Travel blog

We have a lot to thank our mothers for. They’re the ones who carried us, who nurtured us, who showed us right from wrong, how to get over heartbreak, and the key to choosing the best watermelon (does it sound hollow when you tap it?). Our mothers are some of the most precious women in our lives, and Mother’s Day is the perfect day to celebrate them.

This year, why not rethink your Mother’s Day gift? Cooking classes and flowers are nice, but if you want to really treat your mom, don’t overlook the power of a well-planned experience. We have a list of options your mom is sure to love. These are the best places to travel with your mom—whether she wants to take a Bucket List European vacation, or to finally stand at the rim of the Grand Canyon, we have something for every style of traveler.

Not sure where to start? We can help you narrow down the kinds of trips your mom would like by determining her travel style. Here are eight of the most common styles we’ve seen, and the best affordable tours for each type!

Packing for vacations in Ireland can be tricky, even for frequent travelers. One would think a reasonable amount of sunshine and warmth would be the norm for trips between April and September, but that is not the case. In fact, temperatures rarely get higher than 70 degrees Fahrenheit in the peak of summer! With so much uncertainty when it comes to the weather, you may be asking yourself, “Where do I even get started?”

Regardless of season, there are some standard items you should include in your luggage, and below is a packing list of must-haves for your upcoming Ireland vacation:

Your travel bucket list is an opportunity for you to write down all the must-see places you want to visit in this lifetime. It inspires you to decide what you really want, to rank the places you’ve dreamt of seeing for years, since childhood, perhaps, and plan accordingly. Here are some of the magnificent destinations that show up most frequently on our guests’ bucket lists:

Family time, date nights, and your everyday responsible life is terrific, sure, but it’s sometimes very important to get away with the lads. Kick back, talk (or not) about your goals, your concerns, and whether LeBron could ever surpass MJ as basketball’s true Greatest of All Time, on these 5 perfect Guys Trips:

May 4 is known worldwide as Star Wars Day. And the reason? “May The Fourth be With You” sounds just like “May the Force Be With You,” and Star Wars fans love nothing better than a good pun.

Like stepping stones leading to the sea, the hexagonal pillars of Giant’s Causeway are like nothing you’ve ever seen. A honeycomb of 40,000 columns poking up along the shore, these formations were created 60 million years ago by molten lava that crystallized into basalt pillars as it hit the frigid waters. If you plan to visit Ireland, this other-worldy attraction is a must. However, here are five tips you’ll need to keep in mind when traveling to Giant’s Causeway:

If Ireland had a sound, it would be a foot-tapping reel played fast and furiously over the raucous banter of a crowded pub. Often it starts slow and simple with just a guitar but before long fiddlers and accordion players, drummers and banjo strummers are quickening the pace. 

When Travel + Leisure announced the 50 Best Places to Travel in 2017, Belfast, Northern Ireland was high on the list of the world’s favorite destinations for food, culture, and entertainment. With two Michelin-starred restaurants and a host of other innovative dining options, there’s a lot of flavors in this former “troubled” city. There are museums and historical attractions a plenty, a rich cultural heritage, and a number of new design-forward architectural treasures.

While an Irish lifestyle is typically very social and relaxed, an understanding of Irish social norms and expectations is always important when visiting a foreign country, especially for the first time. Here is a list of the dos and don’ts, and other useful tips when traveling to the Emerald Isle.

From grand castles and sprawling country fields, to busting cities and turn-of-the-century pubs Ireland is a feast for the senses. Imagine sheer cliffs plunging into churning seas and endless green vistas where there are more sheep than people. This is the picture-postcard landscape that first welcomed John and Rosella Valentine on a recent YMT Vacations journey. Just returned, Rosella had this to share about the country, her experiences and the travel tips she picked up along the way: