Despite a sagging economy, increased issues involved in air travel, and juggling a host of responsibilities, I still managed a fair amount of travel this year.

Here’s how my travel resolutions stacked up for the year:

Montefollonico Italy

  • Visit two new countries – I accomplished this with visits to Switzerland, Croatia, and Bosnia-Herzegovina.
  • Visit two new states – Not so good here.  Visited lots of new cities, but no new states.
  • Re-visit five places that I’ve already been, but see and experience them differently –  I did pretty well with this one, although didn’t quite make it to 5.
  • Discover new restaurants, hotels, and resorts and share those experiences with you – This one was pretty easy, as I discovered new places in the Seattle area, as well as discovering others on my travels.

Here are some of my other travel highlights of 2009:

  • Visited two new island in Hawaii, the Big Island and Kauai
  • Visited Houston.  Had a chance to explore a little bit on layovers, and am looking forward to a return trip to explore more.
  • Returned to Italy, visiting several new places:  Lake Maggiore, Ancona, and lots of small towns in Tuscany.  Drank lots of wine and ate lots of pasta and gelato.
  • Took the overnight ferry from Ancona (Italy) to Split (Croatia).
  • Explored to areas in Croatia, Split and Dubrovnik.  Both are UNESCO World Heritage sites, and both were absolutely fabulous.  Definitely need more time there, so will plan to go back again.
  • Traveling between Split and Dubrovnik meant passing through Bosnia-Herzegovina.  Although it was only two checkpoints and a stop for gelato (in both directions), it still counts as visiting another country.
  • I had a great weekend in Napa Valley, and was surprised at how much had changed since I’d last been there.  About 12 years ago.  If you haven’t been recently, it will be like you haven’t been at all.
  • I spent a little time in Portland, Oregon, discovering some of the new spots that have resulted from that city’s revitalization.
  • I spent a week in Miami Beach for Pow-Wow, and had a wonderful opportunity to discover what’s great about the area.  In addition, I also got to meet blogger and Dine Magazine Editor, Katherine Lynch.
  • And finally, I spent a bit more time in Las Vegas.  I was there for a couple of conferences and trade shows, as well as spent some personal time there with friends.  I was able to discover some new places and things there, got to meet blogger Lynn Goya.

What will 2010 hold for travel?  I’m giving some thought to my travel resolutions and will share them with you as soon as they shape up.

What were your travel resolutions or goals for 2009?  Did you meet them?

Photo credit: Mary Jo Manzanares