The Ultimate Bucket List: 80 Things To Do Before You Die

Life is too short, so it is a shame to waste it on sadness, insecurity, and negative vibes. We never get back the time we spend on wasting a whole day when it could be full of hope and happiness. As much as possible, make a move and make every moment of your life exciting. 

People who die of old age are lucky because they had every chance to do things they love. But for others, we can never tell how long we will be able to stay in this mortal world. Who knows? The already short life we have might end up even shorter.

The question is how you can make your life worth living? If you have no idea what to do or where to start, all you have to do is make a list of things to do before you die or make yourself the ultimate bucket list! 

If you are worried about how some of them will be expensive, don’t fret! Money is something we cannot take into the next life, so there is no need to save lots and lots of it. Of course, save some for your daily needs and life’s important responsibilities but don’t feel hesitant to spend for your enjoyment. However, if money is an issue, put the expensive activities lower on the list and try to do the others which may be cheap but are still crazy and surely memorable.  

Start a family, have a baby, do crazy stuff with friends, etc. may be pure and normal things in someone’s life but they can be included on your bucket list! If you need ideas, we will share with you the ultimate bucket list. Here are a few things to do before you die!

The Must is a set of things on your bucket list that definitely SHOULD be on the list as they are the most exciting, enjoyable, and memorable things to do before you die. They are experiences that not everyone can have the chance to do so if you have the opportunity, don’t overlook it! Rather, you must do it!  

If you are either an animal or nature lover, this activity should really be on your list of things to do before you die. An experience with wild animals is one of the most thrilling moves to make an unforgettable memory. Imagine yourself cuddling with a tiger, playing with a baby monkey, feeding live chickens to wild cats, and many more!  

But if you’re afraid of aggressive and carnivorous animals, you could try visiting Northern Thailand Elephant Rescue, just an hour from Chang Mai’s city center. Some of the elephants are old, blind, injured from logging industries, or rescued from the circus. There are also baby elephants! You’ll get to feed these gentle giants and take them in a river for a bath.

Are a big fan of nature and, at the same time, hard physical activities, then try experiencing dog sledding in the Alaskan forest should be included in your list of things to do before you die.

You be able to meet the Iditarod dog racers and their super cute pooches, but you’ll also get to experience firsthand a 1,150-mile sled dog race from Anchorage to Nome. If that's not your idea of excitement, we don’t know what is!  

Underwater activities are some of the most thrilling moves to make your life exciting before you die, ever! Not only is it literally cool but you’ll get to have firsthand experience with some exotic underwater creatures.

In the country of Palau, there is a lake which is home to millions of jellyfish. Don’t worry! It’s safe to swim with them as their sting is very light. Those who have already experienced it shared how having the jellyfishes brushing their stingers against you scared them for the first few minutes. But once the panic subsides, you won’t want to get out of the water!

Not all the things you can enjoy are just about fun by yourself. You can also make fun, memorable moments while helping other people who are less fortunate.  

The most common one that is usually included in people’s list of “things to do before you die” is to volunteer at an orphanage. The plus side to this is that you don’t have to travel that far because there are orphanages everywhere. Even probably near your residence.

You’ll be able to experience a sense of accomplishment through giving help to the needy, especially children. You’ll be able to share your blessings with the orphans, play with them, and let them experience the feeling of a fun, loving home.

Let’s all admit it; it is a painful sight for us to see children, especially babies, lose their families at a young age. And as we are more blessed than them, it wouldn’t hurt to give a moment of our life to them, right?

If most of your “things to do before you die” list is about travel, do not forget to visit Europe, especially during Christmas time. During holidays, the markets in Europe are so festive it would be hard to feel forlorn.   

All the cathedrals are lighted and so bright that they will make your heart jump for joy, and the markets are so active and full of cheerful noises. There are Viking River Cruises too that can take you along the Rhine River to visit different festive markets throughout Germany, France, Switzerland, and the Netherlands. Plus, you’ll get to taste glühwein (glowing wine).

We're probably all familiar with the Disney movie, Frozen. And you have to admit, Queen Elsa's ice castle is gorgeous. Did you know that you can find ice castles in real life?  

In Northern Sweden, every year in the village of Jukkasjarvi, an ice hotel is built from real ice and snow. It’s a hotel but at the same an art exhibition. You can spend the whole night surrounded by chiseled ice crystals, and if you’re lucky, you will see the Aurora Borealis or the northern lights from your location on the bank of the Torne River. Now isn’t that a crazy experience?

Why would you include watching a guard changing out a security detail to a new guard on your bucket list? It’s a common, simple thing and nothing’s so crazy about that, right? That’s where you’re wrong!  

