time. Nothing beats seeing the city that never sleeps lit up at night and the almost unsettling peacefulness of being that high up, away from the buzz and mayhem. 

 
There’s nothing like that view to put things into perspective.

If you can whittle it down, what was your best moment?

TTTT

(Travel Tea TV Team)

X

@travelteatv