Beaches of City Bucket List

The Great Buddha sitting in the open air, Zen temples and a surf beach, an hour from Tokyo.

Okinawa's capital: Shuri castle of the Ryukyu kings, Kokusai-dori and a food and drink culture of its own.

A Venetian fortress, a minaret-studded old town and a long beach on the north coast of Crete.

The sunniest city, craft beer and the gateway to the golden beaches of Abel Tasman.

The oldest city in Colombia, the beaches of Tayrona park and the trek to the Lost City.

Djerba's main town: whitewashed souks, the El Ghriba synagogue and Star Wars sets across the island.

The sea of seven colours, a Caribbean island closer to Nicaragua with Raizal English Creole culture.

A sleepy Portuguese town, and Tofo beach with whale sharks and manta rays all year.

Vasco da Gama's pillar, the Gedi ruins in the forest and the Italian-flavoured beach town.

Dhow trips to the Bazaruto archipelago, dugongs and dune islands in turquoise water.

Colonial churches, a long beach and the observatories of the Elqui valley behind.

The resort bay of the north: catamarans to the islands, snorkelling and the nightlife of the island.

The Red Sea resort coast: dive boats to the Giftun islands and dolphins in the morning.

Diego Suarez: the second-largest bay in the world, the Emerald Sea and the Amber Mountain rainforest.

The Ras Mohammed reefs and the Thistlegorm wreck, at the tip of the Sinai.

The easternmost point of the mainland, a lighthouse walk, surf breaks and whales passing offshore.

A UNESCO medina by the beach, the Ribat fortress and Roman mosaics in the museum.

A windswept Atlantic port with 18th-century ramparts, a fish market and kitesurfing on the beach.

Camel rides on Cable Beach at sunset, pearling history and the Staircase to the Moon.

The adobe city of Chan Chan, the Huacas of the Sun and Moon and the surf at Huanchaco.

The Blue Hole, freediving on the Bedouin beach and Mount Sinai at sunrise an hour away.

Four Mile Beach, reef boats and the Daintree, the quieter northern base for the reef.

Port Elizabeth: the Friendly City of beaches and the elephants of Addo park, the end of the Garden Route.

A ten-kilometre beach on the Atlantic, rebuilt modern after the 1960 earthquake, and the Paradise Valley behind.

Climb Dunn's River Falls and swim the Blue Hole, with Bob Marley's birthplace in the hills.

Coral reefs on the Red Sea, the Underwater Observatory and the desert of Timna, at Israel's southern tip.

The gateway to Manuel Antonio: sloths and capuchins on the beach in the smallest national park.

Waikiki beach, the Pearl Harbor memorial and the Diamond Head crater hike.

Balboa Park, the zoo, La Jolla sea lions and the best year-round weather in the country.

A cobbled old town on Banderas Bay, humpback whales in winter and the Malecon at sunset.