I visited 40 countries before my 40th birthday (and here’s what I thought of them all)

I’ve talked about doing 40 before 40 a few times on Inside Laura’s Head, and honestly there was a time (Covid, after a year away from travel during a terrible relationship) where I thought I’d never meet my goal. I then met J, he was supportive of the goal, and together we managed it, hitting 40 countries a few days before my 39th birthday. Hilariously, as someone who’d not been to that many different countries before he met me, he’s now not far from 40 himself.

So, I’ve now visited 40 countries, which is more than a lot of people ever will and a real achievement. I thought it would be cool to do a roundup post sharing which countries I visited, my thoughts, and also linking to any content I’d written about the countries. For ease, this is in alphabetical order-because some of the order is a bit fuzzy in my brain right now. I also have some content gaps-there will be content for every country eventually, and this post will be updated when it’s written.

Albania

Up and coming Albania is becoming more popular for it’s coastal beach resorts, which tend to be just as beautiful as some other countries, but much cheaper (for now, at least!) We visited the capital, Tirana, rather than a beach resort and spent five days in the city. I really liked it, their coffee was good, the city has lots to do and it was busy enough to be interesting whilst not being too overcrowded (in May 2023) My advice is visit Tirana before everyone else realises how good it is…

I wrote about two bars you should visit in Tirana, their cable car (Dajti Express) and a review of a restaurant I enjoyed, Mrizi i Zanave.

Andorra

Andorra, a co-principality between Spain and France, is a country we nearly missed-our 6am alarm for our 7am bus didn’t go off and we woke at 6:45, a 19 minute walk away from the bus! Somehow we made it and this lovely country did not disappoint. Surrounded by the Pyrenees and known for skiing and tax free shopping, we spent two and a half hours in Andorra la Vella, as part of a coach trip from Barcelona, and I loved the mountains surrounding the city.

There’s no Andorra content on the blog just yet, as we only visited in December, but it’s coming!

Austria

I’ve been to Austria twice, both times visiting Vienna, spending a total of four days in the city across two trips. I find Vienna a beautiful city but definitely didn’t get to the heart of what the city was about, and I’d like to go back with J, having only been solo before. It doesn’t help that I visited during Covid, when travel was about to be off the menu, we were all masked up and I basically did nothing that wasn’t outside.

There’s a post about spending 24 hours in Vienna, and I’ll definitely be writing more content after visiting the city in the future.

Belgium

I’ve done a few different Belgian cities, Bruges before I started this blog (so I need to go back because I loved the city, and I’d like to create some content) Brussels and Ghent. I only spent a day in each city and whilst that felt enough for Brussels, I want more time to explore Belgium properly. The cities are pretty, with their cobbled streets and attractive buildings, the chocolate is obviously delicious, and any country that counts chips (frites) as one of their main dishes is cool with me!

There’s Belgium content up on the blog; Spending a day in Ghent and Spending a day in Brussels, if you’d like to read more.

Bosnia and Herzegovina

Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina’s capital, made me hit my 37th country, when we visited in September 2025. I wasn’t expecting much from the city but it turns out it’s a massively underrated place and I loved it. As well as a couple of days in Sarajevo, we did a day trip around some of Herzegovina, seeing just a taster of Mostar, Konjic, Blagaj, Počitelj and the Kravice waterfalls. I definitely want to see more of Bosnia and Herzegovina, as outside of the cities the country is even more beautiful-just look at the photo from a viewpoint we stopped at, above!

I wrote about spending 48 hours in Sarajevo after this trip.

Bulgaria

Bulgaria was the final country on a five country trip around the Balkans we did in May 2023. We spent a few days in Sofia, and at the time I said I wasn’t a fan, but actually I think the fact we did the city at the end of a busy trip swayed my opinion. I haven’t yet got content up on Sofia but I will pop it in here when I have, and I do think Sofia is a good city overall, with lots of different things to do that I will recommend in my upcoming post.

Sofia content is coming soon.

Croatia

Croatia is known for beautiful coastlines and the Game of Thrones locations across Dubrovnik, but I went for the capital, Zagreb, for my first visit to Croatia. Despite being tired at the end of the trip (and leaving my phone on a bus, never to be seen again) I loved the city, it was great for museums, lots of things to do and I enjoyed hunting out some of the giant solar system on their streets.

