A [[What is a quest?|quest]] is a travel goal to visit a particular set of related places. There are three main types of quests:[^1] - Every - At least - In each Even though they're often comprised of travel goals, [[Bucket Lists]] and [[Personal challenges]] do not count as quests. ## Every This is the most popular type of quest, involving visiting ***every*** objective that meets the quest criteria. These are the hardest type, as there is no way to substitute an objective—you must do them all. Popular examples: - 50 states - All 63 National Parks - All NFL stadiums ## At least These quests usually involve an intermittent goal that is a subset from the total available objectives. It's common to add a deadline for reaching the goal, often related to one's age. Once you complete the quest, it's also common to choose an even larger goal number—hence the name "at least." Unlike **every quests**, there may not be an easily obtainable list of objectives to work from. A few examples: - 50 countries by age 50 - Summit 100 peaks - Drink at 500 craft breweries A related endeavor is what I previously called an "as many" quest, which is basically an **at least quest**[^2] without a specific end goal. It's simply "as many" as you can complete. Because there's no way to complete this endeavor, it's not a quest. Instead, these efforts are often referred to as "collecting" (eg, collecting breweries) or "counting" (eg, counting countries). If you'd like to work on an "as many" endeavor, I suggest adopting an **at least** quest and simply keep raising the goal objective after reaching your last milestone. ## In each These quests require completing a certain type of objective in each of a series of subdivisions—usually geographic in nature. So these quests are great if you enjoy a particular type of objective or activity and want to challenge yourself to visit or do them across a broad geographic area. Examples: - Visit a brewery in each state - Hike to the high point in each county of a state - State capitol buildings While most of these quests are focused on geography, it's also possible to use them in conjunction with a topic area or activity. In the example below, you can construct a quest that uses each of the US Presidents as the "in each" part of the quest. Or camping in each county of your state. - One site per US President - Camp in each county of your state [^1]: [I used to recognize just two types](https://rscottjones.com/why-you-should-adopt-a-personal-travel-quest/) of quests: what I called "counting down" (every) and "counting up" (at least), but I've since realized that there are indeed three distinct types. [^2]: For a little while, I thought that "as many" quests were, indeed, their own category of quests. After some additional contemplation, however, it's better to think of them as a stepchild of at least quests. And, most people I know who are doing as many quests actually do have informal milestones they're trying to meet. I think a goal is an important component of a quest—it has to be achievable. Because you can never complete an "as many" quest, I don't consider them to be a quest type.