Places

That Deserve More Travelers

by
National Geographic
ARMENIA
The Situation on the Ground: Since
the collapse of the Soviet Union, the
tiny Caucasus country of Armenia has
often been associated with conflict. The
country’s Nagorno-Karabakh war with
Azerbaijan over a 1,700-square-mile
patch of land each claim as their own
ended with a cease-fire in 1994, with
Armenia technically in military control
of the ethnically Armenian territory,
which currently exists as a self-
proclaimed, largely unrecognized re-
public. Despite occasional skirmishes
along the Karabakh border, however,
Armenia today is safe, with a burgeon-
ing tourist infrastructure, largely cen-
tered around family-run B&Bs and
agrotourism-style homestays, designed
to attract adventurous backpackers to
the country’s staggering and often un-
heralded natural and architectural beau-

Why Go Now: Few people know that Armenia was the first country in the world to adopt Christianity as a state religion, in A.D.
301. And Armenia’s ancient churches—massive, sprawling complexes of ruins nestled into the wildly green canyons and mountain-
tops of the countryside—are among the world’s best preserved. While other Christian churches are decorated with painted frescoes,
many of which have faded or been destroyed, the carved stone lions of cliffside Geghard Monasteryand intricately
carved khachkars (stone graves) of Sanahin stand as a testament to the creative power of one of the world’s oldest, and least herald-
ed, civilizations. And Armenia’s churches aren’t the only attraction of its countryside. The wildflower-dappled hills and valleys
here—far more accessible than the vertiginous mountain paths of Georgia—are full of pagan temples like Garni, just outside Yere-

Don’t Miss: Most tourists concentrate their activities around Yerevan, the country’s muted, largely Soviet-era, capital. But a half-
day’s drive from Yerevan ($50 with a reliable taxi driver), is the town of Goris, set among caves and cliffs in Armenia’s verdant
south and among the country’s most spectacular. Winding hikes through the historic village take you through the cave villages of
Old Khndzoresk, while a short bus ride takes you to the ninth-century mountaintop stone monastery of Tatev, once a capital of Ar-
menian culture and learning, accessible by one of the world’s longest cable cars. In the heart of Goris, an eccentric mountaineer
runs Khachik’s B&B (from $20 per night, including meals), a homestay with nightly home-cooked meals, garnished with fresh

Practical Tip: While violence at the Nagorno-Karabakh border is uncommon, the occasional flare-up can turn fatal, so it’s vital to
be aware of the situation on the ground before traveling south, particularly to Goris or Tatev, which are near the border. If you’re
planning to visit Azerbaijan after Armenia, be aware that border control may take a dim view of your prior travels and may even
encourage you to get rid of offending photographs (or guidebooks). If Azeri officials suspect you of having visited Nagorno-
Karabakh, furthermore, you may be denied access to the country entirely.
 NICARAGUA

The Situation on the Ground: Petty crime. Carjackings. Muggings. Drugs. Central America’s reputation hasn’t been the most
sterling in recent years, as spillover from both Mexico and South America’s drug trades has rendered the region a focus point for
narcotics-related violence. And the stereotype’s not too far off for some of Nicaragua’s neighbors–Honduras and Guatemala are
among the world’s most violent countries, while even statistically safer countries like Costa Rica and Panama have seen a spike in
murder rates in the past decade. But Nicaragua–despite being among Latin America’s poorest countries—is also among its safest.
Its murder rate is only 11 per 100,000 people (compared with 82 in Honduras). Nicaragua’s relative paucity of gang-related vio-
lence makes it an ideal vantage point from which to explore Central American culture.

Why Go Now: While Nicaraguan’s two coastlines–the country borders both the Caribbean and the Pacific–have long made its
shores a haven for beach- (and bacchanal-) minded travelers, recent government investment in infrastructure, including a new high-
way, in the lesser known, largely rural Río San Juan region has opened up the province as a prime eco-tourism destination. Tou-
cans flutter through ferns in the Indio Maíz Biological Reserve, a riotously colorful nature park populated by wild boars, macaws,
and even manatees; in the garden of the nearby Río Indio Adventure Lodge (from $185 per person), one of several newly opened
eco-lodges in the area, monkeys watch over the breakfast buffet.

