Where do #BoldTravellers go? To the silent, blue heart of a glacier. To the blinding white spire of a temple against the sky. We go to find the moments that shift perspective. What we bring back is more than a photo or an article; it’s an invitation to see the world through a different lens. This collection is your starting point. Let it pull you into the frame, and begin your next journey right here.
1. Nunavut, Canada
Photo: Jerry Riley
There are few places on Earth where the aurora borealis feels as personal and profound as in Nunavut. Your first reaction may be awe-struck silence, but nothing beats the moment you and your friends all say a hushed “wow” as the captivating dance begins. The magic deepens in moments of community, like a church picnic on the ice of a frozen lake in Baffin Island, where the congregation gathers to talk, fish through drilled holes, and share food under the vast sky. Here, far from any light pollution, the sky isn’t just a show. It’s an interactive companion to daily life, painting its green and violet hues over a silent, snowy landscape and the shared warmth of a simple meal.
2. White Temple (Wat Rong Khun), Chiang Rai, Thailand
Photo: Daniel Pelaez Duque
In the northern Thai city of Chiang Rai, there’s a temple so blindingly white it stops you in your tracks. Wat Rong Khun isn’t ancient history. It’s the life’s work of visual artist Chalermchai Kositpipat, a contemporary art installation that’s also a functioning Buddhist temple. Ornate carvings, mirrored mosaics, and demonic sculptures surround a bridge spanning a moat of reaching hands. Step inside, and the murals swap serenity for pop culture: Superman soars, Kung Fu Panda battles, and Michael Jackson strikes a pose. It’s surreal, spiritual, and utterly unique. A place where Thai mythology and modern cheek share the same sacred space.
3. Nimmo Bay, British Columbia
Photo: @jeremykoreski
Imagine a place so secluded and inseparable from nature that simply reaching it makes one feel like the protagonist of a classical odyssey. Step off the plane, breathe in the invigorating scent of cedar trees that mingles with the crisp mountain air and taste the salinity of the ocean breeze on your tongue. Eagles soar overhead. The weight of the world evaporates. You’ve arrived at Nimmo Bay Wilderness Resort, the very definition of a secret hideaway nestled into the old growth forests of British Columbia’s Great Bear Rainforest. Its remote location informs an all inclusive luxury retreat that offers highly personalized (staff are two to a guest), purposeful experiences far from the bustle. Another luxury: the resort’s proximity to 50,000 square miles of sprawling coastal wilderness provides a plethora of opportunities for both adventure and relaxation seekers.
4. Hong Kong
Inside the Xiqu Centre performing arts centre in West Kowloon. Photo by Valeriy Eydlin/Shutterstock
To the first time visitor, Hong Kong can feel overwhelming: a concrete maze of mile high skyscrapers, thick as a forest, with dozens of cranes on the horizon. There’s a feeling of motion, of a city on a mission to modernize. But spend some time here, and you start to sense something else: a grassroots, indie spirit in its neighbourhoods. Hidden doors to trendy bars, renowned chefs in intimate, hard to find restaurants, crumbling historic buildings housing carefully curated art galleries, old warehouses converted into creative hubs for artists and designers. Just a few years ago, Hong Kong was considered a cultural desert. Now it’s experiencing what some are calling a ‘creative awakening.’ There’s still, however, a tendency to rip down the old in favour of new development, but some young designers, artists and entrepreneurs are turning the “old” into something new.
5. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Photo: @belmondcopacabanapalace
Rio de Janeiro doesn’t just welcome you. It pulls you into its rhythm. It’s the electric buzz of Ipanema Beach at sunset, the solemn quiet inside the Cristo Redentor’s shadow, and the samba pulse spilling from Lapa’s arches. The city is a breathtaking composition of contrasts: lush Tijuca rainforest tumbles down to meet urban neighbourhoods; the stark white curves of the Niterói Contemporary Art Museum jut into Guanabara Bay. Whether you’re riding the cable car up Sugarloaf Mountain for a panoramic gasp or finding a quiet corner in the colourful Santa Teresa district, Rio engages every sense with its dramatic landscapes and irrepressible spirit.
