From: Men's Journal
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Malta
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Strategically located between Italy and Tunisia, Malta has been coveted (and conquered) by nearly every major historic superpower, from the Phoenicians to the Brits. But by tourists? Not so much. That’s good news for you, because Malta feels like southern Europe must have decades ago—sun-drenched and gorgeous, with friendly locals, a quiet vibe, and prices that are way, way lower than in today’s France, Italy, or Greece.
Malta, the largest of the country’s three islands, is just 122 square miles. You get there via a short flight from European hubs-three hours from London, one and a half from Rome. The capital city of Valletta dates to the 16th century—nor surprise that it has served as a set for Gladiator and Game of Thrones. Stay at the recently renovated Phoenicia, a grande dame hotel at the city’s gates; it provides a base from which to explore sites like the medieval town of Mdina and Megalithic temples that predate Stonehenge. Or screw history and go to the beach—Malta has more than 150 miles of coastline, with water warm enough for swimming through October. In winter, Mellieha and Golden Bay turn into kite and windsurfing meccas.
To experience Malta’s wilder side, take the 25-minute ferry ride to Gozo, its trapped-in-time sister island, which lures adventurers with 350-plus climbing routes and Blue Hole, one of Europe’s top dive sites. A newly completed network of trails makes it possible to take in the heady mix of thyme, oleander, and salt-scented air on two wheels. Intrepid kayakers can make the 20-minute paddle to a virtually uninhabited satellite island, Comino, and snorkel its famed Blue Lagoon.
One final perk: The colonizing Brits (Malta won its independence only in 1964) left behind the English language, but thankfully not their food. The island’s cuisine generally splits the difference between Italy and North Africa—think seafood carpaccio, fragrant bean stews, baked pastas—and will leave you very, very happy.
-Jen Murphy
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Republic of Georgia
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| Image via Andrea Cavallini / Getty |
Picture a sunny Eurasian landscape of jagged, snow-crowned mountains, rolling fields of vineyards, and sexy, bustling cities inhabited by gregarious, proud people who live to eat and drink. Italy, right? Nope. We’re talking about the Republic of Georgia.
Hidden behind the Iron Curtain for much of the 20th Century, Georgia has slowly been reintroducing itself to the Western world—and it makes a pretty good impression. The capital, Tbilisi, is cosmopolitan and hip, brimming with art, fashion, and restaurants, with a creative energy not unlike that of Berlin’s coming-out party in the 1990s.
Even more impressive, however, are the nearby Caucasus Mountains, a 750-mile chain running from the Black Sea to the Caspian Sea and home to Europe’s tallest peaks—an adventure playground begging to be discovered. A winding 2.5-hour drive from Tbilisi will put you in the sleepy mountain town of Stepantsminda, nestled in the shadow of 16,558-foot Mount Kazbek. In the winter, you’ll find heli-skiing and ice climbing; in the warmer months, para-gliding, mountain biking, and hiking. “The potential for adventure is limitless,” says Alexander Iskandarov, a local wilderness guide. “You won’t find high-speed gondolas, but you will find wild nature and locals who welcome you into their homes.
-Jen Murphy
Zambia
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| Image via Time + Tide |
The hyenas are bigger than any I’ve seen, with bright pelts that seem to absorb sunlight into their black spots and radiate it from the lighter ones. I don’t usually think of a hyena as majestic, but here in Liuwa Plain National Park, everything is majestic.
The park, 2,275 square miles on the upper Zambezi floodplains of Zambia’s far western province, offers one of the continent’s most remote safari experiences—a remoteness that has made the place almost impossible to visit. That changed last spring, with the opening of the King Lewanika Lodge. The park’s first permanent safari camp, the lodge consists of six elegantly appointed canvas tents with hot showers, striking a perfect balance between bush-camp luxury and earthy authenticity.
[post_ads]You do your exploring, via Land Cruiser or canoe, when the animals are on the move, before dawn or approaching dusk, or even at night—getting exhilaratingly close to lions and cheetahs, with big-bodied birds, like openbill storks and white-faced whistling ducks, hovering overhead. Time in between is spent napping, reading, or seeing what’s on offer at the bar, which is set on a veranda overlooking endless savanna. In the late 19th century, these were the royal hunting grounds of King Lewanika, leader of the Lozi people. But by the mid-1970s, nearly the entire animal population had been depleted by poachers. In 2003, African Parks, a South Africa-based NGO that helps restore and manage wilderness areas, saved the plain by reintroducing native species.
But the magic of Liuwa Plain is as much about vastness and emptiness as it is about exotic wildlife. Out in the bush after a late afternoon of exploring, we stop to observe the sunset. Only now, the sunset and the moonrise occur simultaneously. The sun and moon, close and enormous, sit on either side of the horizon at eye level. Then the sun goes down and the moment is gone, though the feeling—humbling and exhilarating—lingers.
-Todd Pitock
Kalimantan
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| Image via Soekron Mohamad / EyeEm / Getty |
Kalimantan—the Indonesian portion of Borneo—has all of the dense jungle, snaking rivers, and pristine beaches you expect on a South Pacific island. But there’s one big difference: Because it’s largely protected from tsunamis, Kalimantan’s rain forest is one of the world’s oldest—130 million years, with towering trees, 25,000 species of flowering plants, and all manner of exotic wildlife. Most notably, Kalimantan is the last natural habitat for Borneo orangutans, and because the island gets relatively few visitors, animal sightings are plentiful. You won’t find 600-thread-count sheets or four-star cuisine, but if you’re willing to roll with it, you can spend the night aboard a traditional wooden houseboat called a klotok and escape the steamy jungle heat with a swim in a remote, cascading waterfall.
-Berne Broudy
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The Arctic
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| Photograph by Dennis Minty |
For centuries, explorers sought the Northwest Passage, the
elusive sea route through the Canadian Arctic connecting the Atlantic to
the Pacific. And for centuries, thick pack ice made the route
impassable—and often deadly. But a warming climate is changing that.
Last year, Crystal Cruises made its maiden voyage from Alaska to New York—a staggering 32 days and 7,297 miles—and a growing number of outfitters like Adventure Canada now offer similar journeys.
No one is happy about climate change, but summer in the Arctic is a
time of unexpected bloom: At Baffin Island, Canada’s largest island,
you’ll find fat, healthy bears on ice floes. In Lancaster Sound, you can
see arctic foxes, walruses, bowhead whales. Zooming through fjords in
Zodiacs, you’ll get scarily close to calving ice, racing along glacial
walls in search of narwhals.
It’s breathtaking—but, frankly, unsettling. Gawking at the giant
icebergs in Greenland’s Ilulissat, it’s sobering to recall that 8% of
the earth’s freshwater is locked in Greenland’s ice. If that melts, seas
would rise 23 feet globally. And this striking landscape could be lost
forever.