I’ve written about spending 48 hours in Zagreb for those who are intrigued by Croatia.

Cuba

Cuba was a trip that fell into my lap as a freebie before I even knew travel blogs existed. I was a union rep for Unite the Union, and heavily involved in their Young Members Network in my region. I got a phone call from their Regional Organiser saying there was a young members trip to Cuba, in conjuction with Cuba Solidarity Campaign, where attendees learnt more about the country, it’s history, their struggles, and how we could help. The aim was we’d come back and share this knowledge with others, and Unite would fund it for the selected members. She then asked me if I’d like to go-of course I wanted to go!

I fell totally in love with this wonderful country and the many Cuban people I was lucky enough to meet. Our guide invited us to her house to meet her husband (a doctor, who she was rightly very proud of) and drink tea with them, we went into a school and chatted to the children in my very limited Spanish, and we watched over a million people march through Havana to celebrate their country. Amazing. I am desperate to go back.

I wrote visiting Cuba with Cuba Solidarity Campaign, watching the May Day parade in Havana, Cuba, 48 hours in Playa Giron, and Cuba part 2 (unsure why I didn’t write part one!) about Cuba.

Cyprus

I visited Cyprus (Limassol) as a child with my family, way before travel blogs were even a thing. J and I visited again in July to see our friends get married (Paphos) and because this was a holiday rather than a trip (there’s a big difference, in my opinion) I have no Cyprus content to share at this point. I do like the country though, but I think I’ve seen as much as I need to see. As a lot of Cyprus is holiday resorts, that’s just not my thing, and unless I decide to head back and hire a car to explore under my own steam, I may be done with Cyprus.

I’m working on deciding what content makes sense for Cyprus-watch this space!

Czechia

I’ve visited Prague twice, once as a solo trip in 2020 (wearing my mask, during COVID times) and once in 2024 with J. Revisiting the city reminded me how amazing it is, full of pretty buildings and charming streets. Charles Bridge and the John Lennon Wall are two of my favourite parts of the city.

J and I also visited Cesky Krumlov for the day. It was very very cold, but a beautiful city.

I wrote spending 48 hours in Prague after my trips to Czechia. Cesky Krumlov content is still to come.

Denmark

I visited Copenhagen for the first time in February 2019, on my first ever multi country solo trip. I went back in 2024 with J. Copenhagen is a wonderful city known for good design, good food and Tivoli Gardens, it’s amusement park. The city is super easy to get from the airport and there’s so much to do and see, I can highly recommend it.

I wrote about spending 48 hours in Copenhagen and visiting Christiana, after my time in the city.

Estonia

Tallinn is a fairytale city with gorgeous cobbled streets and a seriously pretty old town. It was super difficult to get to for me (I had to fly in to Riga, Latvia, and then when leaving tooka ferry out to Helsinki) but the city was worth the travel. I’m planning to go back with J as there’s more I want to see in Tallinn, and he really wants to go.

I wrote about spending a day in Tallinn, and plan to build on this post after another visit.

Finland

I visited Helsinki, Finland’s capital city, by ferry from Tallinn. It was the fourth city of a seven city, seven country trip for me but after Helsinki I cut the trip short, as I was having a fibromyalgia flare and I’d also found Helsinki pretty expensive compared to my limited budget.

I did really like the city, though. I stayed in a hotel and cooked meals to save money, enjoyed it being light outside at midnight, and did an open top bus tour to see the main sights. I will definitely go back to Helsinki, to see the things I missed last time (due to zero energy during the flare!) and I’d budget enough to be able to do more things when exploring.

I wrote about spending time in Helsinki after that first trip.

France

Paris is a classic city and I’ve visited once as a child, once as a teenager and once as an adult. I’m sorry to say I really don’t love Paris, which is a bit of an unusual take. I’ve only ever been with family, school or a friend, and I’m going back in January 2026 with J to see if the romantic city feels different with someone I love, hopefully that trip will make me change my mind on France’s capital city.

