Where to Go in 2025

Dark sky sanctuaries. Floating nightclubs. Blueberry farms. Indigenous-owned lodges. These are just some of the facets of Afar’s list of top 25 places to go in 2025. This year’s list features some of the world’s most fascinating and lesser-visited countries, regions, and cities where you won’t find crowds of travelers angling for the same Instagram Reel. From Chios, Greece, and Columbus, Ohio, to Guyana and Jordan, these destinations are bound to inspire another year of joyful and intentional travel. Where will you go first?—The Editors

Aotea Great Barrier Island, New Zealand

Photo by James Rua (L); photo by Mark Russell (R)

This Pacific island is a nature lover’s paradise, where residents live off the grid and the stars shine brightly above them.

Sixty miles northeast of Auckland (New Zealand’s largest city) is nature’s guardian: the secluded, forested Great Barrier Island. The 110-square-mile isle, known by the Maori name Aotea, is graced with high, craggy cliffs and long white-sand surf beaches that shelter the mainland from the Pacific Ocean’s many moods. The majority of its land comprises a wildlife reserve of wetlands and old-growth kauri forests; endangered species such as the pāteke (the fourth-rarest duck in the world) live here free of predators.

The island’s businesses and roughly 1,200 full-time residents are deeply committed to conservation. Aoteans live entirely off-grid—meaning all the eco-lodges and apartment rentals, breweries and bakeries, generate their own power from solar and wind, harvest their own rainwater, and aim for zero waste. Don’t expect to step into a café and march back out with a coffee, either; Aoteans would prefer you linger over a flat white in a ceramic mug, and if you must take it to go, bring your own reusable cup.

In exchange for leaving no trace, visitors can partake of what locals have long experienced: the inside track to thermal hot springs, bottlenose-dolphin coves, scuba diving sites, and snapper fish-ing. And because Aotea is so blissfully remote, with so little light pollution, stars seem to envelop it at night.

Aotea was declared an International Dark Sky Sanctuary in 2017—the first such designation in New Zealand. Now, it’s a prime viewing site for the current solar maximum, the once-a-decade opportunity to see the planet’s auroras at their most vibrant, predicted to last through early 2026. The southern lights, or aurora australis, are no less thrilling than their northern counterpart, especially with such capable guides as Star Treks, led by an Aotea native and Dark Sky ambassador, or women-run Good Heavens, pointing out the glory of Tahu-nui-ā-Rangi, or “great glowing sky.”—Laura Dannen Redman

• Where to stay: 175° East’s three private luxury homes (including one “treehouse”) share 14 hilltop acres with sea views. It’s an eight-minute walk to Medlands Beach and a short drive to the townships of Claris and Tryphena.

  Pigeons Lodge offers four guest rooms in its main house plus two freestanding studios overlooking Shoal Bay, within 2km of the ferry landing. Complimentary use of kayaks, surfboards, and boogie boards is included.
  

• Getting there: From Auckland, take a 4.5-hour ferry (SeaLink NZ), charter a 2.5-hour water taxi (Hauraki Express), or board a 30-minute flight (Barrier Air). Or, fly Waiheke Wings from North Shore Airport.

Belgrade, Serbia

Photos by Algirdas Bakas

The Balkan metropolis entices travelers with a thriving nightlife scene and a bevy of inventive restaurants.

Belgrade‘s history is sketched on its skyline. Stand by the ancient Ottoman stronghold of Belgrade Fortress in the Old Town, where the Danube meets the Sava River, and scan the horizon. You’ll see a confluence of cultures and epochs: communist-era housing blocks and brutalist skyscrapers in New Belgrade dating to the 1960s and ’70s, and the ochre-tiled roofs of the former Austro-Hungarian riverside town of Zemun. The erstwhile capital of Yugoslavia was a crucial crossroads of Balkan trade, and its enduring blend of Slavic East and cosmopolitan West is most accessible in its food and music.

I visited last summer and found several restaurants that could give those in Paris or New York a run for their money—suitably, given that the city has had a Michelin guide since 2021. Standout dishes included teletina ispod sača (veal and potatoes roasted in a clay pot) at Bela Reka in New Belgrade, where ingredients are sourced from the restaurant’s farm in the Homolje mountains, and crispy suckling pig that paired perfectly with cava at Pretop, an unassuming spot in the Zemun market. I also explored a nightlife scene akin to that of East London at the Cetinjska complex, an arts and culture hub, and found craft beer aplenty all across the city (a highlight being the cherry sour at Docker Brewery in the Gastrošor district).

It was at the more traditional kafanas, or pubs, though, that I created lasting memories of Belgrade. I spent an evening at Gradimir Kafana, where boisterous diners along to live accordion- and fiddle-driven folk songs at tables laden with breads, salads, and ćevapčići (mixed grilled meat). A few shots of the ubiquitous rakia fruit brandy later, I made my way to the river, where dozens of the capital’s famous floating nightclubs known as splavs were blasting out a blend of Serbian pop, “turbofolk” (a techno and folk mash-up), and contemporary Western dance music for energetic crowds. Their beats mingled in the air—a remixed, and very apt, soundtrack for the city..—Tim Chester

• Where to stay: Located in the historic quarter, Square Nine has 45 wood-paneled rooms and suites, a rooftop Japanese restaurant, and a spa with a 59-foot lap pool.
• Make it happen: A trip with Belgrade-based Yugotour takes you around what they call “the capital of a country that doesn’t exist anymore” in a tiny vintage Zastava car (aka a Yugo). See brutalist architecture, a former Nazi concentration camp, the mausoleum of Yugoslavia’s longtime leader, Josip Broz Tito, and more.
• Stay longer: On a high-speed train, it takes just 36 minutes to reach Serbia’s second-largest city, Novi Sad, a walkable and relaxed alternative to Belgrade that’s full of Austro-Hungarian architecture. Also, spend some time winetasting in the nearby Fruška Gora region, which happens to be on a latitude similar to Bordeaux’s.

Benin

Photo by Jasmin Shah

The West African nation is set to become a cultural capital thanks to a slew of new museums.

Benin is a tiny African country with a big history. About the size of Ohio with a population of 14 million, it’s the birthplace of Vodun, the land of the all-female Agojie warriors who inspired the Viola Davis film The Woman King (2022),and one of the most significant sites for the transatlantic slave trade. And now the coastal nation is doubling down on sharing its culture and storied past with visitors.

In the next few years, a handful of new museums will open across the country, formerly known as Dahomey. The Royal Palaces of Abomey, a UNESCO World Heritage site in what was once the Kingdom of Dahomey’s capital, are being restored for late 2025 with a museum that will house the 26 royal treasures—including ceremonial thrones and statues—that were returned to Benin by France in 2021. A slavery museum will open in 2025 in the coastal city of Ouidah. Also in the works are a Vodun museum in the capital, Porto-Novo, and a contemporary art gallery in the port city of Cotonou, which debuted a 98-foot-tall bronze monument of an Agojie warrior in 2022 and also features Africa’s longest graffiti wall, currently over a half-mile long and growing.

Of course, to really appreciate Benin, visitors should look beyond museums. On a trip this past July with Wademba Travel, I took a boat tour of Ganvie, a floating village built on stilts that’s called “the Venice of Africa” and that was a safe haven during the slave trade. In Grand Popo I witnessed a Vodun performance featuring Zangbeto, guardians of the night. Brightly colored haystacks whirled to the beat of drums and chased after onlookers, with no human beings visible under the costumes. The effect was mesmerizing, magical really—much like Benin itself.—Kathleen Rellihan

• Keep in mind: The spelling Vodun (or Vodoun) distinguishes the West African religion from Haitian Vodou. It’s considered derogatory to spell it the Western way, Voodoo, outside of Louisiana.
• Make it happen: Wademba Travel offers culturally focused tours through southern Benin with young entrepreneurs, village chiefs, Vodun scholars, and more. They can also arrange private trips, including heritage tours.
• Where to stay: La Canelya, a female-owned boutique hotel in Cotonou, has a beautiful garden restaurant and bar where local musicians play. Close to the beach, Maison Rouge Cotonou, a more modern hotel with two swimming pools, exhibits contemporary African art.

