“GT” Travel in Asia

Travel with “Good Tour­ism” in Asia (scroll down for posts), from (most of) Rus­sia in the north and east, to Indone­sia in the south, and the diverse nations of the Middle East in the west. Learn about spe­cial places, people to meet, and things to do from tour­ism insiders keen to show­case Asi­a’s good, bet­ter, best.

Asia is a vast and diverse con­tin­ent that offers a wealth of travel exper­i­ences. Here are some reas­ons why you should con­sider trav­el­ling to Asia:

  • Rich his­tory and cul­ture: Asia is home to some of the world’s old­est and most vibrant civil­isa­tions, includ­ing China, India, and Japan. Vis­it­ors can explore ancient temples, tra­di­tion­al vil­lages, and his­tor­ic land­marks, learn­ing about the region’s fas­cin­at­ing his­tory and culture.
  • Nat­ur­al beauty: From the tower­ing Him­alay­as to the pristine beaches of Thai­l­and, Asia is home to some of the world’s most breath­tak­ing nat­ur­al land­scapes. Vis­it­ors can trek through lush rain­forests, go snor­kelling in crys­tal-clear waters, and wit­ness stun­ning sun­sets over rice paddies.
  • Culin­ary delights: Asia is renowned for its diverse and deli­cious cuisine, with each coun­try offer­ing a unique range of fla­vours and dishes. Vis­it­ors can sample street food, tra­di­tion­al dishes, and Mich­elin-starred res­taur­ants, dis­cov­er­ing new tastes and ingredi­ents along the way.
  • Vibrant cit­ies: From the bust­ling streets of Tokyo to the col­our­ful mar­kets of Bangkok, Asi­a’s cit­ies are dynam­ic and diverse. Exper­i­ence the energy and excite­ment of urb­an life through mod­ern archi­tec­ture, shop­ping, and nightlife.
  • Spir­itu­al­ity and well­ness: Asia is a hub of spir­itu­al­ity, offer­ing a range of prac­tices such as yoga, med­it­a­tion, and Ayurveda. Vis­it­ors can immerse them­selves in these prac­tices, vis­it­ing spir­itu­al retreats, tak­ing yoga classes, or seek­ing out well­ness experiences.
  • Adven­ture: Asia is a play­ground for adven­ture-seekers, with activ­it­ies such as trekking, moun­tain climb­ing, and scuba diving. Vis­it­ors can chal­lenge them­selves phys­ic­ally and men­tally, explor­ing the region’s nat­ur­al won­ders and push­ing their limits.

Over­all, Asia is a diverse and excit­ing travel des­tin­a­tion that offers some­thing for every­one. Wheth­er you are seek­ing cul­tur­al immer­sion, nat­ur­al beauty, culin­ary delights, or adven­ture, Asia has it all. With its rich his­tory, stun­ning land­scapes, and vibrant cit­ies, Asia is a must-vis­it des­tin­a­tion for any good traveller.

American cultural geographer picks three favourite places to go in Greater Tokyo

March 21, 2024

Places to go in Greater Tokyo include Showa Kinen Koen. Pic by Norikio Yamamoto (CC0) via Unsplash. https://unsplash.com/photos/purple-flowers-near-green-trees-and-river-during-daytime-7pjnQXsjqw0

Tour­ist web­sites list no short­age of “things to see and do” in Japan that are no doubt all worth it. But after vis­it­ing Japan — most often Tokyo — annu­ally over the last 20 years, I have made a per­son­al list of recom­mend­a­tions — places to go in Great­er Tokyo — that don’t always appear on these websites. 

Read More American cultural geographer picks three favourite places to go in Greater Tokyo

Postcard from Vietnam: Guided by young people through Hanoi’s Old Quarter

and November 16, 2023

Postcard from Vietnam: Guided by young people through Hanoi’s Old Quarter. The authors and their guides. Background image by Frida Aguilar Estrada (CC0) via Unsplash. https://unsplash.com/photos/woman-carrying-woven-tray-and-white-pail-while-walking-on-wet-market-PEgu_IdF1BM

Arriv­ing in a new des­tin­a­tion, trav­el­lers often scramble to get their bear­ings. One can read a map, identi­fy key land­marks, get a vant­age from some­place high such as a moun­tain or tall build­ing or, if one is for­tu­nate enough, meet a loc­al who will help them. Ori­ent­ing one­self is most chal­len­ging in large cit­ies, par­tic­u­larly those […]

Read More Postcard from Vietnam: Guided by young people through Hanoi’s Old Quarter

Experience the ‘far side’ of Chitwan National Park, Nepal

October 27, 2022

Experience Chitwan National Park's far side on an open-hood jungle safari Picture Courtesy Community Homestay Network

Between waves of the pan­dem­ic, in 2021 I had the oppor­tun­ity to travel around Nepal’s Chit­wan Nation­al Park.  Known for its diverse wild­life, lush forests, and as one of the best places for bird watch­ing in Nepal, Chit­wan Nation­al Park is a fam­ous des­tin­a­tion for domest­ic and inter­na­tion­al trav­el­lers keen to explore Nepal’s flat plains.  Located […]

Read More Experience the ‘far side’ of Chitwan National Park, Nepal

Wonders of the unexpected: Pleasant surprises in Azerbaijan & Saudi Arabia

September 1, 2022

Azerbaijan and Saudi Arabia

I star­ted trav­el­ling at an early age.  When I was barely three years old my par­ents took me on my very first trip to the US, Mex­ico, and the Carib­bean.  I have nev­er really stopped trav­el­ling since.  Dec­ades later I made a pact with a friend to travel to 100 coun­tries; some­thing I was meant to achieve […]

Read More Wonders of the unexpected: Pleasant surprises in Azerbaijan & Saudi Arabia

From New Delhi to Leh on the old Hindustan-Tibet Road

August 18, 2022
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Lamayuru Monastery from the road by Meridius27 (CC BY-SA 3.0) via Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Lamayuru_monastery_from_the_road.JPG

After not being able to travel for two and a half years, in June this year I was for­tu­nate to go on a 23-day tour from Del­hi to Ladakh via the old Hindus­tan-Tibet Road.  The road, which the Brit­ish Raj built in 1850, is still con­sidered ‘off the beaten track’ by trav­el­lers, des­pite the magnificent […]

Read More From New Delhi to Leh on the old Hindustan-Tibet Road

Memories of Jordan (and celebrating the ‘bucket list’)

February 17, 2022

Memories of Petra and Jordan by Melanie Kay Smith

I was at a tour­ism industry con­fer­ence a few months ago listen­ing to a talk on the dev­ast­at­ing effects of COV­­ID-related travel bans on her­it­age des­tin­a­tions.  Pro­fess­or Mike Robin­son, the speak­er, cited Jordan as a prime example.  Amidst my sym­pathy for the des­tin­a­tion and its people, my ‘buck­et list’ quest react­iv­ated instantly in my mind.  It […]

Read More Memories of Jordan (and celebrating the ‘bucket list’)