Extraordinary Discoveries

Famous for sea, sun and swaying palm trees, Miami is a young and trendy city which dazzles visitors with its subtropical climate and cosmopolitan lifestyle.

Key West is the furthermost point south on the US mainland and only 60 miles north of Cuba. Here where bohemians and artists reside in wooden houses amid lush tropical vegetation, is a religion for whom the term "laid back" might have originally been coined.

Formerly British Honduras, Belize adjoins Guatemala and Mexico on the Yucatan Peninsula. Its special pride is its superb nature reserves, rich in the tropical wildlife of reef, river and rainforest.

This port on Honduras’s Caribbean coast is just beginning to welcome visitors. The friendly people have developed a series of experiences to show off their beautiful town and surroundings and satisfy a variety of interests. The town itself has a Central Plaza fronting the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist, and a number of buildings from the Spanish and French colonial periods including the Santa Barbara Fortress. The Campo del Mar Nature Park includes a lovely botanic garden and a popular beach. Another popular attraction is the Three Cascades located in the deep forest. Active visitors can explore on ATVs, snorkel on coral reefs, zipline from tree to tree or go horseback riding on the beach. A visit by boat to the nearby village of Santa Fe introduces guests to the local Garifuna culture.

Explore the lush rainforests, mangrove swamps, numerous volcanoes and crystalline waters of this Central American isthmus, then meet the laid-back 'Ticos' locals that call it home.

Formerly a fortified armory, this newly developed port is the portal to colonial Panama City and an in-depth look at Miraflores Locks. Also from here, you can visit an Embera Indian village.

An important port city in the Province of Manabí, located in a dry forest area, with some of the most beautiful beaches in South America.

The colourful capital of Peru, Lima has long been renowned for its rich history.

Over 1,000 miles away from its nearest inhabited neighbour, remote Easter Island is a unique Chilean treasure in the South Pacific.

Adamstown is the capital of, and the only settlement on, the Pitcairn Islands.

Explore the breathtaking beauty of Tahiti with its vast mountains, white sandy beaches, turquoise ocean and glittering coral reefs.

Bora Bora appears to be of another world, with pretty sand-edged motu (islets) and rainforest-covered ridges, while its fabulous coral reef is a joy to explore.

Huahine is an island located among the Society Islands, in French Polynesia, an overseas territory of France in the Pacific Ocean. It is part of the Leeward Islands group. At the 2017 census it had a population of 6,075.

Uturoa is a commune located in Raiatea, the largest island of the Îles Sous le Vent in French Polynesia. It is situated in between the administrative subdivision of Leeward Islands and the main port of the island of Raiatea. According to the 2017 census, Uturoa has a population of 3,778 individuals.

Explore a lush rainforest, feast at a lovo before trying Kava, or simply unwind on an uninhabited atoll without a care in the world.

Explore a lush rainforest, feast at a lovo before trying Kava, or simply unwind on an uninhabited atoll without a care in the world.

Explore a lush rainforest, feast at a lovo before trying Kava, or simply unwind on an uninhabited atoll without a care in the world.

Highlights of this tropical paradise in the Loyalty Islands include the Chapel of Our Lady of Lourdes, built on a high bluff in 1898, with a panoramic view overlooking the clear blue Santal Bay. Visitors can also explore the island’s many caves, or peek over the edge of the high cliffs at the village of Jokin. Limpid lagoons and fine sandy beaches are also in abundance.

Explore this tropical paradise of remote beaches, stunning coral reefs and crystal-clear waters.

A friendly city, loved by residents and popular with tourists. More than just a gateway to the Great Barrier Reef, Cairns offers plenty to do.

The unofficial capital of North Queensland, Townsville is tucked inside the Great Barrier Reef in the northern tropics. Its municipal beach, The Strand, is consistently rated among Australia’s cleanest. Take a ferry to Magnetic Island, an unspoiled UNESCO World Heritage Site just offshore, or visit the Billabong Sanctuary wildlife reserve.

The 74 Whitsunday Islands are Australia’s tropical marine playground, scattered along the Queensland coast inshore from the Great Barrier Reef. Airlie Beach is the resort hub for exploration of the islands, the reef and the tropical forests of the region. Activities abound, from snorkeling on the reef, spectacular flight tours, fishing excursions to treks along the coastal cliffs with breathtaking views. Whitehaven Beach, a picturesque five-mile strand of pure white silica sand, is among the world’s most beautiful and famous beaches, its swirling offshore sandbars shining through the clear, aquamarine waters. Airlie Beach is a town dedicated to leisure and relaxation, with abundant boutiques, restaurants and cafes offering alfresco dining. It is a place in which to enjoy Australia’s tropical pleasures in the same casual, fun-loving style the Aussies employ.