6. Český Krumlov, Czech Republic
Photo by Vlad Kiselov on Unsplash
For years, Prague has captured the heart of travellers. Now the fairytale town of Český Krumlov is catching the eye of international jetsetters. Situated on the banks of the Vltava River, the town was built around a 13th century castle with Gothic, Renaissance and Baroque elements. It is an outstanding example of a small central European medieval town whose architectural heritage has remained intact thanks to its peaceful evolution over more than five centuries. Wandering its cobblestone lanes feels less like sightseeing and more like stepping onto a film set where the only script is written by history itself.
7. Perito Moreno Glacier, Los Glaciares National Park
Photo by Henrique Sá on Unsplash
Nothing prepares you for the scale, the sound, or the surreal blue glow of Perito Moreno. This isn’t a static river of ice. It’s a living, breathing, collapsing entity. Standing on the viewing platforms across from its 70 metre high face, you wait for the thunderous crack as car sized seracs calve into the turquoise water below. To walk on its surface with crampons is to enter another world. A maze of deep crevasses, sapphire hued pools, and ice caves that whisper with millennia old air. It’s a raw, humbling encounter with the planet’s powerful, ancient rhythms, set against the dramatic backdrop of Argentine Patagonia.
8. Sofitel Legend Santa Clara, Cartagena, Colombia
“El Sol” – gold-leaf, textile-based work by Colombian visual artists Olga de Amaral hangs at the main entrance of the Sofitel Legend In Cartagena, Colombia
In 1995, a 17th century convent built in 1621 was transformed into the Sofitel Legend Santa Clara Cartagena. But the landmark building wasn’t the only beneficiary of the thoughtful repurposing. The project also contributed to making the historic walled area of Cartagena, Colombia, a more vibrant neighbourhood and an unmissable gourmet destination. Today, staying here is like living within a living museum. Bougainvillea spills over ancient stone walls surrounding cloistered courtyards, and modern luxury seamlessly blends with colonial grandeur. It’s a masterclass in adaptive reuse, proving that preserving history can be the ultimate form of luxury.
9. Antarctica
Photo: Marck Guttman | @don.viajes
A trip to the Antarctic Peninsula is an exercise in sublime contrasts. You travel to the planet’s most remote wilderness on a vessel of refined luxury, where the scent of freshly baked pastries mingles with the crisp, salt tinged air. The true indulgence, however, isn’t found onboard. It’s in the profound silence that lets you hear a humpback’s breath, and in the humbling moment your zodiac is dwarfed by a cathedral of blue ice in Neko Harbour. Here, gentoo penguins comicly toboggan past, leopard seals patrol glassy channels, and the scale of the glaciers recalibrates your sense of place. It’s an encounter with the raw, beautiful pulse of the planet, where the lasting impression isn’t just what you see, but the deep, quiet echo it leaves within you.
10. Panama City, Panama
Photo: @sofitellegendcascoviejo
Stepping into Panama City’s UNESCO-listed Casco Viejo feels like entering a living storybook. The story begins in the Sofitel Legend, where the lobby’s nautical antiques and intricate tile murals map a history of colonial elegance and maritime ingenuity. The city reveals itself from a rooftop bar overlooking the bay, where the thrum of a DJ blends with the pop of Champagne corks, and a hidden speakeasy waits behind a swinging bookshelf. Yet, the true heartbeat of Panama is just beyond the terracotta rooftops: the monumental Panama Canal. From stadium-like bleachers, you can wave to crews on gargantuan ships as the locks perform their slow, awe-inspiring ballet—a daily spectacle of human ambition that shrinks the world. It’s a place where history isn’t behind glass; it’s in the iron-railed balcony you drink your morning coffee on, serenaded by a watchful blackbird before you head out for plantains and zingy ceviche.
11. Machu Picchu, Peru
Photo by Cynthia Winward/Unplash
Walking the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu is a journey that feels as much like a pilgrimage as it does an adventure. It starts in Cusco, a city where parades of laughing women in bright, woven skirts can stop traffic and fill the air with the scent of herbaceous posies. Where every day seems to be a celebration. From there, you trade the bustling plazas for the ancient stone path, where your guide’s mantra, “Just breathe,” becomes your rhythm as you climb. The trek is a physical burn in the legs and lungs, a test of endurance past misty peaks and along the Urubamba River. And then, after seven hours and thousands of steps, you catch your breath and stride through the Sun Gate. Below you, as the sun begins to set, the lost city of the Incas sprawls across the mountain. A silent, mystical reward written not just in history, but in your own footsteps.
