Monday, March 5, 2012

Top destinations 2012的热门旅游地

Argentina
“People are really waking up to what Buenos Aires is all about,” says Gordon Campbell Gray, the celebrated hotelier who created One Aldwych in London, Carlisle Bay in Antigua and Le Gray in Beirut. “It’s a party city – it’s very beautiful architecturally but it’s really about great food and great nightlife in a glamorous setting.” By day, tourists can visit beaches, the pampas or the Iguazu Falls, then return to spend nights in the city’s famous tango bars or at the Teatro Colón opera house. The impressive choice of hotels includes the new wine-themed Hotel Mio (www.miobuenosaires.com; doubles from $346), with rooms featuring carved wooden bathtubs and free wine on tap. Geoffrey Kent of Abercrombie & Kent recommends staying on an Argentine ranch where guests can fish and ride, a perfect antidote to nights of hedonism in the capital. Bahia Bustamante (www.bahiabustamante.com; from $215 per person per night), for example, offers more than 200,000 acres of Patagonian wilderness, to be shared by a maximum of 30 guests at any one time. They can spend their time hiking, riding, kayaking, exploring the 60m-year-old petrified forest, or simply watching wildlife, from whales, dolphins and sea-lions to ostriches and armadillos.
Mozambique
“With 2,500km of beautiful, undeveloped coastline, Mozambique is the new kid on the block as far as coastal destinations are concerned,” says Will Jones of Journeys by Design. Joel Zack of Heritage Tours says: “Mozambique offers luxury but still very much feels like you’re in Africa. The beaches are beautiful and the people friendly.” Attracting most attention is Azura at Quilalea (www.azura-retreats.com; from $595 per person per night), part of the Quirimbas archipelago in the far north. It opened last month and offers nine villas, set on an otherwise uninhabited 86-acre island, surrounded by a marine sanctuary. Nearby are more stunning island resorts including Vamizi (www.vamizi.com; from $590 pppn) and Ibo Island Lodge (www.iboisland.com; from $335 pppn). Some 800 miles further south, the Bazaruto archipelago is the other big draw for those seeking paradise beach resorts, including the second Azura, on Benguerra island. But travellers are also turning their attentions to Mozambique’s mainland and, in particular, Gorongosa National Park (www.gorongosa.net). Game viewing is less guaranteed here than in more developed parks of South Africa but it is much less-visited. Explore Gorongosa (www.exploregorongosa.com; from $440 pppn) runs a tented camp, as well as setting up temporary “fly camps” for visitors to explore the bush.
Burma
Two years ago Burma was almost completely ignored by tourists. But in late 2010 Aung San Suu Kyi was released, then opposition groups dropped their calls for a tourism boycott. A month ago Hillary Clinton made a high profile visit in recognition of the government’s steps towards democracy and this week brings the release of a new biopic about Suu Kyi.
The result has been a tourism boom – so much so that tour operators report some hotels are fully booked for the first few months of 2012.
The key attraction is the lack of tourist development, a by-product of years of isolation. “It’s like Thailand 50 years ago,” says Tom Barber, of Original Travel. Jonny Bealby of Wild Frontiers says: “Mandalay and Bagan are unbelievable destinations. Burma has a huge amount to offer.” Tom Marchant of Black Tomato recommends visiting the Mahamuni Pagoda Festival in early February: “It’s a great chance to get out there and see what I think is truly authentic Asia.”
All visitors should see the well-preserved colonial buildings of Yangon, the former royal capital Mandalay and Bagan, the site of more than 2,000 pagodas and temples. Adventurous travellers are pushing north, some making it as far as remote Putao, where they go rafting, elephant trekking or to visit traditional villages in the jungle. Malikha Lodge (www.malikhalodge.net; from $1,900 per person for three nights) is a luxurious wilderness lodge hidden among bamboo trees above the Nam Lang river, about 10 miles from Putao airport.