At 23 miles long and 72 square miles in area, Moreton is the third-largest sand island in the world. It is part of a sand barrier system that includes the larger Fraser Island, and separates Moreton Bay from the Coral Sea about 27 miles north of Brisbane. Moreton Island National Park encompasses 98 percent of the island, where visitors flock to experience activities such as “sand-tobogganing” down the slopes of 920-foot Mount Tempest, the highest stable coastal sandhill on earth. They also enjoy fishing, kayaking, surfing and snorkeling over the Tangalooma Wrecks offshore. Tangalooma is the largest of four small towns on the island’s west coast. It was an active whaling station from 1952 until 1962. There are no roads on Moreton Island, so visitors get around by 4WD vehicles or ATVs. A popular site to visit is the picturesque red-and-white Cape Moreton lighthouse, built in 1857 and Australia’s oldest.

Cosmopolitan Brisbane attracts millions of visitors each year thanks to its eclectic mix of attractions, beautiful skyline and sub-tropical climate.

From the Sydney Opera House to Bondi Beach, man and Mother Nature contribute in equal measure to this splendid city.

Boasting stunning art, a vibrant music scene and excellent food, wine and coffee, it’s little wonder that Melbourne regularly tops ‘most liveable city’ rankings.

Adelaide is fast becoming the cultural hub of Australia, with its famed wine region, exciting nightlife, bustling shopping centres, award-winning cuisine and breath-taking scenery and beaches.

Australia’s third-largest sea island, after Tasmania and Melville Island, is a haven for wildlife and a popular escape for nature-loving mainlanders from Adelaide and Melbourne. Seabourn Sojourn’s call will occur during the annual birthing season of the New Zealand sea lion and Australian fur seal colonies on the nearby beach conservation areas. Marine tours seek the playful porpoises and dolphins offshore, while land-based excursions visit preserves for koalas and wallabies, as well as the popular local wineries.

Located at the southern tip of Western Australia, Albany was the first colonial settlement in the west, founded in 1826, when Major Edmund Lockyer claimed the western third of the continent for the British Crown. It was the only deep water port on the continent’s western third until the founding of Fremantle and was crucial to the gold rush era. Several decades later, it was also the last port from which Australian troops left to join World War I, and thus integral to the ANZAC legend. Architectural heritage in Albany includes the Old Farm, Strawberry Hill, which as founded in 1827 to feed the troops, and was later a gentleman’s residence. The picturesque St. John’s Church, Town Hall and the fanciful Old Post Office each represent different traditions which thrived here. The Princess Royal Sound area is rich with natural wonders preserved in national parks. Torndirrup National Park is a granite prominence assaulted by the swells of the Southern Sea, resulting in phenomena such as the blowholes and the picturesque granite Natural Bridge.

Western Australia’s second city is a bright, pleasant place that welcomes visitors with a towering, checkerboard-patterned lighthouse. Known as the dolphin capital of Australia, the sheltered Koombana Bay draws visitors to interact with downright playful cetaceans. The nearby Geographe Wine region attracts touring tasters as well, along with the charming, rural communities such as Donnybrook, with orchards full of ripening fruit.

Whether you're visiting for the day, or stopping for a few nights, this welcoming destination has much more to offer than you probably expect from an isolated Western Australian city.

Isolated on the farthest northwest corner of the continent, Broome thrived from its founding in 1883 based on the bounty of South Sea pearls found in offshore oyster beds. Even today, the pearling industry is active here, though most are now cultured. But Broome has grown into one of Australia’s premier holiday destinations, offering an amazing variety of attractions and activities for visitors. It boasts a splendid, 14-mile strand of soft white sand at Cable Beach, where people flock to enjoy sunset camel rides. And with 2,600 islands in the area and warm seas, it is a sportsman’s paradise. But the unique allure of the region is the unspoiled expanse of bizarre geological formations, waterways and ancient Aboriginal lands called the Kimberley. Corrugated with red-hued cliffs and escarpments, and laced with pristine waterways, swimming holes and waterfalls, the Kimberley is unlike any other landscape on earth. It invites visitors to cruise the coast, fly over the ranges, kayak the islands and explore the rugged terrain in 4WD vehicles. The only difficulty is deciding which adventure to partake of next.

Beautiful Bali is everything you imagine it will be; humbling temples, tranquil lakes, traditional villages, idyllic sands and thriving paddy fields.

