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The Baolong City Plaza is much more than a shopping mall. Inside, you’ll find the expected little shops, but in addition they boast an international cinema, hanging artworks, a five-story department store, and a two-floor grocery store. However, the main attraction for families is the dragon themed amusement park, Baolong Anime City. 193 Gongye Road 福州宝龙城市广场工业路193号

There are several small towns around Alaska that make visitors of years past smile. Talkeetna sits pretty high atop that list. A good stopping point between Anchorage and Denali National Park, the town is at once a history stop, arty spot, beer fill-up, hearty food destination, and mountain climbing mecca. Talkeetna is the first step for everybody setting out to climb Denali. But it’s also the go-to for visitors who enjoy quirky little towns with huge personalities. Thanks to cruise-ship bus tours, the town does get a bit overrun during the summer months—but it’s still worth swinging in. And if you happen to be in Alaska during the winter and want to attend a very Alaskan event, don’t miss the Bachelor Auction. The entire town gets revved up and pretty darn drunk. It’s damn fun.

In the blink-and-you’ll-miss-it village of Volcano, on the slopes of Mauna Loa and just outside of Hawai’i Volcanoes National Park, are a handful of B&Bs and cottage rentals (see also Volcano Rainforest Retreat). Among the oldest—but no less charming for its 25 years—is Volcano Village Estate (previously known as Hale Ohia).


It’s a small cottage colony, with guest quarters scattered around a two-acre estate thickly carpeted in emerald-green moss and shaded by stands of soaring sugi (Japanese cedar) trees. The main house, a quirky Queen Anne style Victorian with a miniature turret and stone chimney that make it look like it was lifted right out of a children’s storybook, dates back to the 1930s when the manager of a sugar plantation built it as a summer holiday home. The gardens were planted by the same master landscape architects responsible for the Liliʻuokalani Gardens in Hilo (at one time the largest Edo style garden outside of Japan).


All guest quarters are sweetly decorated, in a largely Craftsman style with ceramic tiles and soft woods; some have pretty, stained-glass windows. But on a chilly Volcano night—and most of them are since the town sits at 4,000 feet—nothing is quite as romantic as curling up by the fireplace in one of the three stand-alone cottages, unless, of course, it’s sitting in the garden and watching the dazzling night sky, which is reason enough to stay on this side of the island.

Diani Beach is a 25km strip of pale, sugary sands backed by the cerulean Indian Ocean. As one of the more developed towns on the Kenyan coast, there’s a great variety of restaurants, cafés, bars and shops here. Also on offer are activities from horse riding to kite-surfing and tours of the ancient Kaya Forest. Popular haunts in Diani include the Forty Thieves Beach Bar - renowned for their fun beach parties and tasty pizzas, as well as Ali Barbour’s restaurant – set inside a candle-lit cave which opens out onto the starry night’s sky above. However you choose to spend your time in this idyllic costal location, one thing is for sure: as the sun sets, castling a golden glitter on the sea below, and the beach-front restaurants lay flickering lanterns on the sand, there are few other places in the world you will want to be.

With its pristine beaches, emerald lagoons, and wildlife-filled jungles, Manuel Antonio National Park is considered one of the world’s most beautiful natural wonders. There’s no better place from which to explore it than the five-star Arenas del Mar, an 11-acre hotel and reserve that’s set atop rain-forested cliffs overlooking the Pacific and delivers just the right amount of luxury within walking distance of the park. (Just don’t be surprised to cross paths with the occasional monkey, sloth, crab, or iguana.) The rooms on the upper level have ocean views and feature hot tubs on large terraces; beachfront rooms are a particularly good choice for families with children thanks to easy access to the lower pool and the casual Playitas Restaurant. But the resort is also an unexpected culinary beacon, serving sustainable dock-to-dish seafood caught by local fisherman that morning and certified gluten-free options alongside traditional Costa Rican specialties.

Opened in 2005, the Jasper Brewing Company was the first brewpub within a Canadian national park. It is now a local’s staple hangout. Seven different beers—like the Rockhopper IPA and Honey Bear Ale—are brewed on location, so make sure to order a brewery tour along with a fresh pint. The food menu is pub fare with a special flare to help bring out the flavors of the beer. The brewpub, open daily from 11:30am to 1:00am, is child-friendly, too, as the venue is divided into two, with both a restaurant and pub. Beer from $5.50. Contact 1-780-852-4111.

One of Bill White’s collection of restaurants, Sushi Blue serves an eclectic mix of items, from a full sushi bar to “Rad Thai” and Korean street tacos, and a great burger. It’s a great place to go if you have a mix of sushi lovers and “not so much” in your dining party. The Green Papaya Salad with cherry tomatoes, cilantro, crushed peanuts and citrus dressing is refreshing. For signature sushi rolls, try the Holy Shishito, with albacore, grilled shishito pepper and cucumber topped with red snapper, avocado, and spicy roasted onion ponzu. The easy access to this restaurant in the Redstone shopping area makes it a popular choice.