Bold Coast, Maine

Photos by Amy Welch-Olson

A drive along this national scenic byway leads to wild blueberry farms, lobster boats, seaside cliffs, and farm-to-table restaurants.

Crouching down, I ran a metal rake through the ankle-high shrubs and scooped up a dozen tiny gems—Maine’s famous wild blueberries. Around me, the sixth-generation Welch Farm unfolded to the ocean, part of the last 10,000-year-old low-bush blueberry barrens in the United States. This was just one stop on my drive along Maine’s 125-mile Bold Coast, which starts an hour north of the crowds in Bar Harbor.

This less-trammeled part of the state is filled with jagged peninsulas and uninhabited islands. (Maine has more islands than any other state in the U.S.) The best way to experience it is by following the Bold Coast National Scenic Byway, which spans from Milbridge to the town of Eastport.

I began my trip, appropriately for Maine, on the water—with a wildlife boat tour in Milbridge led by lobsterman Jamie Robertson of Atlantic Edge Adventures. He idled so we could watch a bald eagle perch on Petit Manan Light Station and see the summer’s last puffins migrating out to sea. Robertson also leads lobster-fishing excursions. After we got back on land, I ate a lobster roll at Chipman’s Wharf, a restaurant owned by another lobsterman who prides himself on having his seafood delivered right to the dock.

There’s more to the local bounty here than crustaceans and blueberries, though. Save room for French-inspired fare at Flora by chef Ross Florance, formerly of New York City’s Per Se and Le Bernardin, who fell in love with Maine after visiting as a kid. His restaurant in Machias is set in a 200-year-old former dairy barn at Schoppee Farm, which now cultivates and sells organic hemp products.

A little farther north is the Cutler Coast Public Land reserve, where a network of trails winds through 12,000 protected acres along the Atlantic Ocean. Cap off your trip with the candy cane–striped West Quoddy Head Lighthouse in Lubec, which overlooks the Bay of Fundy just over the Canadian border.—Anna Fiorentino

• Where to stay: The Inn at Schoppee Farm, in a red farmhouse from the 1800s, has four rooms on a bank of the Machias River. It’s situated along the 87-mile Sunrise Trail, which rambles through forests and marshes, past moose and wild turkeys.

  Also in Machias are the the newly opened Hackmatack Cottages, 12 rustic and refined cabins with firepits and fully stocked kitchens. The new accommodations are located inside West Branch Farms, whose restaurant, the Public House, draws from its vegetable garden. Visitors can go on kayaking and fishing adventures while enjoying the pastoral environs.
  

• Stay longer: Extend your trip to “Vacationland” by breaking up the long drive back to Portland Jetport with a stop in Maine’s largest lobster capital, Stonington. Stay in chef Devin Finigan’s cottages at Goose Cove, savoring the taste of Maine at her acclaimed restaurant Aragosta (translating in Italian to lobster).

Boone, North Carolina

Photo by Cvandyke/Shutterstock

Come for the scenic trails; stay for the Gilded Age history, flourishing creative arts scene, and river snorkeling.

Editor’s note: In September 2024, Hurricane Helene caused some damage in Boone. Most of the area has since recovered, but we recommend checking exploreboone.com for any travel updates before your visit.

Cradled within North Carolina’s Blue Ridge Mountains, Boone emerged from geographical isolation with the arrival of the Tweetsie Railroad in 1919. Wealthy industrialists, such as Gilded Age denim magnate Moses H. Cone, built summer estates in the area, turning the sleepy village into a coveted destination.

Today, Boone’s appeal endures as a gateway to outdoor adventure, about two hours north of the larger city of Asheville. From a base in the spirited mountain town, you can hike the trails of 5,946-foot Grandfather Mountain; take in scenic stretches of the Blue Ridge Parkway by car; and go tubing, kayaking, and fishing in the New River. Additionally, in 2025 seven new public sites are opening along Boone’s leg of the Blue Ridge Snorkel Trail, where diverse freshwater fish species and the hellbender (a two-foot salamander) await those curious to try river snorkeling.

Boone is also home to Appalachian State University, which fuels a dynamic Americana music and creative arts scene.

But while fresh-faced students pump Boone with extra energy during the school year, the strong community spirit of the 20,000 permanent residents can be felt all year long through First Friday art crawls, monthly vendor markets, and a downtown with independently owned and operated businesses.

On the main boulevard of King Street, the store Ellison sells handmade ceramics and custom leather goods. Steps away, the Hands Gallery showcases jewelry, clay work, and paintings by area artists. Food-wise, Wild Craft Eatery sources fish, meat, and poultry locally, and serves an addictive caramel apple pie.

A journey to the “Heart of the High Country” could, however, trigger an incurable case of what residents refer to as the Boonerang Effect: Visit once, and you’ll return again and again.—Susan Portnoy

• Where to stay: The Westglow Resort and Spa, the Greek revival mansion built in 1917 by Elliott Daingerfield, recently redesigned its restaurant and added a piano bar.
• Make it happen: Kelly McCoy, owner of River Girl Fishing Company, offers seasonal guided fly-fishing and other water sports along the South Fork of the New River.

Chios, Greece

Photo by VAlekStudio/Shutterstock (L); photo by iremt/Shutterstock (R)

Best known for its prized mastic trees and lush citrus orchards, this Greek island is in the midst of a cultural revitalization.

The fifth-largest Greek island, Chios is famous for its miraculous mastiha, the aromatic resin from mastic trees that is used in cooking and works wonders for oral health and digestion—something the ancient Greeks have known since the fifth century B.C.E.

Because of this valuable export and a longstanding maritime tradition, Chios hasn’t prioritized tourism as much as other Greek locales have. But that’s starting to change. Situated in the low-key northeastern Aegean just 50 minutes from Athens by plane, the island is luring travelers with painstakingly preserved medieval villages, new cultural experiences, and landscapes that vary from pine forests and citrus groves to tamarisk-lined pebble beaches.

Journalist-turned-taverna-owner Nikos Georgoulis is spear-heading cultural heritage tourism efforts to revive Pityos, a village of about 40 inhabitants in the north. He has recruited elders and young residents alike to run private walking tours (stops include an old olive mill and a 14th-century tower) and classes. For example, visitors can learn to make a hand-rolled pasta called herissia or take a lesson in traditional dance.

On the east coast is the fertile plain of Kampos, where row upon row of citrus orchards hide behind tall walls surrounding grand Genoese estates built with local stone. Some, including Perleas Mansion, have been converted into boutique accommodations; the Perivoli Estate, meanwhile, houses the Citrus Museum, documenting the area’s agricultural history. In 2020, Odysseas Xydas opened the café-bar Perivoli on the estate, which has been in his family for generations. Guests can dig into slices of lemon pie and buy jars of mandarin marmalade to take home. “Kampos is a hidden diamond in the rough,” Xydas says. “It doesn’t proclaim to the world that it once was home to significant wealth, but the visitor immediately understands that history exists behind these high stone walls.” —Helen Iatrou

• Where to stay: Chios’s first five-star property, Pearl Island Chios Hotel & Spa, opened this past July near Chios town, with 48 luxurious suites and an Olympic-size pool. Those looking for quiet romance should check into Perleas Mansion in Kampos, which was built in 1640, set on a 17-acre citrus farm.
• Make it happen: Let Athens-based Grecian Lux make the travel arrangements and put together a personalized itinerary, including an exclusive experience to meet a mastic producer. They can also assist those with ancestral ties to the island in tracing their family roots.
• Only in Chios: In the remote northern town of Leptopoda (population: 30), you can brew your own Greek coffee at a self-serve traditional kafenio. Just leave the payment in the marked box.

