I spent a decade taking annual trips to celebrate my birthday. Once I turned 40, I knew the tradition had to end.

Traveling for my birthday helped me realize I wanted to spend more of my time exploring the world.

Hannah Wesley

My sister and I spent a week in Santorini to celebrate my 30th birthday. Somehow, that turned into a sacred tradition and, for the next decade, I took a trip for my birthday each year.I rang in one birthday by road-tripping from Seattle to San Diego in a Mustang convertible and another touring castles and distilleries in Scotland with a friend.One year, I celebrated getting older by eating tapas and watching flamenco troupes perform on a solo stay in Madrid and, for another, I ziplined through the Monteverde cloud forest in Costa Rica with my mom.To mark 39, I spent an afternoon in a floating spa on the St. Lawrence River during a trip to Montreal. In each of these places, I had the thrill of discovering new neighborhoods, languages, customs, and cultures.For my 40th birthday, I planned a whirlwind multi-stop European trip with a friend to kick off the next decade. It was on the final leg that I realized that this tradition had run its course. One trip a year was no longer enough — I wanted more.My 40th birthday trip ended up being my last

My 40th birthday trip included a stop in Copenhagen.