I wrote about why I didn’t love Paris, if you want to know more about my thoughts on Paris.

Germany

I’ve visited both Berlin and Hamburg and liked both cities, although Berlin was a bit too busy for my liking (and their metro really confused me!) Hamburg was better, it was the first city I did on my first ever solo multi city trip. I felt quite overwhelmed at times but I pushed through and enjoyed the trip, and realised how cool the city is.

I’ve written 72 hours in Berlin part one, 72 hours in Berlin part 2, spending 4 hours in Berlin Zoo, Berlin street art, my first impressions of Berlin, public transport in Berlin and 8 photos to make you want to visit Berlin. I’ve also written about spending 48 hours in Hamburg and how I saw Hamburg for under £200.

Greece

Greece was high on my list but I always thought my first visit to Greece would be to beautiful Santorini. It was actually Athens, in July 2025, a few days before our friends wedding. They were getting married in Cyprus and we realised it would make our flights cheaper if we went to Athens first, so we spent four nights exploring the city.

I liked Athens, it’s a beautiful city and it’s got quite a cool vibe, but I really struggled with the July heat! The acropolis was stunning but there’s no shade up there, so it’s tough, even when you choose the 8:30am slot. Athens has a lot of cats too, any cat filled city is a win for us.

I wrote spending 48 hours in Athens for those who want to read more about the Greek capital.

Hong Kong

Hong Kong was my first taste of Asia, and we weren’t actually planning to go, as such. J won a ‘pay taxes only’ flight in a competition with Cathay Pacific and we realised that it would make the trip really cheap, so he split the cost of both our flights with me and we went to explore the city for a week.

Having done no research and just chosen dates to be there over Valentines Day, it turned out we were there for Lunar New Year which was really cool. The city was very busy though, more so because of the celebrations, but Hong Kong always will be busy. I absolutely loved the city. There was so much to do and see, I took so many photos, but I did find the food tricky as I’m so fussy.

Hong Kong has so much to do we didn’t even scratch the surface and I will absolutely go back in the future.

Unsurprisingly, I’ve written three bits of Hong Kong content so far; A Hong Kong photo diary, Hong Kong-my experience of an amazing city, and Visiting Ngong Ping and the Big Buddha, Hong Kong

Hungary

I visited Budapest in September 2022, with J, and we spent a week together there, actually on our first date! I think that’s one of the reasons I love the city, because it’s where our story started, but Budapest is also a bloody good city. Fishermans Bastion is beautiful, the open top bus tour is really good, the Hungarian Parliment building lit up at night is stunning, and I loved the ruin bars, especially Szimpla Kert. I need to go back to Budapest as there’s things I didn’t do last time, and as Hungary is next to the Balkans I’ll likely use it as a starting point for a multi country trip exploring some new Balkan cities too.

I wrote drinks at Szimpla Kert, spending 72 hours in Budapest, and a review of the Museum of Sweets and Selfies, about Budapest.

Ireland

My first trip to Ireland was a sponsored post with Cheapflights, and I spent 72 hours exploring Dublin. Since then I’ve been to Belfast and Cork, both on day trips, and I intend to see more of Ireland. Dublin is a bustling city, Belfast was really pretty even in December, and Cork had a lot of street art, a real plus for a city for me.

I’ve written visiting Dublin for under £350, my first impressions of Dublin, planning a trip to Dublin, and 4 hours in Dublin Zoo on Ireland so far.

Italy

My first ever visit to Italy was in a work trip years ago, way before I blogged. I spent a week in a hotel doing a course and barely saw the country. J and I visited Italy again, Rimini and Venice, in summer 2024, staying in a holiday resort in Rimini and then just doing one night in Venice to keep costs down.

Holiday resorts aren’t really my thing but we had a nice day exploring the city of Rimini, and then whilst Venice was busy it was really beautiful with it’s iconic canals. We managed to squeeze in the islands of Murano and Burano (I’d been really excited about Burano’s colourful houses) and I highly recommend Venice. We do want to see more of Italy together so that will definitely happen.

I wrote spending a day in Rimini and visiting Burano, Venice about Italy.

