Qingdao is possibly the most beautiful coastal city of China, famous for comfortable weather, a large number of beaches and delicious seafood. Being a former German concession has also provided it with attractive European-style buildings and one of the best brews in Asia, the famous Qingdao Beer. It has long been a favourite escape for Chinese holidaymakers and after having its profile raised when hosting the 29th Sailing Regatta during the 2008 Beijing Olympics, it has been steadily coming under the radar of foreign visitors as well.

Chosen as a winter refuge by Thomas Edison at the turn of the last century, Fort Myers sits away from busier and more opulent Florida centers, maintaining the carefree, low-key atmosphere of a sea town. Assuming beach life is Fort Myers's only attraction would be a mistake: the town center boasts a vibrant street life, with a plethora of indie art galleries and interesting spots for history and science lovers. The area's natural beauty continues inland, where protected animal species take shelter among mangroves and narrow bayou bends.

Discover Brindisi, a sun-drenched jewel on the Adriatic Sea and the beating heart of Italy's Apulia region. More than just a coastal beauty, Brindisi serves as a living museum to a myriad of vanished civilisations. Picture yourself strolling along ancient Roman roads, gazing up at majestic Gothic and Baroque cathedrals, or getting lost in the imposing shadows of Swabian castles from the era of Frederick II, the Holy Roman Emperor. With every step you're walking through centuries of layered history. Come for the sea, stay for a journey back in time.

As testified by epic movies like Shogun and Ran, Nagoya City is pure history, centred around Nagoya Castle. It was Expo 2005 that put Nagoya on the world map. Post-Expo, Nagoya is positioning itself both as a centre for hi-tech industries and as a tourist gateway. Toyota Cars, old and new famed ceramics, Shinto shrines and Buddhist temples, dolls and robots castles, feudal villas and farmhouses pearls, and a plethora of shopping and nightlife spots await you in this not-so-obvious choice of a Japanese destination.

Crete, the largest of Greek islands, is a place where myth meets history, where the age-old Cretan culture teems in modern villas, where the sea meets the mountains, and unspoiled nature coexists with modern tourist infrastructure. Crete has a thousand faces: one for each and every sort of traveller: the nature-lover, the explorer, the cosmopolitan, the lover of history, and the classic vulture.