Lash at Casa Velas Resort
My 5 Best Adventures in 2017
Last year was another full year of continuous world travel for me. As such, we could easily say that the entire year was a series of ongoing adventures…
During the year I visited more than a dozen gorgeous colonial towns and cities in Mexico and Central America. All of them consist of countless beautiful historic buildings, churches and plazas. Most of these cities also have at least 1 or 2 world-class museums, a renovated colonial theater and some unique attractions.
Besides stimulating urban destinations I also explored the great outdoors extensively. I enjoyed stunning beaches, lakes, waterfalls, volcanoes, mountain ranges, crater lakes and islands.
On the other extreme, I visited over 50 luxury hotels and resorts, on assignment as a hotel inspector. I was treated to fabulous gourmet meals, indulged in tasty cocktails, lounged at stunning infinity pools, worked out at resort gyms and enjoyed wonderful overnight stays at five excellent luxurious hotels.
All told, I enjoyed so numerous and diverse adventures in 2017 that I didn’t have time to write about all of them. But several adventures stand out as particularly unique, unusual or fun so that I wrote articles about the experiences. Following are five of my best adventures of the year, with an article devoted to each, detailing all the fun.
1. Beach Hopping Along Mexico’s Central Pacific Coast
Last July, towards the end of my 5-month explorations of Central Mexico, I spent two weeks beach hopping at remote, little-developed beaches in Michoacan state. I camped on the sand in my cute little yellow tent, dined on fresh seafood, swam in the ocean, worked on my tan and got between beaches by hitch-hiking and taking local buses.
Read about beach hopping in Mexico here.
near summit of Santa Ana Volcano – El Salvador
Santa Ana is an active volcano in western El Salvador that is regularly climbed by intrepid travelers and adventurous Salvadoreans. Climbing the volcano is permitted only by guided daily tours.
The hike makes a great day trip from nearby Santa Ana city. Summit-ing the volcano from park headquarters takes a stiff 2-2.5 hours on mostly exposed rocky trails.
At the crater rim hikers are rewarded with amazing views into the deep, steamy crater as well as panoramic views over nearby mountains, crater lake Coatepeque and to the Pacific Coast on clear days.
Read my account of Summit-ing Santa Ana Volcano here.
Lash at mummy museum in Guanajuato – Mexico
3. Visiting the Amazing Mummy Museum of Guanajuato
This iconic museum, famous throughout Mexico, is filled with hundreds of complete mummified human corpses discovered in central Mexico near Guanajuato.
Read about the Mummy Museum here.
enjoying waterfalls – 7 WF tour
4. The 7 Waterfalls Tour at Ruta de Flores – El Salvador
Ruta de Flores (Route of Flowers) consists of several mountain villages and scenic attractions in western El Salvador. One of the many interesting guided tours available is the 7 Waterfalls Trek that I greatly enjoyed while visiting.
Our informative local guide took us through coffee plantations, along mountain ridges with stunning views, through a canyon and down waterfalls – by rope! It was an exciting day out in nature. Read about the Waterfall Tour here.
Volcan Pericutin – the world’s youngest volcano – near Uruapan – Mexico
5. Visiting the World’s Youngest Volcano
While traveling around central Mexico, I was surprised to discover that, among Mexico’s many other astounding natural wonders, is literally the world’s youngest volcano. It’s birth in 1949 and subsequent growth are well recorded in photos and news articles.
Nowadays a steady stream of visitors, both domestic and international, trek to the volcano near Patzcuaro city in Morelia State. Read all about it here.
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Besides these stand-out adventures, I enjoyed many other new destinations, ventures in nature and surprises in 2017, many of which I wrote about briefly in my ongoing FB travel updates.
I’ll be joining plenty of new adventures in 2018 as I slowly explore Costa Rica, Panama and beyond. Come follow along!
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Hi! I'm Lash, an American nomadic world traveler who's been traveling solo since 1998. I’m passionate about traveling the world nomadically and then sharing it all with you. I hope to inspire you to travel the world, to entertain you with tales from the road, and to help you reach your travel dreams. Welcome! 