Columbus, Ohio

Photo by Amy Glass

Fueled by a diverse population, the fastest-growing metro area in the U.S. is buzzing with history, art, and food.

I’d never really considered Columbus until a friend implored me to visit. Come! she said. It has everything. I chalked up her passion to hyperbole but booked a flight anyway. Over a long weekend, I got to see that everything wasn’t too much of a stretch.

The Ohio capital counts more than 175 entries on the National Register of Historic Places, including the German Village district. One morning, my friend and I strolled past its biergartens and 19th-century brick cottages before joining the line at the bakery Pistacia Vera for chocolate-pistachio cookies. Down the street, we packed our baskets with literature inside the maze-like 32-room Book Loft, which is one of Columbus’s many independent bookstores—and one of the most sizable in the country. The city has been home to celebrated contemporary writers (Hanif Abdurraqib, Saeed Jones, Maggie Smith, to name a few) and a new-as-of-2023 annual summer book festival, adding to its reputation as a burgeoning literary destination.

On the way to the 19th-century Franklin Park Conservatory and Botanical Gardens, our driver mirrored my friend’s enthusiasm about the city: Did I know that Columbus is the Midwest’s second-largest city after Chicago, with a population hovering near 1 million, including some of the largest Somali, Nepalese-Bhutanese, and LGBTQ communities in the country?

There’s much to be said about Columbus as a dining destination, too: Avishar Barua of Agni and Joya’s was a 2024 James Beard semifinalist in the Best Chef category. The nearly 150-year-old North Market has more than 30 vendors selling everything from Tibetan momo dumplings to buckeye doughnuts (filled with peanut butter, dipped in chocolate). Luckily for us travelers, Columbus is within a day’s drive of every major Midwest city, and a 90-minute flight from New York or D.C.—Katherine LaGrave

• Where to stay: Decked out in scarlet, the pet-friendly, 171-room Graduate hotel by Hilton is designed in homage to Ohio State University, which is located a mere mile away. Bike rentals and an on-property Shake Shack sweeten the stay.
  The Junto opened in May 2023 across the street from the award-winning Center of Science and Industry (COSI). In addition to its 198 rooms and suites, it offers a fitness center, five food and beverage options (including a poutine window), and a Gear Garage with complimentary recreational equipment for guests—think longboards, bicycles, and scooters.
• Only in Columbus: Visit the former home of author and New Yorker cartoonist James Thurber, who claimed to have seen a ghost in the house and wrote a 1933 story—“The Night the Ghost Got In”—about his experience.
• Required reading: There’s Always This Year, by Hanif Abdurraqib, blends biography and memoir to tell a story about basketball, yes, but also about home and its enduring powers.

Costalegre, Mexico

Courtesy of Four Seasons Resort Tamarindo, Mexico

The “happy coast” lives up to its name thanks to pristine nature and deliberate attempts to keep it that way.

In the Western state of Jalisco, between tourist-thronged Puerto Vallarta and the port city of Manzanillo, lies Costalegre, Mexico’s “happy coast.” The 200-mile stretch of sugary sand is bordered by dense jungle, protected estuaries, and sea turtle sanctuaries, juxtaposed with the peaks and valleys of the Sierra Madre mountains.

It’s a rare feeling to be able to snorkel, hike, fish, and swim in this natural setting, which has been balancing the challenge of becoming slightly less remote (thanks to the upcoming Chalacatepec airport and new resorts) with a commitment to conserving the things that make it so wondrous in the first place.

Several private owners of the region’s oceanfront land are putting Mother Earth first by developing a small fraction of their biodiverse land. In 2022, the 157-room Four Seasons Resort Tamarindo opened on a private reserve with a biologist on staff and a large farm. Sixty miles north, Xala, a resort and residential development committed to conservation, has initiated a “Ridge to Reef” project that aims to rehabilitate 62 miles of coastline as a refuge for Costalegre’s endangered sea turtles. In 2026, it will unveil a collection of 51 Six Senses villas on the land.

“There is a shared and unwavering commitment to the preservation of [Costalegre’s] natural landscapes among those who live here,” says Four Seasons Tamarindo’s resident biologist, Francisco “Paco” Javier León González, who also teaches land preservation at the surrounding schools. In leading by example, Costalegre’s developers are broadcasting a new global standard for coastal development in an area that has been, until now, a beautiful secret.—Kathryn Romeyn

• Make it happen: Luxury travel company Journey Mexico designs personalized trips to Costalegre with insider experiences. Hike to the petroglyphs and waterfalls of Cajón de Peñas, learn to surf, go deep-sea fishing, or relax on a yacht cruise.
• Only in Costalegre: The region is biodiversity central: There are more than 70 endemic species of flora and fauna on the Four Seasons preserve alone.

Danish Riviera

Photo by Andreas Mikkel/knud (L) ; courtesy of Ann Jørgensen / Visit North Zealand (R)

The country’s quiet North Zealand coast is an ecofriendly beach vacation spot best experienced on two wheels.

Danes will be the first to tell you that the Danish Riviera is nothing like its more famous Mediterranean namesake. But what it lacks in movie-star glamour and predictable sunshine, the North Zealand coast makes up for in tidy little towns, windswept beaches edged with wild roses, and a relaxed, wholesome charm that is the embodiment of Scandinavian summer. And because it’s just 90 minutes by train from Copenhagen, and easily traversed by bike once you’re there (rentals are common), this region makes for one of the more carefree—and environmentally friendly—beach holidays in northern Europe.

Extending some 125 miles across the northern tip of Zealand, from Hundested in the west to Hornbæk or Helsingør (definitions differ) in the east, the Danish Riviera became a popular vacation destination for Copenhageners in the 1930s, once beach-bound trains were more common. To fully experience the area’s nostalgic spirit, check into a seaside badehotel (bathing hotel). There’s one in nearly every coastal town, most dating from the turn of the 20th century but with modern amenities. Once settled, find the nearest bike path. Wide trails run along the scenic coast, connecting one town to the next. Don’t miss a visit to the dramatic sculpture garden of the Rudolph Tegner Museum in Dronningmølle. Also worth a stop: the busy fishing harbor of Gilleleje and the candy-striped beach huts of Rågeleje. Locally minded restaurants are bountiful, such as the cozy Tinggården in Frederiksværk, which grows herbs in its own garden, and the lively bistro Knud in Hundested, where you can try mussels straight from Isefjord. And, of course, there are the beaches, with dunes that go on for miles and that, unlike Cannes or Antibes, almost never get crowded.—Lisa Abend

• Where to stay: Helenekilde Badehotel in Tisvildeleje and Liseleje Badehotel in Liseleje are historic properties with simple yet elegant rooms.
• Stay longer: Shakespeare fans should visit Helsingør, on the eastern edge of the Danish Riviera. The city is home to Kronborg, the imposing 15th-century castle that supposedly inspired Hamlet. Now a UNESCO World Heritage site, it has hosted performances of the play most summers since 1937.
• Make it happen: To experience the Danish Riviera from the sea, take a kayak tour around Liseleje and Hundestad with Frederiksværk-based Comfort Adventures.