12. St. Vincent and the Grenadines
Sailboats anchored in the turquoise shallows off Union Island, St. Vincent and the Grenadines — where island life moves at its own pace.
This is the Caribbean of whispered secrets and warm, genuine encounters. It’s calling a number on a bottle of Auntie Sue’s Hot Pepper Sauce and having her arrange a rendezvous on a rainforest footpath. It’s hiking the slopes of La Soufrière volcano one day and snorkelling with sea turtles in the pristine Tobago Cays the next. While the new Sandals resort has put the mainland on the map for luxury, and Soho Beach House Canouan offers chic seclusion, SVG’s soul remains refreshingly raw. You’ll find it in the rum shacks perched over hidden bays, on black sand beaches you’ll have to yourself, and in the resilient spirit of an archipelago that offers not just a postcard, but a profound and personal connection to island life.
13. The Azores, Portugal
Photo: Luís Alvoeiro Quaresma
This mid Atlantic archipelago is Europe’s best kept secret, but not for long. The nine volcanic islands of the Azores offer a dose of wild, sustainable nature that feels a world away from the continent. On São Miguel, you can soak in geothermal hot springs, gaze into the twin blue and green lakes of Sete Cidades, and eat a “cozido” stew that was cooked underground by volcanic steam. Out on the water, you can watch for whales and dolphins. The landscapes are dramatic, the farming is organic, and the vibe is genuinely, refreshingly remote. It’s the perfect trip for hikers, foodies, and anyone who loves a good, moody landscape.
14. Kyushu, Japan
Photo: Visit Kyushu
Journey to the southern island of Kyushu for a travel experience that soothes the soul as much as it stimulates the senses. This is Japan beyond the bullet train, where your passage is a serene cruise through the calm Seto Inland Sea. The pace slows to match the rhythm of the water, offering a floating sanctuary of wellness. Ashore, you discover a land of dramatic natural contrasts: the steamy, mineral-rich onsens of Beppu, the otherworldly volcanic landscape of Mount Aso, and the vibrant, historic port cities that have welcomed the world for centuries. It’s a deeply restorative way to encounter the culture and breathtaking scenery of Japan.
15. San Miguel de Allende
San Miguel Arcángel cathedral, San Miguel de Allende
San Miguel de Allende is a city that feels painted with pure joy. From its cotton-candy pink cathedral spires to the sun-drenched courtyards brimming with bougainvillea, it’s an open-air gallery for the senses. Here, creativity isn’t just observed—it’s lived. You’ll find it in the clatter of a coppersmith’s hammer in a hidden studio, the swirl of papel picado during the Day of the Dead parade, and the collective gasp as hundreds of lanterns are released into the night sky during the magical Light the Way festival. More than a beautiful colonial town, it’s a place that invites you to shed your everyday skin, pick up a paintbrush, dance in the street, and rediscover a playful, artistic side you might have forgotten was there.
16. Roatán, Honduras
Photo by Jahman
To know Roatán, you must look beyond the cruise ships. This Bay Island’s true soul lies in the rhythmic pulse of Garifuna drums on a beach in Punta Gorda, where the living history of Afro-Caribbean culture is shared through dance and cassava bread. It’s found just offshore, in the vibrant coral gardens of the Mesoamerican Barrier Reef, where you can float above gardens of sea fans and curious parrotfish. And it stretches inland, along jungle trails where you can zipline through the canopy of a tropical forest. Roatán masterfully balances easy accessibility with profound authenticity, offering a portal to a world of living culture and natural wonder that feels genuinely its own.
17. Waimea Canyon, Hawaii
Photo: @_man_ball_
Waimea Canyon doesn’t simply appear—it unfolds dramatically. A short drive from Kauai’s northern shores, the landscape transforms into what is aptly called the Grand Canyon of the Pacific. Here, your gaze travels across a vast, layered canvas where brilliant red-rock cliffs are slashed by deep, verdant valleys. The scale is humbling, a powerful contrast to the island’s gentle beaches and a profound reminder of the ancient volcanic forces that shaped this paradise. It’s a must-see vista that captures the raw, majestic heart of Hawaii.
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