10 Best Places To Visit This New Year

The where, when and why of your next globetrotting adventure begins right here. These unspoiled and unexplored destinations will be hot property soon (according to The Lonely Planet Best In Travel 2016 guide), so get packing.

- Meher Bajwa

CUBA

Place to visit: Vinales Valley

When: July to October

A UNESCO World Heritage Site, the Viñales Valley in the Sierra de los Organos mountains of Cuba is home to iconic tobacco plantations and outstanding Karst landscape—keep an eye out for cigar-chewing guajiros ploughing fields, a great photo-op for Instagram, while on your hop-on-hop-off bus tour. Vinales enjoys a lasting relationship with tourism (like rock climbing, salsa dancing, cycling tours, hiking and cave exploration) but still maintains its position as a slow-paced settlement surrounded by some of Cuba’s most striking natural beauty.

LATVIA

Places to visit: Gauja National Park and Riga

When: April to August

Gauja National Park was established to protect the valley of the Gauja river and its unique environs. In numbers, we’re talking about 500 cultural and historical monuments while one-third of all natural preserves are found here. The capital city of Riga is situated at the mouth of the Daugava river. It houses an Old Town with a labyrinth of cobbled streets, a complex system of canals, a buzzing central market and a gorgeous art nouveau district. You’ll need to sip on some Riga Black Balsam, Latvia’s signature drink, to make it through the day.

BOTSWANA

Place to visit: Okawango Delta in Maun

When: July and August