Freiburg im Breisgau, Germany

Courtesy of Olena Buyskykh / Alamy Stock Pho/Alamy Stock Photo

While its cobbled streets and turreted buildings look straight out of a fairy tale, the southwest German city offers a template for sustainable living.

Situated in the Black Forest near the French and Swiss borders, Freiburg im Breisgau is a medieval university city of 235,000—and one of the world’s greenest urban centers. Nicknamed Europe’s “solar city,” it’s been so successful in expanding its solar and wind energy use that it vows to achieve climate neutrality by 2035 (stepped up from 2050).

With a storybook old town of car-free streets, colorful half-timbered houses, and Gothic churches, Freiburg is best explored on two wheels. More than 300 miles of bike paths mean zero-emissions cycling is the most practical way to get around; ubiquitous Frelo bikeshare stations make hopping on easy.

Travelers should ride south of the city center to Vauban, a planned community focused on sustainability. To the east of the mini-suburb is the Heliotrope, a rotating, cylindrical home designed by architect Rolf Disch. Completed in 1994, it was the world’s first energy-plus dwelling (meaning it harnesses more energy than it uses). “This was an experimental house,” says Hanna Lehmann, Disch’s wife and a retired educator who hosts tours of the couple’s 30-year residence. You can also visit Disch’s Solar Settlement of 59 energy-plus residential buildings in Vauban, and then treat yourself to a vegan chocolate-hazelnut scoop at Eiscafé Limette.

In March 2025, the opening of the Dokumentationszentrum Nationalsozialismus (DZNS) Museum Freiburg will shine a light on the city’s darker history, offering a hard look at the mindset that let National Socialists, and then Nazis, take power here in 1933. The museum’s frank exhibits will illustrate, perhaps more than anything, Freiburg’s commitment to moving forward.—Carole Braden

• Make it happen: Local guide Annemarie Schaaf leads customized sustainability walks. Contact her via annemarie-schaaf.de.
• Where to stay: The new Hotel am Rathaus is a cobblestone’s throw from the towering Freiburg Cathedral and the city’s tourism office.
• Only in Freiburg: Bächle, burbling street-side channels, rush cold water from the mountains to cool off weary walkers’ feet.

Guyana

Photo by David DiGregorio

See some of the world’s rarest wildlife in the rainforests and savannas of this fast-changing South American country.

Guyana is a place on the brink of big things: A decade since 11 billion barrels of oil were discovered offshore, it has had the world’s fastest-growing economy for two years running. That means new direct flights and boomtown construction in its capital, Georgetown. But the nation—located on the northern coast of South America, with cultural ties to the Caribbean—is forging a sustainable path ahead by investing in renewable energy (free solar panels for Indigenous communities) and improving rural infrastructure (increased internet access, better roads).

To get the truest sense of its ecotourism potential, leave behind the bustling coast, where 90 percent of the country’s roughly 800,000 people live, and head to the Rupununi savanna, near the Brazilian border and across from the Amazon rainforest. Accessible by air or a single, semipaved road from Georgetown, the area is known for such biological behemoths as jaguars, giant anteaters, anacondas, and Victoria amazonica lily pads that can grow as large as 10 feet wide.

Peppering the region are off-grid lodges—many Indigenous owned or operated and some connected by the Rupununi River. At Caiman House, naturalists from Yupukari, a Macushi village, lead nighttime excursions to track and tag massive black caimans, a crocodilian reptile native to South America. At the Atta Rainforest Lodge, guests can climb 10 stories into the canopy on rope bridges for a chance to spot birds such as the cock-of-the-rock, which is traffic cone–orange. Come 2025, it will be 70 years since a young David Attenborough came to Guyana to film a series about exotic animals. He stayed at Karanambu Lodge, a former cattle ranch where the digs are still rustic (don’t mind the bats in your rafters), the hospitality is warm (fresh-caught river fish is served under mango trees glittering with strings of lights), and fellow guests might include orphaned giant otter pups being rehabilitated on-site.—Nicholas DeRenzo

• Only in Guyana: Kaieteur Falls is the largest single-drop waterfall in the world, at 741 feet high—about four times taller than Niagara Falls. Located in Kaieteur National Park, it’s reachable by plane or a three-day trek.
• Make it happen: Transportation in the interior is tricky, so book a tour with Guyana’s oldest tour operator, Wilderness Explorers, which organizes themed itineraries like highland hiking or women-only adventures.
• Stay longer: Start or end your trip with a day in the rapidly growing capital city, Georgetown. Don’t miss lunch at the Backyard Café, where chef Delven Adams serves specialties including cookup rice and grilled shark in a garden-like space where tortoises wander around the sand at your feet.

Jordan

Photos by Alex Cretey Systermans

Replete with ancient architectural sites and diverse ecosystems, the Middle Eastern kingdom is ready for your visit.

The land that is now Jordan has been a part of human history since Paleolithic times. As a result, civilizations from the Nabataeans to the Ottomans have left reminders of their stories and traditions that travelers can still see with their own eyes—from the archaeological site Petra to the Byzantine ruins at the village of Umm al-Jimal, which became the country’s seventh UNESCO World Heritage site in 2024.

“Right now, Jordan offers a rare chance to experience its iconic sites in a quieter, more personal way,” says Brady Binstadt, CEO of luxury adventure company Geographic Expeditions, who recently traveled there. “With so few visitors around there’s a peacefulness in the air that brings Jordan’s beauty to life.”

The nation spans a wide variety of landscapes: palm tree–dotted coastline, basalt plateaus, and red rock canyons. In the east, the Azraq Wetland Reserve is home to two-thirds of the country’s recorded bird species including herons and storks.

At the Azraq Lodge, guests can take a guided hike through the wetland’s marshes or join a local Druze or Chechen family for lunch. At the desert castle of Quseir Amra nearby, they can walk through an 8th-century hammam and reception hall with murals that depict life in the ancient Umayyad dynasty. In the northern town of Umm Qais, meanwhile, travelers may join tour operator Baraka Destinations for beekeeper-led honey harvests.

Says Baraka’s founder Muna Fadi Haddad: “Our goal is to connect travelers with the people who call Jordan home, tap into their stories and the history of this land, and amplify the benefits for the local communities.”—Yulia Denisyuk

• Make it happen: At the time of publication, Jordan is not directly involved in the conflicts of the Middle East. The country has a Level 2 travel advisory from the U.S. State Department (as do Belgium and France). Specific regions have higher caution advisories. Geographic Expeditions offers an eight-day trip that includes Petra, Wadi Rum, the Roman ruins at Jerash, and the Dead Sea.
• Where to stay: Beit Al Fannan overlooks the Jordan Valley and Pella, a village that has been continuously inhabited for at least 6,000 years. (Book through Baraka Destinations.) In the southern desert of Wadi Rum, Rum Planet Camp is a traditional Bedouin camp that is air-conditioner-free, plastic-free, and solar-powered and works closely with local families to offer experiences such as joining desert-camped Bedouins for lunch.
• Only in Jordan: Practice cooking mansaf, the tangy national dish of fermented yogurt, lamb, and rice at Galsoum’s Kitchen in the northern village of Umm Qais. In 2022, the dish was inscribed on UNESCO’s Intangible Cultural Heritage List.

Karakoram Mountains, Pakistan

Photos by Kevin Faingnaert

New tours are giving international travelers an immersive way into the culture and adventures of “Little Tibet.”

