Australia

Australia rewards the long flight with experiences that exist nowhere else on the planet. Snorkel the Great Barrier Reef from a sailing catamaran and watch a wall of colour rearrange your definitions. Stand before Uluru at sunset as the rock cycles through reds no camera fully captures, then dine under the outback's ludicrous starfield. Sydney might be the world's most beautiful working city, its harbour made for ferry-hopping between beaches, bars and the Opera House sails. From there the choices sprawl: Tasmania's wilderness and produce, the Kimberley's gorges by expedition ship, Barossa and Margaret River pouring world-class wine, quokka selfies on Rottnest, and lodges where kangaroos graze past your breakfast. Australians treat visitors like mates by default. Give it three weeks minimum. It will still feel like a first chapter.