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Travel That Changes You: My 10 Best Adventures Of 2015

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We can talk all we want about starchitects and thread counts, but really, what we’re paying for when we pay for travel is memories. Sure, some of it is bragging rights. But more than that, the beyond-the-comfort-zone adventures we have while traveling are the plot points in our autobiographies, evidence that we can do more than we’d thought and, ideally, high points in our lives.

As a luxury travel writer, I often thank my lucky stars that I’m living a life of trips of a lifetime. Every year, I try new things and push my boundaries. Thankfully, this world is full of opportunities to push them even further. So while I fill dozens of notebooks every year, each time a new one rolls around and I look back on my highlights, I don’t need the notebooks.

My best moments of 2015 left memories that are easily conjured, and stories that are eagerly told. There were moments of fascination, accomplishment, giddiness, gluttony and outright terror. Or pure joy—that’s a big part of what we pay for too. (Disclosure: Many of my experiences were hosted.)

Here are 10 experiences worth seeking out.

Exploring villages by longboat on Inle Lake in Myanmar

Talk about a place out of time. The lake is a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve whose natural beauty is matched by its compelling culture. Many of the surrounding villages are reached solely by long-tail boat, and each one produces one craft, from boats to gorgeous fabrics made of silk and lotus fibers. The lake is full of aquatic tomato farms and fishermen who perform a laborious ballet, balancing on one leg and using the other to propel an oar that steers. I was mesmerized.

Arriving by paraglider at Six Senses Zighy Bay in Oman

Getting to the resort feels very James Bond—if 007 ever did tandem rides. A driver took me on a highway a couple hours from Dubai, then up a series of impossibly steep switchbacks. At a gap in the mountain, my guide and I suited up in the gear and waited for the wind to catch our kite and carry us down—with as many daredevil loops as I wanted (many)—to the beach right in front of the hotel. Sometimes I like to make an entrance, and this more than fit the bill.

Catching green waves with Surf Simply in Costa Rica

A lot of surf culture, says longtime instructor Ru Hill, positions the sport as a mystical pursuit, where supposedly intuitive skills and serendipity align. He set out to change that with this weeklong surf school on Guoines Beach in Nosara, one of the best water classrooms in the world. After a week of step-by-step instruction in whitewater, the pool and even a classroom, my fantastic instructor coaxed me “out the back,” where I caught unbroken waves as six instructors and 11 fellow guests cheered me on.

Sleeping by the stars at Cloud Camp on Vancouver Island

Clayoquot Wilderness Resort's main tents are spectacular enough. But my favorite night of a ten-day trip around the island was the one I spent in a tented suite atop a mountain peak, right by a gleaming lake. When the helicopter landed, a private chef, massage therapist and hiking guide were waiting. Dinner was as delicious and lavish as in the restaurant down below, and made even better with that view of the summer solstice sunset.

Climbing to the base of the towers at Torres del Paine in Chilean Patagonia

This was on my list a couple years ago, but it was worth repeating. The gigantic granite monoliths are the stuff of legend and literature, and a mecca for climbers all over the world. Tierra Patagonia sends guests out with enthusiastic guides on the four-hour trek to the base of the tours, where they have a breezy picnic by a glacial lake, and then trek four hours back down. Yummy snacks and cold beers are waiting in the van for the drive back to the lodge.

Crewing (cluelessly) in a regatta in St. Barth

When I flew down for Les Voiles de St. Barth, I’d taken a couple half-day sailing lessons and a weekend Basic Keelboat course, but I really had no idea how to sail. That wasn’t a problem for Ondeck Sailing, an Antigua-based company that enters boats in every Caribbean regatta during the winter season. “We’re serious about having fun” was the mind-set of the two professionals and five competent amateurs with me aboard a 40-foot sailboat. I quickly learned that racing is nothing like cruising—everything is rougher and faster. However, regetta in St. Barth ends with a bottle of Veuve Clicquot at the finish line, and having 1,000 sailors in town tends to make for a very good time once the sun goes down.

Eating my way through Mexico City

Mexican street food as good as everyone says—one frequently cited stat has it that 20 million people a day eat on the street (impressive for a metro area of about 21 million). Run by savvy American expat food bloggers, Club Tengo Hambre organizes small-group and private street-food tours with an emphasis on out-there foods you can’t get at home: huitlacoche quesadillas, green chorizo flavored with spinach and the city’s best tacos al pastor. I’m still dreaming of those quesadillas.

Hiking a lap around Mont Blanc in the Alps

I’m proud I’ve climbed Kilimanjaro, but the experience was frankly rather miserable. For this year’s big hiking trip, I chose a much warmer, more comfortable and downright luxurious trek. The Tour du Mont Blanc, especially Mountain Travel Sobek’s version of it, isn’t easy: Each day we gained and lost at least 3,000 feet. But then we ended up in a charming Alpine town with a comfortable hotel and excellent food. I felt completely justified in eating cheese three meals a day.

Swimming in cenotes in Tulum

The water is cold but oh so worth it in these freshwater swimming holes within caves in the Yucatan, which were held sacred in Maya culture. Whether or not they hold spiritual power is open to debate—though one is said to be a fountain of youth, and what harm can it do?—but there’s no question that their wild constellations of stalagmites and stalactites are stunning. The staff at the new Mi Amor hotel can arrange trips to less trafficked cenotes with excellent local guides. When we turned off all our lights, the utter darkness made for a quick, thrilling trip to the edge of my comfort zone.

Galloping across the Atacama Desert in Chile

At 8,000 to 19,000 feet, the Atacama is the highest and driest desert in the world. Its landscapes are otherworldly: white-dusted salt flats, russet-color dunes, slot canyons and altiplano lakes dotted with pink flamingos. There’s a lot to see by bike or on foot, but this year I tried a new conveyance: one of the Explora Atacama’s terrifically trained horses. (The hotel is currently closed for renovations but will reopen better than ever next year.) Beginners take lessons not rides, and the “moderate” and “advanced” rides live up to their billing—think kicking into a full gallop through the Dunas de la Chula.