26 alternative holiday ideas for your next big trip

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1. Basilicata, Italy

Best for an alternative dolce vita

Leave the Amalfi Coast traffic jams behind in favour of southern Italy’s best secret. Between its pair of tiddly coasts — on the Ionian and Tyrrhenian Seas — Basilicata crams in forest-framed lakes, ghost villages, a 1,452m zip line (the Angel’s Flight, linking two small towns) and the craggy Lucanian Dolomites. The best-known place is Matera, whose millennia-old, rock-carved cave dwellings and churches have become posh hotels and James Bond filming locations (from No Time to Die). Do visit it, but, ideally, also aim for bargain-priced rural agriturismos and the churched-crammed port town of Maratea, which is flanked by many beaches. To fully explore you’ll need a car; fly into Bari, Naples or Lamezia Terme.

Make it happen

If you’d most like to experience magical Matera, the Hidden Treasures of Southern Italy group tour with Globus visits there as well as a nearby primitivo wine museum before moving on to the conical buildings and beaches of Puglia.

• Most beautiful places in Italy

2. Montserrat

Best for volcano worshippers

In 2023, the Dominican Republic received more than 10 million visitors. Barbados welcomed over 600,000, by comparison. And Montserrat? Just 14,429. There’s a good reason for that: this British overseas territory is home to an active volcano, one whose series of eruptions from 1995 to 1999 engulfed the capital Plymouth, leaving it a Pompeii-like ghost town. The southern two-thirds of this Caribbean island remains off-limits today. Yet there are still rich tropical landscapes to enjoy, a fascinating volcanic observatory to explore and, in the form of Rendezvous Bay, a white-sand beach that explains why the likes of Sting and Eric Clapton once holidayed here.

Make it happen

Few cruise lines visit Montserrat, but Seabourn does during a week’s voyage from Canada to Barbados aboard one of its contemporary, luxurious expedition yachts. The sailing operates early in October each year.

3. Réunion

Best for castaway vibes

Read guides to the best Indian Ocean islands, and next to none will mention this tiny French outpost. There’s no good reason why not. Four hundred miles east of Madagascar and about 100 southwest of Mauritius, Réunion particularly excels at outdoor activities — with everything from rafting and rock climbing to surfing, biking, hiking and ziplining off waterfalls. Ah yes, waterfalls: those, along with jungles, barren mountainscapes and one of the world’s most active volcanoes in Piton de la Fournaise explain the nickname of “L’Île intense”. Even so, a more slumberous family holiday is also entirely possible thanks to sugar-coloured beaches and resorts neighbouring calm, coral-flecked lagoons ripe for snorkelling. Look out, too, for the peculiar but moreish cuisine fusing French influences — including plenty of patisseries — with creole curries and an emphasis on seafood.

Make it happen

Set up base at Lux* Saint Gilles, the island’s only five-star hotel. A beachside riot of typical creole architecture ringed by coconut and casuarina trees, it has facilities for volleyball, kayaking, tennis and snorkeling. Blue Bay Travel can arrange packages.

4. Rodrigues

Best for tropical island escapism

Here’s another secret Indian Ocean speck. Despite being almost six times as far from it as Réunion (see above), Rodrigues is actually an autonomous part of Mauritius. Ranking among the world’s most remote inhabited islands, it’s a place little spoiled by tourism — indeed, pre-Covid, of Mauritius’s 1.5 million annual visitors, only 90,000 took the 90-minute connecting flight on to here. Africa’s easternmost extremity, Rodrigues has a beach-flecked perimeter ringed by a lagoon and overlooked by lush peaks; there are reintroduced giant tortoises to see, octopus curries to eat, waterfalls to visit and just a few luxury resorts to discover.

Make it happen

Set up camp at the C Rodrigues Mourouk: an ultra-laid-back hotel on one of the prettiest beaches. Lagoon-bound activities such as paddleboarding are available below the pool and there’s a brilliant, brightly coloured buffet restaurant where local musicians play after dark.