This occurrence may be simple in most places, but not in London! The guards there, with their synchronized marching and precision drills from Victoria Monument to Buckingham Palace, are already enough to compare to a musical show—because there is also a band playing.

Simple happenings can be your crazy experiences too!

Some of the most fun and crazy experiences you can include in your list of “things to do before you die” are those when you have to lend a hand. 

On the Osa Peninsula of Costa Rica is the Osa Turtle Conservation. With the staff bringing you to the hatchery, you will be able to spend a whole afternoon releasing baby Olive Ridley Turtles into the ocean.

This experience will give you a sense of accomplishment knowing that you’re helping this species ensure their survival, plus you’ll get to enjoy it too because the baby turtles are just adorable!

On your list of “things to do before you die,” you should not overlook visiting China and walk the whole stretch of the great wall—its series of bulwarks stretch from Shanhaiguan to Lop Lake in the Gobi Desert.

It was built to prevent attacks on the Chinese Empire back then and is now one of the most popular tourist destinations all over the world. The whole stretch of the Great Wall of China overlooks flowing rivers and historical relics so it would not bore you! 

Water fountains are very common and simple. We can find one almost everywhere. There is one in Italy that is worth visiting: the Trevi Fountain in Rome. It’s so beautiful and breathtaking that you can stare at it for hours! And before you go back home, do not forget to make a wish as that is every water fountain’s tradition!

But remember not to steal the coins in the fountain! This would be the wrong move as your ultimate bucket list experience may end up in tragedy! Yep, it’s illegal to steal coins from the fountain. 

As we’ve said, your bucket list doesn’t require you to travel and visit every country in the world. Simple things work too, like making a move for self-development such as gaining more knowledge, attaining calmness, improving one’s health, etc.

But what are these specific self-development moves?  

11. Attend Anthony Robbins’s Events
Anthony Robbins is the #1 life and business strategist. If you want to improve your leadership skills and entrepreneurship, his events and coaching programs may be your first step.

12. Attend a 21-day Vipassana Meditation Course in Chiang Mai, Thailand
This meditation course helps you see things as they are and is one of India’s most ancient meditation techniques.

13. Be a vegetarian for a month
14. Don’t use the internet for a month
15. Become fluent in Spanish
It’s your decision what language you want to become fluent in, it could be French, Japanese, Mandarin, etc.

16. Read 1000 books
17. Don’t drink alcohol for a year 
It’s your decision if you want to reduce the time to a shorter period. But if you’re aiming for the “ultimate and extreme” things to do before you die, a year is better. Besides, if self-development is what you want, you’d try hard to avoid things that are bad for you.

18. Keep a daily journal
19. Practice speed-reading
20. Take Advanced English Training
You can take up any language if you want if you’re already fluent in the English language.

It’s your move on what you’re going to put on your list of “things to do before you die” but surely, you won’t forget about food experiences! Fun moments are not just about travel because the food is also a big part of love and life, yes? There are so many dishes you to try that you wouldn’t taste all of them before you die! The least you can do is go on a food adventure and taste most of them. 
21. Have an afternoon tea party with friends
22. Have a Fondue Galore
If there's one type of food that brings happiness to people, it’s fondue! The melting pot of pure awesomeness can be in the form of cheese or chocolate! The sides you can dip in it is are full of deliciousness too!

23. Try a fast food place or restaurant you’ve never been to
24. Go to a buffet restaurant by yourself
Don’t be a baby and whine about weight gain. Life is too short to fret about such stuff. While you’re alive, indulge yourself with a bottomless lunch! You can lose the weight by doing your regular exercise set after! It’s that simple.

25. Go to an edible museum.

26. Try raw oysters.
27. Eat only ice cream for an entire day.
28. Eat at a food truck.
29. Eat only fruits for a day:
Not only it is a challenge, but this can be your move to cleanse your body too. Fewer calories for a day is a big help to lose weight, just a tip!

30. Make DIY cheese:
Who isn’t a cheese lover here? If you are a cheese addict, you must learn how to make your own before you die! You can look up different homemade cheese ingredients on the internet.

31. Try macarons:
This food is famous on Instagram, and we can all agree that although it may look simple, it probably tastes crazy delicious. You can make your own and if you don’t have it in your nearby stores, order online.

32. Try a crazy ice cream flavor:
Don’t be a baby; try a new flavor instead of strawberry and chocolate! With so many new flavors of ice cream people are inventing now, don’t you think it would be exciting to taste them? Chili or mayo flavor sounds crazy, right?

