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ADVENTUROUS TRIPS Chukotka Peninsula, Russia

Russia's most northeastern state is possibly the last place in the world that has breathtaking scenery, a rich culture and virtually no tourism. In this land where ice and rock meet the Pacific and Arctic oceans, it's common to encounter people who have never before met a Westerner. But the bureaucrats in this region are a legacy of the past and do not allow easy entry for tourists. A special permit called a rasporyazheniye is required and takes many months and much patience to acquire. This hurdle may well be a blessing that keeps Chukotka a forgotten secret for years to come.

For more information, visit www.chukotka.org.

The Marquesas Archipelago

If you think Conrad Black had an adventure dealing with the dengue plague in Bora Bora, it's time to check out French Polynesia's lesser known archipelago: the Marquesas. This remote outpost, about 1,500 kilometres northeast of Tahiti and Bora Bora, boasts jagged basalt spires rising from the depths of the South Pacific. The dramatic scenery is a result of the archipelago's relatively young age, and the islands have not yet succumbed to nature's erosive massage. Impossibly steep cliffs, unprotected by barrier reefs, stand implacably against ocean waves releasing their energy in an explosion of spray and thunder.

Between cliffs are tiny bays of black sand beaches leading into lush canyons of coconut palms, banana plants and the clean simple villages of the local inhabitants. These islands are ideal for adventurers looking to hike, explore old Polynesian ruins, surf or sail. The Marquesas Islands can be reached by cargo/passenger ship from Tahiti. Alternatively, Air Tahiti regularly services this region from Papeete.

For more information, visit www.thetahititraveler.com/touristinfo/calendar.asp.

Amazon river boat

Sometimes the ultimate adventure is more about the experience than the location. A perfect example is a multiday voyage on a cargo/supply ship on the Amazon River. Hundreds of these colourful wooden boats ply the Amazon's murky waters servicing the villages along the river's banks, and they are the ultimate way to experience the Amazon like the locals. This type of travel is not for the squeamish, and you will share the decks with many other passengers, animals and cargo. Bring your own hammock, otherwise you will be sleeping on the decks with the pigs and chickens.

A feeling of family and camaraderie is prevalent among the passengers, and you will get to know your fellow shipmates well as the Amazon scenery slips by. Simple food is usually provided by the crew, and it can be quite fun watching them negotiate with the villagers en route for fresh fish, chickens and other food for the table.

Amazon boats can be boarded in any riverside community. For the traveller arriving from abroad, the best places to embark (in Brazil) would be Manaus or Belem.

COLIN ANGUS Best known for completing the first human-powered circumnavigation of the planet, Colin Angus is also the author of Lost in Mongolia, Amazon Extreme and Beyond the Horizon (2007).

FAMILY HOLIDAYS

Grand Cayman

Investors flock to Grand Cayman to open offshore accounts. But those old enough to be collecting pennies will appreciate the magnificent sandbox of Seven Mile Beach and the turquoise sea even more. Wade out from soft sand into an aquarium-like ocean. Colourful parrot and clown fish – the real Nemos – will swim around your toddler; older kids may be lucky enough to snorkel alongside a sea turtle. Back on land, visit attractions such as the renovated Turtle Farm. But really, it's only a matter of time before water and sand are back between the toes.

For more information, visit www.caymanislands.ky.

Disney ships

Sail away with Mickey, Captain Jack Sparrow, Sleeping Beauty, Pumbaa and the gang. The cast of characters onboard Disney ships is as limitless as the deep blue sea. Parents will be surprised by the the rain forest spa, elegant dining and efficient cabin design boasting an industry first – two bathrooms! Kids will bounce between making Space Alien Goo, enjoying pirate parties and cheering pyrotechnics during Broadway-calibre shows. Take a welcome beach break at Castaway Cay, Disney's Caribbean island. The Disney Wonder and Magic have been so popular that new itineraries, including Europe and the Pacific, as well as new ships, are on order.

For more information, visit www.disneycruise.com.