Don’t Miss: Though outsiders often reduce Central American food to rice and beans, Nicaraguan cuisine is justly renowned for its
fusion of Spanish, Creole, and South American influences. Don’t leave Nicaragua without trying vigerón—smooth
boiled yucca topped with slabs of crispy fried pork skin and cabbage slaw, eaten greedily with the fingers—or nacatamales, the
Nicaraguan variation of the tamale: plantain leaves stuffed with cornmeal dough, meats, rice, and earthy, bright-red achiote powder.

Practical Tip: While Nicaragua’s crime rate is significantly lower than that of many of its neighbors, it’s important to stay vigilant,
particularly in Managua, Nicaragua’s capital. Tourists who tread too far off the beaten path may be targeted; if you can, hire a local
guide—someone savvy enough to chart your course through unfamiliar urban areas or smooth over any potentially hostile interac-
tions. The Viva Spanish School in Managua, which also provides official Spanish tuition to U.S. Embassy staff, offers several guid-
ing and tour programs—from day trips to nature reserves to morning visits to Roberto Huembes market—from as little as $20.
 ALBANIA

The Situation on the Ground: For decades, Albania was among southeastern Europe’s least visited—and least accessible—
countries. A virtual fortress under the isolationist tactics of communist dictator Enver Hoxha (who spent four decades building over
700,000 needless, and largely useless, defensive bunkers across the country), Albania collapsed into chaos after Hoxha’s death in
1985 and the subsequent fall of the U.S.S.R. Today, however, Albania is no less safe than its more well-trodden Adriatic counter-
parts. A burgeoning tourist industry—centered around its meticulously preserved UNESCO-listed Ottoman towns, including Berat
and Gjirokastra, and the stretch of land now known somewhat archly as the Albanian Riviera—now brings in almost 3.5 million
tourists a year.

Why Go Now: While Adriatic beaches in nearby Italy and Croatia have largely been transfor med into crowded, hypermod-
ern resort complexes, Albania’s coastal beaches, dotted with ruined Greco-Roman amphitheaters and whitewashed, icon-filled Or-
thodox churches, are among the few in Europe where it’s possible to stretch out on the shoreline, even during high season. South of
Vlorë, the somewhat concrete-feeling coastal hub, ethnically Greek villages like Dhërmi, Vuno, and Himarë—with terrace cafés,
waterside squid-hawking fishmongers, and narrow pedestrianized pathways—are inundated with family-run B&Bs that go for as
little as $25 a night. Travelers from outside the Balkans are still rare but vigorously welcomed. Don’t be surprised if your B&B
host insists on taking you on a dizzying motorcycle tour along the coastline or challenges you to a staggering rakia-drinking com-
petition.

Don’t Miss: Albania’s relative lack of development has been a boon to its UNESCO World Heritage sites, among them the gar-
gantuan, sprawling complex of Butrint, one of the most expansive, best preserved Greco-Roman cities in Europe. A 20-minute bus
ride from the coastal city of Sarandë, near Albania’s Greek border, Butrint feels like Ephesus via Indiana Jones: a virtually desert-
ed, largely uncordoned collection of amphitheaters and colonnades, early Christian baptisteries, Byzantine basilicas, and Roman
mosaics. Halfway between Sarandë and Butrint, stop at the beach hut-style restaurant of Albiori in Ksamil village, where a local
family dishes up garlicky shrimp by the bucketful, the perfect stopover for a scenic lunch.

Practical Tip: Despite an ostensibly comprehensive bus system, almost nothing in Albania runs when the online schedule
says it will. Forego printed schedules by the major bus companies and embrace the anarchic, sweaty culture of the furgon–or shared
minibus, especially south of Vlorë. These white vans, which travel with vague regularity along a fixed route, picking up and drop-
ping off passengers at will along the way, may not run to time, but there’s almost always one heading near where you want to go. In
the meantime, sit at one of the country’s ubiquitous station-side cafés for a staggeringly strong Albanian coffee (don’t call it
“Turkish” unless you’re prepared for vociferous debate) and learn to interpret the world-weary shrug that means “it’ll get here
sooner or later.”
 TIMOR-
LESTE

The Situation on the Ground: For most of the past few centuries,Timor-Leste–also known as East Timor, a million-person, ethni-
cally distinct swath of the Timor island otherwise part of the Indonesian archipelago–was a colony of Portugal. In the 1970s, Timor
sought independence from Portugal but was annexed by neighboring Indonesia in 1975. A 1999 referendum saw East Timor’s
population vote for independence, but the past decade and a half have been characterized by bloody civil war, with the country
under UN administration. As of 2012, however, UN troops have finally withdrawn from the country, and the Democratic Republic
of Timor-Leste, as the country is formally known, is now stable and embracing its burgeoning identity as an unexpected destination
for adventure tourism in Southeast Asia.