Surabaya is Indonesia's second-largest city with a population of over 2.7 million (5.6 million in the metropolitan area), and the capital of the province of East Java. Shoppers will enjoy the extensive shopping centers and boutiques throughout the city. Others may wish to take in Bonbin Surabaya, one of the largest zoos in Southeast Asia. Other points of interest include the Grand Mosque of Surabaya (the largest mosque in East Java), the Mpu Tantular Museum of Javanese culture, and the Submarine Monument, also known as Monumen Kapal Selam. City sightseeing buses with English-speaking tour guides are available at the House of Sampoerna museum.

Semarang is a commercial port located roughly halfway between Jakarta and Surabaya, along Java's north central coast. Many of the island's most important exports (tobacco, sugar, rubber, coffee, and cacao) are shipped through Semarang. Because of its accessibility to the island's interior, it is an ideal gateway to the mystic Borobudur.

Bali is more than a destination. It is a journey for the spirit... a place where time has never been as important as continuity. It is a sojourn for the senses that creates lasting impressions: a delicate woodcarving, a bold painting, a village procession, and the costumed dancers of the Barong. It's been called an island of temples and with more than 10,000 the title is appropriate. It is an island where rice paddies carpet the land, starting at the beaches and clinging to hillsides up to the steep slopes of Mount Agung, the "Navel of the World" and home to Bali's gods. Nowhere will you find a more exotic, spellbinding or entrancing synthesis of humanity, nature and the spiritual world.

Known for its glorious tropical beaches and fantastic marine life, Praslin is unique because of its Vallee de Mai World Heritage Site, where the coco de mer grows wild. At seven miles long and nowhere more than 3 1/2 miles wide, it is still the second largest island in the Seychelles.

Mombasa is a coastal city of Kenya along the Indian Ocean. The city is known as the white and blue city in Kenya. It is the country's oldest and second-largest city, with a population of about 1,208,333 people according to the 2019 census.

Lying in the warm waters off the coast of Tanzania is the exotic island of Zanzibar. The mere mention of this spot conjures up images of intrigue and mystery. Zanzibar's history is whispered on the tropical breezes that cool the island. They tell of the slave trade which flourished here, and of a building called the ``House of Wonders.' They tell of a time when Christian missionaries lived and worked under difficult conditions.

At its founding in 1835, the city was named in honor of the then Governor of the Cape, Sir Benjamin D'Urban. Sugar cane transformed Durban into a vital port city, and its attractive parks and meticulously groomed gardens continue to testify to the land's richness. Today, the city sprawls along the coast, its golden beaches hugging the ice-blue Indian Ocean.

With its spectacular scenic views, wonderful wildlife and fantastic food and drink, Cape Town is a dream destination for any travel enthusiast.

In 1883, a German businessman, Adolf Luderitz, purchased a parcel of land enclosing a small bay for purposes of speculation. The so-called Skeleton Coast had limited potential in many ways, being largely made up of the shifting sands of the Namib Desert. Then, in 1906, a local railway worker noticed an oddly sparkly stone beside the tracks. It proved to be a diamond, and it became clear that there were many like it lying literally on the surface of the sands. By 1909 a diamond rush was in full sway, and a thriving, German-styled town called Kolmanskop sprouted out of the desert to house the gem-seekers. When the easy pickings ended, the townspeople simply walked away, and the desert climate preserved the town as it was slowly engulfed by the shifting sands. Today it makes an evocative and haunting place to visit. The bay still hosts a bounty of wildlife as well, including seals, whales and flamingos. Other endeavors have started, too, such as the culture of delicious oysters in the clean, cold ocean waters.

Dine on freshly-caught fish and home-grown oysters as you explore Walvis Bay's outstanding conservation areas and its Germanic history.

Cotonou is a large port city on the south coast of Benin, in West Africa. At the eastern end of central Boulevard St. Michel is the huge Dantokpa Market, which features religious items and spices alongside everyday objects. To the southwest, the 19th-century Cotonou Cathedral has a striking red-and-white striped facade. Nearby, in the Haie Vive district, the Fondation Zinsou museum shows contemporary African art.

