All Destinations

The UAE's capital has the most extraordinary mosque in the world — Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque (white marble, 82 domes, world's largest handmade carpet) is free to non-Muslim visitors. The Louvre Abu Dhabi under Jean Nouvel's Rain of Light dome is a genuine world-class museum. Qasr Al Watan presidential palace opened to visitors in 2019. The Empty Quarter's 200m sand dunes are 2.5 hours south.

Home to the Taj Mahal — the white-marble Mughal mausoleum Shah Jahan built for Mumtaz Mahal between 1632-1653, and one of the planet's most familiar buildings. UNESCO 1983. Agra Fort + the Baby Taj round out the trio of Mughal masterpieces; Fatehpur Sikri 40km west adds another UNESCO site for day-trippers. Sits on the Golden Triangle between Delhi (200km north) and Jaipur (240km southwest). The Gatimaan Express does Delhi-Agra in 1h40m, India's fastest train. Air pollution and aggressive touts are real downsides.

Kazakhstan's largest city sits dramatically beneath the snow-capped Tien Shan mountains. A cosmopolitan hub with Soviet-era architecture, excellent Central Asian cuisine, the iconic Green Bazaar, and easy access to alpine hiking and skiing at Shymbulak.

Kazakhstan's futuristic capital rises from the steppe with bold architecture — the Bayterek Tower, Khan Shatyr mall, and Norman Foster's Palace of Peace. One of the world's youngest capitals, showcasing ambitious 21st-century city building.

Ayutthaya is the brick-and-laterite ghost of the second Siamese capital, sacked by the Burmese in 1767 and never rebuilt. The historical park, a UNESCO site since 1991, sits on an island wrapped by three rivers 80 kilometres north of Bangkok, and the three signature ruins — Wat Mahathat with the Buddha head wrapped in fig roots, riverside Wat Chaiwatthanaram glowing at sunset, and royal Wat Phra Si Sanphet — are all rentable-bicycle distance from each other. Trains from Bangkok’s Hua Lamphong take 90 minutes and cost 20 baht in third class. The night market at Bang Ian draws the food crowd; the Khlong Sa Bua boat noodle stalls draw the regulars.

Azerbaijan's capital is one of the world's most architecturally jarring cities — a UNESCO medieval Old City (Icherisheher) with the Maiden Tower and Shirvanshahs' Palace sits directly beneath Flame Towers, three stainless-steel skyscrapers lit at night to simulate fire. The Heydar Aliyev Center (Zaha Hadid, 2012) is one of this century's signature buildings. Gobustan's Bronze Age petroglyphs and mud volcanoes are 65 km south. F1 hosts the Azerbaijan Grand Prix on the city's streets every June.

Bangkok is a sensory overload in the best way — ornate temples rise next to gleaming malls, street food sizzles on every corner, and the Chao Phraya River winds through it all. The city rewards both short visits and deep dives, with a mix of must-see landmarks and hidden neighborhoods that feel worlds apart from the tourist trail.

Cambodia's second-largest city and quiet cultural capital, draped along the lazy Sangker River in the country's rice-bowl northwest. Battambang preserves more French colonial shophouses than anywhere else in Cambodia, with verandahed two-storey rows now housing boutique hotels, third-wave coffee bars, and the studios of Phare Ponleu Selpak, the circus and arts school founded in 1994 to support children orphaned by the Khmer Rouge era. Bamboo Train rides on improvised flat platforms, the cliff temples of Phnom Sampeau with their grim Killing Caves, and the brick stupas of Wat Banan and Wat Ek Phnom round out a destination most travellers regret skipping.

Georgia's subtropical Black Sea city is a unique architectural kaleidoscope — Ottoman, Art Nouveau, Soviet, and contemporary towers sit side by side. The Alphabet Tower rotates in the wind at 130m; the Ali and Nino kinetic sculpture merges and separates every 10 minutes. Visa-free for 95 nationalities for a full year — Batumi is one of the most accessible destinations in the Caucasus.

China's capital is a treasure trove of imperial history — the Forbidden City, Great Wall, and Temple of Heaven are just the beginning. Ancient hutong neighborhoods, world-class Peking duck, and a rapidly modernizing cityscape make Beijing endlessly fascinating.

Kyrgyzstan's leafy capital is the gateway to Central Asia's most spectacular mountain scenery. Soviet-era plazas, buzzing bazaars, excellent Kyrgyz cuisine, and easy day trips to Ala Archa gorge and Issyk-Kul lake make it an underrated destination.

Boracay is a 7-km island off the northwest tip of Panay in the central Philippines — and White Beach, its 4-km western strip of powder-fine coral sand, has topped "world's best beach" rankings since the 1990s. The island reopened in 2018 after a six-month government shutdown that overhauled sewage and built setback rules; the result is a cleaner, more regulated, but still very lively beach scene. The west side delivers White Beach's sunset paraws (outrigger sailboats), island-hopping to Crystal Cove and Magic Island, while the windward east-side Bulabog Beach is the kiteboarding and windsurfing capital of Asia from November to April.

