Author of Lonely Planet’s new book Stargazing Around the World: A Tour of the Night Sky, Valerie Stimac, shares her favorite places for seeing the stars in all their glory. Standing in the starlight under the swath of the Milky Way, the pristine night sky is one of the most incredible wonders many of us …
Up at the north end of Texas, Dallas is not quite the gulf, not quite the plains, and not quite the southwest, but it’s within easy driving distance of all three. In three hours or less, you can visit dynamic Texas university towns, go antiquing in quirky stores, sip your way from vineyard to vineyard, …
At the foot of the Rocky Mountains in eastern Colorado, beautiful Colorado Springs retains many of its small-town charms. Natural attractions in the shape of dramatic Pikes Peak and the vertical sandstone towers of the Garden of the Gods are the main draw here – yet Colorado Springs’ charming neighborhoods make it feel like the cozy mountain outpost …
The tourism industry as we know it only arrived in Mexico a century or so ago. Yet some of the country’s most popular draws for contemporary travelers have been hundreds of thousands of years in the making. Cenotes take shape over thousands of years as rainwater seeps into the bedrock below the surface. As it …
What’s perhaps the strangest thing about the Yucatán Peninsula? That this rain-rich, jungle-clad region of Mexico features a complete lack of rivers. Rather than pooling in streams, the water that falls here seeps through the peninsula’s base of permeable limestone. The result is an underworld of interconnected subterranean rivers and semi-submerged caverns – a unique geographical …
Roughly half of the country’s international tourists land in Bali, but Indonesia is so much more than one enticing island. One day, you can be strolling beneath the glistening skyscrapers of a modern city; the next, climbing the freezing-cold summit of a puffing volcano or beating through tropical rainforests in search of orangutans or tigers. You can start …
Mural-filled monasteries, snow-crowned peaks, ancient fortresses and tranquil Buddhist villages edged by chili farms – the stunning beauty of Bhutan is visible around every turn of its hairpin roads. As part of the country’s “high value, low volume” tourism model, there’s a fixed daily tourist fee of US$100, but the rewards speak for themselves. Internationally …
The memory of your first sea turtle sighting never fades. Whether it’s a turtle swimming gracefully or hatchlings scurrying toward the sea, these moments linger for a lifetime. Wherever your travels take you, you’ll come across unique species in stunning environments, each moment showing you just how rich the ocean truly is. But the sense …
Vail’s world-class skiing and snowboarding terrain draws visitors from around the world, it’s true. Yet there’s much more to this Colorado mountain town than snow sports. Whether you crave a bold outdoor adventure in the Rockies or favor an afternoon of posh pampering, the Vail Valley offers vacationers a wide range of recreation options. From …
You know it’s winter in North America when ads promoting the Caribbean, Mexico and Hawaii are absolutely dominating every inch of media you consume. The message: winter is coming; board the nearest plane headed for sun and sand. But, before you book that flight, consider this counterpoint: those balmy destinations are great year-round. The places …