Wahso, part of the Bill White Enterprises family of restaurants in town, is the perfect example of White’s propensity to lavishly decorate his popular eateries. With Asian artifacts that White collected from around the world, and elegant touches like the velvet curtains encasing each booth, it doesn’t get more romantic than this. The food is excellent, and the prices reflect that. Try the green curry mussels, the watermelon and goat cheese salad with arugula, fennel, cherry tomatoes and lemon basil dressing, or the Miso Black Cod with aromatic rice, shiitake, bok choy and mushroom-ginger broth. By the way, “Wahso” is a phonetic play on the French word for bird, “oiseau.”

The Icefield Parkway isn’t just a highway linking Lake Louise and Jasper, Alberta. It’s a 230-km road trip through the Canadian Rockies, past a series of emerald-green alpine lakes fed by nearby glaciers. The entire route connects Jasper and Banff national parks and traverses the Canadian Rocky Mountain Parks UNESCO World Heritage site. Heading south from Jasper, the first must-see landmark is Athabasca Falls. After that, the sights come one after the other, like the Endless Chain, Sunwapta Falls, the Athabasca Glacier, Waterfowl Lake, and Bow Summit. That’s just the tip of the Icefield, though, as there are hundreds of breathtaking sights. The drive can take as little as three hours; however, it can also last for days. Throughout the summer there are a number of resorts along the route, along with a half-dozen campgrounds. The road is open throughout the winter, but there are no open services.

For the most authentic Mexican food in Laguna Beach, head to Carmelita’s, where the kitchen works tirelessly to prepare each dish from scratch using as much local produce as possible. On the menu, diners will find favorites like made-to-order guacamole and fire-roasted street corn alongside traditional options like veggie-stuffed poblanos, carnitas tacos, and tampiqueña (skirt steak served atop enchiladas with guacamole). Pair it all with handcrafted margaritas in flavors like pomegranate, cilantro-cucumber, and pineapple-jalapeño and you might just find yourself planning a trip 85 miles south to the border.

From this 900-foot-high viewing platform—equipped with a telescope, map, and signage—you have a panoramic view of the majestic Mesopotamia Valley (“Mespo”), home to St. Vincent’s fruit, vegetable, and spice crops. A sea of green expands in every direction, bordered by the blue Caribbean far to the south and the mist-shrouded Grand Bonhomme Mountain to the north. It’s the perfect spot to soak up St. Vincent’s rich natural beauty—and to catch a cool breeze.

With its Spanish moss-draped oak trees and beautiful stucco buildings, the College of Charleston‘s campus is long on atmosphere and makes a great place for a stroll. Randolph Hall, a magnificent edifice built in 1828 and one of the six college buildings on the register of National Historic Landmarks, has appeared in movies from The Patriot to Dear John, and in the Civil War miniseries North and South. Also of note, the President’s House, once the parsonage of St. Philip’s Church, is the oldest building on campus.

A visit to Hyderabad may not be complete until you have savored the cuisine at Paradise Food Court. The Secunderabad location—considered the largest sit-down restaurant in all of India—has multiple spaces, including Paradise Cafe, Paradise Bakery and Confectionery, Paradise Roof Garden, and Paradise Heights. But whatever you do, make sure to try the biryani—a fragrant mixed rice dish cooked with meat or eggs. Hyderabad has more varieties of biryani than any other South Asian destination, so come hungry and sample the goodness.

Hotel Atarazana is a simple, airy, and clean hotel a stone’s throw from Plaza España at the north-east of Santo Domingo’s Zona Colonial. There is a cute walled courtyard where you take breakfast, and an open rooftop (with some shade) for sunbathing, reading, and rum; drinking water is included; and the staff are friendly and some speak English. All the Zona Colonial’s sights are within easy walking distance; the pedestrianized El Conde is a ten minute saunter south. (Note: The hotel is so close to the bars / clubs off Plaza España that it can get noisy at night.)

Jamaican food is not all jerk and meat patties! You can sample one of the island’s most popular snacks, pepper shrimp, along the south coast. In the town of Middle Quarters, roadside vendors cook the shrimp in big steaming pots on outdoor grills. The shrimp, caught in the Black River, are boiled in salty water and then spiced with chopped scotch bonnet peppers, sea salt, vinegar, and black pepper. Plastic bags of the fiery little shellfish are peddled to drivers passing on their way home from work and to lucky tourists for a messy and addictive snack.