Best Places In The World To Visit

Known For : Tanah Lot Uluwatu Bali Swing

Bali fits volcano hikes, surf beaches and Hindu temple towns onto an island only slightly larger than Goa, which is why honeymooners and families both end up here. Ubud covers rice terraces and yoga, Seminyak and Canggu cover beach clubs, Nusa Penida covers day-boat snorkelling. A visa on arrival is usually available for Indian passports, villas and food cost a fraction of Europe, and it is roughly nine hours from Mumbai with one stop. Go April to October.

Best Time: April, May, June and September

304 Bali Attractions

Known For : Eiffel Tower Jardin du Luxembourg Montmartre

Paris justifies the nine-hour direct flight on its museums alone: the Louvre, the Musee d'Orsay and the Centre Pompidou sit within three kilometres of each other. Beyond the Eiffel Tower the trip is walking Montmartre, eating in the Marais and taking a day train to Versailles. It is a mid-to-high cost city break, best April to June or September to October, and it pairs naturally with Switzerland or Amsterdam on a first Europe itinerary.

Best Time: April - early October

62 Paris Attractions

Known For : Stay in an Overwater Bungalow Ithaa Undersea Restaurant Scuba Diving in Maldives

The Maldives is the shortest beach holiday an Indian traveller can take: under two hours from Kochi or Bengaluru, about three and a half from Delhi, and Indian travellers are generally cleared on arrival. The country is 1,192 coral islands, and the trip is one resort island plus a speedboat or seaplane transfer. Guesthouse islands like Maafushi keep it affordable; overwater villas do not. December to April is the dry season.

Best Time: December to April

102 Maldives Attractions

Known For : Grand Palace Wat Pho Bangkok Wat Arun

Bangkok is the cheapest big international city break from India, four hours direct from Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata and Bengaluru, and among the simplest entries for an Indian passport. A day here runs from the Grand Palace and Wat Pho to Chatuchak market and a rooftop bar, and street food keeps daily spend very low. Most trips pair it with Phuket or Krabi. November to February is the cool, dry window.

Best Time: Late November to Mid Jaunary

137 Bangkok Attractions

Known For : Gardens by the Bay Universal Studios Singapore Marina Bay Sands

Singapore is a city built to be looked at: the Marina Bay skyline, the Supertrees at Gardens by the Bay, and a hawker food culture that runs on street stalls rather than restaurants. It is also the easiest first international trip with children, with Universal Studios and the Night Safari on a cheap, spotless metro. Five and a half hours direct, and three days covers it. Prices are high by Southeast Asian standards, though hawker centres keep food costs down. It works year round, with short afternoon downpours.

Best Time: January to November

271 Singapore Attractions

Sri Lanka packs eight UNESCO World Heritage sites onto an island half the size of Tamil Nadu. The one everyone climbs is Sigiriya, a fifth-century royal citadel built on top of a 180 metre rock, and around it sit the ruined cities of Anuradhapura and Polonnaruwa and the Dutch-walled fort at Galle. The hill country train from Kandy to Ella is the other reason people come, and Yala is where the leopards are. An hour and a half from Chennai, dry on the south coast December to April. Packages average around Rs 32,000 per person.

Known For : Burj Khalifa Dubai Aquarium & Underwater Zoo At the Top Burj Khalifa

Dubai is three hours from Mumbai or Delhi, which makes it the default four-day international break. The draw is engineering: the Burj Khalifa observation decks, the fountain show, indoor ski slopes and desert dune safaris half an hour out of town. The visa is a quick online process for Indians and direct flights leave from a dozen Indian cities. Costs swing hugely by hotel. Go November to March; summer is punishing.

Best Time: November to April

129 Dubai Attractions

Tiger's Nest is why Bhutan belongs here: a monastery built in 1692 onto a cliff about 900 metres above the Paro valley, reached on a two to three hour walk through pine forest. Beyond it are the fortress dzongs at Punakha and Thimphu, prayer flags on every pass and almost no traffic. Paro is about two and a half hours from Delhi, and March to May and September to November give the clearest mountain views. Entry conditions for Indian passports work differently here, so check the current position before booking. Packages average around Rs 36,000 per person.