Kosovo

Kosovo was a country that made everyone ask ‘why are you going THERE??’ when I said we’d booked it. I had low expectations and was pleasantly surprised, and whilst we didn’t have that long to explore Pristina, I liked the city a lot, especially the brutalist architecture that was everywhere. Their library is a real talking point-I quite like it, but it’s not pretty! We also went to a nearby Bear Sanctuary which was an amazing experience.

I wrote spending 48 hours in Pristina, and it’s one of my most read posts on Inside Laura’s Head. People are clearly starting to think about visiting Kosovo, and they should!

Latvia

I visited Latvia’s capital city, Riga, in May 2022, spending a couple of days exploring the city before getting a bus on to Lithuania. Riga is flat, very walkable, with plenty of places for a nice coffee and cute buildings. I didn’t do much by way of museums and tourist attractions, but I’m planning to go back, with J-as he wants to run the Riga marathon at some point.

So far, I’ve written spending a day in Riga, but there will absolutely be more content after the next trip, as I’m planning a complete guide to Riga post.

Lithuania

At the time of visiting Vilnius, Lithuania’s capital, I posted on my Instagram that I didn’t love the city. It was one I found difficult to navigate, Google maps didn’t work that well, and I didn’t find many things I really, really enjoyed. Then I pulled it back with my last afternoon, visiting the area near their Cathedral, hiring an electric scooter and whizzing along to their funicular, then up to their castle. I also visited Uzupis, a neighbourhood that has declared itself independent, with it’s own currently and rules. With hindsight, Vilnius is a good city and I would go back.

I wrote about visiting Uzupis, and spending a day in Vilnius, after my trip to Lithuania.

Malta

Malta was my 40th country, and I visited in December 2025, just before my 39th birthday. I actually spent my 39th exploring the island of Gozo. I thought the island was going to be pretty sleepy, a bit boring, and not much to do-I was very wrong. Actually, Malta is stunning with a variety of museums, good food, pretty streets and the most amazing views. Driving around, I realised that every corner led to another beautiful view, there was so much diversity in terms of plant life, and the doors and balconies were amazing to photograph. I’ll be back.

I’ve written a complete guide to Malta, covering information about the whole country, and it’s a good one!

Montenegro

Montenegro was actually J’s pick, as our Balkans trip in May 2023 was suggested by him, and Podgorica was the first stop. I wasn’t expecting a lot as I’d not found much content about Podgorica online, but actually I loved the city. It’s fairly compact, very pretty, and there’s a nearby waterfall, Niagara Waterfall, which is a must see. I don’t know anyone else who’s been to Podgorica, it’s definitely still a hidden gem.

I wrote spending 48 hours in Podgorica after my time there.

Morocco

Marrakech was my 38th birthday present from J, and we spent a week exploring the red city. I loved how different the culture was, I enjoyed the food, the many cats and spending too much money in the Souks. We also did a day trip into the Agafay desert where we did quad bikes, camel rides and ate a lovely meal watching fire dancers. Morocco is a top country, I want to see more.

I’ve written a few different Morocco posts; How much did we spend during a week in Marrakech? Everything you need to know if you’re visiting Marrakech, and A Marrakech photo diary.

Netherlands

Amsterdam is one of my favorite cities, it’s easily in my top five. I love the pretty tall, narrow buildings, the beautiful train station, the canals, the food, and how easy it is to get around. It is a pricy city to stay in (compared to some of the others I’ve been to) but I’ve still managed to go a fair few times now.

Seeing more of the Netherlands was planned just before COVID hit, so far I’ve not managed to book that trip, partly down to cost compared to visiting new countries I’ve not been to before, but one day I want to visit Rotterdam, Eindhoven and more of the country.

You will not be shocked to find out I’ve written A LOT of Amsterdam content…. Is the Amsterdam City Card worth it? Sailing to Amsterdam with P & O Ferries, Mini cruising to Amsterdam with DFDS, Amsterdam food diary, Sex Museum Amsterdam, Trying space cake in Amsterdam, spending 6 hours in Amsterdam (the laid back version) and spending 4 hours in Amsterdam.

