9 Amazing Travel Places Beyond the Usual Tourist Stops
Rock tombs in Myra, the desert oasis of Huacachina and the Tiger’s Nest in Bhutan are among nine places that rarely make the first page of a trip plan. Everybody knows the Colosseum and the Eiffel Tower, so here are nine spots with real history and scenery for the next trip.
| Place | Country | Known for |
|---|---|---|
| Myra | Turkey | Lycian rock-cut tombs |
| Dubrovnik | Croatia | Walled old city, UNESCO since 1979 |
| Bagan | Myanmar | Over 2,300 surviving temples |
| Cappadocia | Turkey | Fairy chimneys, underground cities |
| Blagaj | Bosnia and Herzegovina | Buna spring and Ottoman architecture |
| Huacachina | Peru | Desert oasis, sandboarding |
| Paro Taktsang | Bhutan | Cliffside monastery |
| Albarracin | Spain | Red-stone hill town |
| Thingvellir | Iceland | Tectonic rift valley |
1. Myra, Turkey
Myra was a city in Lycia, near today’s Demre in Antalya Province. It has two necropoleis of Lycian rock-cut tombs carved like temple fronts into vertical cliffs: the river necropolis and the ocean necropolis.
2. Dubrovnik, Croatia
Dubrovnik sits on the Adriatic in southern Dalmatia, and UNESCO inscribed its Old City in 1979 for its medieval architecture and fortifications. It ruled itself as a free state from the 14th to the 19th century. A Dalmatino apartments listing on Booking.com is one place to start looking for a stay.
3. Bagan, Myanmar
Bagan was the capital of the Pagan Kingdom from the 9th to 13th centuries. More than 10,000 temples were built on the plains, and the remains of over 2,300 survive. A 2016 earthquake damaged nearly 400 temples. Check current government travel advice before you plan a visit.
4. Cappadocia, Turkey
This region of central Anatolia is known for fairy chimneys, early Christian churches and monasteries around Goreme and Ihlara, and underground cities dug as shelter in times of persecution.
5. Blagaj, Bosnia and Herzegovina
Blagaj is a village-town southeast of Mostar. At the spring of the Buna River stands the Vrelo Bune ensemble, part of a protected townscape with Ottoman Mediterranean architecture dating to 1520.
6. Huacachina, Peru
A small oasis about five kilometers from the city of Ica, with around 100 permanent residents. Visitors come for sandboarding on dunes up to 500 meters high and for dune buggy rides.
7. Paro Taktsang (Tiger’s Nest), Bhutan
This sacred Vajrayana Buddhist site clings to a cliff in the upper Paro valley. The monastery complex was built in 1692 around the cave where Padmasambhava meditated, and it is a cultural icon of Bhutan.
8. Albarracin, Spain
A town in the province of Teruel, in Aragon, declared a national monument in 1961. Red sandstone boulders and cliffs surround it, which makes it a popular spot for boulderers.
9. Thingvellir, Iceland
The site of Iceland’s parliament from 930 to 1798, now a national park about 40 kilometers northeast of Reykjavik. It lies in a rift valley on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge between the North American and Eurasian plates, and it became a World Heritage Site in 2004.
Keep reading
- Mindsets that travel gives you: what visiting places like these can teach you
FAQ
Which of these places is a UNESCO World Heritage Site?
Dubrovnik’s Old City (1979), Bagan and Thingvellir (2004) are all World Heritage Sites.
What is the Tiger’s Nest in Bhutan?
Paro Taktsang is a cliffside Buddhist monastery in the Paro valley, built in 1692 around a cave where Padmasambhava meditated.
Where can you sandboard in Peru?
Huacachina, an oasis near Ica, offers sandboarding and dune buggy rides on dunes up to 500 meters high.
How many temples survive in Bagan?
The remains of over 2,300 temples and pagodas survive of the more than 10,000 built.
Where do two tectonic plates meet in Iceland?
At Thingvellir, in a rift valley on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge between the North American and Eurasian plates.
Last updated: October 2026.
