Oh… Hi, everyone. It’s been a while, hasn’t it?
As you may have noticed, it’s been incredibly quiet around here lately. In fact, I haven’t published a blog post since February 20th of last year. Given that up until that point I had, with a couple of small exceptions, consistently shared a post every two weeks (or less) for six years, this radio silence was a big deal. And I felt it acutely.
There are lots of reasons that the blog went quiet last year, many of which are detailed in the recap below. But the lack of posts does not mean that Full Life, Full Passport was dormant or discarded! In fact, one of the biggest reasons that I had so little time to write was because the vacation planning side of the business was going gangbusters, and I was simply swamped with work coordinating so many amazing vacations around the world! There was a flurry of activity going on behind the scenes as members of this community traveled farther and wider than ever before, and it was an absolute blast to watch it all happen. (Make sure to check out the list of client destinations below!)
So, to give you an idea of what’s been going on around here, what to expect in the future, and to just check in and say “Hi!”, I’m sharing this year’s annual recap a little bit early.
2024 Highlights
A Family Road Trip to Quebec
Those of you who have been around here for a while may remember me talking in multiple years in review about having to postpone or cancel a Canada vacation. Well, after almost six years, it finally happened!
Perhaps the biggest highlight of our 2024 was the week that we spent as a family in Quebec, Canada. After a family emergency caused us to delay our departure by almost 36 hours, we drove overnight from our home in the Philadelphia area to Mont-Tremblant, arriving around 4:30 AM. After two days in that fun and kid-friendly resort town, we made our way through Montreal to Quebec City to explore the Old City and nearby Montmorency Falls. We split the drive home over two days, traveling through gorgeous upstate New York as our five- and three-year-old kids handled the long hours in the car like total champs.
Despite some difficult circumstances back home that were never far from our minds, overall the trip was wonderful. It was so fun to see our kids navigating a new country, language, and culture, and each of our destinations had a lot of great things to do.
(If you ask the kids what their favorite part of the vacation was, though, they will undoubtedly answer, “Swimming in the hotel pools!”, so obviously the history, landscapes, and culture made a huge impression.)
Also, because of how challenging our year had been up to that point (more on that below), and because we almost had to cancel the trip in light of the aforementioned family emergency, I was keenly aware throughout the vacation of how grateful and fortunate I was to be there. Having that time of respite with just the four of us, plus the joy of experiencing a new place and seeing it through my children’s eyes, was a balm for my soul at a moment when it was sorely needed.
I can’t recommend a road trip through Quebec more highly, and especially the resort town of Mont-Tremblant if you have young children. Be on the lookout for the Quebec content that’s coming your way in 2025!
I Planned Tons of Great Client Vacations!
I had so much fun planning your vacations last year! 2024’s crop of trips was the largest and most varied to date, which kept things interesting and kept me busy all year long.
People came to me for everything from a golf trip to Myrtle Beach to a sun-soaked honeymoon through the Greek islands (swoon!). They took train rides through the Alps and lounged on Caribbean beaches. They road-tripped through Scotland and celebrated the life of a matriarch in Maine. A group of super intentional dads took their preteen sons on an adventurous and challenging cusp-of-manhood trip to West Virginia. A couple of college juniors took their first trip to Europe. And, of course, I helped lots of people have the vacation of a lifetime in my favorite destination to coordinate: Alaska.
It is such a privilege to get to help make these travel dreams come true, and I absolutely love living vicariously through all my clients as they see the world. I can’t wait to see what new places we’ll discover in 2025 – we’re already off to a great start!
Where Did FLFP Clients Travel This Year?
Here are some of the vacations I planned for 2024:
- Acadia National Park
- Alaska (cruise and land vacations)
- Aruba
- Croatia
- Cruises (Caribbean and Mediterranean)
- Greece
- Ireland
- Italy
- Maine
- Myrtle Beach, South Carolina
- Newport, Rhode Island
- Paris, France
- Playa del Carmen, Mexico
- Punta Cana, Dominican Republic
- San Juan, Puerto Rico
- Scotland
- Seattle, Washington
- St. Lucia
- Switzerland
- Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
- New River Gorge, West Virginia
- Williamsburg, Virginia
Other Fun Stuff from This Year:
- While life circumstances kept us from spending much time there as a full nuclear family, the kids and I were able to sneak down to the Delaware beaches on a couple of occasions for fun in the sun this summer.
- E loved playing quickball, an innovative and much more exciting version of tee ball, last spring, with M as his coach. M also (somewhat accidentally) coached E’s soccer team last fall, and S had her first taste of team sports with a soccer camp.
- Our faithful Shetland sheepdog, Riley, turned 17 in November! We’re so grateful that he just keeps trucking along.
2024 Lowlights
A Very Difficult Year
Unfortunately, it’s hard to look back on 2024 and not acknowledge just how challenging the year was for our family on a personal level. It began in January with flooding in our (newly-refinished) basement that required major and costly repairs, and the difficulties just kept rolling in from there.
