After visiting more than 100+ countries, I would say the mountains around Interlaken are, along with those next to Machu Picchu in Peru and the Dolomites in Italy, the most beautiful in the world. Real wow factor that I don’t think is beaten anywhere.
Typically people experience this via hiking, a cable car and driving – something I did a few years ago (see Hiking around Interlaken). But for the extra wow, go for the train up to the Jungfraujoch:
✅ At 3454m / 11,332ft it is the tallest railway station in Europe.
✅ You get the best views of the best spots as you ascend the Eiger and the Jungfrau.
✅ The glacier at the top is awe-inspiring.
✅ The station complex at the top itself is actually surprisingly engaging – ice caves, history, view points.
✅ And you get to go on a bit of an adventure as you chose between various railway and cable car options.
Hey, we got caught with bad weather and still thought it was one of the highlights of Switzerland and the whole Alps.
I’ve been to the Neuwanstein Castle – the one Disney based his castle on – before as part of a standard winter trip. It was cool, definitely worth doing. But nowhere near as good as hiking the route from the Panoramablick Tegelberg Cable Car.
You still get to experience the castle as normal, yet get the added advantages of the outrageous views from the top of the cable car for what is one of the prettiest parts of the Bavarian Alps, to see the snow on the top (we went in April), a pretty cool hiking trail and the best views of the castle itself
A truly wow experience in Germany.
Sydney Harbour and its surrounding beaches make Sydney one of the most spectacular cities in the world. From the famous Bondi to Manly coastal walk to ferries crossing the harbour and viewpoints around the Opera House and Harbour Bridge, this is one of the world’s great city experiences and an essential stop on any Australia trip.
Its only really worth visiting Johannesburg / Jo’Burg if already passing through on the way to some of the better sights in the wonderful country that is South Africa. Never felt particularly safe (even staying in Sandton), and wasn’t that much to get too excited about.
That being said, if you are passing through, its worth taking a day to see the township of Soweto (we went with MoAfrica Tours – MoAfrika Tours – Soweto) and the Apartheid Museum (give yourself min 2 hours); plus sundowners overlooking the greenery from the WestCliff Hotel if keen for fancy.
False Bay near Cape Town is known for having some of the best Kelp Diving in the world, and made famous by the Neflix show “My Octopus Teacher”. Expect rich kelp forests, often accompanied by seals, shy sharks, and, occasionally, the rare sighting of a great white. If you’re a diver and haven’t done kelp diving before, I’d highly recommend it as its just something a bit different . . . but beware . . . its bloody cold!
If diving isn’t your thing, have a look at the more general tips for what to do in A week in Cape Town.
Macau is a wonderful day trip from Hong Kong with the combination of China’s boom on display as you wander through the lavish mega casinos, plus the Portuguese culture shinning through in the architecture, food and even street signs in Portuguese in the various spots that justify its UNESCO World Heritage status.
Top 3 tips:
#1 Experiencing the Portuguese feel – there are various places which are great for getting your fix. Taipa Village is lovely and well located next to the main casinos. The area around the Ruins of the Church of Saint Paul is the symbol of Macau and does feel a bit like being in Lisbon around there. But my main tip is to head to the south of Taipa Island to either the South West for the classic restaurant of Fernando’s that is a bit of an institution in Macau, or to the South West in the area around the Chapel of Saint Francis Xavier which is far less busy and you’re able to sit having Portuguese food in the courtyard looking across the water.
#2 Enjoying the Casinos – whilst Macau sees x6 the revenue of Las Vegas passing across its tables, that doesn’t necessarily equate to the entertainment. Its more a reflection of the Chinese love / obsession of gambling and this is the only spot in all of China to do it – for example, you’ll typically see a minimum bet of around Macau $200 (USD25) on the tables in Macau combined with little entertainment. That being said, the entertainment that is on offer is great and “the strip” has massively upper its game in recent years to hit “wow” levels, so much so that a walk from Studio City to the Venetian via the Parisian, the Londoner and the insane Morpheus (take the interior lift for the wow) is now a must. If you can time it right and keen for the lash / partying, the Hard Rock Pool Party is also a must.
#3 Transport – getting to Macau from Hong Kong is super simple. There are ferries leaving every 30mins or so from 3 spots across Hong Kong and it only takes an hour. Most realistically, you’ll aim to leave from the Shun Tak Centre on Hong Kong island. Just be aware though that there are two ferry spots in Macau – Macau Outer Harbour which is for the Macau Peninsular (the northern half) and Taipa (the southern half). Getting around though is a bit harder than Hong Kong as there isn’t the subway / MTR equivalent. Easiest to just get taxis.
Overall, its a very easy and great experience from Hong Kong.
Apo Island is a really nice and easy place in the Philippines for diving and snorkelling based in large part to its protected status going back to 1985. Expect to see a lot of turtles, the very unusual electric clam, pretty beaches and a sensational view back across the water to Mount Talinis in Negros.
It’s obviously less mega wow than the nearby sensational Tubbataha reef (see Diving Palawan’s Tubbataha Reef by live-aboard Wow Rating ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️), but it is a really beautiful dive spot.
Two tips:
#1 Do as a day trip from Siquijor – you can stay on Apo Island for the night, but makes more sense to just do a day trip from Siquijor as it’s only around a 50min boat journey. Plus Siquijor acts as a perfect spot for jumping on a moped and having one of those wonderful simple SE Asia adventures as you explore the island – see Mopedding around Siquijor Island Wow Rating ⭐️⭐️ for the tips.
#2 We went with the Coco Grove Hotel’s dive school and would recommend them.
Siquijor is a nice chilled out island wedged in between the far bigger islands of Negros, Cebu, Bohol and Mindanao. It’s famous with Philippinos for being the home of witchcraft and potions, but for the international tourists is basically a beautiful spots for sunsets, beaches, snorkelling and a nice size for zipping around in a moped.
What to do. Jump on a moped and aim to:
- Checking out Cambugahay waterfalls.
- Getting your feet cleaned by the Old Enchanted Balete Tree – basically leave your feet in the pond and the hundreds of fish come to bite the dead skin off your feet . . . its fun I promise.
- The views out across the island from the central higher points – Larena Triad restaurant / coffee shop is great for views.
- End at the beaches on the west side for the sunset like Paliton Beach.
I’d recommend staying at Coco Grove – whilst its one of the premier places on the island, its far cheaper than other parts of the Philippines and has one of the nicest beaches for sunset on the island. The snorkelling at the house reef if worth the stay alone.
The Lonely Planet categorises the drive from Chiang Kong to Phayao as Thailand’s most stunning route, and I’d have to agree. This dramatic road hugs the steep mountainsides along the Thai-Laos border passing waterfalls, sensational vistas both into Thailand and Laos, and various national parks.
I’m sure you could easily do it as a tour, but its way more fun to hire some mopeds and zip along at your own pace, especially considering the hundreds of great turns and the surprisingly high quality of the roads.
Milan felt like the definition of style – not only the perfect buildings and the art, but everyone walking around looks like they’re just about to hit the catwalk. Maybe this was just a summer thing, but either way it seemed to ooze fancy!
That being said, I didn’t find it a particularly deep city for things to do / see, so I’d say a full day is enough, with some obvious sites to draw your attention.
