i'm sorta like brasky in that i do want to do things like eat food or see something of historical significance or do something adventurous
best vacation i've had was cycling through provence, a mix of self-guided bc we could do whatever we wanted in each town, and also pre-planned as we rented bikes from a company and they arranged the hotels and a couple activities like wine tasting and cooking class. we got to see several medieval, walled towns, some beautiful natural scenery, ride in the foothills of the alps, drink amazing wine and eat amazing food, stay in stunning hotels, etc., and it didn't take months and months of planning. we just walked around at night and got bottles of wine and charcuterie plates and such things, and if we wanted to go off on the side and tour a cathedral or hike a mountain or visit an olive oil farm or an extra vineyard we could!
if i could model any other vacation in the future after that, i would. a healthy mix of the details worked out by someone who is expert in teh region and can get deals on hotels and other amenities plus the ability to freestyle and do whatever, enough downtime in between.