Last summer, tour specialist Zou Wenwen helped organize a driving trip for a group of 10 Chinese travelers in Italy. But it was no ordinary tour - her clients paid 200,000 yuan ($30,300) each for a weeklong luxury package that centered on driving Ferrari, Lamborghini and Maserati supercars along the Italian Riviera. "These were ultra high-end customers," Zou says. "They were mostly from the real estate and investment sectors. We also had people from the restaurant business as well as a sculptor."
The upside of visiting an emerging destination is pristine landscapes, reasonable ?if not decidedly cheap ?prices and the rare opportunity to experience the authenticity of a place before it's overrun by tourists. There are, however, trade-offs: the lack of a good transport infrastructure, rudimentary hotel service and poor medical facilities. Timing a visit can also be tricky in countries where political stability is a relative term. But with an adventurous attitude, the benefits of exploring new places usually outweigh the struggles involved. Ready to lay claim to the next great place? Here are four to visit in the coming year.
Almost every traveler to Yangzhou starts with puzzling out a conundrum that local people repeatedly use to tease outsiders with: In the morning, skin wraps water, in the evening, water wraps skin. The answer, of course, sums up the two most famous attractions of the city, and the activities all locals devote much time to ?soup dumplings at Yangzhou's famous breakfast houses, and soaking up the ambience of its equally famous bathhouses.
Whenever Yangzhou is mentioned, it's always with reference to a quality lifestyle that encapsulates the Chinese dream - enough money to live in a natural Garden of Eden in the good company of the best culture and literature.
This is a lake of great beauty and mystery. In its depth, an ancient city sleeps, and UFOs and mythical creatures are believed to rise from its waters occasionally. Pauline D Loh visits Yunnan's Fuxian Lake.
Schliersee, Germany - The road to Germany's oldest skiing area in the Spitzingsee-Schliersee lakes region is like something from an idyllic postcard.
Its name is Haining, which literally translates to "sea of serenity? Indeed, it is a peaceful town to all appearances, a place where beauty of nature and natural wonders abound, a nursery for the literary greats of China who had gone on to become icons of their times.
Louis Cha, known to most as Jin Yong, is one of the most influential modern novelists of recent times. He is also the co-founder of the Hong Kong newspaper Ming Pao.
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Raymond Zhou
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