Romantic Super-Short Travel Stories

By Travel + Leisure and Travel + Leisure Staff
February 12, 2013
Credit: Kuzma / Alamy
“Newlyweds, we climbed Kilimanjaro. Husband’s knee collapsed & I carried his pack down 18,000+ ft. 16 years later: still married.”

Can you tell such a story in a single tweet? In honor of Valentine’s Day, we’ve revisited our Super-Short Travel Story campaign—this time with a call for romantic tales, each tweeted in 140 characters or less. The best examples range from a first meeting at 30,000 feet to an anniversary celebration in a fútbol stadium in Spain.

Reviewing more than a thousand tweets with the hashtag #TLStory has given us some insights into what makes for a romantic travel moment. Sometimes it was in the satisfaction of a discovery—say, a secluded beach or a neighborhood café at night. Other times, in surviving an adventure—together—or celebrating a special anniversary.

Of course, there’s nothing quite like the romance of a sunrise or sunset. Our Twitter followers mentioned the sun more than 140 times—further proof that the most romantic experiences don’t require rose petals or jewelry (neither of which was cited at all, in fact).

Read on for some of our favorite romantic Super-Short Travel Stories, and then tweet your own using #TLStory. The best ones will be retweeted by @TravlandLeisure—and a new #TLStory will be published in each month’s issue of Travel + Leisure magazine through 2013.
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1 of 26

Mallorca, Spain

Sailing off Mallorca with hubby. Boat capsizes. Stuck for 5 hrs in water. Profess our love. "We’ve had a great life." Boat! Saved. #TLStory —@csedlak1

Pictured: Boats docked (safely), Mallorca.

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2 of 26

Rome

Credit: © Eddie Gerald / Alamy

Getting a nighttime locals-only tour of Trastevere from my hotel's flirty young concierge #TLStory —@ahodgin

Pictured: The Trastevere neighborhood by night.

3 of 26

Hawaii

Credit: © Douglas Peebles Photography / Alamy

#TLStory in Hawaii for work. Flew wife on miles. Watched sunrise from Hanauma bay. Super surf on north shore. Garlic shrimp.Dinner Waikiki —@Jennas_Dad

Pictured: Hanauma Bay.

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4 of 26

Argentina

Credit: Y.Levy / Alamy

Rural Argentina; flooded cliff-edge road. My husband drives beside abyss—I open door to abandon ship. Discovered: love's limit. #TLStory —@afarles

Pictured: Cuesta del Obispo (ruta 33), Argentina.

5 of 26

Bora Bora

Credit: © Nicolas Chan / Alamy

Woke up to Bora Bora sunrise illuminating the overwater bungalow, smiled at my new husband...honeymoon bliss. #TLStory —@LindseyDGil

Pictured: Another beautiful sunrise, Bora Bora.

6 of 26

Vermont

Credit: Aurora Photos / Alamy

Hiking boot soles detached five steps in to VT Green Mtn trail. Husband + duct tape = happy camper with walkable footwear. #TLStory —@AJDies

Pictured: Camel's Hump, Vermont’s Green Mountains.

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7 of 26

Italy

Credit: © Giovanni Mereghetti / Alamy

Arrive in MXP. Cute Italian guy approaches me, speaking Italian. I don't understand him. He plants kiss on me. Best welcoming ever. #TLStory —@_Pheeohnuh_

Pictured: Malpensa International Airport (MXP), Milan.

8 of 26

Hawaii

Credit: © Ron Dahlquist/Design Pics/Corbis

400-ft. waterfall. Dolphin kisses. Volcano sunrise. Road to Hana. Geckos indoors. Amazingly clear water. Hawaiian honeymoon. #TLStory —@elizabeth2004

Pictured: Aerial view of the road to Hana, Maui.

9 of 26

Spain

Credit: © Josep Faura Grau / Alamy

Celebrating ten year anniversary in Spain. Visiting the Camp Nou on the 50th Anniversary of the stadium. Messi scores two!!!!! #TLStory —@Migeluch

Pictured: An FC Barcelona match at Camp Nou, Barcelona.

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10 of 26

Istanbul

Credit: © Atlantide Phototravel/Corbis

#TLStory Cafe in Istanbul. Friendly chatting with owner. Offers my husband €25k for me. He refused. We're still married. —@farbav

Pictured: One of countless sidewalk cafés in Istanbul.

11 of 26

30,000 Feet

Credit: Michael Prince

He had me at Hello. Or maybe it was Good Morning. Could have been, Are you serving breakfast on this flight? Uh...yes, yes, YES #TLStory —@Heather_Poole (flight attendant)

Pictured: A blissfully uncrowded flight.