Venice

Venice, city of more than 177 canals and 354 bridges, does not seem like your typical family friendly vacation spot. No amusement parks or special family attractions. But for teens, this city is one giant theme park: cruising canals in vaporetti (floating city buses), watching dogs (and their owners) whiz by on speed boats, buying fruit from vessels bursting with produce. A three-day water pass allows impromptu stops: climb the Campanile bell tower in Piazza San Marco, shop for soccer flags or see art at Peggy Guggenheim's home where her beloved pets are buried in the garden. The pizza, pasta and umpteen scoops of gelati are but a bonus.

For more information, visit www.italiantourism.com.

KATE POCOCK Kate Pocock is author of Around Toronto with Kids and contributed to National Geographic Guide to Family Adventure Vacations.

BEACHES ESCAPES

The Baths, B.V.I.

At the Baths National Park in Virgin Gorda on the British Virgin Islands, massive granite boulders, tossed like Henry Moore sculptures, separate beaches and coves. Some monoliths are as large as houses, others resemble beached whales. Clamber over the rocks, duck under arches and slither through tunnels into grottoes. Shafts of sunlight descend, creating sparkles in the Caribbean Sea. Children will be drawn to the tidal pools, while older kids will prefer to plunge into the water from ledges. The underwater scenery is equally enchanting, so bring masks and snorkels.

For more information, visit www.bvinationalparkstrust.org.

Anse Source d'Argent,

Seychelles

Seductive, unspoiled and exotic, Anse Source d'Argent borders the Indian Ocean, 1,600 kilometres east of Kenya, 3,200 kilometres southwest of India and four degrees south of the equator. Weathered pink-grey granite boulders frame a powdery pink sand crescent. Shallow bathtub-warm water, the colour of peacock feathers, puppy-licks your ankles as you stroll through the surf. There's no litter, other than fallen coconuts from tall palms fringing the beach. The only commercial concession is a shack selling drinks, samosas, fresh coconut and banana fritters.

Bring binoculars to scan the cerulean sky for endangered black paradise flycatchers. Wade into the water with snorkels to view iridescent tropical fish hovering near the reef.

It's pure escapism. No wonder Crusoe and Castaway were filmed here.

For more information, visit www.seychelles.travel/en

South Beach, Florida

When it comes to urban beaches, people-watching and partying, it's hard to beat South Beach, only 15 minutes from Miami International Airport. Action is non-stop on the wide, 16-kilometre beach, starting with fashion shoots. Sunbathers (some topless) spread out towels. Teens play volleyball. Boats and jet-skiers ply the blue Atlantic. Lifeguards supervise swimmers from whimsical patrol huts. Beyond a palm tree-studded grass median, in-line skaters share a pink sidewalk with joggers and dog-walkers. After sunset, neon glows and music spills from street side cafés. Locals, tourists and celebrities party in trendy clubs until 5 a.m. The atmosphere sizzles.

For more information, visit www.miamiandbeaches.com.

BARB AND RON KROLL Barb and Ron Kroll have travelled to more than 100 countries and publish the trip-planning resource www.KrollTravel.com.

CULTURAL BREAKSMexico City

Mexico City's cultural breadth often gets forgotten in all the talk of traffic, smog and size. But this former Aztec capital has been a cultural centre for 3,000 years and has the sites to prove it: from the largest Spanish colonial cathedral in Latin America to the Modernist campus of the Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico. Art runs the gamut from Mesoamerican gods in the Museo de Antropologia to the contemporary scene, which flourishes in the Zonas Roma and Condesa. And this year the city is feting its artistic offspring, Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera, whose art dots the city.

For more information, visit www.visitmexico.com.

Prague

There are few cities so naturally cultural as Prague. It is the capital of a country that elects a playwright as president, lets a contemporary artist put a gigantesque chair in the middle of the Vltava River (Magdalena Jetelova's Chair) and has a birthday party for a medieval bridge (Charles Bridge, which turned 650 this year). With something of architectural note at every turn and museums and galleries as prevalent as pivovars (brewery pubs), you'd be hard pressed not to do something cultural in Prague. This summer alone, visitors can see exhibitions on Rembrandt, Neo Rausch, the art of Korea and Czech cubist Emil Filla, as well as the 3rd Prague Biennale of contemporary art (www.praguebiennale.org). Add to that superb local theatre, ballet, opera and, of course, music – including the renowned Prague Spring classical music festival – and you begin to understand Prague's Bohemian soul.