The Karakoram Mountains contain an outsize number of natural wonders: five of the world’s 14 peaks above 26,000 feet, more than 7,000 glaciers, and one of the highest and most scenic roads on earth, the Karakoram Highway. Yet, this part of northern Pakistan, also known as Gilgit-Baltistan or “Little Tibet,” drew only 11,000 visitors in 2023, or 7 percent of the international travelers who flock to the Himalayan towns and trails of nearby Nepal each year.

And now, responsible-tourism company Intrepid has launched three tours—one for women only, which female leaders and visits to spaces where men are not allowed—that are all led by local guides, in an effort to share more of this region punctuated by soaring summits, turquoise rivers, and alpine valleys.

During my visit in June 2024, we paired hiking with experiences in cities and mountain villages. Activities included observing basket weaving in the remote vil-lage of Yugo (which is newly welcoming visitors as climate change increasingly threatens the viability of farming) and learning about the art of ornately painted trucks in bustling Islamabad. There was plenty of time for impromptu cultural exchange along the way: on a multiday trek we spent an afternoon playing cricket with our guide and porters on an alpine meadow surrounded by mountains, followed by an evening of watching the staff demonstrate traditional Pakistani dances around a roaring campfire.—Sarah Reid

• Where to stay: Serena Khaplu Palace, in the tiny mountain city of Khaplu, is a 19th-century royal residence beautifully transformed into a 21-room hotel. Guests are warmly welcomed with a glass of fresh apricot juice from the local orchards, and the on-site restaurant serves local Balti dishes such as mutton in walnut sauce. Housed in a 400-year-old fort shaded by cherry trees, the Serena Shigar Fort offers a memorable experience in Shigar.
• Make it happen: In addition to tours offered by Intrepid, travelers can visit the mountain range with companies including World Expeditions and Rocky Road Travel.
• What to know: Between ongoing travel advisories and limited tourism services, Pakistan sees few international visitors. That’s changing: Its first-ever national tourism brand, Salam Pakistan, launched in 2023, and in July 2024 it waived tourist visa fees for 126 countries.
  

Lititz, Pennsylvania

Caroline Gutman/Caroline Gutman

Amish culture and rock and roll converge 75 miles west of Philadelphia.

Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, is best known for being home to America’s oldest Amish settlement and oldest continuously operated farmers’ market. People come for rustic farm stays, buggy rides, quilt shopping—and, as it happens, to rock out. Lititz, less than 30 minutes from the city of Lancaster, is the de facto mission control of live music in the country; it has the largest concert tour production facility in the United States. For the past 10 years, everyone from BTS and Beyoncé to U2 and Green Day has descended upon this borough (population: 9,800) to perfect their epic stage shows at Rock Lititz’s 70,000 square feet of studio space before setting out on tour. And, yes, sometimes you can find rock stars wandering around downtown.

Chance celeb sightings aren’t even the sweetest part of visiting Lititz, though. That would be Wilbur Chocolate, home of the famous “Wilbur Buds”—a treat similar to Hershey’s Kisses and even older, dating back to 1894. After a tour of the town’s Julius Sturgis Pretzel Bakery (the nation’s first, founded in 1861) you’ll want to go see more of Lancaster County.

Village Greens in Strasburg may be the country’s most enchanting miniature golf course, spread over 13 acres of woods and manicured gardens. For an authentic Amish experience, visit Amish Village in Ronks and tour a farmhouse, blacksmith shop, and one-room schoolhouse from the 1800s. Those not wishing to commit to radical simplicity just yet should set aside plenty of time to shop in the city of Lancaster, which has been dubbed “little Brooklyn” on account of its booming restaurant scene and vintage stores. The best places to go? Space, for mid-century modern furniture, and Building Character, an antiques and crafts emporium with more than 70 vendors selling everything from clothes and jewelry to art and—fittingly—records.—Sally Kohn

• Where to stay: Sweet dreams are ensured at the Wilbur Lititz, Tapestry Collection by Hilton, located in an old Wilbur chocolate factory and featuring preserved brickwork in the spacious rooms.
• Required eating: Luca, in Lancaster, is one of the best farm-driven Italian restaurants east of the Mississippi, and it’s worth timing your trip to feast on its famous Sunday meatballs. Also be sure to try the Spaetzle di Elsa, which mixes the restaurant’s Italian focus with Lancaster County’s German heritage.

North Wales

Photo by Kath Watson/Shutterstock (L); courtesy of travelib wales / Alamy Stock Photo (R)

Traverse moorlands and mountains and visit ancient churches and historic cafés on a 1,500-year-old pilgrimage.

There is a walking route in Europe believed to have been traveled by pilgrims since the 6th century. No, it’s not the Camino de Santiago—which, incidentally, was established around 300 years later. This 135-mile trail is found in North Wales, and it cleaves its way through the foothills of Snowdonia’s mountains and along the sandy beaches and towering cliffs of the Llŷn Peninsula. It’s called the North Wales Pilgrim’s Way (in Welsh, Taith Pererin Gogledd Cymru) or, increasingly, the Welsh Camino.

A group of local volunteers began reestablish-ing the walk in 2011 after it had been forgotten for nearly 500 years. While it was originally a religious undertaking for Christians, its modern iteration is a BYOB (bring your own beliefs) pilgrimage. “I’d walked Spain’s Camino and knew we had an ancient route here too,” says Chris Potter, one of the (re)creators who researched and linked together a series of old footpaths and bridleways with abbeys, churches, and sacred places.

The route begins at the 12th-century Basingwerk Abbey near Holywell. (From the U.S., it’s easiest to fly to Manchester, then take a car 47 miles to Holywell.) Highlights include Y Gop, a man-made Stone Age hill where remains of hyenas and bison have been unearthed; the Whistling Sands at Porthor, which squeak beneath the weight of each footstep; and Y Gegin Fawr, a café founded in the 13th century in Aberdaron that serves fish cakes and crab sandwiches. While Aberdaron is the end of the walking route, from there most travelers take a 20-minute boat ride to Bardsey Island, just as pilgrims did hundreds of years ago.—Phoebe Smith

• The more you know: Pilgrimages were incredibly popular in Great Britain in medieval times, but King Henry VIII banned them in 1538 after his split with the Catholic Church. The British Pilgrimage Trust was founded in 2014 to renew the tradition and offer access to more than 250 routes across Britain.
• Where to stay: Accommodation options vary from castle hotels to basic campsites. Tolkien fans will enjoy staying in a quirky, hand-built Hobbit-like earthhouse at Henbant Permaculture near the coast of the Llŷn Peninsula. Directly across the strait from Bangor on the isle of Anglesey there’s the 27-room Château Rhianfa, a turreted fairy-tale mansion that overlooks the Menai Straits and a swath of the route you will have walked—and will walk—on the pilgrim path.
• Make it happen: Trail expert Chris Potter advises completing the Welsh Camino over two weeks, averaging around 10 miles a day (the difficulty level is moderate), and staying in B&Bs, hotels, or campsites en route. Edge of Wales Walks offer walking packages varying from 5 to 11 days (including stays at inns and B&Bs) along the Welsh Camino, as well as a luggage transfer service and rentable GPS devices.
• Required reading: The ultimate guidebook is North Wales Pilgrim’s Way: The Official Guide to the Welsh Camino, written by Chris Potter, one of the path’s creators. For a more personal read, pick up Wayfarer: Love, Loss and Life on Britain’s Ancient Paths by Phoebe Smith.

Oklahoma City, Oklahoma

Courtesy of Design Hotels

With a booming film industry and dining scene, OKC has been transformed in recent years.

Long stereotyped by its twisters and cattle country locale, Oklahoma City is an underrated capital on the rise—quite literally, as the proposed Legends Tower would be the tallest building in the United States. If completed, it would rise to 1,907 feet, to match the year that Oklahoma joined the Union.

