Phnom Penh
With its classic Khmer roofs and ornate gilding, the Royal Palace once dominated the skyline of Phnom Penh. It's a striking structure near the riverfront,…
Phnom Penh
With its classic Khmer roofs and ornate gilding, the Royal Palace once dominated the skyline of Phnom Penh. It's a striking structure near the riverfront,…
Ubud
If you only visit one museum in Ubud, make it this one. Founder Agung Rai built his fortune selling Balinese artwork to foreigners in the 1970s, and…
Flores
Kelimutu National Park is a Nusa Tenggara must. Its centrepiece is Gunung Kelimutu, crowned by three startling lakes that shift colour thanks to…
Myanmar (Burma)
Following the destruction of Bago in 1757, this huge reclining buddha was overgrown by jungle and not rediscovered until 1881, when a contractor unearthed…
Nakhon Ratchasima Province
Prasat Phimai is one of the most impressive Khmer ruins in Thailand, both in its grand scale and its intricate details. Though built as a Mahayana…
Eastern Cambodia
At the heart of the protected area of Boeng Yeak Lom is a beautiful, emerald-hued crater lake set amid the vivid greens of the towering jungle. It is one…
Phra Nakhon Khiri Historical Park
Phetchaburi
This national historical park sits regally atop Khao Wang (Palace Hill), surveying the city with subdued opulence. Rama IV built the palace and dozens of…
Chiang Mai
Chiang Mai's most revered temple, Wat Phra Singh is dominated by an enormous, mosaic-inlaid wí·hăhn (sanctuary). Its prosperity is plain to see from the…
Phnom Penh
Between 1975 and 1978, about 20,000 men, women, children and infants who had been detained and tortured at S-21 prison were transported to the…
Mae Hong Son Province
About 9km northeast of Soppong is Tham Lot (pronounced tâm lôrt and also known as tâm nám lôrt), a large limestone cave with impressive stalagmites,…
Rakhine State
Shittaung means ‘Shrine of the 80,000 Images’, a reference to the number of holy images inside. King Minbin, the most powerful of Rakhine’s kings, built…
Siem Reap
Looming large on the road to Angkor is the Angkor National Museum, a state-of-the-art showpiece on the Khmer civilisation and the majesty of Angkor…
Hanoi
This thought-provoking site is all that remains of the former Hoa Lo Prison, ironically nicknamed the ‘Hanoi Hilton’ by US prisoners of war (POWs) during…
Bohol
In Canapnapan, a barangay of Corella, you can see saucer-eyed tarsiers in the wild at the Philippine Tarsier Sanctuary. Over 100 of these territorial…
Luang Prabang
Dominating the old city centre and a favourite with sunset junkies, the 100m-tall Phu Si (prepare your legs for a steep 329-step ascent) is crowned by a…
Sabah
This hill, 2km north of the Batuh Putih bridge, features three caves housing the ancestors of local Orang Sungai (People of the River). Because the…
Kamphaeng Phet Historical Park
Northern Thailand
A Unesco World Heritage Site, the Kamphaeng Phet Historical Park features the ruins of structures dating back to the 14th century, roughly the same time…
Singaraja
Sitting 18km southeast of Singaraja, some six or seven separate waterfalls – all fed by upland streams – pour up to 80m over cliffs in a verdant bamboo…
Merdeka Square & Central Jakarta
The National Museum is the best of its kind in Indonesia and an essential visit. The enormous collection begins around an open courtyard of the 1862…
Pyin Oo Lwin
Founded in 1915 and carved out by Turkish prisoners captured by the British during WWI, this lovingly maintained 435-acre botanical garden features more…
Hoi An
Built two centuries ago by an ethnically Vietnamese family, this gem of a house has been lovingly preserved through seven generations. Look out for signs…
Chiang Mai
Chiang Mai's oldest public market, Warorot (also spelt Waroros) is a great place to connect with the city's Thai soul. Alongside souvenir vendors you'll…
East Bali
Perched nearly 1000m up the side of Gunung Agung, this is Bali's most important Hindu temple. The site encompasses 23 separate but related temples, with…
Ho Chi Minh City
Believed to be the oldest temple in HCMC (1744), Giac Lam is a fantastically atmospheric place set in peaceful, garden-like grounds. The Chinese…
Merdeka Square & Central Jakarta
It is here that Jakartans come to take a breather from the traffic. The figurative centre of Jakarta, Merdeka Square (merdeka means independence) is…
Nakhon Ratchasima Province
Cool and lush, Khao Yai National Park is an easy escape into the primordial jungle. The 2168-sq-km park, part of a Unesco World Heritage site, spans five…
Hpa-an
This football-stadium-sized cave is simply breathtaking, its entrance dominated by dozens of buddha statues, a couple of pagodas and some newer clay wall…
Bukit Peninsula
This important temple is perched precipitously on the southwestern tip of the peninsula, atop sheer cliffs that drop straight into the ceaseless surf…
Artisans Angkor – Les Chantiers Écoles
Siem Reap
Siem Reap is the epicentre of the drive to revitalise Cambodian traditional culture, which was dealt a harsh blow by the Khmer Rouge and the years of…
Hoi An
Emblematic of Hoi An, this beautiful bridge was first constructed in the 1590s by the Japanese community to link it with the Chinese quarters. Over the…
Manila
Guarding the entrance to the Pasig River is Intramuros' premier tourist attraction: Fort Santiago. Within the fort grounds is an oasis of lovely manicured…
Yangon
Even though the museum's collection is poorly labelled and often badly lit, the treasures that lie within this cavernous building deserve a viewing. The…
Basilica Minore del Santo Niño
Cebu City
Cebu's holiest church houses a revered Flemish statuette of the Christ child (Santo Niño) that dates to Magellan's time. The church is no stranger to…
Similan Islands Marine National Park
Phang-Nga Province
This beautiful 70-sq-km marine national park is known to divers the world over. Lying 70km offshore from Phang-Nga Province, it has smooth granite islands…
Banglamphu
Other than being just plain huge and impressive, Wat Suthat also holds the highest royal temple grade. Inside the wí·hăhn (sanctuary for a Buddha…
Mae Fah Luang Art & Culture Park
Chiang Rai
In addition to a museum that houses one of Thailand’s biggest collections of Lanna artefacts, this vast, meticulously landscaped compound includes antique…
Chinatown
The attraction at Wat Traimit is undoubtedly the impressive 3m-tall, 5.5-tonne, solid-gold Buddha image, which gleams like, well, gold. Sculpted in the…
Chin State
This small, heart-shaped lake has huge spiritual significance for the Mizo people, who inhabit both sides of the nearby Myanmar–India border. Rih Lake…
Komodo & Rinca Islands
Established in 1980, this national park is one of Indonesia's – if not the world's – greatest natural treasures. Within its 1817 sq km area are Komodo,…
Buriram Province
In the little village of Khok Meuang, the restored Khmer temple of Prasat Muang Tam is an ideal bolt-on to any visit to Phanom Rung, which is only 8km to…