Papua New Guinea
“It is an intrepid and immersive experience; it feels like a last frontier,” says Marchant. And yet Papua New Guinea’s beaches, fascinating culture and unrivalled scuba diving are starting to attract adventurous tourists as well as hardcore explorers. Visitors can take part in supported expeditions that visit volcanoes and some of the island’s 1,000 isolated tribes. Barber also recommends diving and fishing in Papua New Guinea, which sits in the Coral Triangle, an area known as the Amazon of the Seas for its marine biodiversity. For diving, consider Lissenung Island Resort (www.lissenung.com; from $141pppn), Walindi Plantation (www.walindi.com; from $115 pppn) or Tufi Dive Resort (www.tufidive.com; from $162 pppn). Inland, Karawari Lodge (www.pngtours.com; from $603 pppn) sits amid tropical rainforest, overlooking the Karawari river in East Sepik province. There is no road access, so guests arrive by air, landing at a jungle airstrip, and take boat trips to nearby villages built on stilts by the river’s edge. Wildlife is abundant and at least 229 different species of bird have been recorded in the area.
Sweden
Perhaps helped by the popularity of Nordic food and design, not to mention Stieg Larsson’s Millennium books, tour operators are getting excited about Sweden. Stockholm makes a perfect weekend-break destination, with boutique hotels and world-class restaurants. Stay at the fashionable Lydmar (www.lydmar.com; doubles from £299) and check out the bohemian area of west Stockholm, Rörstrandsgatan, packed with interesting cafés and antique shops. But Stockholm is also a good jumping-off point for longer trips. Barber recommends moving on to northern Sweden, where tourists can ski, go dog sledding and see the northern lights. Marchant recommends visiting the northern city of Lulea and the Unesco-recognised Gammelstad while staying in the Tree Hotel (www.treehotel.se; doubles from £364), where guests sleep in a variety of architect-designed treehouses.
Ethiopia
Though the rock churches of Lalibela have long drawn intrepid travellers, 2012 could see tourists discover far more of the country, from the Simien mountains of the north to the lower Omo valley in the south.
“Ethiopia has always struggled because of a lack of infrastructure and a lack of decent accommodation options but that is changing,” says Jones.
While not luxurious, Gheralta Lodge (www.gheraltalodgetigrai.com; doubles from £37) is a stylish base for trips into the Danakil desert, somewhere Bealby describes as “the most surreal landscape you’re ever likely to see”. If short on time (and energy), Tropic Air (www.tropicairkenya.com) offers helicopter tours to whisk visitors into the most remote parts of the country.
Panama
“Panama lets you get a taste of the whole of Central America in one trip,” says Marchant – its small size means you can easily swap between Caribbean and Pacific coasts, as well as getting inland for jungle and wildlife experiences.
On the northern, Caribbean coast, visitors should head to the San Blas Islands for white sand beaches, diving and to meet indigenous tribes such as the Kuna, advises Barber. “They are autonomous from the rest of Panama and have their own customs that are still flourishing,” he says. Visitors stay in thatched eco-lodges on the beach, such as the Coral Lodge (www.corallodge.com; from $105 pppn).
Further west, closer to the Costa Rican border, is the Bocas del Toro archipelago, which is more developed and has a greater choice of accommodation, including Punta Caracol (www.puntacaracol.com; doubles from $344). On the Pacific side, the hot destination is Isla Coiba, an isolated marine reserve that was a notorious prison colony until the last inmate was released in 2005. This past means there has been little development – a maximum of 60 guests are allowed at any time, while there are more than 700 species of fish, 30 kinds of sharks and 20 species of whales and dolphins.
Panama City itself has much to offer, including colonial buildings, lively nightlife and good restaurants, as well as the spectacle of vast ships navigating the canal. The Museum of Biodiversity (www.biomuseopanama.org), designed by Frank Gehry, is currently under construction, and is due for a soft opening in late 2012. Stay at the Casa del Horno (www.casadelhorno.net; doubles from $275), an eight-suite boutique hotel that opened in 2011 in the old quarter. From the city it’s possible to make day trips into the jungle, along the coast and to El Valle, a pretty town in the crater of an extinct volcano.
Zambia
Visiting Zambia is a chance to experience “sheer wilderness”, says Kent. The Luangwa valley is known as the home of the walking safari and offers the chance to see wildlife without the clusters of tourist minibuses found in some of the more popular African safari parks. “With a great guide, you get a lesson in the African bush going from major game down to the dung beetle,” says Kent.
After a day on safari, guests can relax in one of the elegant lodges, including Sanctuary Chichele Presidential Lodge (www.sanctuaryretreats.com; from $320 pppn) once home to Kenneth Kaunda, the former Zambian president.