Record-setting architecture is only a facet of this growing city, a trend spurred by a low cost of living, the rise of remote work, a booming film industry, and an increasingly lauded dining scene. Residents and travelers alike frequent the area’s cultural attractions, including the Oscars-qualifying DeadCenter Film Festival, and recent films shot and set in the Sooner State—including Twisters (2024) and Killers of the Flower Moon (2023)—have been boons to the local economy. Meanwhile, also in 2023, Andrew Black of tasting-menu restaurant Grey Sweater became the first Oklahoma chef to win a James Beard Award.

“The city has undergone a significant transformation over the past few decades, driven by strategic investments in infrastructure, culture, and community,” says Rachael Crawford, executive director of the Plaza District, a neighborhood known for its street art, festivals, and restaurants.

Evidence of such investment is everywhere, from the shimmering high-rises and meandering man-made waterway of the Bricktown Canal to the upscale retail of Nichols Hills and the myriad galleries in the Paseo Arts District. It’s a city that literally plays in the big leagues (and getting bigger, with a nearly approved new downtown arena for the OKC Thunder NBA team), yet still manages to feel like a friendly small town where, even in the space of a short getaway, shop owners may greet you by name and baristas know just how you like your latte.—Matt Kirouac

• Where to stay: Bradford House is a 36-room boutique abode clad in pink and green and featuring a wraparound porch. Located in a repurposed Victorian mansion built in 1912, the hotel exudes elegance, from its patisserie and midweek jazz nights to its chic guest rooms.
• Required reading: Boom Town (Crown, 2018) by Sam Anderson traces the city’s history, from its overnight founding during the 1889 Land Run to the thunderous success of its NBA team.

Oxfordshire, England

Courtesy of Five Little Pigs; Photo by Wildwater.tv/Shutterstock

Go beyond the confines of the famous university to find pastoral beauty, fashionable inns, creative dining, and literary icons.

The City of Oxford, England, is beloved for its sandstone build-ings, intricate church spires, and illustrious university. But over the past few years, smaller towns throughout the county of Oxfordshire have added a healthy crop of new restaurants, hotels, and inns that infuse this bucolic region with modern twists.

Southeast of Oxford, the well-heeled riverside town of Henley-on-Thames sees 300,000 people descend on its streets for a rowing regatta each July. But outside of the five-day event, few make the journey to wander its flagstone market square or leafy Thames-side footpaths. Those who do can tour the award-winning Henley Distillery or watch the open-fire cooking theatrics in the newly restored Barn restaurant at the Bottle & Glass Inn.

Drive 13 miles west to reach Wallingford, whose greatest claim to fame is being the former hometown of Agatha Christie. Visitors are rewarded with seasonal dishes at Five Little Pigs (the restaurant’s name is a reference to one of Christie’s novels) that may include a Scotch egg, a dry-aged steak, or a ratatouille pancake.

A further 25 miles northwest, the medieval wool-making town of Witney is now in the spotlight thanks to the opening of ultra-luxury Estelle Manor, which has hosted the likes of Princess Beatrice and actor Rebel Wilson. Another eight-mile drive brings you to the town of Burford, which is reviving its main street with Bull, an 18-room inn with Damien Hirst and Liu Bolin artwork on the walls, plus Banksy’s Met Ball installation hanging in the front window. Each of these towns is a testament to the creativity of Oxfordshire’s residents, while showcasing the beauty of an area that deserves far more attention than it gets.—Lottie Gross

• Make it happen: Private custom day tours around Oxfordshire with Victoria Proffitt-White’s Cotswolds Teacup Tours provide a local’s insight into many of these towns and villages, as well as the small businesses that make this region so intriguing.
• Required reading: Delve into the dramatic fictional world created by Agatha Christie, thought to be inspired by her hometown of Wallingford, in her Dumb Witness or The Market Basing Mystery novels.

Palau

Photo by Kiliii Yuyan

Conservation is part of the national DNA in this biodiverse archipelago, where visitors sign a pledge to act responsibly during their stay.

At the edge of the Coral Triangle region in the Western Pacific Ocean, the waters of Palau—an archipelago of 340 islands southeast of the Philippines—are the habitat of sharks, turtles, manta rays, and more than 2,000 types of reef fish. “It’s like an underwater Serengeti,” says marine biologist Ron Leidich, owner of Paddling Palau, which offers day tours as well as overnight kayaking-and-camping expeditions into marine lakes and shallow bays. “The confluence of the Pacific and Indian oceans has created an evolutionary soup, producing a bewildering diversity of marine species over glacial epochs.”

Conservation is core to the nation. Its Palau Pledge, launched in 2017, was drafted by island children and requires visitors to sign a stamp in their passport upon entry, promising “to act in an ecologically and culturally responsible way” while in the country. Palau has preserved its natural wonders, including the UNESCO World Heritage site Rock Islands Southern Lagoon (with a reef system that supports more than 385 coral species).

When Four Seasons launched its 11-cabin catamaran Explorer in October 2023, the company collaborated with Palauan authorities to support those sustainability efforts. Passengers can attend talks by a marine biologist, go birding with a Palau Conservation Society naturalist, and support local businesses through various excursions to waterfalls, Palauan heritage museums, and World War II memorial sites. Snorkeling and paddling trips take off right from the ship, too, which operates as a floating hotel with a spa, gourmet meals, and cakes and espresso during breaks from diving.—Terry Ward

• Where to stay: Gaze out at the Rock Islands from an overwater bungalow at Palau Pacific Resort, which has a white-sand beach, or consider Palasia Hotel in the heart of the city of Koror, and within walking distance of restaurants and shops.
• Only in Palau: Palauan culture has traditionally been matrilineal. Women have historically had authority over land and been responsible for finances.

Patagonia Azul, Argentina

Photo by Tim Chester (L); courtesy of Alex Bramwell/Alamy (R)

New glampsites and hiking trails have opened up a part of Argentina known mostly to wildlife.

Patagonia’s perception in the popular imagination is well defined—jagged mountains, brilliant white glaciers, and teal lakes—but there’s a lesser-known part of this region that looks nothing like the guidebook covers.

Patagonia Azul, a slice of Argentina’s eastern coast, is a biodiverse wonderland. It’s a place where slender guanacos with chestnut-brown fur roam steppes stretching to the Argentine Sea, and colonies of marine birds—including the endemic Chubut steamer duck and Olrog’s gull—soar over the kelp-packed waters. Wildlife thrives here, but humans are sparse. Few visitors pass this way, and just over 1,500 people live in Camarones, the area’s biggest town.

It’s all part of the UNESCO Patagonia Azul Biosphere Reserve, newly under the stewardship of Rewilding Argentina, an offshoot of the Tompkins Conservation organization that has protected huge tracts of land both here and in Chile over several decades. The group combines rewilding efforts with modest tourism infrastructure such as hiking trails and visitor centers to encourage a small number of conscientious trav-elers to explore the area.

When I came here in late 2023, we drove through plains accented by tufts of grass and striking rock formations, and visited a free campsite—Cañadón del Sauce—where the spots to pitch a tent are marked by hand-drawn signs and named after local vegetation. Then we took to the sea in an inflatable dinghy, the only boat we saw the whole trip; we bobbed among sea lions, cormorants, and giant petrels riding the air inches above the water to an abandoned 100-year-old, 11-sided lighthouse. We also walked along board-walks among the world’s largest Magellanic penguin colony on the Punta Tombo peninsula. Thousands of them brayed and waddled in peace, far outnumbering their adoring audience of a few dozen humans—a ratio that will likely, thankfully, never change.—TC

• Where to stay: Isla Leones Camps offers six comfortable cabins. All the freshly prepared meals and activities, including cycling and boat trips, are included. The cabins can be booked through Rewilding Experience.
• Make it happen: Fly just over two hours from Buenos Aires to Comodoro Rivadavia and pick up a rental car to travel around the area. Tour operator Journeys With Purpose can arrange a personalized trip to the region to meet conservation leaders and see their work firsthand.
• Required watching: Wild Life, a National Geographic documentary from filmmakers Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin, tells the decades-long story of conservation power couple Doug and Kris Tompkins and their work purchasing land, rewilding, and establishing a network of national parks in both Chile and Argentina.