5. Costa Rica

Best for fascinating wildlife

Costa Rica is well-deserving of its reputation as the world’s number one eco-paradise. Parading an exotic menagerie of everything from resplendent quetzal birds to red-eyed tree frogs, the Central American nation protects five per cent of the world’s biodiversity despite comprising just 0.03 per cent of Earth’s landmass. High on any list should be the volcanic bubbling geysers and hot springs of Poas, while the parrots and macaws of Corcovado rainforest make for the best walking holidays in Costa Rica. Dry season is from December to April, additionally enabling warm winter sun escapes to white-sand beaches.

Make it happen

A comprehensive, two-week introduction, G Adventures’ Costa Rica North and South: National Parks, Wildlife & Hot Springs escorted tour takes small groups from pointy volcanoes to intensely blue waterfalls.

• Best places to see wildlife in Costa Rica

6. Uzbekistan

Best for striking architecture

The Silk Road’s romance is imbued in Uzbekistan’s world-class architecture and with visa-free entry, the country is flourishing as an alternative summer holiday destination. There’s plenty to see, with highlights including Tashkent, rich with museums and Soviet-era edifices, and Samarkand, the gilded former capital under the rule of the fearsome Tamerlane, where the Registan’s blue-tiled mosques are an ancient wonder of the world. Further west along the Silk Road is Bukhara and its calamine-hued lanes that colour-match the desert. Meanwhile, Khiva’s 1,500-year-old Islamic architecture is so well preserved it could easily be the backdrop of a blockbuster.

Make it happen

Tashkent, Samarkand, Bukhara and Khiva all feature on Intrepid Travel’s Premium Uzbekistan small-group tour. You’ll also meet an artisan paper maker and learn how to make the classic rice dish of plov with a local family.

7. Alaska, US

Best for standout natural encounters

Whether sailing close to breaching humpback whales or spotting grizzly bears on a national park walking holiday, Alaska is a pristine celebration of our natural world. Feel truly alive cruising the Inside Passage during summer via wildwood islands and glassy inlets choked with glacial ice. Or, in winter, sense the freedom of uncrowded skiing pistes or be mesmerised by an appearance of the elusive northern lights.

Make it happen

Throughout summer, Princess Cruises operates numerous Alaska cruises with departures from Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle and Vancouver, including many round trips and the option of overnight stays in five exclusive Alaskan lodges.

• Best Alaska cruises

8. Borneo, Malaysia

Best for feelgood stays

Borneo is the world’s third-largest island and the diversity of wildlife is matched only by the history and culture of the people. You’ll find orangutans and pygmy elephants, enjoy the sandy beaches of Kota Kinabalu, pause for thought at the monuments to Allied prisoners of the Second World War. Wildlife tourism here adds value to this colossal island’s forests, which are under increasing pressure from deforestation. Experience the feelgood factor supporting Sabah’s spectacular Danum Valley, which safeguards 130 million-year-old rainforest where orangutans and monkeys dwell — best seen during the drier months from the end of March to until early October. Get active and dive in the world-class Sipadan Island’s vibrant corals or tackle the daunting Mount Kinabalu (4,095m).

Make it happen

Want to travel in luxury? Available through Times Holidays is a high-end private touring itinerary which, between Malaysia’s cool capital Kuala Lumpur and Langkawi’s dreamy beaches, introduces Borneo’s most wondrous wildlife.

• Best things to do in Borneo

9. Georgia

Best for oenophiles

Many know nothing at all about this hidden gem of the Caucasus; those that do rate it as one of the top spots in the world. The mountain scenery is magnificent, the heritage fascinating, but it’s something else: the warmth of the welcome, matched only by the excellence of the wine (this is one of the world’s oldest wine-producing countries, after all, with a legacy of production stretching back 8,000 years). Start in Tbilisi. Its cobbled streets knit together a Persian and Russian fusion of ancient fortresses and a basilica. Here, you might try Georgia’s esteemed saperavi wine or some khinkali dumplings on cosmopolitan Rustaveli Avenue, before heading to the Black Sea waters of Batumi or on day trips into the wild Caucasus Mountains to the likes of the photogenic, sixth-century Jarvi monastery.

Make it happen

Cycling is a great way to get around. For groups of for to 16 travellers, Explore! operates nine-day bike-based summer tours taking in lakes, gorges, gorgeous views and valleys. They’re bookended by time in Tbilisi, with lots of focus on wine throughout.