Tema port is about 25 km from Ghana’s teeming capital. The cultures of West Africa share a traditional propensity to be busy. It’s exciting and can be dazzling to newcomers. Accra is a bustling, colorful city where everybody is rather joyfully struggling to get ahead. Enjoy it. The oldest section, Jamestown, is centered around the 17th century James Fort, where the British converted a traditional market for precious metals to a trade in slaves. Climb the red-and-white lighthouse for a view of the busy city. Visit the National Museum to get a glimpse of the elaborate and very ancient cultures of Ghana through exhibits of art and artifacts. Then survey Independence Square, and its memorial to the independent nation’s first leader Kwame Nkrumah. Once your pulse is up to speed, perhaps venture into the sea of humanity that is the Makola Market. The Artists Alliance gallery contains works in every medium imaginable from the fertile community of Ghanaian artists. The ANO Centre for Cultural Research is another place to discover the rich vein of creativity that runs from antiquity into today’s culture. A more vivid example can be experienced at Labadi Beach, where enterprising entertainers, venders and artists gather to ply their trades among the visitors from neighboring luxury hotels. Like the pulsing, jazzy Ghanaian popular music, the beat of Accra is fast-paced and insistent, but full of joy.

Like much of West Africa, Togo is a result of European colonial disruption of long-standing African kingdoms. Togo’s long, thin territory reflects its history as a trade franchise for Germany, which controlled the coastline and plundered the interior. The country’s citizenry is made up of 40 ethnic groups. Blessed with broad golden beaches and a sunny, warm climate, Togo is a favorite of European vacationers. The huge Grand Market distributes everything required for life in the city. The picturesque and fragrant Akodessewa fetish market dispenses all sorts of botanicals and mummified animal parts to the 51 percent of Togo’s population who are practitioners of Vodun or other native animist religions. It is the largest such market in Africa and draws devotees from all over the continent. The smaller Centre Artisanal offers handcrafts. The National Museum is a good place to learn more about the history and cultures of Togo, with displays of traditional jewelry, clothing, pottery, sculpture and musical instruments. Modernist monuments around town include the Independence Memorial and the Peace Dove Monument, while the tall steeples of the red-and-white Cathedral are a memorial of German colonial occupation. The city’s pace is slower and more relaxed than other West African capitals, and the golden sands of Lomé and Aneho beaches invite you to admire the rolling sapphire surf from the Gulf of Guinea.

The Gambia takes its name from the river that runs through it. In fact the nation consists largely of the river and a narrow band of riparian land on either side of it. The smallest nation on the African mainland, it is only 30 miles wide at its broadest point, and surrounded on three sides by Senegal. The capital of Banjul, formerly known as Bathurst, slumbers on small St. Mary’s Island near the river’s mouth. The town’s life centers around the bustling Albert Market, where nearly everything is traded in any (or several) of the country’s five official languages, plus French and English. The National Museum is a good place to get a look at the historic and ethnographic makeup. South of the town is Abuko Nature Reserve, a 180-acre section of savannah forest preserved in 1968 through the efforts of the country’s first forest officer, Eddie Brewer. The reserve is a good place to see examples of the native fauna including several species of monkeys, hyenas, antelope, and reptiles including crocodiles and monitor lizards. It also attracts more than 270 species of birds.

One of the most vibrant and cosmopolitan African cities, the Senegalese capital bears many visual reminders of its past as a French colonial outpost. Despite the Parisian-style boulevards and buildings, however, there is a distinctly African feel to the city. Bankers and executives can be seen going about their businesses dressed in the flamboyant traditional Grand Boubou costume, and women wear the feminine version with an equally striking headpiece. The common language is French, although many citizens may also speak as many as five or six ethnic languages, since the whole coast of West Africa has been steeped in a heritage of mutual trade for centuries. Among the many sights and sounds greeting visitors, none is more evocative and sobering than a visit to Goree Island and its House of Slaves. This fortress, just offshore of the city waterfront, displays many reminders of the brutal trade in human beings, including an unimposing doorway, set just above the waterline in the seaside wall, identified simply as the “Door of No Return.”

The capital city of Cape Verde, Praia lies on the southern coast of Santiago – known as the fertile island.

Known as the cultural capital of Cape Verde, Mindelo on São Vicente is a bustling port city which is home to 80 per cent of the island’s inhabitants. With a harbourside location and surrounded by picturesque mountains, Mindelo enjoys both a tropical climate and a vibrant social scene.

Long adored for its tempting beaches, dramatic landscapes and glorious year-round weather, the Spanish archipelago of the Canary Islands is found just off the northwest coast of Africa.

Lanzarote is an island destination which promises to leave you awed by the majesty of nature, thanks to its volcanic geology which dates back a mere 15 million years.

The sprawling, Moroccan city of Casablanca, sits on the north-west coast of Africa.

Barcelona’s stunning blend of intriguing architecture, irrepressible culture, exquisite food and inviting beaches means that it is truly a destination that has something for everyone.