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Running along the side of Diocletian’s Palace is the Riva, a seafront promenade lined with tall palm trees, bustling cafés, and shaded benches. Stretching from the bronze map of Split to the popular Marmontova shopping strip, it’s one of the busier places in town. Join the fashion-conscious locals gossiping over coffee at sunny cafés, or simply hang out here while you wait for your ferry to the islands.

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In a decorative downtown neighborhood surrounded by palm trees and mid-century architecture sits the El Dorado Scottsdale. Built in 1960, the hotel’s 33 apartment-style rooms are furnished with retro appliances and eclectic touches – and they all come with their own kitchen! The owners have kept much of the building’s original design, but updated it with a fresh look and fun amenities, including a pool and hot tub, barbecue area, fire pit and bikes to explore the area.

The Old Man and the Sea in Savaneta is an ideal place for a romantic island dining experience, amid the ‘clicking palms,’ overlooking the water. Feel the sand beneath your feet, and listen to the waves gently lapping the shoreline as you enjoy a sunset supper in an intimate setting.

The Yannis catamaran departs from Palm Island Resort (but will pick up passengers at nearby Union Island as well) for a full day of sailing, swimming, and snorkeling at the beautiful Tobago Cays and Mayreau’s magnificent Salt Whistle Bay Beach. A buffet lunch, beverages, and snorkeling gear are all included, making this one of the easiest ways to see some of the most breathtaking locations in the Grenadines.

Visitors flock to southern Arizona for sun and saguaros... ...but for a hole in the ground? Other than the ones on golf courses? From the 1960’s to the 1980’s, Tucson was ringed by eighteen steel-and-concrete-reinforced holes in the ground--highly secure shafts in the desert that housed intercontinental ballistic missiles tipped with multi-megaton nuclear bombs. “Peace through Deterrance” was the idea, as the propaganda-phrase goes... Of the 54 Titan Missile complexes that were scattered around the country, only this one, about 45 minutes south of Tucson, has been preserved and opened to the public. It’s a startling reminder of how thin the line was that separated the “Cold War” from “M.A.D."--"mutual assured destruction.” It would only have taken 30 minutes from its desert launch for this missile to deliver unimaginable destruction--via a 9 megaton nuclear warhead--up to 6300 miles (10,000km) away... On a lighter note, some of the filming of one of the Star Trek films took place here. You can visit the subterranean control bunker and staff living quarters, access corridors, and the missile silo itself. Tours are offered on the hour year-round, with additional tours offered every thirty minutes from January through April. Closed Christmas and Thanksgiving. Whether you’re coming from the left or from the right, politically, the sobering reality of this fusion of human nature and technology is worth going underground for if you’re driving down I-19.

Cuatro Cienegas has got to be one of the coolest places on the planet earth! It is certainly not like any other place or ecosystem I have ever visited and I would have never imagined you could find paradise in the middle of the Chihuahuan desert. “Cuatro Cienegas” means “four marshes” in Spanish and at one point in history this place was a wetland. The pools, called pozas, are scattered throughout the desert around the town. Some of the pools are warm and some of them are freezing cold! They are a blast to swim and snorkel in! Cuatro Ciénegas is an official Mexican biological reserve because the ecosystem has unique fauna and flora that can’t be found any other place in the world! NASA stated that the biological reserve of Cuatro Cienegas could have strong links to discovering life on Mars, since the adaptability of bioforms in the region was unique in the world. How far out is that? Some refer to Cuatro Cienegas as the “Galapagos of Mexico”. Be sure you also check out the Gypsum Dunes that are also located here. This place is a geologist’s dream! I would recommend staying at Quinta Santa Cecilia during your visit, and although many of the pozas are mapped and marked you are better off hiring a local guide to take you to the best spots. Cecilia or the management of your hotel can assist here. The drug battles in this part of Mexico continue to dominate the press, but we did not feel unsafe during our visit here.

Joshua Tree in the Mojave Desert is as weird as the shapes of the trees that make it up. While beautiful in its sparse vastness, it is no surprise that alien enthusiasts have taken to the area. For a taste of this, try a rejuvenating soundbath at George Van Tassel’s Integratron which was originally built on top of a “magnetic vortex” as a time machine. If you find yourself with time to kill before or after a soundbath, drive to Giant Rock, the self-proclaimed “largest boulder in the world”. While walking around the poorly graffitied boulder, watch out for motorcross riders that appear out of the dust like ghosts.