10. Montenegro

Best for surprising vistas

Less than a three-hour flight from London, Montenegro is well within city break range. Its USP is a delightful juxtaposition of Balkans history and a sunny Adriatic coast ideal for winter sun. Mingle with the beautiful people at Porto Montenegro and Budva — both lively beach holiday hubs with wealthy marinas and water sports. Kotor, meanwhile, is so enriched with medieval masterpieces and Venetian palaces it offers a welcome alternative to overcrowded Venice. Inland, sense the transcendental calm of Montenegro’s iconic Black Lake amid dramatic alpine scenery and feel giddy peering into the mighty Tara Canyon from one of Europe’s highest arched bridges.

Make it happen

Content with a day in spectacular Kotor? On ships laid out with Brits in mind, P&O Cruises sails there on week-long round trips from Valletta in Malta; other calls include Corfu and Taranto, an unsung Puglian port.

• Best things to do in Montenegro

11. Sao Paulo, Brazil

Best for urban fascination

While showier sibling Rio is as much a beach resort as a city, Sao Paulo is a true metropolis, thrumming with swanky fashion ateliers, art galleries, swish cocktail bars, pumping nightclubs and the kind of hotels that grace coffee-table books. Spend a day wandering around the Museu de Arte de Sao Paulo to find Manets and Modiglianis you never knew existed or Choque Cultural for cutting-edge street art. Try a Japanese-Brazilian barbecue at the trendy restaurant Charco, then soak up caipirinhas in starchitect-designed bars in the Jardins neighbourhoods. Later, swing your hips in the samba clubs of Madalena — rootsy, wood-floored O do Borogodo whirls after midnight. Beaches? Sao Paulo also has some of Brazil’s best: try tiny Ubatuba or Ilhabela Island, each about three hours’ drive away.

Make it happen

During the winter months, Oceania Cruises operates various South American voyages which see its classy, mid-sized ships call at Santos for day trips into Sao Paulo. Available as fly-cruises, all also visit Rio and at least one beach destination.

12. Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina

Best for budget breaks

As affordable as it is wonderfully walkable, the Bosnian capital makes for a superb weekend. Often overlooked in favour of Croatia’s fancy coastline, this dinky city is a bewitching jumble of cobbled alleyways, Turkish bazaars and pavement coffee shops. By night, it thrums with music and chatter from jazz clubs, hookah lounges and lively cafés serving thick, foaming Bosnian coffee until the early hours. The cable car to the top of Mount Trebevic is another must-do, for sweeping views over the city’s red-tiled rooftops, domed Orthodox churches and stately minarets.

Make it happen

Want to see more of Bosnia and Herzegovina? Finishing with a full day in Sarajevo, Intrepid Travel’s small-group tour first visits pretty Mostar, whose iconic bridge is a symbol of reconciliation, looks for wild horses and enters Tito’s old bunker.

13. Ras al-Khaimah, United Arab Emirates

Best for adventure

The UAE’s northernmost emirate feels far further away than the 90-minute drive from Dubai’s bright lights and cloud-tickling skyscrapers. Ras Al-Khaimah (also known as RAK) is typically where Emiratis come to relax on quiet beaches. But its mix of mangrove forests and desert terrain is slowly starting to attract a new audience: adventurers. The big draw is the Bear Grylls Explorers Camp, where guests come to learn a mix of survival skills and leave knowing how to make an emergency shelter from scratch in the wild. There’s also a chance to test your nerve with the world’s longest zip line (stretching almost two miles) and clear your head with a hike in the Al-Hajar Mountains, home to some of the highest peaks in the UAE. When you’re ready to bed down, camp out in a Bedouin tent in the desert and sleep under the stars.

Make it happen

Celestyal Cruises visits Ras Al Khaimah during four-night round-trips from Abu Dhabi. You’ll also sample the cultural Qatari capital of Doha and Khasab, an Omani town known as “the Norway of Arabia” thanks to its photogenic fjords.

