Where in
the World?

1. How locals greet you: “Konnichiwa.”
2. On the table: Lunch boxes sold on station platforms, made to be eaten on the train.
3. Strange but true: Its bullet trains have carried billions of passengers since 1964 without a single passenger death in a collision or derailment.
4. The landmark: A snow-capped volcano 3,776 m high that you can see from the capital on a clear day.
5. The giveaway: The currency is the yen, and the flag is a red disc on white.

Temples and neon, hot springs and ski slopes, and some of the best food anywhere, all joined by trains that run to the second.

Getting in: Many nationalities can visit Japan without a visa for short stays; others need a visa before they travel.

1. How locals greet you: “Ahlan wa sahlan.”
2. On the table: Koshari: rice, lentils and macaroni under a spicy tomato sauce and crispy fried onions.
3. Strange but true: Almost everyone lives along one river, on a narrow strip that is a small fraction of the country.
4. The landmark: A new museum, opened in full in 2025, looks across the desert at three pyramids.
5. The giveaway: The currency is the pound, and the flag has a golden eagle in the middle.

The pyramids and the new Grand Egyptian Museum, a Nile cruise to Luxor and Aswan, and the Red Sea's reefs for winter sun.

Getting in: Most visitors need a visa for Egypt, and many nationalities can get an e-Visa online before they fly.

1. How locals greet you: “Allillanchu”, in Quechua, the language of an ancient empire.
2. On the table: Raw fish “cooked” in lime juice with chilli and red onion.
3. Strange but true: It shares a lake often called the highest navigable in the world with its neighbour.
4. The landmark: A stone citadel on a mountain ridge, made famous around the world in 1911.
5. The giveaway: The currency is the sol, the sun.

Machu Picchu and the Sacred Valley, Lima's restaurants, the Amazon and Lake Titicaca in one country.

Getting in: Many nationalities can visit Peru without a visa; check the rules for your passport.

1. How locals greet you: “Xin chào.”
2. On the table: Beef noodle soup eaten for breakfast, often on a tiny plastic stool on the pavement.
3. Strange but true: The country is shaped like a long S, with more than 3,000 km of coast.
4. The landmark: A bay of more than 1,600 limestone islands rising from emerald water.
5. The giveaway: The currency is the đồng, and the flag is a yellow star on red.

Ha Long Bay, Hoi An's lantern-lit old town, the Mekong Delta and street food that is worth the trip on its own.

Getting in: Vietnam issues e-Visas to all nationalities, valid for up to 90 days; many can also visit visa-free for shorter stays.

1. How locals greet you: “Góðan daginn.”
2. On the table: A thick, high-protein dairy that looks like yoghurt but is technically a cheese.
3. Strange but true: It has no army of its own, and mosquitoes were found here for the first time only in 2025.
4. The landmark: A hot spring here gave its name to every geyser in the world.
5. The giveaway: The currency is the króna, and the capital is the northernmost of any independent country.

Glaciers, volcanoes, waterfalls and the northern lights, all within a day's drive of the capital.

Getting in: Iceland is in the Schengen area: many passports can visit visa-free; the rest need a Schengen visa.

1. How locals greet you: “Salam”, or “Azul” in Amazigh.
2. On the table: Stews slow-cooked in a cone-lidded clay pot that gives the dish its name.
3. Strange but true: The only African country with coasts on both the Atlantic and the Mediterranean.
4. The landmark: A great square that fills every evening with storytellers, musicians and food stalls, below a 12th-century minaret.
5. The giveaway: The currency is the dirham, and the flag is a green star on red.

The souks of Marrakech and Fes, the Atlas Mountains, the Sahara's dunes and the blue town of Chefchaouen.

Getting in: Many nationalities, including EU, UK and US citizens, can visit Morocco without a visa; others can apply for an e-Visa.

1. How locals greet you: “Selamat datang.”
2. On the table: Beef slow-cooked in coconut milk and spices until the sauce disappears.
3. Strange but true: It has more than 17,000 islands.
4. The landmark: The largest Buddhist temple in the world, built in the 9th century and lost under volcanic ash.
5. The giveaway: The currency is the rupiah, and the flag is red over white.

Bali's temples and beaches, Borobudur at sunrise, the Komodo dragons and some of the world's best diving.

Getting in: Many nationalities can get an e-Visa or a visa on arrival for Indonesia; others need a visa before they travel.

1. How locals greet you: “Gamarjoba.”
2. On the table: A boat-shaped bread filled with molten cheese and a raw egg.
3. Strange but true: People here have made wine in clay jars buried in the ground for about 8,000 years.
4. The landmark: It writes in its own alphabet, used by no other country.
5. The giveaway: The currency is the lari, and the flag has five red crosses.

