Top travel spots for coffee lovers

It’s safe to say that most find that it is difficult to start their day without a steaming cup of coffee, but then there are those of use that don’t just throw on a pot of instant. We need our short black, our macchiatos, and flat whites. Our holiday should have no shortage of the love. We’ve outlined a list of the top destinations to visit for coffee connoisseurs.

All good things come in threes

For this holiday trip we will be heading to North America. Lined up, are three of the top coffee-devoted places in the world: Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada; Seattle, Washington, USA; and Portland, Oregon, USA. Portland and Seattle are located in the Pacific Northwest of the United States, while Vancouver is just over the border in Canada. If you rent a car, you could spend a single day in each city or take a couple of days for each city and really get to know them. You can get from Portland to Vancouver via Interstate 5 in a bit over 5 hours, with Seattle situated in the middle.

Vancouver is considered the epicenter of Canadian Coffee, the place you will find the coffee snobs. Forget Starbucks and Tim Hortons, well-crafted brews are being made with local growers. You can find any type of coffee you prefer, from slow-to-make pour overs to mainstream espresso favourites. You’ll find micro-brewers and professional baristas crafting up cold brews and other well-crafted cups.

Seattle, Washington is home to upscale coffee shops for the truly pretentious coffee connoisseurs, as well as, the classic coffee shops that cater to the artsy hipsters that can regularly be found there. Starbucks is a staple in this city as it is based here and was founded here. It is one of the hottest coffee hubs in the world because of this. If the Seattleites turn up their nose and tell you they don’t go to Starbucks, don’t believe them, everyone goes to Starbucks.

Seattle may be famous for its coffee due to Starbucks’ world-takeover, but take the hippie-est, hippy parts of their coffee culture, multiply it by fifty and you land in Portland, Oregon. You’ll find an array of homemade brews that focus on fair-trade and sustainable options along with artsy presents made from local-crafters that you will definitely want to take home with you. Bonus: Portland is one of the best value destinations in the USA. Save money on lodging; spend money on coffee.

Keep it local—well, almost local

If an International trip is out of the cards for you, there are plenty of options nearby that will delight your coffee crush. Melbourne is the perfect place for all things coffee. Head to the annual Coffee expo where you can sample coffees from around the world, watch the baristas battle it out during the coffee competitions, and check out the latest in coffee technology. Truly one of the best events for coffee lovers, in Australia.

Although Melbourne may be considered the coffee capital of the continent, Auckland and Wellington are pretty serious about coffee, too. Take a self-guided tour of Auckland’s coffee shops to decide which ones you like best.

Visit the birthplace of your favourite drink

Coffee had to come from somewhere, right? Who exactly decided to steam milk and combine it with highly-concentrated coffee?

Head to Italy if you love espresso. It is the birthplace of the espresso machine and the manner of creating most of our favourite drinks. Rome is well-known for its love of coffee, packed with cafes serving up excellent brews. Italians prefer a full-flavoured bold cup so this is not the city for the frilly coffee lovers.

Rome is also an excelent spot for travellers, as it is in close proximity to many other cities and offers a wealth of day trip opportunities around Italy.

Whether sipping a macchiato in Rome or buying a new espresso machine in Melbourne, keep yourself with protected and book travel insurance with your trip.

Image courtesy of Flickr user bark; cropped from original