Prince Edward County, Canada

Photo by Michael George

A picturesque island on Lake Ontario lures oenophiles and beachgoers alike.

Prince Edward County is to Torontonians what the North Fork of Long Island is to New Yorkers: a popular weekend getaway spot that’s a little bit fancy and a little bit beachy, with a whole lot of wine. PEC, as the locals call it, offers farm fresh food on every menu, a thriving art scene, and a series of three sandy beaches considered among the best in Canada, with dramatic dunes that rise over 80 feet tall in some areas.

About 130 miles from Toronto on the Loyalist Parkway, PEC consists of 10 wards filled with shops, galleries, restaurants, and tasting rooms. In the small town of Picton, Base31, an arts and entertainment venue featuring emerging artists, opened in 2022 on a former World War II air base.

PEC’s small batches of wines were a longtime open secret, enjoyed mostly by locals until a few vineyards caught the attention of domestic and international press. Standouts among the 40 or so small vineyards include Lighthall, which produces cool-climate pinot noirs and minerally chardonnays, and the Grange, where visitors can walk into a barn that dates to the 19th century, grab a bottle of 2017 Lafontaine du Loup Rosé, and head out to picnic tables overlooking a stream. Or, for a more formal dining experience, they might head to dinner at Merrill House, with its Wine Spectator–awarded cellar.

Ian Nelmes moved back to PEC from France with his husband in 2022 to build Mirazule, a four-room modernist inn. “We love [PEC] because it’s an island of passionate dreamers who left their jobs to come here and open wineries, boutiques, hotels, breweries,” he says.—Charles Runnette

• Where to stay: Don’t miss the 33-room, Scandi-looking Royal Hotel in downtown Picton. It has a spa and seasonal outdoor pool, plus a restau-rant that features food from its very own Edwin County Farms.

St. Vincent

Photos by Jules Nguyen

Long overlooked for glitzier Caribbean locales, the island beckons with its idyllic beaches and abundant marine life—and more flights than ever.

There are 32 islands and cays that make up the country of St. Vincent and the Grenadines, and for years St. Vincent served as little more than a stop-over for travelers on their way to celeb-favorite isles such as Mustique and Bequia. Accommodations were limited, and flights often required a connec-tion in Barbados or St. Lucia. Now, direct flights from the U.S. and the U.K. and a new Sandals resort are helping make the 133-square-mile volcanic island a destination in its own right.

St. Vincent has always been a stunner; the Indigenous Caribs origin- ally called it Hairoun, which means “land of the blessed.” Jungle-like ferns, bougainvillea, and pink-blossomed Soufrière trees carpet the undulating terrain (the capital, Kingstown, boasts the oldest botanical garden in the Western Hemisphere), while the turquoise waters harbor coral reefs, eagle rays, vividly colored angelfish, and sea turtles that delight divers and snorkelers. For beautiful views of the coast and (on a clear day) surrounding islands, travelers and locals hike up La Soufrière volcano, the highest peak in St. Vincent. Be warned that the volcano is active— it last erupted in 2021, causing severe property damage—but the trek remains popular.

In Kingstown, market stalls are piled high with local produce such as jackfruit and soursop. At Vee Jay’s Restaurant and Bar, an island staple for 47 years, a bowl of shrimp and conch souse (a brothy seafood soup) is the dish to order. Fans of Pirates of the Caribbean (2003) can take a tour to see filming locations including Wallilabou Bay and the hotel Wallilabou Anchorage, which preserved much of the set from 2003. They may not find gold doubloons, but they will definitely treasure their time in St. Vincent.— Heather Greenwood Davis

• Where to stay: The all-inclusive Sandals Saint Vincent and the Grenadines opened on quiet Buccament Bay in March 2024, with 301 suites and villas, including the first two-story, overwater villas in the Caribbean and 11 restaurants, the best being Buccan, which highlights “Vincy” cuisine (lamb curry, mango chutney crisp) in a communal dining experience. For a more intimate stay, there’s the Grenadine House in central Kingstown. Built in 1765 as a residence for British government officials, it now offers 20 colonial-style rooms (rattan furnishings, palm-printed drapery), an outdoor pool, and a spa.
• Make it happen: Join guides Julecia and Quency Lewis of Foreign Tours for a walking tour of Kingstown. Stops include many 18th- and 19th-century buildings, such as the historic courthouse, St. Mary’s Cathedral, and the Georgian-style Cobblestone Inn. Guests will also visit a craft market, where they can pick up handmade jewelry, straw place mats, and West Indian dolls.
• Only in St. Vincent: Each December, Vincentians celebrate the Nine Mornings Festival with dances, games, plays, and steel drum performances all taking place in the early hours of the nine days leading up to Christmas. In the summer, revelers take to the streets for Vincy Mas, the island’s annual carnival. Expect soca and calypso bands, parades, elaborate feathered and beaded costumes, and a pageant to crown a king and queen.

Sumba, Indonesia

Photo by Mohammad Fadli

The tropical island promises cultural immersion and untamed natural beauty without the crowds of neighboring Bali.

Sumba has many of the same natural draws as the Indonesian hot spot Bali, which is just an hour flight away—white-sand beaches, hidden waterfalls—but with a fraction of the tourists. In a given month, Bali has more than 500,000 visitors; in an entire year, Sumba has 25,000. It also has a culture all its own. Here, many Sumbese draw beliefs and rituals from an ancient form of ancestor worship called Marapu. The best time to visit is February or March to witness one of the island’s best-preserved Marapu events: pasola, a jousting- like competition in which opposing groups ride sandalwood ponies (a breed of small horse unique to Indonesia) and hurl wooden spears at each other. Traditionally, spilled blood translated to a healthy harvest; now, the spears are blunted, but the competition is still fierce. (The exact dates are determined by the appearance of nyale sea worms.)

In the past couple of years, intrepid hoteliers have introduced new ecofriendly resorts—namely Cap Karoso, a hotel with 44 rooms and 20 villas operating on 50 percent solar energy that opened on the west coast in 2023; and the Sanubari, a 247-acre property with a farm and 11 villas (more are under construction) that opened in the southwest in 2022. Both promise quiet luxury and activities like village tours and horseback riding. A few days on Sumba may involve surfing superlative waves, hiking to crystal-clear lagoons, and spotting starfish from a stand-up paddleboard.

Despite the recent growth, the island retains under-the-radar allure. “Sumba seems to be developing in a slower and more sustainable way than so many other places in the world,” says Rowan Burn, co-owner of the Sanubari. “It feels like a safe haven and retreat from the modern world.”—KR

• Make it happen: Original Travel’s personalized itineraries might include waterfall treks to spot long-tailed macaques and citron-crested cockatoos, a tour of an open-air produce market, or riding Sumba’s famous sandalwood ponies.
• Only in Sumba: Villages in Sumba look like no others, thanks to the unique architectural style of the homes, called uma mbatangu. The three-level structures have soaring, sorcerer hat–like roofs that are considered a sacred space for spirits to reside. (Some families also use this space for food storage.) Per Marapu tradition, to keep ancestors close, the homes are situated near tombs.
• Required reading: Author Elizabeth Pisani dedicates a chapter of Indonesia, Etc.: Exploring the Improbable Nation to her time in Sumba and shares in vivid detail her experience witnessing Sumba’s singular rituals around death, including an animal sacrifice.

