Which Country Should You Visit on Your First International Vacation?

Are You an American Trying to Choose Your First International Trip?

The first time you fly internationally is an exciting day, but it’s also very nerve-wracking, especially when you have to go through customs and immigration and have to have your passport on hand. Sure, it’s exciting to get your passport stamped, but are the customs officers going to give you any trouble? Probably not, but it’s worth doing a little research on what documents you need to have when you land.

The first country I flew to outside the United States was actually England (as an American, you’d think it would have been Mexico or Canada, right?). I was fortunate enough to travel with my mom at the outset, which gave me some comfort on the initial journey. Since the native language in England was the same as in the United States, that was another point in England’s favor for my first international trip.

Yes, the language can have a significant impact on your choice of which country you may want to visit first, but it’s not the only thing to think about. The cost of your trip will likely enter into the equation as well, and you might even think about the time it will take to get there. Are you really interested in spending 24 hours on three flights to reach Nepal for your first international trip?

Yes, Nepal would be amazing (hello, bucket list!), but you might find it easier to spend seven hours on a plane getting from New York City to London than you would get to the middle of Asia with all the jet lag. I don’t even know which way the plane would need to travel around the plane to reach Nepal from JFK. Around the top, perhaps?

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International Travel for Americans is Usually Years in the Making

Countries that aren’t the United States often have a good laugh at the expense of Americans because of our seeming lack of passports, but when your country is as wide and varied as the United States, with two giant oceans on either side, it becomes a little tough to visit anything other than Canada, Mexico, or Central America.

And let’s face it: Canada and Mexico are also very large countries, so just getting beyond the two means getting on a flight for several hours. It’s not a huge barrier to international travel, but it is one of the reasons many Americans have only been to three or four countries. Meanwhile, Europeans can hop on a train and visit an entirely different country.

When Americans plan an international trip to some destination that’s not in North America, we often need to spend some extra time saving, as well as do some significant research on where we might easily fit in for our first overseas international journey. Some spots are obviously off the list (few Americans these days would travel to North Korea, Venezuela, or Russia), but much of the rest of the world is open to new adventurers.

An international trip can certainly cost a lot, even if it’s just a popover to Canada or Mexico. Getting across an ocean often requires a little extra saving. One of the biggest costs is always the ticket, especially if you’re headed to Asia. Getting to Europe from the United States, even if you’re traveling from the West Coast, is possible on the cheap, but flying in the other direction to Asia often means paying a fair amount for a really basic ticket across the Pacific.

Try the Other Side of the Country First If You’re a New Traveler

If you’re an American but you’re really nervous about traveling to another country, there’s nothing like an American vacation to get you started. The United States is huge, and just because you’ve seen a movie about New York City doesn’t mean you know everything about the state, especially if you were born in New Mexico and haven’t really been outside the southwestern United States.

For your first major international trip, you might try looking at the other side of the country from where you live. What state would you consider to be the complete opposite of your home state? Where is the geography completely different? Where do people have completely different accents? There are quite a few amazing places to visit within the United States, and you can always start your journey just beyond the borders of your own state.

When I was younger, my family went on a road trip each summer to a different state. One year, we drove to Wyoming and stayed in the mountains. Another year, we drove to Florida and stayed at the beach. A third summer saw us drive to California and visit the iconic Disneyland. All of these trips felt like we were visiting completely different countries, even though it was all taking place inside the United States.

Obviously, you don’t need to make road trips out of your American vacations, but you can certainly do so if you have the time. There are quite a few budget-friendly airlines out there that will take you across a few states for a very affordable ticket price. If you buy the ticket enough in advance and forgo the luxuries of choosing your own seat, you can actually score tickets that are less than fifty bucks.

Where Did I Go For My First International Trip?

As I mentioned in the paragraphs above, my official international trip was to England. I was 19 years old and tooled around London for a few days with my mom before starting a solo journey around more of England, Scotland, and Wales. I even took the ferry over to Ireland and visited some friends. Overall, it was a very easy trip for an elder teenager, and I even did it without the ease of the internet.

Yes, the internet was certainly a thing in 1999 when I went, but there were no smartphones, no GPS, no Google Maps, and certainly no internet access outside of an internet cafe. But it was easy and very doable. One of the biggest industries in England is tourism, so much of the country is just made to welcome tourists. If you’re at all nervous about landing in a different country, you don’t need to feel nervous about going to England, especially if you’re an American.

My second international trip of note was to Iceland, and I have to say it was pretty easy, too. I don’t know if there’s anyone in Iceland who doesn’t speak English, so as an English speaker, it was really easy to get around and communicate. I was mistaken for an Icelander a few times, but I’d definitely recommend the country if you’re looking for an “easy” place to travel for your first real international vacation.

My third substantial international trip was to Vietnam, and that trip required a lot of preparation. I was also more than a bit worried about all the complex matters that would go into such an itinerary. Communication with the locals was a top concern for me, but my traveling partner and I made it around without much fuss. The Vietnamese were really friendly, and it wasn’t nearly as difficult to get around as I’d once imagined.

Do Canada and Mexico “Count” for International Trips from the United States?

I think if you’re really nervous about traveling all the way across an ocean or the Gulf of Mexico for your first international trip that you can certainly try out Mexico or Canada for your first trip, just to get into the swing of things in another country. One of the perks of traveling to Mexico or Canada is that it’s really easy to get into the country and visit for a vacation.

There are no lengthy visa applications, and as long as you have a passport, the customs and immigration folks will barely bat an eye at you when you enter the country. They’ll just ask you a few questions, stamp your passport, and send you on your way. Tourism between each of these huge countries is so common that you really don’t need to worry about that part of the itinerary process.

Introduce your passport to stamps with a trip to Vancouver or Toronto and up the ante a bit with a vacation down south to Mexico City or some beach time in Puerto Vallarta. There are so many easily accessible, beautiful, and interesting places to visit in Canada and Mexico, and you’ll get to tell everyone you’re an international traveler when you return!

You can also visit any one of the island nations and states within the Caribbean and consider yourself a world traveler. Jamaica is a popular island destination for Americans, and the people and food there are wonderful. Virtually everyone speaks English throughout the Caribbean, too, so you won’t have any problems getting around as a single lingual.

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