12 Trips in 12 Months: Make Your Own Solo Travel Magic

After being dumped by her boyfriend before their New Year’s Eve trip to New York City, the intrepid travel blogger Ruiz (The Solo Female Travel Book) turns in their plane tickets for a solo trip to Greece. That’s where she conceives the idea of taking 12 trips in 12 months to celebrate her birthday year. She immerses herself in art in Florence, snorkels in Aruba, hikes in the Grand Canyon, embraces the flower fields of France, goes inside a volcano in Iceland, ascends in a hot air balloon in Albuquerque, has a disastrous rappelling incident in Ecuador, and more. Her packed itineraries include food and city tours. Not all goes smoothly as she is accused of stealing a golf cart in Mexico and travels by three planes and two ferries to meet a man—who, she later learns, is disinterested—in the Greek Islands. Woven throughout this engaging travel memoir is Ruiz’s history of picking unsuitable men, which she works to resolve as she transitions from a career as an attorney to travel blogger.