The gateway to Lake Atitlan, three volcanoes and the Maya villages reached by boat.
Xela, the highland second city of Spanish schools, hot springs and the Santa Maria volcano.
A cobbled island town in Lake Peten Itza, the base for the Tikal pyramids at dawn.
The Arch at Land's End where the Pacific meets the Sea of Cortez, sport fishing and whale sharks.
A cobbled old town on Banderas Bay, humpback whales in winter and the Malecon at sunset.
Red rock buttes, vortex hikes and a Chapel built into the cliff, two hours from the Grand Canyon.
Walt Disney World, Universal and the theme-park capital of the world.
Rainbow Row, Fort Sumter where the Civil War began and Lowcountry cooking.
Temple Square, the Great Salt Lake and the greatest snow on Earth an hour up the canyons.
Saguaro cacti in the Desert Botanical Garden and Camelback Mountain at dawn, before the heat.
The Mile High City, the gateway to the Rockies, with Red Rocks amphitheatre and a craft beer scene.
Dealey Plaza and the Sixth Floor Museum, the Arts District and Texas barbecue.
The Liberty Bell and Independence Hall, the Rocky steps at the art museum, and a cheesesteak.
The cultural capital of Iraqi Kurdistan, the Amna Suraka prison museum and the Zagros mountains.
Bali's cultural heart: the Monkey Forest, the Tegallalang rice terraces and dance every night.
The causeway city facing Singapore, Legoland Malaysia and an old town being rediscovered.
The royal family's seaside resort since the 1920s, with a teak palace, night markets and a long beach.
A valley town of 762 curves from Chiang Mai, hot springs, a canyon and a slow backpacker scene.
Limestone cliffs at Railay for climbing, longtail boats to Phi Phi and the Four Islands.
The port for Ha Long Bay: 1,600 limestone islands and an overnight on a junk boat.
A French hill station of pine forests, flower farms and a Crazy House, cool all year in the Central Highlands.
A fire-breathing Dragon Bridge, My Khe beach and the Golden Bridge held up by giant hands in the Ba Na hills.
The Hahoe folk village, its mask dance and the Confucian academies of the Joseon aristocracy.
The Seomun night market, a medicine-herb street and the Haeinsa temple with its 80,000 printing blocks nearby.
Korea's oldest Chinatown, the Songdo smart city and the island beaches by the airport.
The Longmen Grottoes with 100,000 carved Buddhas, the first Buddhist temple in China and the April peony festival.
A complete Ming-dynasty walled city where China's first banks were founded.
The Potala Palace at 3,650 metres, pilgrims prostrating around the Jokhang and the Barkhor market.
A Naxi old town of canals and stone bridges under the Jade Dragon Snow Mountain.
The Peace Park and the hypocentre, plus Dejima, the island where Japan traded with the world for 200 years.
Infobox