14. Ljubljana, Slovenia

Best for compact centres

Ljubljana, with its leafy looks and eco-credentials, is one of Europe’s quirkiest — and best-value — city breaks. It’s somewhere that The Grand Budapest Hotel director Wes Anderson might’ve created: pocket-size, whimsically eccentric, its cobbled lanes lined with baroque houses the colours of fondant fancies. Even though you’re here for a lazy long weekend, you’ll be walking everywhere in the compact centre, often on cobbles, so bring comfy shoes. Peruse the handmade shoes at Boutique Vodeb, then loop back along the opposite bank of the Ljubljanica river before browsing the Open Kitchen market beside Vodnik Square. Here, on Fridays, you’ll find silver-haired farmers at stalls piled with harvest bounty and struklji filo parcels oozing cottage cheese.

Make it happen

Riviera Travel’s group tour pairs some gentle walking around Lake Bled, where mountains tumble down to frame a pretty island church, with a full day in Ljubljana.

15. South Korea

Best for variety

Japan might be a bigger tourism destination but South Korea has the same cherry blossom, ornate temples and glitzy cities without the crowds. Wondering how to do it? Fly into Seoul and allow at least two days to explore it: the capital city combines rambling royal palaces, trendy shopping districts and neon-fronted karaoke bars. A high-speed train network will get you to almost everywhere else: to mountain-ringed Gyeongju, Korea’s Kyoto, full of ancient temples, royal tombs and palace ruins; to Andong, with its straw-thatched villages; and to seaside Busan, home to powdery beaches and ultra-fresh seafood. Got more time? Add the volcanic Jeju Island on to your itinerary — it’s a rugged yet-resorty postcard pin-up in the south.

Make it happen

Inside Asia Tours operates both small-group and private, tailor-made touring itineraries in South Korea, often with a culinary theme or K-pop dance class thrown in.

• Best things to do in South Korea

16. Antarctica

Best for jaw-dropping experiences

Setting foot ashore in the Antarctic for the first time is an incredible experience: so familiar, yet so far below the southern boundaries of most tourist maps. Antarctica is the only continent on Earth with no native population and — free from an evolutionary history of human predation — gentoo penguins use investigative beaks to tug at travellers’ trouser legs; colonies of chinstrap penguins huddle, unperturbed by tourists; and languid elephant seals roll in the surf. Cute Weddell seals make eyes at visitors, oblivious to potential human danger, even as they laze among the Brobdingnagian whale-bone vertebrae that lie strewn around the abandoned remains of 1920s whaling stations. With rules in place to limit tourist footfall, this ultimate alternative holiday destination is perfect for travellers who prefer small group excursions and offers one of the planet’s most exclusive experiences.

Make it happen

Lindblad Expeditions is one of the most experienced Antarctica providers, with expert lecturers on board its modern expedition ships and Zodiac boats, sea kayaks and underwater cameras ready to help you see and experience as much as possible.

• How to travel to Antarctica: everything you need to know

17. Bolivia

Best for a sense of wonder

Large, landlocked Bolivia is a place of typical South American extremes: snow-streaked mountains here, Amazonian jungle or semi-arid lowland there. Getting around can be challenging — “the only consistency is inconsistency” goes a local phrase — so booking an escorted tour is wise. The rewards are manifold and usually include a superlative. There’s cable-car-covered La Paz, the world’s highest capital at 3,650m (11,975ft), and a carnival of chaotic life and silence-inducing Andean views. Flamingo-dotted Salar de Uyuni, the world’s largest salt flat, is truly magical during the wet season (December to April) as rain water effects a giant mirror. And there’s South America’s biggest lake, high-altitude Titicaca, and its islands formed from reeds. Bolivia also excels at festivals — try Oruro’s springtime La Diablada, where devils recreate the seven deadly sins.

Make it happen

Available year-round, this two-week highlights tour with Exodus takes small groups to Salar de Uyuni’s cacti islands and spouting geysers, to amazing ancient ruins and to an ecolodge overlooking Titicaca.

18. Panama

Best for a versatile getaway

The absence of a sensational pre-Columbian temple or colonial city enables Panama to fly slightly under the Central American tourist radar. Yet this snake-shaped country still has a wonderful range of experiences up for grabs. From slick Panama City, visitors can go sport-fishing, tackle terrific golf courses or cruise up the awesome Panama Canal. Fly west and things get wilder around the Baru volcano — one of the only places on Earth from which both the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans are visible. Surrounded by coffee farms, nearby Boquete is an adventure-travel capital with everything from easily-hiked trails past waterfalls to zip-lining. Panama also has some wonderful beaches: consider the Caribbean coast’s San Blas islands — where simple accommodation and pristine white sand awaits — or cross to the Pacific for Islas Secas, a swanky private island resort run on solar power.