North Macedonia

Skopje was city number four of our big Balkans summer 2023 trip. Quite honestly a lot of that trip blurs into one but overwhelming memories of Skopje are lots of statues, a really good zoo, friendly cats and good food. It’s a good city I enjoyed and I think everyone should visit the Balkan countries, eat Burek and explore.

I’m in the process of writing up a Skopje post, so that will be coming soon.

Norway

Oslo was my choice for my second anniversary with J. He expected me to have loads of things I wanted to see in the city as I’d talked about wanting to go for so long, but honestly half the fun for me was I didn’t know much about Oslo and wanted to be surprised. We walked on the opera house roof, saw a cool sculpture park, used the local ferries to island hop (amazing, highly recommend doing this!) and enjoyed a free walking tour around the city. I don’t think I’d feel the need to visit Oslo again, and honestly I think it would make for a great extreme day trip as you don’t need that much time, but I did enjoy Oslo.

Oslo content is coming soon.

Poland

Poland has become one of my favourite countries and I’ve so far visited Wroclaw, Gdansk, Gdynia, Sopot, Poznan and Szczecin. Krakow and Warsaw are high on my list. I love that the country is fairly cheap to exist in (although not as cheap as it used to be, but I think that’s the same for most countries) cities are usually really pretty, with main squares full of gorgeous pastel buildings, and there’s always lots to do.

I’ve written a complete guide to Gdansk, Gdansk ice cream tour, Gdansk street art and where to find it, spending 72 hours in Wroclaw, spending 48 hours in Poznan and is Szczecin worth visiting, about Poland.

Portugal

I’ve been to Porto twice, once solo in May 2019 and once with J in April 2025. We also visited Faro for a last minute overnight in December 2023. Porto is another of my favourite cities, despite my struggle coping with it’s many, many hills. There’s so much colour, street art, a beautiful riverside and lots of things to do. Faro was nice, but a different experience out of season-there was barely anyone around, and I’d recommend going more towards the summer months. I really want to visit Portugal’s capital city, Lisbon, which is apparently amazing for street art too.

I’ve written a complete guide to Porto, Porto’s street art, and spending 48 hours in Porto.

Romania

Romania was the first trip I did with J, or the first trip where we left the UK at the same time anyway! It will always be a special one to me, especially because our football team, Burnley, got promoted into the Premier League when we were there, and we were watching in a sports bar where the staff knew we were Burnley fans. They brought us over a free shot each (and one for themselves) and celebrated with us. Adorable.

We spent 3 days in Bucharest but 2 would have been enough, really. Our third day we’d planned to go to Brasov but couldn’t make it work with the trains, and I was really sad about that. I do still think I’d like to do Brasov, so a return to Romania is likely. Bucharest has it’s not so nice parts (I spotted a lot of strip clubs which made me uncomfortable) but there’s also a lot to like about the city, and I did enjoy it overall.

Spending 48 hours in Bucharest, and visiting Bucharest Zoo, cover my time in the city.

San Marino

San Marino is a really unusual little country, completely surrounded by Italy, and you can only really get there from Rimini (which is why we chose Rimini for our first Italian city!) Half a day or so is enough to explore the capital, also called San Marino, and buses from Rimini take about half an hour, so it’s a really cheap and easy country to visit if you’re already in Rimini.

The views from the top of the city are amazing. The vending machines selling all sorts of drugs and the shops selling guns are an unusual, quite alarming sight. The city is so different and one that most people will never go to, which I loved. I wouldn’t feel the need to go a second time, but if I was with a friend who was desperate to go I wouldn’t refuse!

I wrote spending a day in San Marino after the trip.

Serbia

Serbia has been high on my list for quite a while. My friend Dan is part Serbian, my friend Ljudmila is Serbian, so seeing some of their country was really exciting to me. I’d tried to go to Belgrade on a big trip I was planning for 2020 but of course COVID happened and I didn’t manage it, but in September 2025 I finally, along with J, made it to Belgrade, making Serbia my final Balkan country.