At Victoria Falls adrenaline junkies can bungee jump from the bridge dividing Zambia from Zimbabwe and go whitewater rafting, then retreat to the Royal Livingstone hotel (www.suninternational.com; doubles from $440), part of the Falls Resort which had a $7m refurbishment in 2011. Those looking for a calmer activity can cruise along the Zambezi river and spot wildlife on the way or rent a houseboat on nearby Lake Kariba.
Kent recommends following up a Zambian safari with a beach holiday in neighbouring Mozambique. He says: “A week in Zambia, with family or on honeymoon, and a week in Mozambique, what could be better?”

阿根廷
“游客开始真正认识到布宜诺斯艾利斯的庐山真面目,” 戈登•坎贝尔•格雷(Gordon Campbell Gray)说。这位远近闻名的酒店运营商创建了伦敦One Aldwych 酒店、安提瓜岛(Antigua)的 Carlisle Bay酒店以及贝鲁特的Le Gray酒店。
“布宜诺斯艾利斯是个‘派对’城市——它的建筑美轮美奂,但这座流光溢彩的都市真正让游客着迷的是它的美食以及丰富多彩的夜生活。”
白天时,游客可以到海滩、彭巴斯草原(pampas)或者伊瓜苏瀑布(Iguazu Falls)游玩,晚上则回到布宜诺斯艾利斯,在著名的探戈酒吧或者科隆剧院(The Colon Theatre)尽情销魂。入住新建的以葡萄酒为主题的Hotel Mio酒店(网址:www.miobuenosaires.com;双人间起价346美元)是个不错的选择,它的房间最大特色是木雕的浴缸以及可以随时打 开龙头免费喝葡萄酒。
Geoffrey Kent of Abercrombie & Kent则推荐到阿根廷草原游玩,在那儿游客可以垂钓与骑自行车,对于在首都狂欢了几个晚上的游客来说,这种换口味再合适不过了。比方说,Bahia Bustamante(网址:www.bahiabustamante.com;单客每晚起价215美元)则有超过20万英亩的巴塔哥尼亚 (Patagonian)荒原,每次最多可接待30位游客,游客在此可以徒步走、骑行、划船、探寻6000万年历史的石化森林、或径直观赏野生动物(从鲸 鱼、海豚、海豹到驼鸟与犰狳,不一而足)。
莫桑比克
“莫桑比克未开发的美丽海滩长达2500公里,就海岸游目的地而言,它还是个新成员,” Journeys by Design的威尔•琼斯(Will Jones)说。
来自Heritage Tours的乔尔•扎克(Joel Zack)说:“莫桑比克能提供豪华游,但仍让游客觉得是在非洲。海滩景色迷人,当地人热情友善。”
更让游客流连忘返的地方是位于该国遥远北部的基林巴群岛(Quirimbas archipelago)Quilalea岛上的Azura 酒店(网址:www.azura-retreats.com;单客每晚起价595美元)。它上月正式对外开放,拥有9座别墅,建在一座面积86英亩、人迹 罕至的岛上,四周就是海洋保护区。附近是更让游客神魂颠倒的海岛度假村,包括Vamizi(网址:www.vamizi.com;单客每晚起价590美 元)与Island Lodge(网址:www.iboisland.com单客每晚起价335美元)。
往南800英里就是巴扎鲁托群岛(Bazaruto),另一个游客的梦幻海滨度假去处,包括建在本盖鲁阿岛(Benguerra)上的另一家Azura酒店。