We endured additional house issues, the loss of a second-trimester pregnancy, the death of a grandmother, a lengthy health crisis and the eventual terminal diagnosis of a close family member, and professional setbacks, plus all the negativity and sorrow that comes from living in a fallen world and during an acrimonious presidential election.
This has been one of the most difficult and heartbreaking years I’ve ever experienced, and I’ll be honest that many weeks of 2024 were spent in pure survival mode. Things we love dearly, including crafting blog posts, fell by the wayside as we circled the wagons and relied on our faith to make it through each day.
A Massive Hit to Web Traffic and Revenue
I am certainly not alone in this next challenge, as pretty much everyone I know in the blogging industry (regardless of subject) has seen their web traffic collapse over the past year thanks to updates in how Google displays search results.
Not only is this incredibly frustrating – unlike with previous Google updates, there doesn’t seem to be much, if anything, I can do to rebound – but it meant a big financial hit, as well. The free content that bloggers put out into the world is supported by ad and affiliate revenue from people interacting with their posts. When there’s no traffic, there’s no income, and very little reward for all the time and effort you put into making your blog posts helpful and high-quality. And speaking of blog posts…
A Silent Blog
While there have been quiet seasons on this blog in the past, never has it been so utterly silent as during the year 2024. In fact, I only published four posts during the entire year, and one of those was a recap of 2023!
As I’ve mentioned, there were both happy and not-so-happy reasons for the lull. The not-so-happy reasons were all the setbacks that we endured, which took a ton of time and mental and emotional energy. On the positive side, though, I had such a steady stream of client vacations that my working hours (and then some!) were usually overwhelmingly spoken for. And that’s not a bad problem to have!
I have really missed writing blog posts over the past year, though, and am aiming to make 2025 a different story! And you should definitely check out the blog class of 2024, because there were three solid posts about Italy before things shut down:
I Got Hacked
In the early fall, I discovered that FLFP had been hacked by an unknown actor through my ad service and that the entire website was compromised. (Don’t worry, I don’t have anyone’s personal data here!) Thankfully, I have a great team who helped me identify the problem and restore an old version of the site in about a week. I lost some work, but not nearly as much as I would have if I had been blogging on my usual schedule!
Most Popular Posts in 2024
- The Do’s and Don’ts of Aruba: Travel Tips for First-Time Visitors
- 20 of the Best Things to Do in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware
- 25 of Aruba’s Best Restaurants
- 25 of the Best Restaurants in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware
- The Do’s and Don’ts of Vieques: Travel Tips for First-Time Visitors
- A Complete Guide to Vieques, Puerto Rico
- The Pros and Cons of Airbnb
- 25 Perfect Mother-Daughter Trip Destinations
- A One-Day Driving Itinerary for Scotland’s Isle of Skye
- The Pros and Cons of All-Inclusive Resorts
Looking Ahead to 2025
I know that an old year’s problems don’t just magically melt away when the clock strikes midnight on December 31st. (In fact, that truth was keenly reinforced when I discovered on January 1 that a mouse had gotten into my chest freezer and made a complete mess of our frozen vegetables!). That said, I am still hopeful that 2025 will be a better and brighter year than its predecessor.
Here are some of my goals for 2025, as well as things I’m looking forward to in the new year:
More blog posts! I really want to do a better job at balancing blog work with the vacation planning side of the business. I miss writing, and I miss you all! I also have so much more to say about Italy, and I’m excited to share as much as possible about how amazing Quebec was.
More great client vacations! 2025 is already shaping up to be another banner year, with fun destinations like Turks & Caicos, Mackinac Island, Germany, Las Vegas, and Mexico.
The next mother-daughter trip! It’s hard to believe that two years have passed since my mom, sister, and I lounged on the beaches of Aruba, but it’s already time for another girls’ getaway! This spring, we’re crossing Europe off my mom’s bucket list with a weeklong trip to Portugal. (And that should mean that lots of great Portugal content will be coming your way in late 2025, as well!)
Finally finishing the website redesign! Dare I even put this out there into the world? It has been years in the making, but I’m really pleased with how the new look of the website is coming along. Here’s hoping that 2025 is the year that I finally get to share it with you and give this place a much-needed refresh.
In Closing
After a tough year, I am left all the more grateful for the support of this community. Thank you for entrusting me with your precious vacations, for sticking around on the email list, and for reaching out when you noticed things had gotten quiet. It meant the world to me.
Here’s hoping that this new year is one of hope and joy for all of us. I wish you and yours a very happy New Year, and look forward to all that 2025 has to offer.
Thank you, again, for being along on this journey with me.
– Gwen
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An Unforgettable Ferrari Drive Through the Hills of Italy
I AM SO EXCITED for the trip you have planned for our 30th Anniversary to ALASKA in 2025! Gwen, you are a pro! Your details, humor, and flexibility make you a dream as a vacation advisor and planner.
The devil only messes with the ones who are on track, Don’t let him steal your JOY.
Blessed to be not only related to you by marriage, but also able to call you FRIEND.
Let’s go places!
Thank you so much, Aunt Tina! I can’t wait for you to experience Alaska and am so honored that you chose to let me help you! So grateful for all your love and support over the years <3