One of the best-preserved medieval cities in Central Asia, Bukhara's old town is a UNESCO site of ancient mosques, madrasas, and caravanserais. The Kalyan Minaret, Ark Fortress, and covered bazaars evoke centuries of Silk Road trade.

South Korea's coastal second city offers stunning beaches, vibrant seafood markets, hillside villages splashed with street art, and soothing hot springs. Haeundae Beach and Gamcheon Culture Village are highlights, with the KTX bullet train connecting to Seoul in just 2.5 hours.

The oldest city in the Philippines — founded by Spanish conquistador Miguel Lopez de Legazpi in 1565 and the colonial capital before Manila. Magellan's wooden cross from 1521 still stands beside the Basilica del Santo Niño, the country's oldest Catholic church. Cebu's lechon (whole roasted suckling pig with lemongrass and garlic stuffing) is what Anthony Bourdain called "the best pig ever". The Mactan Island shrine marks where chieftain Lapu-Lapu killed Magellan, ending the first European circumnavigation. Easy day trips reach Kawasan Falls, the Moalboal sardine run, the Oslob whale sharks, and the Bohol Chocolate Hills (2-hour ferry). The mid-January Sinulog Festival brings a million people to the city.

Capital of Sichuan Province and the panda capital of the world — the Giant Panda Breeding Research Base houses over 200 pandas and is best visited at 7:30am during feeding. Sichuan cuisine (málà numbing-spice from Sichuan peppercorn) is China's most internationally influential regional cooking. Sichuan Opera's biàn liǎn face-changing tradition is a UNESCO intangible heritage art. The Leshan Giant Buddha at 71 meters tall is the world's largest stone Buddha.

Chiang Mai is northern Thailand's cultural capital — a laid-back city ringed by mountains and packed with over 300 Buddhist temples. The Old City's moat-enclosed streets, legendary night markets, and world-class cooking schools make it a favorite for long-stay travelers. The gateway to hill tribe treks and elephant sanctuaries.

Thailand's northernmost city is defined by its temples — the White Temple (Wat Rong Khun), an all-white private temple covered in mirror glass and under continuous construction since 1997, is unlike anything else in the Buddhist world; the Black House (Baandam Museum) is its dark counterpart. The Golden Triangle — where Thailand, Myanmar, and Laos meet at the Mekong and Ruak confluence — is 65 km north. Doi Mae Salong, a misty tea-growing mountain village founded by KMT Chinese Nationalist soldiers after 1949, is one of the most surprising detours in all of Southeast Asia.

Colombo is Sri Lanka's bustling commercial capital — a mix of colonial heritage, Buddhist temples, and a rapidly modernizing skyline. The Pettah bazaar is sensory overload, Galle Face Green offers sunset strolls along the Indian Ocean, and the food scene blends Sri Lankan curry with international influences. The gateway to the rest of the island.

Vietnam's third-largest city sits on a 30-kilometre crescent of the South China Sea between the Hai Van Pass and the Marble Mountains — the country's fastest-growing urban centre, with the viral Golden Bridge held aloft by giant stone hands at Ba Na Hills, the 666-metre Dragon Bridge that breathes fire and water on weekend nights, and the My Khe (China Beach) resort strip. The five Marble Mountains south of the city hide Buddhist cave temples; the Son Tra peninsula north hosts the 67-metre Lady Buddha statue. Easy day trips to Hoi An (30 km south) and Hue (100 km north via the famous Hai Van Pass coastal route) make Da Nang the natural base for central Vietnam.

India's sprawling capital blends Mughal grandeur with modern chaos — from the Red Fort and Jama Masjid to the bustling lanes of Old Delhi and the leafy avenues of New Delhi designed by Lutyens.

Dubai is a city of superlatives — the tallest building, the largest mall, man-made islands visible from space. Beyond the glitz, there's a fascinating mix of old and new: traditional souks alongside futuristic architecture, desert dunes within driving distance of indoor ski slopes. A major global hub with year-round sunshine.

Galle is the Dutch-built fortified port on Sri Lanka's south coast — a 36-hectare walled town inside 17th-century granite ramparts that survived both colonial sieges and the 2004 tsunami almost untouched. UNESCO listed Galle Fort in 1988 as the best-preserved European-built fortified town in South Asia. Inside the walls, gridded streets are lined with white-washed Dutch and British colonial houses, churches, the 1939 lighthouse, and a wave of boutique cafés, design shops, and small hotels that have turned the fort into Sri Lanka's most stylish weekend escape. The southern beaches — Unawatuna, Mirissa, Weligama — are 15–40 minutes east.

The capital of Cantonese cuisine and culture, Guangzhou is a megacity where dim sum reigns supreme. The Pearl River night cruise, Chen Clan Ancestral Hall, and bustling Shangxiajiu Pedestrian Street showcase the city's blend of tradition and modernity.