但游客也可以把目光投向该国内陆地区,尤其是戈龙戈萨国家公园(Gorongosa National Park, 网址:www.gorongosa.net)。与南非开发更为完善的国家公园相比,在此观赏野生动物,游客的生命保障度相对较低,但此处游客罕见。除了为 那些到灌木丛地带探险的游客建起临时性的“空中宿营地”外,Explore Gorongosa(网址:www.exploregorongosa.com;单客每晚起价440美元)还向游客开放帐篷式宿营场所。
缅甸
两年前,游客对缅甸几乎一无所知。但是,2010年年底,昂山素季(Aung San Suu Kyi)获释,反对派不再呼吁对缅甸旅游进行抵制。上个月,美国国务卿希拉里•克林顿(Hillary Clinton)高调访问了该国,以回应缅政府所做出的一系列民主举措,最近,新拍摄的昂山素季的传记电影得以公映。
此举使得游客呈爆炸式增长——各家旅行社都声称2012年头几个月,酒店已被预订一空。
缅甸吸引游客最大的地方就是缺少旅游规划——这是多年受国际社会孤立的附属产物。“这就好比50年前的泰国,” 来自Original Travel的汤姆•巴布尔(Tom Barber)说。Wild Frontiers的强尼•贝尔比(Jonny Bealby)说:“曼德勒(Mandalay)与薄甘(Bagan)都是美不胜收,缅甸的美景数不胜数。”
来自Black Tomato的汤姆•马钱特(Tom Marchant)推荐游客参加二月初的马哈牟尼佛塔节(Mahamuni Pagoda Festival):“此时亲临其地再好不过了,可以欣赏到原汁原味的亚洲风情。”
所有的游客都应该参观仰光(Yangon)保存完好的殖民地时期建筑以及昔日的皇都曼德勒与薄甘(那儿有2000多座佛塔与寺庙)。胆子大的游客则 继续向北游玩,有些甚至到了偏远的葡萄(Putao),在那儿他们可以乘竹笺、骑大象长途旅行或者游览丛林中的传统村落。Malikha Lodge(网址:www.malikhalodge.net;单客住三晚起价1900美元)是建在Nam Lang河上、掩映在竹林中的荒野豪华旅馆。
巴布亚新几内亚(Papua New Guinea)
“这是勇敢者妙不可言的体验,感觉就是最后开拓的疆域,”马钱特说。然而巴布亚新几内亚美丽的海滩、神奇的文化以及无与伦比的潜水除了吸引铁杆探险者外,也开始吸引喜欢冒险的游客。
游客可以参加有导游的探险活动:参观火山以及这座岛上1000个与世隔绝的部落。巴布尔还推荐到潜水及垂钓,巴布亚新几内亚坐落在珊瑚礁三角区(Coral Triangle),这个区域因丰富的生物多样性而被誉为海上亚马逊(Amazon of the Seas)。
潜水可以考虑Lissenung Island Resort(网址:www.lissenung.com;单客每晚起价141美元)、Walindi Plantation(网址:(www.walindi.com;单客每晚起价115美元)以及Tufi Dive Resort(网址:www.tufidive.com单客每晚起价162美元)等度假村。
往内陆走,Karawari Lodge(网址:www.pngtours.com;单客每晚起价603美元)位于东塞皮克省(East Sepik province),掩映在热带雨林之中,俯瞰着Karawari河。此处不通路,所以游客只能坐飞机,并降落于丛林中的简易机场,然后坐船到附近建在河 畔高脚屋中的村落。这儿遍布野生动物,有据可考的鸟类就至少有229种。
瑞典
也许是远近闻名的北欧饮食以及设计的给力(更不用提史迪格•拉森(Stieg Larsson)的千禧年三部曲),旅行社越来越青睐瑞典。拥有时尚精品酒店与世界级水准餐馆的斯德哥尔摩是周末度假的绝佳去处。入住时尚的吕德马尔酒店 (Lydmar,网址:www.lydmar.com;双人间起价299英镑),然后在斯德哥尔摩城西波希米亚风情的街区 Rörstrandsgatan,此处让人流连忘返的咖啡屋与古玩店随处可见。
但斯德哥尔摩也是很好的长途旅行起点站。巴布尔推荐深入到瑞典北部游玩,那儿游客可以滑雪、坐狗拉雪橇以及观赏极光。马钱特推荐的是北部城市吕勒奥 (Lulea)以及联合国遗产名录加默尔斯塔德(Unesco-recognised Gammelstad),游客可以入住Tree Hotel(网址:www.treehotel.se;双人间起价364英镑),晚上则睡在由设计师设计的各种树屋中。
埃塞俄比亚
