Luckily I grew up in the military, so traveling was a very common thing for my family and me. And having lived in Europe for a few years I can say that we chose our vacations based on how much we were going to pay! Of course, sometimes we had to learn the hard way by just going to a country. Vienna and France definately were not cheap, but Bosnia was having some ethical troubles at the time we were there. So, decisions weren't always based on money.

I've never been to Hawaii, and I hear that it gets expensive there too, even though it is a state. But I'd like to go! So, I'd agree with many of the comments made, save up for where you'd like to go! But, don't look over third world countries either. Nicaragua was dirt cheap! And I had a blast!

Besides, how many people can say they've been to places like Tibet? vs. Paris?