The choice is yours
The world is a big place, offering up an incredible array of experiences. From meeting mountain gorillas in Rwanda to rubbing shoulders with royalty in England's estates. How about hitting the road in the Australian outback or witnessing the world's greatest wildlife show in Kenya? Yep, it's a big place all right, and it's yours to explore.
Start your journey with a tour of these great countries. Be inspired by articles from Lonely Planet authors, with insider tips and recommendations on where to go and what to do. See what's on with the calendar of events. Get expert advice from Visa on how to manage and access your money easily abroad with tips on credit card safety and using ATMs. And get started with once in a lifetime itineraries.
You can go anywhere. So where will you go?
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Australia
Australia
This immense island continent is a rare place of space on an increasingly crowded planet. As well as room to move and clean air, it has a relaxed lifestyle, fine weather, a big bridge and an even bigger, redder rock.
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China
China
China may be modernising at a head-spinning pace but you can quickly tap into a rich seam of antiquity: Beijing's Forbidden City, the wonder of the Great Wall, ancient Hakka roundhouses and historic walled villages. And then there's the spectacular scenery and the food…
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Croatia
Croatia
Croatia's rare blend of glamour and old-fashioned authenticity make it Europe's 'it' destination where beaches and sunshine vie for attention with cultural treasures, ancient architecture and time-tested folk traditions.
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Egypt
Egypt
Stunning monuments, vast deserts, coral-filled sea, characterful people - these are elements you can find in many countries, but in Egypt they are strung together in such a way as to make a journey here a memorable, perhaps even life-changing, experience.
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Kenya
Kenya
From chasing lions on a savannah safari in the Masai Mara to watching the annual wildebeest migration or kicking back on a Swahili Coast beach, Kenya is a classic slice of Africa.
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Lebanon
Lebanon
Lebanon is the perfect destination for experiencing a rich variety of sights, sounds, cuisines and cultural edifices within an incredibly compact area. It plays host to ancient cities, world-class nightclubs, Mediterranean beaches, labyrinthine medieval souqs and stunning mountain landscapes.
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Mauritius
Mauritius
Famed for sapphire waters, powder-white beaches and large swaths of tropical forest, Mauritius is a slice of paradise, an island of diverse cultures, and diving mecca begging to be explored.
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Morocco
Morocco
Morocco might just be a short hop away, but it's a much further distance to travel culturally. The regular certainties of Europe are suddenly swept away by the arrival in full technicolour of Africa and Islam. It's a complete sensory overload.
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Russia
Russia
Russia is so rich in artistic, architectural, cultural and natural treasures that a lifetime of vacations wouldn't be sufficient to experience them all. Take in old favourites like dynamic Moscow, historic St Petersburg and beautiful Lake Baikal, but then dive further and deeper into the largest country in the world.
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Rwanda
Rwanda
The trek into dense jungle to encounter mountain gorillas is a big reason to visit Rwanda, but this tiny East African nation – bravely recovering from horrific genocide – has much more to offer.
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Seychelles
Seychelles
The beaches are exquisite ribbons of white sand lapped by topaz waters and backed by lush hills and big glacis boulders. And there's hardly a soul in sight. That's what's waiting in the Seychelles.
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Singapore
Singapore
Most people know about the shopping and the eating, but Singapore has taken a serious look at the subject of fun, decided that it is good, and set about converting itself into the ultimate 21st-century metropolis. Whatever you thought you knew about Singapore, there's always a surprise around the corner.
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South Africa
South Africa
Every country in the world displays some diversity, but South Africa, stretching from the hippos in the Limpopo River to the penguins waddling on the Cape, takes some beating. It truly befits its position at the southern end of the world's most epic continent.
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Tanzania
Tanzania
Safari on the Serengeti, hike up Mt Kilimanjaro and relax on the idyllic beaches of exotic Zanzibar Island – Tanzania is the Africa of your wildest dreams.
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Thailand
Thailand
Thailand is lucky. It has the looks, the temperament and the attractions to capture the world's imagination for an exotic escape. It is mysterious and confounding but approachable and inviting. Hospitality is a genuine art, crafted by a culture that takes pride in putting people at ease.
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Ukraine
Ukraine
Big, diverse and largely undiscovered, Ukraine is one of Europe's last genuine travel frontiers, a poor nation rich in colour-splashed tradition, warm-hearted people and off-the-map travel experiences.
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United Arab Emirates
United Arab Emirates
The UAE is a contradictory destination, an Islamic state where the DJs' turntables stop spinning just before the muezzins' morning call to prayer can be heard, and where traditional Bedouin lifestyles and customs continue alongside a very western version of rampant consumerism.
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United Kingdom
United Kingdom
Edinburgh Castle, Buckingham Palace, Stonehenge, Snowdon, Manchester United, The Beatles – the UK cultivates icons like no other place on earth, and travel here is a fascinating mix of famous names and hidden gems.
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