The Caucasus mountains, ancient wine country, Tbilisi's sulphur baths and some of the most generous hosts in the world.

Getting in: Citizens of nearly a hundred countries can visit Georgia without a visa, many of them for up to a year.

1. How locals greet you: “Jambo.”
2. On the table: Nyama choma: grilled meat, shared on a big wooden board.
3. Strange but true: Its capital has a national park with lions and rhinos inside the city limits.
4. The landmark: Every year more than a million wildebeest cross the Mara River in the Maasai Mara on their great migration.
5. The giveaway: The currency is the shilling, and the flag has a Maasai shield and spears.

The Maasai Mara's migration, Mount Kenya, the Indian Ocean coast and safaris that start a short drive from the capital.

Getting in: Most visitors from outside Africa need an Electronic Travel Authorisation (eTA) for Kenya, applied for online before travel.

1. How locals greet you: “Marhaba.”
2. On the table: Kabsa: spiced rice cooked with chicken or lamb, served on a big shared platter.
3. Strange but true: It is one of the largest countries in the world with no permanent rivers.
4. The landmark: Tombs carved into sandstone by the Nabataeans at Hegra, near AlUla.
5. The giveaway: The currency is the riyal, and the flag is green with a sword.

AlUla's tombs and canyons, the old mud city of Diriyah, Red Sea reefs, and a country only open to tourists since 2019.

Getting in: Saudi Arabia issues tourist e-Visas online to visitors from many countries; others apply through an embassy.

1. How locals greet you: “Hola, bienvenidos.”
2. On the table: A dark sauce of chillies, spices and chocolate.
3. Strange but true: Its capital was built on a lake, and parts of it are still sinking.
4. The landmark: On the equinoxes, a shadow like a serpent crawls down the steps of a Mayan pyramid.
5. The giveaway: The currency is the peso, and the flag shows an eagle eating a snake.

Mayan ruins, Caribbean beaches, colonial towns and Mexico City, one of the great food cities of the world.

Getting in: Many nationalities can visit Mexico without a visa; others need a visa, or can use a valid visa or residence permit from the US, Canada, the UK, Japan or the Schengen area.

1. How locals greet you: “Ayubowan”: may you live long.
2. On the table: Hoppers: crisp, bowl-shaped pancakes of rice flour and coconut milk, often with an egg inside.
3. Strange but true: It is one of the world's biggest tea exporters, and its tea is still sold under its old name.
4. The landmark: A palace built on top of a giant rock, with a gateway shaped like a lion's paws.
5. The giveaway: The currency is the rupee, and the flag has a lion holding a sword.

Sigiriya and the ancient cities, tea country by train, leopards in Yala and long beaches in the south.

Getting in: Most visitors need an Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) before they travel; for 40 nationalities it is free for stays of up to 30 days.

1. How locals greet you: “Assalomu alaykum.”
2. On the table: Plov: rice cooked with carrots, onions and lamb in a giant iron pot.
3. Strange but true: It is one of only two countries in the world that are doubly landlocked.
4. The landmark: Three tiled madrasas facing one square, on the old Silk Road.
5. The giveaway: The currency is the som, and the flag has a crescent and twelve stars.

Samarkand, Bukhara and Khiva: the blue-tiled cities of the Silk Road, now linked by fast trains.

Getting in: Citizens of many countries can visit Uzbekistan without a visa; others can apply for an e-Visa online.

1. How locals greet you: “Suosdei.”
2. On the table: Fish amok: fish steamed in a coconut curry inside a banana-leaf cup.
3. Strange but true: Its great lake grows several times over in the rainy season, when a river flowing out of it reverses.
4. The landmark: The largest religious monument in the world, built in the 12th century.
5. The giveaway: Its flag is one of very few with a building on it.

The temples of Angkor, the riverfront of Phnom Penh, quiet islands in the south and the floating villages of the Tonlé Sap.

Getting in: Most visitors need a visa for Cambodia, and many nationalities can get an e-Visa online before they travel.

1. How locals greet you: “Kia ora.”
2. On the table: A meringue dessert topped with cream and fruit, which its neighbour also claims to have invented.
3. Strange but true: There are more than four sheep for every person.
4. The landmark: A hobbit village built for a film trilogy, kept as it was on a working farm.
5. The giveaway: The currency is the dollar, and the flag has four red stars.

Fjords, glaciers, volcanoes and beaches in two islands, with the adventure capital Queenstown in the middle of it all.

Getting in: Most visa-free visitors need a New Zealand Electronic Travel Authority (NZeTA) before they travel; others need a visa.