Episode 11: Ranking The Best Just Book It Stories of 2022

4 Mini Stories & Inspiration to JUST BOOK IT

Before I jump into the Best Just Book It stories of 2023, let’s first ask ourselves, "What is the Just Book It Lifestyle?” Hi everyone, it’s The Brooklynite Abroad & welcome to another fabulous episode of The Just Book It Podcast. If you like what you hear, be sure to follow the Just Book It Podcast for more travel-related stories, news, tips & inspiration you need to jet-set! All right, let’s get into it!

Just Book It to me is defined as spontaneously embarking on an adventure; after doing it so many times, it truly becomes a lifestyle. Instead of waiting for others to plan the trip, to say yes, to purchase the flights, Just Book It & the rest will come as it pleases. There have been way too many instances where I would hesitate to go somewhere because the timing didn’t work or the friends weren’t too interested. At the end of the day, there is a reason why YOU wanted to go on this trip so Just Book It! We have so much to see of this beautiful earth so why are we going to put matters in someone else’s hands? This is the JUST BOOK IT community. A community filled with like-minded travelers that are just looking for adventure & to experience new cultures firsthand. I have Just Book It Stories of 2023 and I am going to say them all in this podcast and rank them based on three things. How spontaneous, was the turnout of the trip & overall if it encouraged us to do more spontaneous trips?

Just Book It Story Number One

This is the second time my boyfriend and I weren’t to the Adirondacks. We decided to hike Indian Head in the Adirondacks because we really enjoyed our last hike to this mountain range and wanted to do this bucket-list hike. This hike was on my list for over 2 years so, to say the least, I was so excited. We ended up staying in my boyfriend’s car for both nights at the rest stop in Albany which was an adventure in itself. I never did that before so cheers to new adventures and trying new things. Since we went at the end of September, the weather was nice enough to not get too cold or too hot. We brought comfortable sweatpants & a sweatshirt. We ventured off to the hike, got a late start, but saw some pretty spectacular views! I drove all the way up which was pretty exciting since it's four hours from NYC & certainly a trip for the books. Now for the rating...

• How spontaneous: 6/10: We were wishy-washy. Some hesitation but I ultimately decided to go after like 3 hours of relaxing at the apartment.
• The turnout of the Trip: 9/10: We got to see the fantastic Indian Head hike just before sundown! The reservations were all booked but we still managed to get in thanks to a couple who were members of the ADK mountain club~I gave a 9/10 versus a 10/10 because we started the hike a little bit late and didn't get to fully enjoy the scenery.
• Overall if it encouraged us to make more spontaneous trips: 10/10: hard yes. It showed us that we could spontaneously embark on a 5-hour road trip even at midnight and have a great time. It also shows that even though you do need a reservation for certain places and am really fortunate that the couple was able to help us out.
• Total Score of 25/30 = 83% on the Just Book It Meter

Just Book It Story Number Two

This is another Adirondack adventure and actually the first one we went on which makes the spontaneity that much greater (which is the difference between the 1st story). It was for my boyfriend’s birthday and he wasn’t sure what we wanted to do to celebrate. Maybe go out, get dinner & mentioned hiking maybe twice. I really like a plan so it was killing me to now know what he wanted to do but again, he’s the birthday boy so gotta have some patience. This is kind of ironic because the podcast is called Just Book It and I like to have a plan. I'm using this podcast to help me relax a little bit when it comes to being Type-A. Eventually, he was like okay let’s just go hiking. It’d be so much fun!! He mentioned that we could have a long weekend if I took off on Monday. So there I was on a Friday afternoon taking Monday off. Thank luckily I work with the nicest people & my boss is truly amazing and was like no problem at all! In my head, I was like, “Okay are we actually doing this? Like, is this really happening?”. I packed my bag within 20 minutes and after Ino had finished work, we headed out on the road to the Adirondacks. I forgot to mention that our dates were perfectly aligned with one of the most spectacular tiny homes ever!!! I never stayed in a tiny home so cheers to new adventures. To top it off we slept in the tiny home so peacefully which resulted in starting our day later and while it was thundering out which is super dangerous, to begin with. After a long hike to the top, we finally got to see some amazing views. For us, the rain stopped and I got to fly the drone around for a bit. The hike up was very hard. The last mile I felt like when on for twenty hours, but nonetheless, the views at the top were amazing. When it was time for us to go down, it was a reminder for us not to have started so late as the sun was starting to set. Eventually, we hiked AN HOUR in the COMPLETE PITCH BLACK. I was so afraid but led us out to tell the tale. The workers at the mountain encouraged us to get headlamps and thank luckily we did. The dinner & shower after were so rewarding. A trip for the books!

