Bookish Bucket List: 5 Of My Dream Travel Destinations

themaeveblog
Nov 7, 2021
4 min read

Walden Pond

Travel might be one of my very favorite activities.

Hans Christian Anderson once said that "to travel is to live". And I agree with that statement. In my limited experience, I have found that travel allows a body to grow and learn in ways not previously possible for them. Though some of my favorite trips include Austin, TX , Mackinac Island, MI , New York City, NY , and Williamsburg, VA, none of my vacations have ever been centered-around one of my favorite things: books.

And as an equal lover of writing and history, I think that visiting significant, "bookish" spots would be super fulfilling and super fun! So for the past few years now, I have been compiling a little bookish bucket list of all of the locations I hope one day to visit. These are spots that are beautiful, as well as historically significant. Please feel free to read what I have included in the line-up, maybe you might find that you want to visit some, too.

1. The Ernest Hemingway House, Florida Keys

It has always been a dream of mine to visit the Hemingway Home & Museum, located in the Key West. Ernest Hemingway is one of my dad's favorite authors, and during my freshman year of college, I thoroughly enjoyed reading and researching Hemingway for my Intro to Literature Course.

The tropical grounds of the Hemingway Home and Museum look absolutely beautiful. And the main quirk: six-toed cats! According to their website, "Ernest Hemingway was given a white six-toed cat by a ship’s captain and some of the cats who live on the museum grounds are descendants of that original cat, Snow White."

Yep, apparently Hemingway named all of his cats after famous people, and the museum still follows that same tradition today-- with the approx. 60 cats that call the grounds home. Do not worry, the cats are maintained by the grounds' veterinarian (Super cute!).

Overall, I think this location is one of the highest on my bookish bucket list

(Disclaimer: I am strongly biased because of the cats.)

2. The Robert Frost Farm, New Hampshire

My favorite poet of all time is hands-down Robert Frost. I love Frost for his usage of simple, everyday language. I love Frost for how practical his poems are. I love Frost. (But this is a post for another time).

Robert Frost actually lived in several different places during his life (situated mostly across New England), so that makes choosing one destination to visit difficult for me. However, I think I would like to visit his Farm in Derry, New Hampshire, most of all. The scenery around the place is absolutely beautiful in photographs, and so, I think it would be my first choice to visit. Aside from the house, the Frost Farm website also mentions a Barn and gift shop to pique one's interest.

The grounds also include a Nature/Poetry trail, which I would love to experience. All in all, I think the Robert Frost Farm is beautiful, so I had to include it on my list.

3. Edgar Allen Poe House, Maryland

Edgar Allen Poe-- another author that everyone seems to adore being creeped-out by. What can I say?

I would love to visit the Poe House, located in Baltimore, Maryland.

In addition to the house, though, there are a ton of opportunities to explore everything Poe-related in Baltimore. There is a website all about it, check it out.

Ultimately, I think this would be an incredible trip to take, especially around October. So I just had to include this spot on my list.

4. Sleepy Hollow Cemetery, Massachusetts

A little creepy to include a cemetery, I suppose, but this place is a must-visit, for me. Located in Concord, Massachusetts, the Sleepy Hollow Cemetery is the burial place of a number of influential authors, including Nathaniel Hawthorne, Henry David Thoreau, and Ralph Waldo Emerson.

These authors have fittingly been buried in a place dubbed "Author's Ridge".

Fun fact: I have been interested in visiting this cemetery since high school, when my American Literature teacher told our class all about the time she "fell down crying" at the grave of Nathaniel Hawthorne. I remember thinking then, that if this place inspires that kind of a reaction... then count me in!

Oh, and by the way, this "Sleepy Hollow Cemetery" is not to be confused with the one located in Sleepy Hollow, NY. Though, both honestly look like super cool stops, they are not the same cemetery. The Sleepy Hollow Cemetery in New York is actually the burial place of Washington Irving! Honestly, I suppose I could count this as bucket-list destination number 4.5, because the location would be equally as interesting, I am sure. Plus, it looks absolutely wicked-cool in the photos.

Sleepy Hollow Cemetery, New York

5. Louisa May Alcott's Orchard House, Massachusetts

Also located in Concord, Massachusetts, Louisa May Alcott's Orchard House would be super fun to visit. Besides being simply interested by the house and landscape, I am a huge fan of the 2019 movie adaptation to Little Women, so I think this location would be an awesome photo opportunity, as well as an all-around adventure to explore.

This Orchard House is noted for being the place where Alcott wrote her novel, Little Women. So, I think that visiting this house of great significance would be an incredible experience. It is definitely a final bullet-point on my bookish bucket list.

And that's all I've got this time!

So now that I have shared 5 of my dream travel destinations, what do you think? Have you been to any of the spots I mentioned? Or, are there any destinations I should consider adding to my list?

Of course, these 5 locations are not my only travel goals, but I think they are excellent potential starting-points. All locations have historical significance, as well as natural beauty and interesting quirks, so I think they are all contenders for a meaningful travel experience.

I hope that I can start checking these spots off of my list very soon, and I hope that you can, too!

- Maeve