Eight of the world's fourteen peaks above 8,000 metres stand in Nepal, Everest among them, and you do not have to climb anything to see them. A mountain flight out of Kathmandu, sunrise from Nagarkot or Sarangkot, or twelve days walking to Everest Base Camp all work. The Kathmandu valley holds seven UNESCO monument zones on its own, Pashupatinath and Boudhanath included. October to November and March to April are the clear months. Packages average around Rs 22,000 per person.

Known For : Overnight Cruise in Halong Bay Sung Sot Cave Day Cruise in Halong Bay

Halong Bay is roughly 1,600 limestone karst islands rising out of the Gulf of Tonkin, and the standard way to see it is an overnight boat with kayaking and a cave stop. It is two and a half hours by road from Hanoi, which is about five hours direct from Delhi. Vietnam is one of the cheapest countries Indians can fly to, and a night on a mid-range cruise costs less than a European city hotel. October to April is clearest.

Best Time: April to September

53 Halong Bay Attractions

Known For : Mara River Game Drives Balloon Safari

The Masai Mara is 1,510 sq km of open grassland in Narok County, continuous with Tanzania's Serengeti, and the one place here where three days can realistically deliver all of the Big Five. July to October is the wildebeest river crossing, when over a million animals push north from the Serengeti. Nairobi is about six and a half hours direct from Mumbai and Delhi, making this the closest serious safari to India.

Best Time: June to October

16 Masai Mara Attractions

Known For : Sunset at Oia Sunset Cruise Hike from Fira to Oia

Santorini is the rim of a volcano that blew apart around 1600 BC, which is why Oia and Fira are stacked on cliffs some 300 metres above the sea. It is a two or three day stop rather than a week, usually combined with Athens and Mykonos. The beaches here are red and black volcanic sand, not white. One stop and about eleven hours from India. July and August are crowded and costly, so aim for May or late September.

Best Time: Apr-Oct

55 Santorini Attractions

Known For : Harder Kulm Paragliding in Interlaken Jungfraujoch

Interlaken sits between two lakes at the foot of the Jungfrau massif and is the base most Indian Europe itineraries use for the Alps. The Jungfrau Railway climbs from here to Jungfraujoch at 3,454 metres, the highest railway station in Europe, and Grindelwald and Lauterbrunnen are short trains away. Switzerland is the expensive leg of any Europe trip. Zurich is about eight hours direct from Delhi, then two hours by train. May to September.

Best Time: June - September, December - March

20 Attractions

Known For : The Colosseum Roman Forum Pantheon Rome

Rome is the densest ruin site of any working capital: the Colosseum, the Roman Forum and the Pantheon sit within a twenty-minute walk of each other, with the Vatican Museums and St Peter's across the river. Three full days is the minimum. About eight and a half hours direct from Delhi and cheaper than Paris or Zurich. April to June and September to October.

Best Time: April to early-November

56 Rome Attractions

Known For : Senso-ji Temple (Asakusa) Shibuya Tokyo Sky Tree

Tokyo is about eight hours direct from Delhi and rewards travellers who like a city to be complicated: Shinjuku and Shibuya for neon, Asakusa and Yanaka for temples and old lanes, Toyosu for the fish market. A rail pass puts Kyoto two and a quarter hours away by bullet train. Japan is expensive to sleep in and cheap to eat in. Late March or November.

Best Time: October to November, March to May

27 Tokyo Attractions

Known For : Tower of London British Museum London Eye

London is the easiest first Europe trip for an Indian traveller: no language barrier, a large Indian community, and direct flights of about nine hours from five Indian cities. The British Museum, Tate Modern and the National Gallery charge nothing to enter. The pound makes it expensive. May to September has the long evenings; the visa needs months of lead time.

Best Time: April to September

56 London Attractions

The Giza pyramids stand 13 km from central Cairo and were built for Khufu, Khafre and Menkaure between roughly 2600 and 2500 BC. Pair them with the Grand Egyptian Museum and a Nile cruise from Luxor to Aswan for a full week. Cairo is about six hours direct from Delhi, Egypt is inexpensive on the ground, and October to April is the only comfortable season.

Machu Picchu is an Inca royal estate built around 1450 at 2,430 metres, 80 km northwest of Cusco, and getting there is half the trip: a train to Aguas Calientes, or four days on the Inca Trail with a permit booked months ahead. Entry tickets are timed and capped. From India it is 24 hours and two stops, the longest journey on this list. May to September is dry.

