Simon Buckby was a London-based BBC and Financial Times journalist, among other things, before running communications consultancies. He has lived in Hong Kong and Dubai, and is currently based in Bangkok.
Come to (Outer) Mongolia to experience the land of the Eastern Steppe, of the Gobi Desert, of Genghis Khan, of Chinese domination, of Soviet allegiance, of isolation caused by politics as well as by challenging topography and vicious climate, and of a unique cultural festival.
Māori communities, and the sites of their historic conflicts with European Pākehā settlers, frame our enjoyment of the gorgeous mountains, volcanos, forests and lakes, plus the breathtaking coastlines, with rugged rocks, sandy beaches and spectacular archipelagos. There are also a number of excellent wine-making regions, along with several good dive sites.
One of the most naturally gorgeous landscapes on earth has been beautifully preserved. We come for the sounds, especially at Marlborough in the north and Fiordland in the south, as well as the mountains, glaciers, rivers and lakes connected to the Southern Alps that run down the spine of the island. There are national parks galore, as well as a world-class drive along the desolate south coast.
Arabia is opening up. There are brand new cities, world class heritage sites, desert camps with dune bashing, mountain trekking in the great mountains, and scuba diving in the Gulf of Oman and the Red Sea coast of Saudi Arabia. Above all, you get insights into a part of the world crucial to global stability and yet so misunderstood and so feared in the West.
Saudi Arabia feels like a final frontier. Apart from the two million Muslim pilgrims who go to Mecca every year, very few foreigners have been able to enter the country for decades. Yet, suddenly, we are not only allowed, we are being actively encouraged, and we get the warmest of welcomes. But just because we can now go, why should we? And what would we see when we get there?
In this woefully under-visited state, there is the tech capital of India at Bengaluru plus several heritage centres with palaces and temples of competing ancient kingdoms. In addition, there are coffee plantations, tiger reserves and uncrowded beaches.
There is plenty to see and do in the UAE beyond the big-ticket attractions of Dubai and Abu Dhabi. There are beaches, deserts and mountains, with fabulous resorts all over. There are mosques and forts to investigate, arts and culture to explore, and sports galore to play and to watch.
Tamil Nadu is beyond the tourist circuits of India, with unique local culture, cuisine and temples, colonial legacy, churches and forts, hectic street life, crowded beaches on the Bay of Bengal coast, cool hill stations in the Western Ghats, and the uniqueness of the southern tip of the sub-Continent.
Turkmenistan’s capital, Ashgabat, is one of the weirdest places on the face of the earth, and that alone makes this trip outstanding. Plus, there are excellent natural wonders and decent big ticket heritage sites. Above, this is a chance to peep behind the iron curtain of one of the most isolated countries in the world.
