Our Favorite Travel Instagram Photos This Week

For some, Instagram serves as a scrapbook of sorts, recording the memories from the things they do and places they go with the people they know. For others, it's a source of inspiration for what to eat, how to dress, and where to travel. Here at Oyster, we're partial to the travel-focused snaps that spark a sense of wanderlust. From a dreamy sunset spread over a city skyline to a stunning natural landscape in the middle of nowhere, there's an endless supply of material to feverishly scroll through. Here are eight that caught our eye just this week.

TripAdvisor

https://www.instagram.com/p/BJLE-TejPIy/

Among the many memorable day trips one can take from Paris, Claude Monet’s house and gardens in Giverny is a popular choice for tourists — and it’s no surprise why. Folks can take a romantic stroll alongside a water lily pond, then tour the artist’s adjacent house and workshop. Brimming with vibrant blooms, this magnificent oasis will wow even the most hard-to-impress traveler. Plus, you don’t have to be an art enthusiast to appreciate the surroundings. After all, you won’t only be marveling at one of Monet’s Impressionist paintings in a museum — you’ll actually be stepping inside one of those masterpieces.

Kirsten Alana

https://www.instagram.com/p/BJISgUujclW/

Temperatures may have reached scorching degrees in New York City this weekend (it was the hottest one in the summer so far), but a view like this — or any of the Manhattan skyline, really — almost makes three-digit thermostat readings bearable.

Beautiful Destinations

https://www.instagram.com/p/BJJzoZDD8gQ/

For the past two weeks or so, we’ve been on Olympics overload. We’ve celebrated victories, come to terms with losses, and nervously bit our nails while watching our favorite super-human athletes go for gold. And although we can’t be in Rio de Janeiro to witness Usain Bolt, Michael Phelps, Simone Biles, and others move with speed, skill, and precision, we can live vicariously through photos like this one.

The Planet D

https://www.instagram.com/p/BJJkykXgS0C/

Majestic rock formations, dramatic colors, and wildlife sightings — Badlands National Park in South Dakota offers something to gasp at around every corner. With plenty of hiking and camping opportunities, it’s just as exciting as many of America’s other national parks. And by the look of this photo, driving through the park — windows down, music up, of course — can be a sacred experience.

AFAR

https://www.instagram.com/p/BJLHZHhhbW9/

One of the many plusses of traveling is being able to see things from a new perspective. AFAR — and this gorgeous top view of Lisbon, a city known for its beautiful beaches — has the right idea.

National Geographic

https://www.instagram.com/p/BJGfJRJDmsz/

We can’t decide what we love most about this picture — the stunning colors, the adorable chamois, the pristine reflection that displays the destination’s beauty twice, or the peaceful moment it captures in the wee hours of the morning. Lucky for us, we don’t have to choose.

Passion Passport

https://www.instagram.com/p/BJDSbjQADQ4/

Perhaps the photographer who snapped this shot of Tungurahua, an active stratovolcano in Ecuador, put it best: “The volcano’s energy caused both terror and admiration…The scene before my eyes resembled a frame from Dante’s ‘Inferno’.”

Travel + Leisure

https://www.instagram.com/p/BJN_cy_jpqw/

Pick a color, any color. The brightly painted homes on either side of the canal on Burano island are so happy-go-lucky they exude an almost tropical vibe. Not pictured: the many lace shops that dot the streets, too.