For more information, see www.czechtourism.com.

Paris

Duh. How could a city with the Louvre, Notre Dame and more than 100 Monets not be one of the world's top cultural destinations? The City of Light has shone its inspiration on everyone from François Truffaut to Leonardo da Vinci to architect Shigeru Ban (who is currently designing the Pompidou Centre's new satellite museum in Metz from his “Paper Tube Studio” attached high on the Pompidou's façade). Culture is part of “a vie Parisienne”: You can see a play at the Comedie Française for $7 or hear symphonies at the Maison de Radio France “gratuit”. History overlaps on every corner: Gallo-Roman baths lie near the cafés favoured by de Beauvoir and Sartre and edgy art galleries fill 17th-century mansions.

For more information, visit www.parisinfo.com.

DEANNA MacDONALD Deanna MacDonald has a PhD in art history and is the author of The Essential Guide to Viewing Art in Prague.

ENTERTAINING BREAKS Toronto

Long mocked by Montrealers as a soulless banking town and despised by the rest of Canada as, well, a soulless banking town, in reality Toronto has been the entertainment capital of Canada for years and has even eclipsed New York and London in terms of sheer variety of divertissements. Toronto's big-budget productions are often just imports from those theatrical powerhouses, but luckily the city boasts more than 200 smaller theatre companies, the summer Fringe theatre festival and the annual Dream in High Park Shakespeare performance. The new Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts has finally given the Canadian Opera Company and the National Ballet of Canada the performance venue they deserve. Music acts play spots as diverse as the Molson Amphitheatre, Roy Thomson Hall, Lee's Palace, the Horseshoe Tavern and the sublime, 113-year-old Massey Hall. The annual Caribana festival turns the city into party central. How about countless state-of-the-art cinemas in a fervent movie town that hosts what is arguably the best film festival in the world for fans? Maybe a baseball, basketball, hockey or even soccer game is more your style. And to round out the night, dance into the wee hours in the city's raucous, even out-of-control club district. Who's laughing now, Montreal?

For more information, visit www.torontotourism.com.

Las Vegas

Say what you will about America's id, but at least this city knows what it is and what it does best. Sure, Las Vegas went astray a few years ago and flirted with the idea of becoming a family destination, but a few stiff drinks later it was back on track as an adult-rated fun zone. Gambling may not be your bag, but where else can you find such a wonderfully absurd array of shows? Five different Cirque du Soleil spectacles, magic acts, top comedians and a long tradition of musical stars – a line of succession that extends from the city's Sinatra-led golden age through the Elvis years and into the current reign of Celine – mean there's always some over-the-top show in this over-the-top town. And the beauty of Vegas is that it has a stunner of an encore: After a night on the town, after Celine has belted out her last song for “the children,” after you've lost your last roll of quarters, head out to the desert to watch the sun come up over nearby Red Rock Canyon. That's a show you won't want to miss.

For more information, visit www.visitlasvegas.com or www.lasvegastourism.com Chicago Yes, Chicago. Perennially overshadowed by that big town to the east, Chicago – home to the always compelling Steppenwolf theatre ensemble – has a theatre and dance scene that is really second to none. Music? The city long ago inherited its wealth of jazz and blues musicians from the American South, and the city's bars and clubs are always packed with local and visiting talent. And for sports fans, the Bears, the Cubs, the White Sox, the Bulls and the Blackhawks mean there's almost always a game in town or on the sports bar's big-screen TV – so good with a bucket of ribs or a deep-dish pizza. But what makes Chicago such an entertaining city – apart from Oprah, of course – are the countless music festivals and free events along its much-envied waterfront and in its parks.

For more information, visit www.choosechicago.com.

MASSIMO COMMANDUCCI Massimo Commanducci is The Globe and Mail's deputy travel editor. As a Toronto resident, he is never bored.