Just 30 miles from the southern gate of Zion National Park, Quail Creek State Park surrounds a 600-acre reservoir that boasts some of the warmest waters in Utah. Its consistently mild climate draws year-round tourists and day-trippers eager to boat, fish, and swim in the clear blue water. The park is also home to a spacious campground, which proves a popular alternative for Zion visitors who want to stay in a red-rock-desert setting.

Set on the banks of White Rock Lake, this 66-acre sanctuary offers scenic trails, blooming gardens, and peaceful green spaces for when you want some quiet time with nature—plus kids’ areas, holiday events, and a packed calendar of festivals and concerts for when it’s time for something a bit livelier. Take in the vibrant hues of the Jonsson Color Garden, Crape Myrtle Allee, and gardens dedicated to roses and camellias, or do some contemplating in the Palmer Fern Dell or the McCasland Sunken Garden. Opened in 2017, A Tasteful Place is a 3.5-acre garden focusing on fruit, veggies, and edible herbs and flowers; tastings, demo, nutrition sessions, and cooking classes are held throughout the year. Don’t miss some of the main section’s events, too, such as the annual Dallas Blooms fest and summer concert series.

When in Oporto in Portugal, don’t miss the most famous of the city’s markets: The Bolhao Market. Established in 1839, this colorful, noisy market is located in the heart of the city of Oporto. The market consists of a huge two story building. This market carries every imaginable type of fruit, vegetables, beans, olives, Portuguese specialty cheeses, wonderful home made breads, and deserts. Of course there is fresh fish, poultry, and meats. Don’t miss the flower ladies who carry a huge selection of flowers. An afternoon spent in the market is just an adventure you shouldn’t miss. Walk out with your favorite ice cream flavor at the end of the day.

The beach town of Pimentel, near Chiclayo (on Northern Peru’s desert coast), is known for its family-run beachfront cevicherias. These restaurants have immediate access to fish straight from the sea. Ceviche is eaten only for lunch in the north - so make your visit in the afternoon. Northern Peruvian ceviche is prepared with paper-thin sliced red onions, chile peppers, large chunks of fresh fish and lots of lime juice. The fish gets cooked by the lime juice on the outside, but stays raw on the inside. Fishermen in Pimentel still use the tule reed boats of their ancestors, which you’ll see on the pier and on the beach. The malecon (an ocean front promenade) is lined with decaying stately homes.

Cairo is more than camels and desert, although they have that too. The areas around the Nile are green and lush with trees. Sometimes when I’m walking in Dokki or Zamalek I feel like I’m walking in my hometown in downtown Chico. Unlike the posh island of Zamalek, that’s filled with expats, Dokki is quite authentic. This bustling very local area is full of interesting and unusual restaurants such as my favorite, the Yemeni restaurant. You can also find delicious Sudanese food nearby.

Close to the Haitian border on the Dominican Republic’s northwestern coast, this white-sand beach, which is part of Montecristi National Park, sits below an 800-foot-high limestone mesa. Hike a rough stretch through rocks to the beach and you’ll find clear water but strong currents—these waves are not for children, and even excellent swimmers should be very cautious. Shipwrecks from the colonial days draw experienced divers to nearby Isla Cabrita, while empty sands attract Dominican families on weekends. Playa El Morro is almost completely off the tourist radar and all but deserted on weekdays.

Day-trippers in search of awesome views, cool drinks, and light bites score at this oasis in the middle of Arikok National Park. The menu is simple and heavy on island favorites, from fried whole fish to seafood served with plantains, salad, and pan bait (a pancake-like bread). There are also hamburgers and cold sandwiches, along with frozen cocktails and local beer. Still, it’s the views that really stun. From its perch between Boca Prins Bay and the Fontein Cave, the restaurant has sweeping vistas of desert, hills, and sea.

Who says nothing grows in the desert? Local flavor is fresh and on display Saturday mornings during cooler weather at the Old Town Scottsdale Farmers Market, where Arizona-grown oranges and peppers are sold alongside homemade tamales and mozzarella. There are food trucks, artisanal ice cream, and cooking demonstrations from local chefs. Head to the Singh Farms stand to view the harvest of organic peaches, tomatoes, figs, peppers, and more, along with fresh-baked bread, herb butter, honey, and eggs. Most weeks, a local chef dishes out breakfast from the outdoor café on-site.