33. Make your own hybrid food.
34. Eat breakfast for dinner.
35. Try molecular gastronomy.

36. Participate in a food eating contest:
Those videos we watch on the internet of people gobbling down huge portions of food look crazy. Are you curious to see if you can finish a hamburger meant for five people? Include eating contests on your bucket list!

37. Eat spicy food:

Recently, the trend of eating spicy ramen went all over the internet. Do you want to find out whether their reactions are legit? Why not increase your spicy food tolerance?

38. Eat a whole tub of ice cream in one sitting.
39. Go to a restaurant from your favorite TV show.

40. Eat 11 pounds of pizza with friends in an hour:
If you’re aiming for the crazy and ultimate bucket list, you can even do this by yourself if you want. At least, after you die, your descendants would remember you by achieving most people’s desire—ultimate pizza indulgence! 

Some of the best “things to do before you die” are those that include your family. If you can have fun, why do it alone instead of sharing it with your loved ones? 

With your family, the list doesn’t have to go the extreme level because it’s the happiness with them that is most important. Make a move to strengthen your relationship with them with these simple but family & friends fun ideas.

41. Go to a drive-in movie:
It’s more memorable if you can bring comfortable blankets, and lots and lots of snacks to eat. You can enjoy a movie and breathe fresh air while snuggling with your family.

42. Go on night swimming.
43. Have a picnic by the river.
44. Read a children’s book to your children in a tent in the nighttime with a flashlight.
45. Go camping, even just in the backyard.

46. Go to a strawberry patch and pick berries with your family. Make strawberry ice cream after.
47. Spend time with your family:
Nowadays, with people’s busy schedules, the simple move of bonding with your family is less and less frequent. Nothing’s more enjoyable than to hear your husband laugh, your children playing, and even your baby crying. 

48. Go to a county fair:
Join the biggest pumpkin contest, indulge yourself with homemade pies, and let your children have the chance to care for baby barn animals.

49. Go camping at nighttime and play the guitar while singing with your children.
50. Search for shooting stars with your family.

After you’re done with the food experiences on your bucket list, you can follow it with the physical fitness activities, so you can lose all that weight you gained from indulging in food! 

51. Bike for seven days straight:
If you want to experience an extreme physical fitness activity, then it’s recommended that you try RAGBRAI or the Register’s Annual Great Bicycle Ride Across Iowa. It’s a 468-mile weeklong bike ride.

52. Conquer the Pull-Up:
This is an upper body exercise where you pull yourself up while hanging on a stationary bar. Do you want to tone your back muscles and biceps,? Then this is the physical activity for you.

53. Finish a 10K marathon:
Not only will you be losing that extra weight, but you’ll be doing it for a cause too as marathons are usually conducted for a charitable purpose.

54. Do a plank for 1 minute.
55. Do 20 push-ups in one go.

56. Master an Olympic lift.
57. Do an extreme hike:
Hiking is not just for physical fitness, but you can find fun in it too, especially if you’ll be hiking with your friends. It’s a chance to be healthy and a chance to bond with other people as well.

58. Balance on one leg for fifteen seconds and more each day.
59. Master a yoga pose.
You don’t have to do yoga classes to do this. You can look up different poses on the internet on how to properly master a yoga pose.

60. Perform a handstand.

Fun can be found anywhere, and you don’t have to spend that much money to get it! Include random funny things on your bucket list because these random experiences are the best memories too!

61. Get a tattoo:
Nope, we’re not just talking about henna tattoo here. Get a real one!

62. Dye your hair your favorite color and let it stay for five months.
63. Host a karaoke party:
Nothing is more fun than hearing your friends sing out of tune all night with a few drinks.

64. Buy 100 cakes and give them to homeless people.
65. Teach a foreigner to speak your language.

66. Buy everyone a drink in a bar.

67. Switch your life with a friend for 24 hours.
Yep! That means you will live a completely different life and pretend you’re someone else for the whole day!

68. Be Santa Claus for Christmas and give gifts in the hospital.
69. Wear only formal attire for the whole week.
70. Wish someone a happy birthday on the radio.
71. Text a random number and say “I killed him and hid the body in your backyard.”
72. Propose to a stranger while he or she is with family.
73. In public, randomly shout, "The world is going to end!”
74. Wear red contact lenses and say to a random stranger, “I want to drink your blood."
75. Act like a dead person at a party.
76. Answer your boss with “meow” while he or she is talking to you.
77. Prank your friends.
78. Make your friend eat a poop shaped cake for his or her birthday.
79. Prank a cab driver by making a stop at a cemetery and say “I am finally home.”
80. Dress up like a demon and scare the neighbors.

Please keep in mind that some of these are mere suggestions. Use discretion and have fun. Expereince life - it is too short to spend your life wondering and living with regrets!!