虽然拉利贝拉的石凿教堂(Lalibela)一直吸引着源源不断的无畏游客,但2012年,游客可以饱览这个国家更多的胜景,从北部的塞米恩山脉(Simien mountains)到南部的奥莫谷地(Omo Valley),不一而足。
“由于缺乏起码的基础设施与像样的接待能力,埃塞俄比亚一直在苦苦支撑,但如今一切正在变化,”琼斯说。
Gheralta Lodge(网址:www.gheraltalodgetigrai.com;双人间起价37英镑)虽说不上豪华,但对于深入丹纳基尔沙漠 (Danakil desert)旅游的人来说,倒是个很时髦的基地,贝尔比称丹纳基尔沙漠是“游客所能见到的最具超现实主义的景致”。如果时间(与体力)有 限,Tropic Air航空公司(网址:www.tropicairkenya.com)的直升飞机可以把游客快速带至该国最偏远的地方。
巴拿马
“巴拿马可以让你在一次旅程中感悟整个中美洲的风貌,”马钱特说,它的国土面积狭小,此举意味着可以来回在加勒比海与太平洋之间腾挪,还可以深入内陆丛林去实地观赏野生动物。
在巴拿马的北部加勒比海沿岸,游客应该去圣布拉斯群岛(San Blas Islands)欣赏白色的沙滩、潜水以及参观Kuna印第安人等土著部落,巴布尔建议。“它们是自治部落,有自己的习俗,而且仍然很盛行,”他说。游客 可以入住海滩边Coral Lodge(网址:www.corallodge.com;单客每晚起价105美元)这样的生态型茅草屋。
往西行,靠近哥斯达黎加(Costa Rica)边境地区,就是博卡斯德尔托罗群岛(Bocas del Toro archipelago),此处开发较好,住宿选择余地较大,包括Punta Caracol(网址:www.puntacaracol.com;双人间起价344美元)。在太平洋沿岸一侧,热点旅游地是Isla Coiba,这块与世隔绝的海洋保护区过去是臭名昭著的监狱群,最后一名囚犯直到2005年才获释。过去这段历史意味着此处开发较少——任何时候最多可接 待60名游客,而此处拥有700多种鱼、30种鲨鱼以及20种鲸鱼与海豚。
巴拿马城除了可以一睹大型船队通过运河的壮观景象外,本身就名胜古迹甚多,包括殖民时期的建筑、喧嚣的夜生活以及上乘的餐馆。由法兰克•盖瑞 (Frank Gehry)设计的生物多样性博物馆(The Museum of Biodiversity,网址:www.biomuseopanama.org)目前在建,预计将于2012年年底试营业。游客可以入住Casa del Horno酒店(网址:www.casadelhorno.net;双人间起价284美元),这家拥有8个套房的精品酒店于2011年在老城区开张。在巴 拿马城,白天可以到丛林中游玩,沿着海岸转悠或者去El Valle玩,那是坐落在一座死火山口的美丽小镇。
赞比亚
到赞比亚可以有机会体验“纯野外游”,肯特说。众所周知,卢安瓜谷地(Luangwa valley)是徒步旅行的好去处,在这儿可以观赏野生动物,却看不到在知名度更高的非洲野生动物园那种旅行中巴车扎堆的情况。“若是找到一位好导游,能 很好地学到非洲灌木丛(从主要动物直至蜣螂)的相关知识,”肯特说。
野外旅行一天后,游客可以下榻圣殿奇切利总统别墅(Sanctuary Chichele Presidential Lodge,网址:www.sanctuaryretreats.com;单客每晚起价320美元),在这样的豪华旅馆好好放松一番,这里曾经是赞比亚前 总统卡翁达(Kenneth Kaunda)的住所。
从赞比亚与津巴布韦(Zimbabwe)两国的界桥上看维多利亚大瀑布(Victoria Falls),会让人觉得惊心动魄,乘竹笺激流漂流后回到Royal Livingstone hotel(网址:www.suninternational.com;双人间起价440美元)休息,这是大瀑布度假村(Falls Resort)的一部分,2011年花费了700万美元进行重装修。那些寻求不太刺激项目的游客可以乘坐游艇,沿着赞比西河(Zambezi river)观赏两岸的野生动物,或者在附近的卡里巴湖(Lake Kariba)租一个船屋。
肯特推荐在赞比亚野外旅游后,马上就到邻国津巴布韦的海滩去度假。他说:“与家人或新婚妻子在赞比亚玩上一周,再到津巴布韦过上一周,夫复何求?”
译者:常和

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