12 of 26

Tanzania

Credit: © Beverly Joubert/National Geographic Society/Corbis

#TLStory Newlyweds, we climbed Kilimanjaro. Husband’s knee collapsed & I carried his pack down 18,000+ ft. 16 years later: Still married —@katebetts

Pictured: Mount Kilimanjaro, Tanzania.

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13 of 26

Nightclub

Credit: © Andrea Matone / Alamy

"You dance like a Cuban girl" whispered through a heavy accent. Rum tobacco sweat, thick in humid air. Music, slow, sad. Close. #TLStory —@NomadOnTheMove

Pictured: A night club, Havana, Cuba.

14 of 26

Las Vegas

Credit: © Andria Patino / Alamy

On a plane to Vegas for an Elvis-attended friend's wedding, I sit next to a woman who a month later sets me up with a boyfriend. #TLStory —@KellyTravels

Pictured: Chapel of the Bells, Las Vegas.

15 of 26

Turkey

Credit: Kerri Theaker

#TLStory my husband proposed early one morning while we were watching the sunrise on our gullet cruise around Turkey —@kerritheaker

Pictured: Kerri Theaker with her fiancé, Turkey.

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16 of 26

Venice

Credit: Cedric Angeles

Sailing into #Venice on your 10th anniversary, knowing you just made your wife's dream of visiting this amazing city come true! #TLStory —@Tripcity_CH

Pictured: Rialto Bridge on Venice’s Grand Canal.

17 of 26

Bora Bora

Credit: © Hemis / Alamy

Walking on the bottom of the ocean floor, feeding fish in Bora Bora while on our honeymoon aboard @PaulGauguin cruises #TLStory —@lori_gold

Pictured: A Paul Gauguin cruise ship, Bora Bora.

18 of 26

New York City

Credit: © Tim Keatley / Alamy

Armisen in Odysseus outfit solicits me before sirens seduce w/ "No Scrubs." Then, @ SNL, I'm stared down. It’s Usain Bolt. #TLStory —@mindypeanuts

Pictured: NBC Studios, where Saturday Night Live is taped before a studio audience.

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19 of 26

Morocco

Credit: © Galyna Andrushko / Alamy

Wrapped under a duvet with hubby watching sunrise over Moroccan Sahara sand dunes. A camel ride later to see sunset from a dune top. #TLStory —@OurTour_co_uk

Pictured: Desert dunes, Morocco.

20 of 26

France

Credit: Valeriya Potapova / Alamy

#TLStory The Seine with my lover, eating fresh strawberries with creme on Pont-Neuf, 1979; later, first taste of Orangina on Champs-Élysées. —@rrple

Pictured: The Seine riverfront, Paris.

21 of 26

South Africa

Credit: Courtesy of Sarah Khan

Went to #SouthAfrica on a whim to find myself, found love instead. #sappytweet #outofcharacter #buttotallytrue #TLStory —@BySarahKhan

Pictured: Sarah Khan and her now-fiancé, Cape Town.

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22 of 26

Vietnam

Credit: Rob Whitworth 2012 / Alamy

A night on a private junk boat, Ha Long Bay #Vietnam, My husband, No tourists, Balmy weather, Full moon, Rosé, Music, Breathtaking. #TLStory —@LK_inLA

Pictured: Ha Long Bay, Vietnam.

23 of 26

Cook Islands

Credit: © Danita Delimont / Alamy

Spending Christmas Eve with the hubby on #Aitutaki, Cook Islands, dancing with the locals! #TLStory —@valeriegarcia1

Pictured: Polynesian Dance Show at the Aitutaki Beach Resort and Spa, Cook Islands.

24 of 26

Istanbul

Credit: Courtesy of Mangerie

In Istanbul, an autistic girl stood up from table next to mine, come towards me, kiss me on both cheeks and went back to her table. #TLStory —@goshimish

Pictured: Mangerie restaurant, Istanbul.

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25 of 26

Venice

Credit: Danita Delimont / Alamy

#TLStory Venice '06: family at hotel invited us to go on midnight gondola ride. Their son played violin. Full moon, clear night. Perfection! —@OhBootsy

Pictured: Evening gondola traffic, Venice.

26 of 26

Open Road

Credit: Kuzma / Alamy

Me: Where does this road go? He: Where do you wanna go? Me: You tell me... (And he travelled happily ever after) #TLStory —@anuragamuffin

Pictured: A rural European road.

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By Travel + Leisure and Travel + Leisure Staff