Toyama, Japan

Photos by Daisy Wingate

Creative chefs and brewers are transforming this bayside city into a culinary hot spot that just became easier for travelers to reach.

Sandwiched between snowcapped mountains and the Sea of Japan, Toyama has become a prime culinary destination, in part because its bay is the source for some of Japan’s top seafood. And thanks to newly extended service on the Shinkansen (bullet train) from Tokyo, it’s now a lot easier for visitors to get to.

Toyama has recently attracted international trailblazers such as Richard Geoffroy, the former cellar master of Dom Pérignon, who brews sake here under the brand Iwa Sake. And local chefs, such as Eiju Yunoki at Cave Yunoki and Takahiro Gejo at his eponymous sushi restaurant, create dishes with the area’s quality seafood, including nodoguro (blackthroat sea perch), aori ika (bigfin reef squid), and baigai (a local mollusk whose name means “Japanese ivory shell”). In the Iwase district, warehouses dating to the Meiji period (1868–1912) now house Kobo Brewery, where guests can enjoy flights of Czech-style beer paired with sausages. At neighboring Masuda Sake Brewery, fifth-generation master brewer Ryuichiro Masuda crafts Masuizumi sake.

“Toyama is blessed with the splendid nature of the Tateyama Alps and Toyama Bay—visitors can enjoy the excellent food from the sea and land,” says Kazumi Masuda, a Toyama resident and the owner of English-language cooking school Tokyo Cook. “[It] also has a rich history of shokunin (artisans) creating woodcarvings, metalworking, glassware, washi paper, and lacquerware.”

Visitors can admire some of this handiwork at the Glass Art Museum in Toyama City, then take the tram to the Iwase district, home to the Taizo Glass Gallery and Gaku Ceramics. Follow it up with a hearty meal, a cup of sake, and a train back to Tokyo.—Yukari Sakamoto

• Only in Toyama: Hotaru ika (firefly squid) are bioluminescent bite-size delicacies that have a bold flavor and a chewy texture.
• Stay longer: Thirty miles east of Toyama, the town Unazuki Onsen is the entryway to the Kurobe Gorge Railway, a sightseeing train that cuts across one of Japan’s deepest ravines. Stay at Enraku, a traditional ryokan inn with some Western-style rooms (with beds rather than futons) and private baths overlooking a river.

Western Australia

Photo by Drone Chicks/Shutterstock

New Aboriginal-led experiences make engaging with one of the world’s oldest living cultures more enlightening than ever.

Even by antipodean standards, the state of Western Australia is huge. Were it a coun-try, it would be the 10th largest on Earth by area, yet it has only 2.9 million residents, about 80 percent of whom live in Perth, the capital. Within its borders are forests of towering karri trees, parched deserts, and rockscapes daubed a rusty red. For more than 65,000 years, Aboriginal peoples have maintained a strong connection with these lands, passing down Dreamtime stories (origin myths) and creating songlines (like a map in song form, describing landmarks along a route).

A four-year, $20-million government initiative to create and expand Aboriginal-led experi-ences across Western Australia wraps up in 2025 and has already resulted in numerous ways for travelers to gain insight into one of the world’s oldest living cultures. In the southwest, vis-itors can taste traditional Indigenous foods (such as wattle seeds and quandong, a kind of wild peach) that have been harvested according to the six seasons of the Noongar calendar; in the saltwater country of Gutharraguda, visitors can hike the red sand cliffs of the Wanamalu Trail with a Malgana guide; or they can head to Purnululu in the northern Kimberley region to learn about the stories of the stars with a Gija Custodian (a traditional owner and caretaker of the land).

One of the most sacred places in Western Australia is Murujuga National Park, home to what’s believed to be the highest concentration of rock art in the world. The estimated two million petroglyphs here provide a rare visual record of the local Yaburara and Ngarluma people. “[This] was the original medium through which our ancestors shared knowledge across generations,” says Clinton Walker, a Ngarluma and Yindjibarndi man who founded Ngurrangga Tours. “These carvings capture the essence of our people’s spirituality . . . and the deep bond between the land, sea, and sky.”—Keith Drew

• Make it happen: The best way to book Indigenous-led experiences across the state is through discoveraboriginalexperiences.com.
• Where to stay: The Ranges Karratha has 73 apartments with separate living rooms and full kitchens less than 19 miles south of Murujuga National Park. On a peninsula to the east of Murujuga, the 12-room Point Samson Resort is a five-minute walk from sandy beaches along the Indian Ocean, perfect for swimming, snorkeling, and kayaking.
• Required reading: The enlightening anthology Growing Up Aboriginal in Australia collects personal stories from well-known Indigenous people, including writer Tony Birch and actor Miranda Tapsell.

Wild Coast, South Africa

Photo by Pier Nirandara

The rugged 150-mile stretch along the Eastern Cape province delivers epic marine adventures.

While most internationalvisitors to South Africa go on a safari and maybe visit Cape Town or Johannesburg, relatively few make it to the country’s untamed southeastern shore, an area whose name couldn’t be more accurate: the Wild Coast. Here, golden hills are marked with cylindrical huts called rondavels, rivers spill into sweeping bays, and beaches are scattered with roaming Nguni cows and remnants of shipwrecks. Once known as the Transkei, an area where many Black South Africans were forcibly relocated during apartheid, the Wild Coast has a complex past and a compelling present.

Getting there is an adventure. The easiest option is to hop a domestic flight to the lively town of Mthatha, rent a car, and venture down dirt roads to beachfront destinations like Chintsa and Port St. Johns. The biggest draw is the area’s annual sardine run—a natural migration of billions of fish up the coast each June and July, attracting impressive aquatic predators including dusky sharks and Bryde’s whales. Operators such as Offshore Africa and Animal Ocean lead diving trips to witness this Blue Planet–esque action firsthand.

“The Wild Coast is a breathtaking coastline,” says Monwabisi Ngcai, the head of the Wild Coast Museum in Port St. Johns, which showcases exhibits on the region’s culture and history, from its early inhabitants to the arrival of the British and apartheid. Back in Mthatha, the Nelson Mandela Museum pays homage to the area’s native son, the freedom fighter who became the country’s first democratically elected president. Learning more about Mandela and what this region’s people have endured will deepen your appreciation for the Wild Coast.—Pier Nirandara

• Where to stay: The upscale Umngazi Hotel, located on the coast near Port St. Johns, has a tranquil spa and thatched-roof rooms. At Bulungula Eco-Lodge, which is fully owned and managed by Nqileni village, a Xhosa community, guests can stay in a traditional rondavel. Local residents provide Xhosa culture tours, drumming lessons, and more.
• Make it happen: Experience the sardine run on diving trips with Offshore Africa or Animal Ocean. For those who prefer adventures on land, Wild Child Africa offers its four-day guided Pondo Trail hike along a coastal path that includes stops at waterfalls and caves.
• Stay longer: For some awe-inspiring hiking, head northwest to the Drakensberg mountains, which form the border between South Africa and the mountain kingdom of Lesotho, and home to Tugela Falls, one of the highest waterfalls in the world. Literally “Dragon Mountain” (via Afrikaans, derived from the Dutch), this towering range of peaks may have inspired the Misty Mountains of Middle Earth in The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien, who lived in what is now South Africa as a young child.