Make it happen

Indus Travel’s 12-day Best of Panama itinerary combines the canal and Panama City with visits to an Embera indigenous village, a hike through cloud forests, dolphin-watching, waterfalls and beach time.

• Best Panama Canal cruises

19. Lithuania

Best for immersive counterculture

Perhaps because this southernmost of the Baltic states was among Europe’s last countries to be Christianised, folksy pagan traditions still pepper its boondocks. Demonic statues litter the many forests and lakes; wood-carving villages still serve mead. A different kind of counterculture, one more anchored on third-wave coffee, informs capital Vilnius, whose Unesco-listed old town has baroque churches lining twisting lanes. Cathedral Square’s white belltower is especially enchanting. Elsewhere, floating on Lake Galve, witch’s hat-shaped Trakai is the best of numerous castles; while the riverside spa town of Druskininkai is just a ten-minute drive from a bizarre Soviet sculpture park — The Grutas Park. But Lithuania’s headline act is the Curonian Spit — shared with the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad. This exaggerated, oh-so-photogenic sandbar has amber-spangled dunes, pristine beaches and elk-inhabited pine groves.

Make it happen

Also visiting Estonia and Latvia, and starting from the Finnish capital Helsinki, Intrepid Travel’s small-group tour spends six days in Lithuania. Jazz-loving Klaipeda, the Curonian Spit, the watery Aukstaitija National Park and Vilnius all feature.

20. Principe, Sao Tome and Principe

Best for adventurers

Principe — the smaller isle of the two-island nation of Sao Tome and Principe, found about 135 miles off the coast of Gabon in west Africa — is finally getting overdue recognition. There are various factors: the presence of an island-wide, equatorial Unesco biosphere; the chance to see nesting sea turtles (November-February) or humpback whales (July-October); the lure of empty, paradise-like sandy beaches such as Praia Banana. Most crucial are three small, eco-luxury hotels established by South African philanthropist Mark Shuttleworth. As well as bringing good chefs and chic design, these have helped to revive the island’s cocoa farms and boost employment. Local culture is encouraged, and outdoor activities — boat trips, parrot-watching walks, paddleboarding — are plentiful.

Make it happen

Arguably the loveliest (and least formal) of those Shuttleworth hotels is Bom Bom, which straddles two typically postcard-worthy beaches. On the tidal island between them is a good restaurant, while air-conditioned bungalows surround the palm-flanked pool.

21. Malawi

Best for off-radar safaris

Kenya, Tanzania and South Africa tend to hog Africa’s safari limelight, but that’s a good thing: it leaves authentic Malawi to savvy insiders. After decades of neglect, the non-profit organisation African Parks (Prince Harry is on its board) began rehabilitating three tracts here in 2015. Gradually, poached-out animals were reintroduced in record-breaking translocations, snares rooted out, fences formed and wonderful new lodges built. Visitors to Majete Wildlife Reserve’s riparian woodland now frequently sight all the Big Five animals (lion, leopard, elephant, rhino and buffalo) while hippo and croc-spotting cruises sail along Liwonde National Park’s Shire River, as sunsets silhouette palm trees to create one of Africa’s greatest safari experiences. Trips to this charming country should also include the tea-farming Thyolo Region before finishing at huge Lake Malawi, whose sandy beaches and diving make for an appropriately relaxing finale.

Make it happen

YellowWood Adventures arranges bespoke safari trips to Malawi, with the suggested itinerary pairing Liwonde, Majete and an island stay on Lake Malawi with time at a tea-growing estate in the country’s south.

22. Madagascar

Best for unique creatures

Ninety per cent of Madagascar’s exceptional wildlife can be found nowhere else on Earth, including blue coua birds, cat-sized chameleons, mongoose-like fossas and the chief reason to visit: more than 100 types of lemur, from graceful sifakas to large indris. Among the best places to view the latter is Nosy Be, an island off the island that also hosts some of the Indian Ocean’s dreamiest beaches and the luxury lodge Miavana. Visit between July and October for whale watching, as well. Back on the world’s fourth-largest island, vanilla plantations and crater lakes add to the natural spell, as does the striking Avenue of the Baobabs stretch of road.