• How spontaneous: 10/10: In the span of 5 hours, we were heading up to the mountains with basically nothing planned. One of my favorite JUST BOOK IT stories! I booked the tiny home about six hours before we arrived so that's an all-time record for the latest time to book an Airbnb.
• The turnout of the Trip: 10/10: This trip really showed that we had everything against us and still managed to have a great time. From not planning the trip at all to starting the day late, having sucky weather, not being prepared (had to buy a rain jacket and headlamps) & being told multiple times to just go home it’s not worth it, end the hike. But we ended up having an amazing story to tell! It’s worth more than a thousand words in my book so yes. I am super excited to have more trips like this in the future.
• Overall if it encouraged us to do more spontaneous trips: 10/10: Hard yes. The more we were told no, the more we wanted to continue and finish the hike!
• Total Score of 30/30:= 100% on the Just Book It Meter

Just Book It Story Number Three

This story is very interested because we had gone to Salem two weeks prior and I had this debilitating migraine and didn't end up going to Salem which prevented me from hanging out with everyone. We decided to plan a trip down the line when we had a chance. Now after going on the trip, spontaneously going to Salem AFTER Halloween is just as fun! We decided to drive around 10 pm so not as late as the last story to the Adirondacks, aha! I really had a great time exploring around and it reminded me of when I traveled to Ireland and didn’t do everything on a limb. We didn’t have too much planned and had the best time. Ino’s cousins hosted us and they live a few minutes outside of Salem which made it super easy to get around. It’s a 10-minute drive to be precise, but we decided to walk which took around 45 minutes. This getaway was a real treat and relaxation! 

• How spontaneous: 6/10: We had planned on going to Salem again since the last trip I didn’t get to go since I had a headache so it was always on our minds & leading up to it we were like, okay yeah let’s just book it!! 
• The turnout of the Trip: 10/10: We had a wonderful time and cannot wait to visit other New England cities. I love Vermont, New Hampshire, and Massachusetts. Rhode Island, Maine, you’re next baby!! This trip was really special because I love Halloween and going to the Salem Witch Museum was for sure a highlight. The museum was really unique in that everyone sat in the middle and while we were glancing at the dioramas, the timeline was narrated to us! Later, we went into a more museum-like area with more information on the walls. The tickets start at midnight of that day so it's perfect for the Just Book It traveler!
• Overall if it encouraged us to do more spontaneous trips: 10/10: Most of these are getting a 10/10 because at the end of the day, traveling near or far warms my heart!
• Total Score of 26/30:= on the Just Book It Meter

Just Book It Story Number Four

This is up there as my top JUST BOOK IT story. It's when Ino surprised me and flew to the Bahamas to see me! I had booked this trip back in December with my family & I truly had no idea that he was going to do this. He was texting me like, “you’re the Just Book It Queen right?” & I was like yes, & ye’s like “well that makes me the Just Book it King right?” In my head I was like, “what is going on here” & before I knew it, I was in Ino’s sweet arms enjoying his company! He booked his flight 2 HOURS before departing.

• How spontaneous: 10/10: Considering he bought the flight 2 hours before departing, that’s some new level JUST BOOK IT experience. 
• The turnout of the Trip: 10/10: The whole trip was an absolute dream with him around & I loved it so much! We went during Bahamian Independence Day & the streets were filled with families & friends celebrating. The parade was magnificent with some of the most beautiful costumes I have ever seen. I love a good performance and the dancer's instrumentalists were outstanding 1000/10!! 
• Overall if it encouraged us to do more spontaneous trips: 10/10: Honestly, this is the catalyst to some of our other Just Book It Adventures because, well hear us out. Most cancellations are allowed if it is within 24 hours in advance & since it’s freshly booked, in case something goes wrong, you can always cancel and not even have to worry about flight credit. We definitely plan to have a fully spontaneous trip in the future. Only time will tell where we’ll go!
• Total Score of 31/30: = > 100% on the Just Book It Meter

There You Have It!

Do you think you have a better idea of The Just Book It lifestyle? Over here at The Brooklynite Abroad, we’ll be taking it to the next level and booking some serious spontaneous trips that’ll become great memories & stories for years to come. that Well that’s all for now, thanks for tuning in, and be sure to follow the Just Book It podcast and The Brooklynite Abroad to stay up-to-date on places to venture off to next! Bye guys!