Someone, somewhere is about to have the thrill of their life when they take a look at their winning lottery ticket later today and realize they’re now a billionaire. New York has lottery fever, to say the least. Everywhere I go, people are going in on tickets together, day dreaming about what they’d buy, sharing strategies on which borough might just have the winning ticket and asking each other the billion dollar question: what would you do if you won the lottery today?
Thinking about my own answer to that question is like having a chocolate truffle-indulgent and deliciously wicked. What would I do if I won the lottery? My list breaks out into practical things (pay off my student loans, get a new apartment facing Central Park with my boyfriend, pay off any credit card balances), selfless things (treat my parents, pay for my brother and sister’s college, pay for my grandma’s medical expenses) to splurge items (travel the world, buy a home in Paris). Today is a day of wistful dreaming, of daring to imagine a future without financial stress and only feasible dreams. So to spark your wanderlust, here are 5 trips to take if you do win the lottery tonight! Good luck!
Head Down Under with a Private New Zealand Adventure
Kicking off with 35 days in New Zealand, this custom itinerary includes white-water rafting down the Rangitaiki River; hiking tours through national parks; wine tastings at historic wineries in the South Island’s Cromwell region; helicopter flights to remote locations; fly-fishing at top-tier lodges; tours of the glowworm-lined Waitomo Caves; and sailing through the Bay of Islands. After a month+ in New Zealand, the remaining nine days are spent in Hawaii at Maui’s Montage Kapalua Bay and Honolulu’s renowned hotel Halekulani. The trip starts at $83,000 per couple; for more information, visit Frontiers International Travel.
Explore the North Pole on a Nuclear Icebreaker
Sail for the legendary North Pole on a 14-day Arctic voyage aboard the nuclear icebreaker, 50 Years of Victory. Explore the High Arctic from many angles: view the moving icebreaker from air on a helicopter ride, feel the thick pack ice under your boots while walking, and observe bears, birds, and walruses are you sail. The tour starts at $26,995 per person; for more info, visit Adventure Life.
Tour The Silk Road by Private Train
Retracing one of the most important trading routes of ancient civilization, this 22-day private train tour follows in the footsteps of such legendary figures as Alexander the Great and Marco Polo. For centuries, merchants and adventurers journeyed to and from China on ancient routes through some of the most testing landscapes in the world trading silk, spices and perfumes. These ‘highways’ – stretching some 4,000 miles collectively came to be called the ‘Silk Road’ and with this private train, you can experience it in style. The tour starts at $24,595 per person; for more info visit MIR Corporation.
A Trip That’s Out of this World…Literally
Once you’ve flown around the world on your lottery winnings, the last frontier to explore is space! On this electrifying exploration of the Russian Space Program guests get to tour Star City, Russia’s premier cosmonaut training facility, where they can participate in optional cosmonaut training (Zero-Gravity Flight or Space Walk Training) in the Orlan Space Suit Lab. At the remote Russian launch facility on the Kazakh steppe, you can rub shoulders with top international space officials, space veterans and family of the next space crew and witness the heart-stirring launch of the Soyuz on its way to the International Space Station. The tour starts at $14,495 per person; for more info, visit MIR Corporation.
Book the Ultimate Africa Safari
Africa is the second largest of the Earth’s seven continents, making up about 22 percent of the world’s total land area and complete with Mount Kilimanjaro, the tallest freestanding mountain in the world; Victoria Falls, one of the Seven Natural Wonders of the World; Ngorongoro Crater, the world’s largest unbroken volcanic caldera; Olduvai Gorge, one of the most important prehistoric sites in the world; and Cape Town, which has to be one of the globe’s most beautiful cities with award-winning wine lands a stone’s throw away. This 29-day private tour explores the best Southern Africa has to offer and utilizes the most luxurious hotels and tent camps available. The tour starts at $27,175 per person; for more info, visit Frontiers Elegant Journeys.
Your turn, dreamers! If you won the lottery today, where would you travel? Share your thoughts, questions and comments below!