AQUATIC ADVENTURES France by barge

A cruise in a luxurious barge along a bucolic canal is the most intimate and hassle-free way to experience the best of France's countryside. A week-long journey in Burgundy on one of French Country Waterways' barges, for example, offers private wine tasting in Chablis, visits to the 12th-century Abbaye de Fontenay, as well as dinner ashore at fabled Le Relais Bernard Loiseau. You can bicycle ahead of the slow-moving barge along towpaths, take a hot-air balloon ride and, perhaps best of all, enjoy daily cheese-and-wine pairings on board and splendid meals prepared by the barge chef.

For more information, visit www.fcwl.com.

Tatshenshini-Alsek River

Former U.S. vice-president Al Gore got it right when he said the “Tatshenshini-Alsek is one of the most magnificent river systems on Earth.” A rafting trip from Dalton Post in the Yukon to Dry Bay, Alaska, passes through three World Heritage Sites: Yukon's Kluane National Park, Tatshenshini-Alsek Wilderness Park in B.C.'s northwest corner and Alaska's Glacier Bay National Park. Together, they form North America's largest protected wilderness. It's an awe-inspiring journey past glaciers and the nameless peaks of the St. Elias Mountains. This is a classic “float” trip with few rapids. Just sit back and gawk.

For more information, visit http://www.spacesfornature.org/greatspaces/tatshenshini.html.

World cruise

Globe-girdling voyages – 80 to 157 days long on some of the world's most luxurious ships – represent the ultimate experience for cruise fans. Demand for these long and expensive trips is growing and a number of lines, such as Silversea Cruises, Hapag Lloyd and Radisson Seven Seas, have developed itineraries. But Cunard has been at the globe-circling game the longest and next year marks the maiden world voyage of Queen Victoria, the line's newest ship: a 106-day journey that begins and ends in Southampton, England. Fares range from around $23,000 to $216,500 a person, depending on on-board accommodation (and not including flights and most shore excursions.) But if you feel like splurging, be warned: The penthouses tend to be sold out years in advance.

For more information, visit www.cunard.com.

LASZLO BUHASZ Assistant Travel Editor Laszlo Buhasz has visited 39 countries and likes unique water journeys.

ROMANTIC GETAWAYS San Sebastian, Spain

If you love food, wine, history and luxury, there are few places as magical as San Sebastian, in the heart of Spain's Basque County. This is the Spanish Riviera and the Loire Valley rolled into one. Book into the historic Hotel Maria Cristina, wander the streets of the old town for bars bursting with tapas, or shop for the chicest Spanish shoes. The Michelin-star chefs, the beaches and the views are legendary, and Frank Gehry's stunning Guggenheim museum in Bilbao is only a one-hour drive away. Bonus – both the romantic languages of Spanish and French are widely spoken.

For more information, visit www.donostia.org.

The Rocky Mountains

There may be nothing as romantic as curling up in front of a roaring fire in a log cabin, the aroma of wood smoke and pine hanging in the air, a pot of cheese fondue bubbling on the stove and snow falling on the mountains. This scene is played out at dozens of special spots in Canada's national parks each winter, but nowhere is the landscape quite as dramatic as the Rocky Mountains. Depending on your tolerance for roughing it, that cabin might be at Emerald Lake, just off the busy main drag in Banff, at the Fairmont Jasper Park Lodge, or in the back country at historic Skoki Lodge. Just depends how far you want to haul the wine.

For more information, visit www.albertatourism.com.

Anguilla

If sun, surf and private beaches are your idea of romance, Anguilla is a wonderful Caribbean hideaway. This skiff of a coral island, just a 10-minute flight from St. Maarten, is everything that a busy cruise port isn't. Clever founding fathers decreed there would be no casinos, cruise ships or hotels with more than 100 rooms in Anguilla. Ergo, it offers some pretty exclusive resorts and villas – the kind of spots that attract celebrities like Sarah Jessica Parker and Oprah. You'll also find friendly locals, wonderful restaurants and very good reggae and soca music. Check out Bankie Banx' Dune Preserve – a little beach club – and the soca sounds of the Mussingtons at Johnno's, and dance the night away.

For more information, visit www.anguilla-vacation.com.

CINDA CHAVICH Cinda Chavich is a journalist with more than 25 years of experience covering food, wine and travel stories around the world.