Hi, I’m Shauny.

First Time Tourist is for people who hate feeling like a tourist. The ones who want to actually experience a new place, not just pass through it.

I built this site because I kept finding the same thing every time I searched for travel advice: guides that were clearly written by someone who had never actually followed their own itinerary. Vague recommendations, obvious tips, and zero real opinions. I studied journalism at San Diego State University, which taught me that people deserve the real version of things, not the polished one. That is all this is.

I live in San Diego with my husband, who is always the first to say yes to new trips, our daughter who is almost two and already has strong opinions about everything, and our two cats Stassi and Daisy, who could not care less where we go as long as someone feeds them. I am not a full time traveler and I do not have an endless budget. I just really love going somewhere new and figuring out how to do it right, then coming back and telling you everything I wish I had known before I went.

No fluff. No tips that sound useful until you actually try to follow them. Just honest first hand advice from someone who has actually been there and is not afraid to give you a real opinion about it.

Your first time somewhere should feel like you already know someone who has been there.

Now you do.

What You Will
Find Here

Every destination starts at the country level. Each country page gives you the honest version of what you actually need to know before you go. A practical FAQ covering safety, money, and the questions people actually search before a first trip. The best time to visit and what each season really gets you. How to get around without the guesswork. A culture and etiquette section that will save you from accidentally offending someone on day one. And a rundown of where to go in the country, including the places I have not been yet, which I flag honestly instead of pretending otherwise. Each one ends with a personal essay about what that country actually felt like to be in.

From there you can jump straight into any city or region. Each guide covers what to see and why it is worth your time, where to stay and which neighborhoods make sense, where to eat and drink with specific recommendations rather than vague ones, what to pack for that place in that season, and a full day by day itinerary at the bottom when you are ready to get into the details. Those end with a personal essay too, usually about one specific moment I have not been able to shake.

The site is growing, so not every destination is live yet. Every destination that is here is one I have experienced firsthand.