Known For : Big Buddha Patong Beach Phuket Old Town

Phuket is Thailand's largest island and the busiest beach base in Southeast Asia: Patong for nightlife, Kata and Karon for families, day boats out to Phi Phi and the Phang Nga limestone stacks. About four and a half hours direct from Delhi and Mumbai, and very cheap once you land. November to February is dry; May to October brings monsoon swell.

Best Time: November to February

129 Phuket Attractions

Known For : Hamilton Island Whitsunday Island Green Island

The Great Barrier Reef runs 2,300 km along the Queensland coast and holds over 2,900 separate reefs and 900 islands. Cairns and the Whitsundays are the gateways, and a day boat with snorkelling gear is the standard way in. From India it is about 20 hours and two flights, so it belongs inside a two-week Australia trip. June to October has the clearest water.

Best Time: June to November (Spring)

17 Barrier Reef Attractions

Known For : Black River Gorges National Park Underwater Waterfall Seven Coloured Earth of Chamarel

Mauritius is the beach trip that works when the Maldives feels too quiet: 330 km of coast plus Black River Gorges hiking, the coloured earth at Chamarel and a strong Indo-Mauritian food culture. Six hours direct from Mumbai and Delhi, with a visa on arrival normally available for Indian passports, and mid-range resorts cost far less than Maldivian ones. April to June and September to December.

Best Time: April to June and September to December

146 Mauritius Attractions

Known For : Statue of Liberty Times Square Empire State Building

New York is the one American city that works without a car: the subway runs all night and Manhattan is walkable end to end. The trip is the Met and MoMA, Broadway, Central Park and the view from the Empire State or Edge. About fifteen hours direct from Delhi and Mumbai, the US visa wait is long, and it is the priciest city here. September to early November.

Best Time: Throughout the year

263 New York City Attractions

Known For : Victoria and Alfred Waterfront Table Mountain Two Oceans Aquarium

Cape Town puts a mountain, two oceans and a wine region inside one metro area: Table Mountain by cable car, penguins at Boulders Beach, Cape Point, and the Stellenbosch estates an hour inland. Add Kruger and it becomes a two-week safari and city trip. Flights route via Johannesburg or the Gulf, about fourteen hours. October to March is summer.

Best Time: October to April

41 Cape Town Attractions

Known For : Angkor Wat Ta Prohm Temple Bayon Temple

Angkor Wat is the largest religious structure in the world at 162 hectares, begun by Suryavarman II in 1122 and dedicated to Vishnu before it turned Buddhist. It sits outside Siem Reap in northwestern Cambodia, and a three-day pass also covers Bayon and the tree-rooted Ta Prohm. About seven hours from India with one stop, and very cheap on the ground. November to March is dry.

Best Time: November to March

56 Siem Reap Attractions

Iceland is a self-drive country: the Ring Road loops about 1,300 km past Seljalandsfoss, the Jokulsarlon glacier lagoon and black-sand Reynisfjara. Northern Lights run September to March; midnight sun and open highland roads run June to August. From India it is two stops and fourteen hours or more, and food and fuel cost more than anywhere else here.

Known For : Anse Lazio Snorkeling in Seychelles Sunbathing in Seychelles

Seychelles is granite, not coral: Anse Source d'Argent and Anse Lazio are known for boulder-strewn sand you will not find in the Maldives. Mahe, Praslin and La Digue are linked by short ferries, and bicycles replace cars on La Digue. Indian passports are generally admitted without anything arranged in advance, and it is about five hours direct from Mumbai. April to May and September to October.

Best Time: April to May, September to October

96 Seychelles Attractions

Known For : Sagrada Familia Park Guell Casa Batllo

Barcelona is where Gaudi built at city scale: the Sagrada Familia, Park Guell, Casa Batllo and Casa Mila, with the basilica still unfinished. It also has a working beach inside the city, which Paris and Rome do not. Tapas and the metro keep costs below northern Europe. One stop and eleven hours from India. April to June and September to October.

Best Time: April to October

47 Barcelona Attractions

Known For : Sydney Opera House Sydney Harbour Bridge BridgeClimb Sydney

Sydney is a harbour city best seen from the water: the Opera House and Harbour Bridge from a ferry to Manly, then the Bondi to Coogee coast walk in a morning. The Blue Mountains are two hours inland. About thirteen hours direct from Delhi, with a visa applied for well in advance and prices close to London's. September to November and March to May are mild.

