‘To anyone thinking of going on an extreme day trip, or doing solo travel, I say ‘go for it’
An ‘extreme day trip fanatic’ travelled to 50 cities in a year to celebrate her 50th birthday. Globetrotter Deborah Jackson started on her 49th birthday on December 5, 2024, by going to Pisa for the day, and returned to the Italian city exactly a year later for her 50th.
Deborah, who had only done two extreme day trips a year prior to starting her bucket list challenge, says: “I wanted to mark turning 50 in a memorable way. It’s a milestone birthday and I wanted to set a goal to mark it. I like to make the most of every moment.
“I set myself the challenge of seeing 50 cities in one year. I did 39 extreme day trips, which means I left and came back on the same day.
“I started the challenge last year on December 5 in Pisa and finished exactly a year later – again in Pisa. I went up the leaning tower, then took the train to Lucca, where I went to a Christmas market and saw illuminations projected onto the amphitheatre.
“Sometimes I’ve seen two cities in one day trip – for example Pisa and Lucca, Rome and the Vatican City. Nothing beats having freshly-made traditional pizza in Italy for lunch. It simply tastes so much better with a stunning view.”
Deborah took two ferries, six Eurostars, one Air Baltic trip and 78 Ryanair flights during the year. She made nine solo trips – with the rest either being with her husband Matthew, 54, an IT product manager, her son Tom, 19, or daughter Madeleine, 16, or with both her children, reports the Mirror Online.
She says: “My highlights included taking the funicular railway to watch the sunset in Bergamo (Italy), visiting the floating saunas in Oslo (Norway) and getting the ferry from Helsinki (Finland) to Tallinn (Estonia). I was blown away by the beauty of Riga (Latvia). My favourite places were walled cities with cobbled streets. And I loved Florence (Italy) because there is history and beauty in every corner. I have seen and done more on a day trip than on a week’s holiday!”
Deborah says she loves extreme day trips (EDTs) because there is something thrilling about seeing a new country in a day and making it back home in time for bed. She adds: “There is something so amazing about seeing places for the first time with your own eyes. I love doing EDTs, the feeling travel gives me, it’s such a buzz.
“If I was choosing which would top a list, then I adored all three Baltic states, and Berlin (Germany) was my favourite ‘big’ city. I think my favourite country has been Italy, it’s never disappointed. As a child I only holidayed in the UK. But with EDTs you can go here, there and everywhere- it’s incredible. Life is an adventure, life is for living. I’ve always been a glass half full person and I want to make the most of every day.’”
Deborah works two days a week as a display rep and says her job provides the flexibility to go on EDTs – with most either being on weekends, Tuesdays or Wednesdays. Her cheapest EDT was to Gdansk (Poland) – where she and Matthew spent £30 each, including a nice meal – with flights costing just £27 return.
She tends not to spend more than £35 on return flights, although she made an exception for return flights to Lapland, which cost £60. Deborah uses the Go Anywhere function on Skyscanner to look for the best deals. She continues: “I’m very fortunate, I’ve paid off my mortgage and don’t have a lot of outgoings. I don’t pay more than £35 for return flights and don’t have to pay to park, as I live next to Stansted Airport.
“I love doing EDTs because I love leaving early and coming back in time to sleep in my own bed. It feels like a real adventure. EDTs are also a fantastic way to find out if you like somewhere and I’ve never not enjoyed one. I had some trepidation when I first started doing EDTs, so I did some with family as a safety net at the beginning and didn’t go too far while I found my feet. But once you’ve done a couple of solo trips the world is your oyster!
“I’ve got big plans for 2026. Next on my list are South Eastern Europe – Serbia, Montenegro, Bosnia, Croatia. To anyone thinking of going on an extreme day trip, or doing solo travel I say ‘go for it – you’ll never regret it. It’s life-changing.’”
List of Deborah’s trips:
- Dec ‘24: Pisa, Lucca, (Italy) Brussels, Bruges (Belgium) Lille (France), Edinburgh
- January 2025: Cardiff, Lisbon (Portugal) Gdansk (Poland), Alicante (Spain), Milan, Bergamo (Italy)
- February: Billund (Denmark), Berlin (Germany)
- March: Madrid (Spain), Bratislava (Slovakia), Wroclaw (Poland), Dublin, Rovaniemi (Lapland), Helsinki (Finland), Tallinn (Estonia),
- April: Eindhoven (Holland), Barcelona (Spain), Gothenburg (Sweden), Luxembourg
- May: Oslo (Norway), Nantes (France), Vienna (Austria), Baden-Baden (Germany), Prague (Czech Republic), Cologne (Germany)
- June: Limerick, Katowice (Poland), Florence (Italy), Bucharest (Romania)
- July: San Marino (Italy), Cork
- Sept: Cologne, Hamburg, Lubeck (Germany), Venice (Italy), Vilnius (Lithuania), Riga (Latvia)
- October: Boulogne (France) Budapest (Hungary), Rome (Italy), Vatican City (Italy), Sofia (Bulgaria)
- November: Copenhagen (Denmark), Malmo (Sweden)
- December (2025): Pisa, Lucca, Florence, Prato (Italy).
