I wrapped up my month-long European adventure in September 2025, and it felt like the right moment to take stock.
Once I got home, I updated the list with a fresh perspective, fewer expectations, and a little more honesty about what actually matters on the road.
Turns out, it worked out great.
Some boxes got checked.
Some stayed open.
And a few new ones appeared that weren’t even on the list to begin with.
Spontaneity is kind of the adventure, isn’t it?
The best part is realizing that no bucket list is crazy—as long as you’re willing to work toward it, tolerate the criticism, and put in the effort… all while actually enjoying the process.
And the criticism? That’s the funny part.
When people critique your life choices, it’s worth asking:
Is this really about you…
Or is it about them?
Because people living their own lives rarely have time to criticize yours.
If they criticize, tell them to take a look in the mirror, as there is something wrong with them.
Let’s review the September 2025 European adventure, now that the dust (and jet lag) has settled:
Fly from Phoenix to London on September 1st, and return from London to Phoenix on September 28th via Los Angeles
Nailed it.
Use my Wizz Air all-you-can-fly pass and a 7-day Europass
Worked exactly as planned (which still surprises me)
Get stuck in airports and/or train stations with no seat availability and “make the best of it
Shockingly… this never happened. Europe chose kindness
Another adventure of a lifetime!
Final score:
Plans made 
Plans survived
Memories upgraded
Will do it again in the fall of 2026—zero contingency planning, and more trains.
The Europass cost $350 for seven days, which breaks down to about $50 per full 24-hour day.
For the flexibility it offered—multiple trains, zero stress about individual tickets, and the freedom to change plans on the fly—it was money well spent.
Here is my updated hit/miss bucket list updated:
Portugal (Faro, Lisbon, and Porto)
Coast of Spain (I have been to Madrid and Barcelona)
Octoberfest in Munich, Germany
Ride the train through the Swiss Alps
Poland
Prague
Take a short bus ride into Lviv, Ukraine
Southern Italy (I purposely missed a flight to Sicily)
I went to Venice instead
The coast of Croatia train tour into Eastern Europe
Iceland (Wizz flies into Reykjavik)
The Baltics (Hopefully Germany plus more)
Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, and
Sweden. (I had a flight booked to Stockholm but decided against it)
(I consider the plus more buckets in the fall of 2026 trip below):
Here’s an update on my Wizz Air All-You-Can-Fly (AYCF) pass, based on three separate trips to Europe over 12 months—
It 100% delivered on the spontaneous hype.
November 2024:
London, UK
Varna, Bulgaria
Budapest, Hungary
Vienna, Austria
Abu Dhabi/Dubai, UAE
London, UK (second time)
March 2024
London, UK
Barcelona, Spain
Madrid, Spain
Naples, Italy
Rome, Italy
Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt
Athens, Greece
September 2025:
London, UK
Faro, Portugal (took train to Lisbon and Porto)
Warsaw, Poland
Reykjavik, Iceland
(Cancelled flights to Stockholm and Sicily)
Here are the train routes I took on the Europass:
Faro, Italy to Porto, Italy via Lisbon
Warsaw, Poland to Prague, Czeck
Prague, Czeck to Munich, Germany
Munich, Germany to Chur, Switzerland
Chur, Switzerland to Lucia, Switzerland
Lucia. Switzerland to Zurich, Switzerland
Zurich, Switzerland to Strasbourg, France
(Switzerland trip over two days including the famous Bernia Express)
Bernina Express | Switzerland Travel Centre
Strasbourg, France – Paris, France
Paris, France – London, England (Chunnel)
Previous European trains taken:
Madrid to Barcelona return on high-speed train
Naples, Italy to Rome, Italy
Paris, France – London, England (Chunnel)
Some ferries were included in the Europass that I never used:
Bucket Lists: Adulting with a To-Do List of Awesome
People make bucket lists because “someday” is never specific enough—and staring at the same couch for 40 years eventually loses its charm. A bucket list is basically a socially acceptable way to chase your wildest ideas without anyone demanding a permission slip.
It’s equal parts motivation and bragging rights. Whether you’re skydiving, eating gelato in Rome, or learning to surf, you get to cross it off, post the proof, and casually say, “Yeah… I did that.”
Bottom line: bucket lists exist to remind you that life is short, the world is huge, and your comfort zone is wildly overrated.