Why Go Now: Newly stable, East Timor is attracting intrepid travelers drawn to its staggering natural beauty: particularly its 100-
plus miles of wildly colorful coral reef networks right off its extended, still undeveloped coasts: a rarity in a part of the world
where frenetic building development threatens most coral life. Snorkeling and diving here is among the best in the world–the area
has some of the most diverse maritime reef and fish varieties on earth–and daylong shore and boat diving excursions from Dili and
Tutuala can still be had for as little as $45 a day.

Don’t Miss: Head to Timor in early spring for its massive, raucous Carnival season. A relatively recent addition to Timor’s cultural
calendar (the festivities were first organized in 2010 by the country’s incipient Ministry of Tourism) Carnival is nevertheless an
opportunity to experience the diversity of the country’s musical and dance traditions in one place—not to mention the dizzying va-
riety of over-the-top traditional costumes on offer. The city of Dili all but closes down for the duration of Carnival, which takes
place in February or March; music and dancing last until dawn.

Practical Tip: While Timor-Leste is now relatively stable, it nonetheless remains one of the world’s poorest countries, and petty
crime is not unheard of. Tourism is still relatively rare here, and foreign travelers do stand out. Avoid framing yourself as a target as
much as possible: avoid having expensive cameras, iPhones, and other valuables in clear view (or leaving them in a locked car).
Women in particular should exercise extra caution if traveling alone or after dark.
 GEORGIA

The Situation on the Ground: Revolution, chaos, revolution, war, upheaval. The years since the collapse of the Soviet Union
have not been uniformly good to Georgia, the balmy, vineyard-dotted Caucasian country that once doubled as an artistic Grand
Tour destination for Russia’s literary élite. But in the aftermath of the country’s brief, devastating 2008 war with Russia, waves of
foreign investment—only slightly stymied by the 2012 election of a right-leaning nationalist government—have transformed Geor-
gia into a model of frenetic development. Its once bandit-infested mountains are now awash with newly built ski slopes (and Swiss-
style chalets); the crumbling art nouveau facades of its Black Sea port Batumi have been meticulously, and sometimes gaudily,
restored. And with its resurgent activist arts (and nightlife) scenes, Tbilisi, its capital, has become one of Eastern Europe’s most
innovative cultural capitals.

Why Go Now: The winding dirt roads and collapsed fin de siècle palaces of ear ly 2000’s Tbilisi may have given way to a far
more cosmopolitan and polished city, but Tbilisi’s anarchically bohemian spirit still suffuses its historic districts, where repurposed
19th-century chandeliers hang over finger paintings in speakeasy-style apartment bars like Café Linville. But the looming construc-
tions of sprawling, aesthetically jarring tourist developments—including Panorama complex, the pet project of billionaire former
Prime Minister Bidzina Ivanishvili—threaten the gritty beauty of Tbilisi’s Old Town, making the time to go sooner, rather than
later.

Don’t Miss: A two-hour drive from Tbilisi, mountains give way to vineyards in the region of Kakheti, Georgia’s wine country.
Boutique hotels like the funky Chateau Mere—where else could you find 19th-century armoires, a swimming pool, an imitation
Colosseum in the garden, and photos of Fellini stars on the restaurant walls?—serve as the perfect vantage points from which to
hike through the area’s hilltop medieval monasteries or to drink homemade Georgian wines for as little as $2 a bottle.

Practical Tip: Drinking in Georgia can prove a risky proposition, particular ly for men, who may baffle or even offend well-
meaning hosts by refusing to down every beverage offered. Hospitality culture here can border on the aggressive (think strangers
abducting you to their restaurant table and insisting that you down 10 or more shots of moonshine), so be prepared to stand firm and
risk disapproval if you intend to make it back to your hotel without falling over. Drinking and driving is also far too commo n here,
so avoid driving at night—after mostsupra (feasts) have finished—or relying on the offer of a post-supra lift.
1. Choose one of the places listed in this article.
2. Imagine that you work for a travel agency that wants to
promote the chosen country.
3. Create a brochure (see pictures below) to attract more
travelers to “your country”.
4. Your brochure must have:
 General information about the country;

 Current situation in the country;

 Reasons to go there;

 Must go places;

 Other information (bonuses, packages etc.)

5. Make your brochure attractive and unique.

6. Present it as a group to your classmates.