What Color Do You Need This Summer?

Summer travel planning usually starts the same way — opening a tab, scrolling through flight deals, maybe revisiting a saved Instagram post from two years ago. But what if you started somewhere more personal?

Color has long been tied to emotion and psychology, and as I ponder TTS’s “Summer Full of Color” - I’ve started thinking about my own travel that way. Not where do I want to go, but what do I need to feel — and what place holds that feeling. Here’s a breakdown of destinations I’ve actually been to, organized not by geography, but by the color (and the mood) they gave me.

Red | Heat, Energy | New Orleans, Nashville, Austin — neon signs, live music, late nights, boldness. For when you need to feel alive again.

• New Orleans is Bourbon Street at midnight, beignet powder on your shirt, jazz bleeding out of every doorway — pure, unfiltered sensory overload in the best way. You can find my full New Orleans guide here.

• Nashville is honky-tonks and hot chicken and a city that genuinely wants you to have a good time. You can find my full Nashville guide here.

• Austin is live music on a Tuesday, breakfast tacos at 9am, and a city full of quirk with a side of country. You can find my full Austin guide here.

Orange | Warmth, Abundance | Oaxaca, Mexico City — terracotta walls, marigolds, market spices, tlayudas piled high. For when you’re craving richness and soul.

• Oaxaca is all warmth — the clay-colored buildings, the smoky mezcal, the mole negro that took three days to make. It’s a place that feeds you in every sense of the word. You can find my full Oaxaca guide here.

• Mexico City is a feast for the eyes before it’s even a feast for the stomach — markets stacked with chiles and flowers, murals on every wall, color absolutely everywhere. You can find my full Mexico City guide here.

Yellow | Joy, Lightness | Miami, Las Vegas — sunshine, maximalism, no-agenda fun. For when you just need to not think.

• Miami is Art Deco pastels, poolside aperol spritzes, and a city that takes looking good very seriously. Perfect for when you want your trip to feel like a music video. You can find my full Miami guide here.

• Las Vegas is completely unserious and completely committed to it — neon, excess, and a permission slip to do whatever you want. You can find my full Las Vegas guide here.

Green | Restoration, Breathing Room | Kauai, Big Sur — jungle, cliffs, ocean mist. For when you’re depleted and need to be absorbed by nature.

• Kauai is so green it almost doesn’t look real — Na Pali cliffs, jungle hikes, waterfalls around every turn. The kind of place that recalibrates you almost as soon as you step off the plane. You can find my full Kauai guide here.

• Big Sur is dramatic in the quietest way — redwoods, sea cliffs, the 1 Highway hugging the edge of the continent. No cell service, no agenda, just green. You can find my full Big Sur guide here.

Blue | Calm / Clarity | Morro Bay, Cambria, Laguna Beach — slow tides, coastal fog, tide pools. For when you need quiet and perspective.

• Morro Bay is sleepy and unpretentious — kayaking past otters, fish tacos by the water, the Rock sitting there like a reminder that some things are just ancient and unbothered. You can find my full Morro Bay & Baywood-Los Osos guide here.

• Cambria is the kind of small coastal town that makes you want to cancel everything and stay for a week — moody shoreline, great wine, zero rush. You can find my full Cambria guides here and here.

• Laguna Beach is tide pools and gallery hopping and that specific shade of California blue that only exists in summer. You can find all my Laguna secrets here.

Pink + Purple | Magic / Whimsy | Ojai, Palos Verdes — for when you need to feel wonder without going far.

• Ojai is lavender, hot springs, and the famous “Pink Moment” — the mountains turning rose gold at dusk. It’s genuinely one of the most magical things I’ve witnessed in California. You can find my full Ojai guide here.

• Palos Verdes is wild cliffside trails, sea glass beaches, and bougainvillea — a dose of wonder that’s basically in LA’s backyard. You can find my full Palos Verdes guide here.

White | Reset / Simplicity | Santa Barbara, Montecito, Solvang — whitewashed walls, serene side streets for wandering, nothing on the agenda. For a full mental cleanse.

• Santa Barbara is the whitewashed mission, the red tile roofs, the farmers market on a Saturday morning — effortlessly beautiful and easy to just be in. You can find my full Santa Barbara & Montecito guide here.

• Solvang is a Danish village in the middle of wine country — windmills, pastries, and a pace of life that feels like a full exhale. You can find my full Santa Ynez Valley guide here.

Grey | Moody / Introspective | San Francisco/Marin, Maine, Amsterdam — grey skies, fog, coastal melancholy (in the best way). For when you want to feel something deep.

• San Francisco is fog rolling over the Golden Gate, dim sum in the Richmond, wildflowers on the Marin headlands — a city that rewards slowness and curiosity. You can find my full San Francisco & Marin County guide here.

• Maine is lobster shacks, rocky coastline, and a quietness that feels genuinely earned. Best experienced in the early morning before anyone else is awake. You can find my full Maine guide here.

• Amsterdam is canal light and cobblestones and the kind of moody golden hour that makes you want to write something. You can find my full Amsterdam guide here.

Whether your travel budget is big or small this summer, there’s no shortage of colorful options at your fingertips - no matter what you’re craving! Back for more next week xoxo