I really, really like the Balkans overall. I like the food, the history, the people, the architecture. I expected to love Belgrade, and-I didn’t. I liked it, it is a good city, but I think I didn’t have enough time to see everything, I was disappointed that something I wanted to do couldn’t happen (we got stuck in the city for a couple of hours during a protest, and missed our Red Star Belgrade match that night as a result) and I didn’t see as much street art as I’d expected. Honestly, I would go back to Belgrade as part of a bigger Balkan trip if I could make it work, and see more of the city, along with more of Serbia ideally.

I wrote about spending 48 hours in Belgrade after visiting Serbia.

Slovakia

Bratislava is a special city for me. I first visited in May 2022, on a 12 day, 7 country trip. Unfortunately due to a Fibromyalgia flare I ended up cutting that trip short, leaving country number 5 (Finland) getting a flight straight to Hungary and then a bus to Slovakia to fly home from Bratislava airport. So, as all I saw of the country was the bus station, a taxi, my airport hotel and the airport, I don’t count Slovakia as somewhere I’ve visited until September 2022. On that trip, I was planning Slovakia, Hungary, Slovenia, Croatia-but then J, who I’d just met online, flew out to join me, so I waited in Slovakia for a few more days (with a trip to Vienna on a free day) and then spent time showing J around Bratislava for our first date.

The city is very compact, and you could see everything in a day, but it’s absolutely worth a visit. It’s a great city for onward travel too, with a train to Budapest taking about 4 hours or a train to Vienna taking about 45 minutes. Flights from the UK tend to be cheap and regular too. I will go back to Bratislava, to travel on to Vienna with J.

I wrote about spending a day in Bratislava after my time in the city.

Slovenia

Ljubljana was a city I got more excited about each time I read a new blog post, watched a new vlog or saw a Tiktok about it (yes most of my research comes from other people’s content, and I love that I’m able to do that) J and I spent three days exploring in May 2024 as well as taking a day trip to Lake Bled, and I fell in love. The city is full of charm, and I’ve written about spending 48 hours in Ljubljana so you can find out more. There’s Lake Bled content to come.

Spain

Spain was a country I visited a lot as a child, and so I don’t have a lot of photos or blog content. As an adult I’ve done Palma, and recently Barcelona too. Barcelona is famous for not liking tourists these days but we didn’t come across any issues, and we travel responsibly, making sure we put money into local businesses, leave no mess etc. I loved seeing some of Gaudi’s work in the city and eating tapas in a pretty square drinking a cocktail on our last night.

I wrote a post about why I was wrong about Majorca, and there will definitely be Barcelona content up soon.

Sweden

I visited Stockholm in February 2019 as part of a multi country trip (Germany, Denmark, Sweden) Despite the country being super cold in February I was fine in my fleece lined leggings and thick coat, and I loved exploring the pretty streets of the capital city. I did a walking tour booked via Air b n b which I really enjoyed, and one highlight of my time in the city was seeing as many of the metro stations as I could-they are all painted with a different theme. I also appreciated that in Sweden, they don’t do hot chocolate, they do warm chocolate, at an instantly drinkable temperature. GENIUS.

I wrote about spending 48 hours in Stockholm after that trip.

Switzerland

Zurich was a January 2025 trip, as I’d planned with the Liechtenstein tourist board to spend a day in Liechtenstein too. The January weather was not on our side and our flight out from Manchester was delayed by 24 hours, leading to us missing our Liechtenstein day as we only had 24 hours in Zurich in the end. Zurich was, typically for Switzerland, pricy, but not unaffordable for a short trip. We tried fondue, fancy hot chocolate, did a walking tour, and really made the most of our 24 hours. With more time we would have visited the Lindt museum and added on that day trip to Vaduz.

Zurich content is coming soon.

Turkiye

Turkiye is a country I’ve been to twice with friends, for girls’ holidays. I don’t have much to write content on BUT I’m desperate to visit Istanbul and Cappadocia, so content will be written after both of those trips.

Now that I’ve visited 40 countries, around a fifth of the world, I don’t plan to stop. I don’t have a desire to do another X before X challenge (although I’d hope I’ll visit 10 more countries much sooner than 10 years time to hit 50 before 50!) and I’ve written about what’s next after 40 before 40 if you’re interested.

Do you have thoughts on 40 before 40 and similar challenges? I’d love to read them in the comments