With airfares likely to increase through the new year, travelers are looking to get the biggest bang for their buck.
Lonely Planet's "Best value destinations" for 2013, part of its "Best in Travel" annual series, may offer just the ticket.
"Destinations on our 'best value' list are for those who want to make the most out of their dollar when traveling," said Andy Murdock, Lonely Planet's U.S. Digital Editor, via e-mail. "While the choices are not the cheapest destinations on the planet in every case, they're great options for travelers who want to visit somewhere new and interesting without draining their bank account."
Deals are to be found in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; Gothenburg, Sweden; Cambodia; Bolivia; Spain; Slovenia; Nepal; Portland, Oregon; Georgia (the former Soviet republic, not the U.S. state); and Namibia.
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2 comments to Ten Best Vacation Destinations for 2013
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Unknown Hi CLY
I totally agree with you with regards to travelling. A girlfriend just returned from a one-month Mediterranean cruise and cursed like hell for many reasons including how she hardly saw anything in the Vatican but smelled body odour, sweat, stale perfume as she walked around in a thick crowd.
I am so glad that I travelled a lot in the 1980's and 1990's when I was younger, stronger and had more $$. I could run up the Eiffel Tower in 25 minutes together with a Mexican girl and a Japanese friend the first time I went to Paris but three years later when I re-visited with my husband, I took the lift :-).
As for the Vatican (sorry I forgot to respond to your other comment), I toured 10 countries in Europe for 6 weeks on my own and really had a blast going to museums, spending a whole day at the Vatican, sitting in a gondola in Venice and smelling the dirty canal water, goo-googaga-ing at the statue of David in Florence, getting lost in the catacombs in Rome and nearly freaking out when I saw skeletons, enjoying the ruins at Colosseum, being ribbed off by a restaurnt in Rome who charged my friends and me for the cutlery, table and table cloth!!!...marvelling at the leaning tower of Pisa, snapping pics of flamenco dances in Madrid, awed by the magnificence of the Sagrada Familia in Barcelona while cursing my camera which could not capture the entire building, and even climbing the Swiss alps, enjoying the tinkering of the cow bells in Lucerne, imagining i was Julie Andrews when I visited Salzburg, waltzing away in Vienna, getting lost in Schaunbraunn Palace in Vienna,getting goose bumps in the cold royal crypt in Austria, having picnics in the Jardin du Luxembour in Paris, talking to Napolean in Les Invalides while standing in front of his tomb, running around the little country of Lichtenstein, almost pickpocketed when I was in Nice, wishing I was rich and famous when walking around in Monaco and when in the casinos (no $$$ for any drink/food/game), getting shocked by what I saw in Dam Square in Amsterdam, having the best evening stroll in Volendam, the best Bavarian meals in different parts of Germany, almost missing my coach while in Cologne cos I took 40 minutes to climb the clock tower, having the best snapshot in the ruins of a castle in Hiedelberg and so many other unforgettable experiences in many other countries.
I am glad I spent time and money to visit those countries. Although the $$$ could have been better spent investing in property, I have no regrets for I believe the experience is unforgettable.
I have yet to visit China, Japan, South America, India, Africa, Canada, the Scandinavian countries and the eastern bloc of Europe + Russia. I don't think I will have the chance to do that and for now, only virtual tours will suffice.
But of all the places I have been to, for sure, my favorite places are in order of preference:
1. Paris
2. San Francisco
3. Salzburg
4. Lake District, UK
5. Madrid
6. Yosemite
7. Napa Valley
8. Bath, UK
9. Hiedelberg
10. Vienna
As for Penang, I am so sorry to say that it is NO LONGER THE SAME!!!
The pearl has lost its lustre.
What we have are traffic jams and traffic jams. Going out is extremely stressful for me as road rage is common. Enough said for I still live here.
If ever you do visit, let me know and I will take you and your family to the best kept secrets of Penang.
Take care and God bless.
CLY Top ten destinations? The traveling will kill you. Anything more than 5 hours would be unbearable unless one is flying First Class. Crammed seats and tiny and messy toilets. You might be sitting to a person with hairy arms or worst still, BO.
Well for me it's home sweet home. The neighbourhood have plenty of surprises. People in Penang especially. It is a good life there, with the sun, sea, hills and food. A day trip would be fun.
Think twice, it might look nice;
The grass is alway greener on the other side.