So it is time to celebrate your new year and you’re considering a birthday destination to treat yourself. We have more than enough suggestions for the big day! If there is anything better than traveling, it can only be traveling during a birthday. 

There is a key to choosing the best destination and honestly, it requires a careful look at your personality. Whether you want to party your way into your birthday, spend the day floating carefree in the ocean, or disappear into complete zen, the world is full of options.

Birthdays are special and deserve to be treated as such. Here are a few birthday destination options to help you along. All you need to do is get your passport and book the flight. 

Related: One Of The Most Exclusive Tourist Destinations Is Opening Its Doors, But Only To A Select Few

For the strictly chilled traveler

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You’re ready to enter your new cycle with all the peace, zen, and ease that your year deserves. There is something precious about a birthday. You don’t want anything complicated; just sunshine, good vibes, and melted coconut oil.

With the constant sound of ocean waves and tweeting birds in the background, Senegal’s Gorée Island is your top destination. This small island vibe is the go-to destination for locals and travelers alike in search of a blissful getaway. There is no better way to celebrate a birthday than to escape to the slow, tropical vibes that characterize Gorée. 

Birthday prep reading: How To Spend A Perfect Sunday on Gorée Island, Senegal

For the traveler who wants to live large

 

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f you want to spend your birthday living large and showing off, Ghana is the perfect destination to do such a thing. We recommend Accra as a destination for both henjoyment and connecting with the Diaspora–so your birthday squad multiplies in the most fabulous way.

With more and more luxury travel options becoming available, it is certainly the place to pop bottles in honor of yourself. 

Birthday prep reading: Ghana: The Definitive Travel Guide For 2022

For the traveler who wants their own vibe

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Hold your own vibe and live in your own movie? Absolutely. Florence has become a popular destination for many in recent months, but it is especially attractive for solo travelers looking to do nothing but wander around and be inspired.

This year, celebrate your birthday by letting a beautiful city woo you. The sites to see in Florence are truly impeccable, the food is unmatched, and, to be clear, the wine is top-tier. What is a birthday without the added prestige of the finest cuisine for the finest gal or guy? In Florence, you celebrate life by indulging in it. 

Birthday prep reading: The Black Expat: My Life In Florence As A Black Artist From The Bahamas

For the traveler who wants the squad on pure party vibes

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A birthday group trip, though manic in the planning stages, is absolutely worth it once you arrive and see how the vision exceeded itself. The joy, the memories, the polaroids, the ceaseless dancing, the sleepless nights, and all the rest that can’t be put into words. It is always a good time when in loving company.

For this birthday, you’re choosing one of Africa’s most precious locations for a birthday worth remembering. Zanzibar awaits! Tanzanian hospitality paired with world-class beaches and vibrant nightlife complete with music you can’t resist is the equation of all equations. 

Birthday prep reading: 5 Things To Do On The African Island Of Zanzibar

For the family-orientated traveler

 

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What better way to celebrate your birthday than in the Caribbean surrounded by your loved ones? A good rum punch, belly laughter, and your family’s familiar warmth is all you need this year. Jamaica offers something for everyone–whether adventurous, beach-loving, waterfall-chasing, off-grid camping, or Black history buff.

Everyone is happy, which means more time to clink glasses in honor of another trip around the sun. The carefree life in the beautiful land of Jamaica is so hard to leave that this might even become a family tradition.

Birthday prep reading: Why You Should Add Trelawny Parish To Your Jamaican Itinerary

For the wild and spontaneous traveler

 

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Well, the ambassador of joy and good chaos is turning another year older. This calls for a city that knows no limits. There is very little that Mexico City doesn’t offer; this city is the peak of surprises.

To celebrate in the most outrageous way possible, head to Mexico City and let the vibrant, random, and absolutely adorable capital of an endlessly interesting city guide you down mezcal-laden rabbit holes.

Birthday prep reading: The Black Nomad: In Search Of Good Food And Black People Around The World 

For the first-timer

 

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Since it is your first time celebrating your birthday abroad (welcome to the good side) it is only fair that you ease yourself in, but with all of the style necessary. We’re thinking, keep it local(ish). Keep it familiar but truly open-hearted to all things surprising. Celebrating abroad is the ideal way to invite newness and switch it up from routines. It might become addictive or it might be the one-off dream you always needed.

Grab a bestie and head to the next state, booking things that you’ve always wanted to do. If you’re in Europe, hop on a train to the neighboring country or even city–Amsterdam and London are great places for quick weekend getaways that make birthdays iconic. Alternatively, traveling to another country with a similar culture or language counts!  

Birthday prep reading: 15 Things To Keep In Mind Before Visiting London, England