Best Time: December to February.

53 Sydney Attractions

New Zealand is a driving holiday, not a city one: two weeks minimum, most of it on the South Island between Queenstown, Milford Sound, Aoraki Mount Cook and Franz Josef. Rotorua on the North Island handles the geothermal fields and Maori culture. From India it is one stop and about eighteen hours. November to April is the driving season.

Known For : Prague Castle Charles Bridge Old Town Square Prague

Prague came through the war largely undamaged, so its Gothic and Baroque centre is intact: the castle, Charles Bridge and the astronomical clock fall into one walk. It is the cheapest of the classic European capitals, and beer costs less than bottled water. Best as a three-day leg of a Vienna and Budapest train trip. April to June and September to October.

Best Time: April to October

48 Prague Attractions

Known For : Hong Kong Disneyland Ngong Ping 360 Cable Car Tian Tan Buddha

Hong Kong compresses a skyline, a mountain and 260 outlying islands into a small territory: the Star Ferry, the Peak Tram, the Tian Tan Buddha on Lantau and Disneyland are a short ride apart. Around five and a half hours direct from Delhi and Mumbai, with an online pre-arrival registration in place of a visa for Indians at present. October to December is dry and clear.

Best Time: October to December (Autumn)

337 Hong Kong Attractions

Known For : Rijksmuseum Van Gogh Museum Anne Frank House

Amsterdam is built around 165 canals and is best covered by bike or boat. The Rijksmuseum, Van Gogh Museum and Anne Frank House all need tickets booked weeks out, and day trains reach the Keukenhof tulip fields in spring and Bruges in two hours. About nine hours direct from Delhi, Mumbai and Bengaluru, and mid-priced for western Europe. April for tulips.

Best Time: March to September

47 Amsterdam Attractions

The Grand Canyon runs 446 km through Arizona and drops more than 1,800 metres to the Colorado River, and the South Rim stays open all year. Most Indian travellers reach it as a day trip or overnight from Las Vegas, four and a half hours by road. Rafting and the rim-to-rim hike need permits booked far ahead. March to May and September to November are cool.

Known For : Piazza del Duomo Florence Duomo Florence Piazza della Signoria

Florence holds the Renaissance inside about two square kilometres: Michelangelo's David in the Accademia, Botticelli in the Uffizi, and Brunelleschi's dome, 463 steps to the top. It is also the base for Tuscany, with Siena and the Chianti hills an hour out. Two nights covers the city. One stop and eleven hours from India. April to June, September to October.

Best Time: Throughout the year

44 Florence Attractions

Known For : Pamukkale Natural Park Travertines Pamukkale Hierapolis

Pamukkale means cotton castle, and the name is literal: calcium carbonate from seventeen hot springs has built white travertine terraces about 2,700 metres long down the hillside. The Greco-Roman city of Hierapolis sits directly above, with a spring-fed antique pool you can swim in. Istanbul is six hours direct from Delhi, then a hop to Denizli. Pairs with Cappadocia.

Best Time: September

10 Pamukalle Attractions

Known For : Golden Gate Bridge Alcatraz Island Fisherman's Wharf

San Francisco is small, steep and cold in summer, which catches out most first-time visitors. The trip is the Golden Gate Bridge, Alcatraz (book weeks ahead), the cable cars, and a drive north to Muir Woods or south on Highway 1 to Monterey. About sixteen hours direct from Delhi and Bengaluru. September and October are the clearest months.

Best Time: September to November

256 San Francisco Attractions

Known For : Matira Beach Water Sports in Bora Bora Land activities

Bora Bora is a lagoon wrapped around the extinct volcanic cone of Mount Otemanu, and the overwater bungalow was more or less invented here. It is a honeymoon destination and little else: snorkelling, ray feeding and a 4x4 island tour fill the days. From India it is over thirty hours and three flights via Papeete, and the costliest entry here. May to October.

Best Time: May to October

3 Bora Bora Attractions

Costa Rica protects about a quarter of its land and packs cloud forest, active volcanoes and two coastlines into an area roughly the size of Punjab. Monteverde has the canopy walks, Arenal the hot springs, Manuel Antonio the sloths and beaches. This is a wildlife and adventure trip, not a resort one. Two stops and about 24 hours from India. December to April.