Make it happen

Available in May and November, this 17-day group tour with Jules Verne will get up close and personal with lemurs and chameleons. You’ll also pause in traditional tribal villages, walk avenues of ancient baobabs and explore sacred forests.

23. Bhutan

Best for marvellous monasteries

Beloved for its philosophy of Gross National Happiness, the remote Himalayan kingdom is about as authentic as travel gets. Visitor numbers are limited — with tourists required to pay minimum daily tariffs from $200 (about £150), which covers accommodation, food, transportation and guiding — and Buddhist values dominate. That extends from Cham dance ceremonies to jaw-dropping monasteries.The standout is the Tiger’s Nest, a fairytale complex somehow teetering on a precarious cliffside. Cities such as Thimphu and Punakha host impressive dzong fortresses and markets as vertiginous valleys all around provide a dream destination for trekkers. A potent fuel for that pursuit is the national dish of ema datshi — a lively stew combining hot chili peppers and yak cheese.

Make it happen

With its strict travel rules and myriad local customs, Bhutan is much easier to visit if you have expert help. The experienced Wendy Wu Tours is such a tour operator, and operates a 24-day group tour here every November.

24. Tonga

Best for aquatic adventure

By common consensus, this South Pacific archipelago is reckoned tobe the world’s best bet for swimming with humpback whales. Its 170-odd islands, with only a few dozen of them inhabited, are a pit stop on the colossal cetaceans’ natural migration from the Antarctic, with August and September being peak time. As well as swimming trips, numerous operators run boat-based tours for those who don’t want to get in the water. Make for the northerly Vava’u group of islands, where you’ll also find Tonga’s best white-sand beaches. Tonga also promises surfing, happily little development, a Stonehenge-style megalithic structure, and absolutely no hurry.

Make it happen

Seabourn comes here on one of its small, sumptuous expedition ships in April as part of a cruise which also takes in Fiji and Samoa. You’ll spend two days in Tonga: one in the Vava’u archipelago and another in the capital, Nuku’Alofa — its name meaning the “Abode of Love”.

25. New Mexico, US

Best for big sky energy

“This is wonderful! No one told me it was like this.” So, according to legend, said the modernist painter Georgia O’Keeffe upon her first visit to New Mexico. The initial seduction for her came via this southwestern US state’s mesmerising, one-off landscapes: White Sands National Park’s eerie gypsum dune fields, the pink-hued Sandia Mountains, the giant Rio Grande Gorge at sunset. Beyond the Land of Enchantment’s great geography, though, you’ll also find an esoteric arts scene — especially in main city Santa Fe, where O’Keeffe’s landscapes vie for attention with mysterious collective Meow Wolf — and a fiery food scene amalgamating Native American, Mexican and Spanish influences. Then you’ve got mud-brick Indian pueblos, microbreweries, a famous October hot-air balloon fiesta, Breaking Bad locations, Billy the Kid’s grave and Roswell’s UFO history.

Make it happen

Globus Journeys’s group tour, Enchanted New Mexico, introduces Santa Fe, sandstone canyons, ancient pueblos, O’Keeffe’s studio and plenty more of the state’s highlights.

• Most beautiful places in America

26. Lombok, Indonesia

Best for forest hikes

Unlike Bali, there are no built-up resorts and hustling hawkers here, just lush rainforest trails, scattered waterfalls and a dramatic, Jurassic-looking coastline. The two islands may both have a Kuta Beach, but Bali’s is packed with bars, malls and chain hotels, while Lombok’s is a windswept zig-zag of milk-white sand meeting palmy forest. Inland, there are fewer overpriced spas and more authentic villages — hike to them along forest trails for glimpses of the Indian Ocean. And don’t miss a trip to the trio of car-free treasure isles a ten-minute speedboat away: the Gili Islands, sandy circles sprinkled with chic boutique hotels and low-key beach bars.

Make it happen

G Adventures operates a seven-night Lombok tour for small groups. You’re promised animist temples, bamboo forests and traditional Sasak weaving villages before several days of relaxation in the Gili Islands.

• Discover our full guide to Indonesia
• Great safari and beach holiday ideas
• Best places in the world to go island hopping