While Beijing mixes modern skyscrapers with ancient icons such as the Forbidden City and the Summer Palace, the Chinese countryside in the Longji region delivers natural scenes of legendary beauty as well as a chance to see how traditional people live.

Take a covered wagon trip and time travel back to the era of pioneer journeys when America’s west stretched out as a vast, little explored land filled with promise. On an Oregon Trail Wagon Train, you experience the Nebraska grasslands, the slow pace of a westward trek plus some old-fashioned fun.

Come to Namibia’s Namib-Naukluft Park, one of Africa’s largest conservation areas, to experience its sand dunes, among the world’s highest. Watch the sunrise create dramatic shadows on the dunes, hike the slopes and find out about the lizards, chameleons and other creatures that live in dunes.

Cozumel, along Mexico’s Caribbean, offers white sands as well as first-class snorkeling and diving. In Los Cabos on Mexico’s Pacific coast, the desert meets the sea and jagged mountains rise. The sands turn coral in the sun and blue waves send plumes of white spray crashes against the shore.

Everybody knows about California’s impressive national parks, but the state parks and reserves are hidden gems, offering spectacular views and wildlife and often, fewer crowds. Some favorites: Point Lobos State Reserve for seals and sea lions and for surfing, try Doheny State Beach.

The Riviera Maya, which stretches along Mexico’s coast for 86-miles from just south of Puerto Morelos to Punta Allen, is known for its hundreds of cenotes. However, Río Secreto, opened to the public in April 2008,is a jewel in region’s extensive system of underground rivers.

Our instructor, with his slim hips,tight black pants,perfect posture and chiseled features looks as if he sprung to life from a classic flamenco poster. Instantly, he grabs our attention--eight women lined up to learn a sexy, century-old dance at Seville’s Flamenco Dance Museum.

For a laid-back, boating getaway where you can snorkel and sun on secluded beaches, head to the British Virgin Islands. This nation of more than 60 islands, counting the small, uninhabited cays, offers hundreds of off-the-beaten-path coves within a radius of 80 nautical kilometers.

At Mutianyu, about 56 miles north of Beijing, the Yan Mountains appear as a series of dramatic crests and the Great Wall’s ancient stones snake their way up and down the green ridge tops. The ramparts, dotted with watch towers in this section, form a path between the peaks.

Dude ranches have gone the way of coffee: plain ride ‘em places—the ranch equivalent of a 7-11 brew—still exist, but more and more ranches lure wannabe wranglers with experiences tailored to their specific tastes. And that’s a good thing, but it makes it hard to choose the right experience for you.