Thank you, Charity, for putting the vacation of a lifetime together for us. Germany, Poland, Hungary, the Czech Republic. From airlines and hotels to transportation, activities, and trip insurance, we could not have done it alone. Kevin K. · Central Europe: Germany, Poland, Hungary & the Czech Republic
HIDDEN GEMS AND OFF THE BEATEN PATH
Beyond the obvious
The places most travelers do not think to ask about. The ones that stay with you longest.
Why off the beaten path
The first question most travelers ask is where everyone else is going. I think the better question is where everyone else is not. Some of the most lasting trips I have planned, and the most memorable ones I have taken myself, have been to the places that do not show up on the standard luxury itinerary. Slovenia instead of Switzerland. Krakow at Christmas instead of Vienna. Borneo instead of Bali. Vietnam and Cambodia at the pace they deserve, instead of as a checkbox.
These are not difficult destinations. They are simply less obvious ones. They reward the traveler who wants something other than the postcard, and they are often more affordable, more genuine, and more welcoming than the places that have been on the circuit for decades. The trips I plan to these places are still luxurious in the ways that matter. The hotels are beautiful, the guides are excellent, the pace is unhurried. The difference is what you find when you get there.
These are five of my favorites.
Slovenia
Slovenia is what people imagine Switzerland is, at a fraction of the cost and with almost none of the crowds. Alpine lakes, vineyards, hiking, food, wine, and a capital city in Ljubljana that feels like a smaller, kinder Vienna. The whole country is the size of New Jersey, which means you can see most of it in a week without feeling rushed.
It is one of the easiest countries in Europe to self-drive. The roads are excellent, the distances are short, and you can be at Lake Bled in the morning, in Ljubljana for lunch, and at a Karst region vineyard by dinner. For the traveler who wants Europe without the lines, Slovenia is the answer most advisors do not give.
Krakow, Poland
Krakow is one of the most beautiful and underrated cities in Europe, and in winter it is something close to magical. The Christmas markets in the main square go for weeks, the Old Town is walkable and lined with pierogi shops and small wine bars, and the city carries a depth of history that asks something of you in the best way. I went for a few days and could have stayed for two weeks.
Most American travelers default to Vienna or Prague for this part of Europe. Krakow does what both of them do, with smaller crowds, lower prices, and a more honest sense of place. The Jewish Quarter, Schindler’s Factory, the option to visit Auschwitz as part of a thoughtful itinerary, all of it makes Krakow a city that rewards travelers who want more than a photo opportunity. It is one of the destinations I most strongly believe in.
Borneo
Borneo was the first of my five for fifty, the trips I planned for myself to mark turning fifty. I went to see orangutans in the wild, and I did, but not the way most travel writing about wildlife suggests. I spent three days at Sukau Rainforest Lodge in Sabah looking, and saw nothing. On the last morning I paid for an extra safari, and finally there was one, high in the canopy, only truly visible through binoculars. That is the truth of Borneo. The animals are there, but they are wild, and the experience is what nature decides it is.
The luxury of Borneo is not the lodge. The lodges are simple, sometimes rougher than what a typical luxury client expects. The luxury is the access. The pygmy elephant that crossed the path so close to us we could hear it breathe. The grubs on the menu that I ate because they were on the menu. The Sun Bear Conservation Centre in Sandakan, where you can see one of the world’s rarest bears up close. For travelers who want to be somewhere that genuinely feels different from anywhere else, Borneo is the answer.
Vietnam
I have been to Vietnam twice. The first time I covered the full north-to-south route. Hanoi and the Sofitel Legend Metropole. Halong Bay on a junk boat overnight. Hue at La Residence. Hoi An at the Anantara. Then down to Ho Chi Minh. It was a remarkable trip, but I left feeling like I had not stayed in Hoi An long enough.
The second time I came back specifically for Hoi An. A street food tour, a cooking class, more time at the Anantara, the lantern town at night, the quiet rural surroundings. Vietnam rewards the traveler who slows down. The food is some of the best in the world, the service culture is exceptional, and the country itself rewards every additional day you give it. For first-time visitors, I plan the overland route. For travelers who want depth, I send them back to one place and let them stay.
Cambodia
Cambodia is most often paired with Vietnam, and that is the right pairing. The first time I went, I did Siem Reap and Angkor Wat, then traveled on my own to Phnom Penh where I stayed at the Rosewood. The second time I started in Cambodia and joined an AmaWaterways river cruise down the Mekong into Vietnam, with a stay at the Sofitel in Siem Reap before boarding.
Angkor is the centerpiece. I have seen the temples at both sunset and sunrise, and both are worth doing. The monks who walk the grounds in their saffron robes, the trees that have grown into and around the stones at Ta Prohm, the scale of the complex, all of it asks you to slow down and look. Cambodia also holds significant memorial sites in Phnom Penh that the right traveler will want to make time for. For most clients, Cambodia paired with Vietnam over two weeks is the trip I recommend.
How I plan these trips
Off-the-beaten-path travel is not the same as roughing it. The clients I work with want comfort, beautiful hotels, excellent guides, and good food. The difference is that they also want to come home with stories that are theirs, not the same stories everyone else is telling.
I plan these trips the same way I plan a Bordeaux river cruise or a Tuscany week. The hotels are vetted. The guides are local and skilled. The pace is unhurried. The difference is in the destination choice, the route, and the small specifics that make a trip feel like it was built for you and not pulled from a brochure.
If you have a destination on your mind that does not get the usual coverage, or if you want to be talked into one of the five above, let’s talk.
Many of these trips pair naturally with my culinary and wine journeys for travelers who want depth in both.