"We want to go with you guys one of these years!"

That is one of the most common things I have said to me every year, especially when it's close to the departure date.

I hope you go with us while we're still taking our trips each year. But, more importantly, I hope you go somewhere.

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I can honestly tell you that had it not have been for this promotion, I would not have been to all the warm weather vacation destinations that I have been fortunate enough to go to. Knowing me like I do, I would guess that I may have gone to a Cancun resort once or twice. But I certainly wouldn't have gone every year.

Mark with a Palm Tree
Credit: Mark Wilson, Townsquare Media
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But back to my point about you traveling. I hope that you have a "Dream Destination". And I hope you get to go see it in person someday. But life is what happens while you're making plans. And it doesn't always work out for folks.

After seeing some of the islands in the Caribbean, I promise you that someday I'll go back. I'd like to spend some more time in St. Johns, Honduras, St. Lucia, and the Bahamas.

Credit: Mark Wilson/TSM Billings
Credit: Mark Wilson/TSM Billings
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In fact, I met a couple one year in St. Johns who were a pair of retired teachers who put their time in, got their retirement all set, and moved to a warmer place and took folks snorkeling on their boat. Make a little money, meet a few folks. That doesn't look too bad to me.

I haven't thought about them in years. I can't recall their names. But I do remember they smiled a lot. It's the little things you remember from traveling.

LOOK: Here are the 50 best beach towns in America

Every beach town has its share of pluses and minuses, which got us thinking about what makes a beach town the best one to live in. To find out, Stacker consulted data from WalletHub, released June 17, 2020, that compares U.S. beach towns. Ratings are based on six categories: affordability, weather, safety, economy, education and health, and quality of life. The cities ranged in population from 10,000 to 150,000, but they had to have at least one local beach listed on TripAdvisor. Read the full methodology here. From those rankings, we selected the top 50. Readers who live in California and Florida will be unsurprised to learn that many of towns featured here are in one of those two states.

Keep reading to see if your favorite beach town made the cut.

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