“travel isn’t always pretty. it isn’t always comfortable. sometimes it hurts, it even breaks your heart. but that’s okay.
the journey changes you; it should change you. it leaves marks on your memory, on your consciousness, on your heart, and on your body.
you take something with you. hopefully, you leave something good behind.”
Anthony Bourdain

Laura the explora: the blog

your unofficial travel agent and tour guide

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only packing a carry-on (the turtle method) 🐢

There is some level of art, experience, and skill required in order to pack perfectly for any trip on the other side of a plane flight. Unless you require a bunch of specifically unique outfits (think, fancy events or heavy snow equipment) or you’re traveling with kids, I can’t really think of a reason why Read more

February 18, 2024
cinque terre, italy

Cinque Terre will go down as one of the most colorful cities I’ve yet to visit. It is a beautiful rainbow of colors stretching across the lovely Italian coastline. What’s not to love? In 1999 this place was given National Park status, and it the smallest and most population dense national park in the country. Read more

February 14, 2024
southern coast, iceland

If I had to choose between visiting Iceland’s southern region and driving the Golden Circle Loop, you’d find me here. This area was filled with some of the most incredible creations of nature I have ever seen in real life. If you can afford to spend some extra time in Iceland, this is definitely the Read more

February 11, 2024
the golden circle, iceland

You’re not going to find any of Iceland’s cool waterfalls or famous glaciers inside the city of Reykjavik, so you’re going to have to do a little adventuring if you wanna explore anything aside from the Blue Lagoon. The Golden Circle, not to be confused with Ring Road, is a loop of road out of Read more

February 9, 2024
reykjavik, iceland

Iceland took my breath away over and over again. It was truly one of the most spectacular destinations I’ve been to. Until 2015 or so when Justin Bieber filmed a music video here, I didn’t really have any idea why anyone would ever want to go to Iceland because it’s so dang cold and remote. Read more

February 7, 2024
how to thrive after an overnight flight

Skimping on sleep isn’t good for you. “They” (scientists and doctors?) say you need eight hours or you’re probably doing damage to your body in the long-term, and perhaps they’re right, but a week of pushing yourself to the limit likely isn’t going to kill you. Every time I travel I get an adrenaline rush Read more

January 31, 2024

hey there!

i’m Laura

welcome to my little corner of the internet where i share my travel tips, stories, and photos of the places i visit. i’ve been fortunate enough to set foot in all fifty of the united states as well as nearly 20 different countries over the past decade. my goal is to make traveling affordable and accessible for everyone by giving you the tools you need to plan your own vacation for free. i hope these posts inspire you to get out into the world and see it for yourself! :)

[Note: I do not make any revenue from this website. If any of these posts helped you plan your trip and you’d like to support my work and website operating costs by tipping me as your unofficial tour guide, click the little black triangle to see my Venmo ID.] 😊

Venmo: @Laura-the-explora (#0324)