City Guides

Your complete Xiamen guide for 2026 — the original Treaty Port the 1842 Treaty of Nanjing opened to British trade, ten kilometres from Taiwan’s Kinmen across the strait, and home to the UNESCO-listed concession quarter on Gulangyu Island (inscribed 2017). 30-day visa-free for 50 countries (UK + Canada added Feb 2026; Australia + NZ extended through Dec 2026) and 240-hour transit at XMN for US passport holders. Three Michelin one-star restaurants in the 2026 Fujian Guide. Xiang’an Airport replaces Gaoqi late 2026.

Your complete Seychelles guide for 2026 — the 115-island Indian Ocean archipelago 1,500 km east of mainland Africa. Two UNESCO natural sites: Vallée de Mai 1983 (coco de mer — largest seed in plant kingdom, endemic to Praslin + Curieuse) and Aldabra Atoll 1982 (~152,000 giant tortoises — world’s largest population). Anse Source d’Argent on La Digue (often cited as the world’s most-photographed beach). No visa required for any nationality — but €10 Travel Authorization at seychelles.govtas.com mandatory before arrival. Materially expensive.

Your complete Cape Verde guide for 2026 — the 10-island Atlantic archipelago off West Africa. Cidade Velha UNESCO 2009 (first European-built city in the tropics, 1462; trans-Atlantic slave-trade entrepôt). Cesária Évora’s Mindelo + morna UNESCO 2019. Tarrafal Concentration Camp 1936-1974 (Museum of Resistance). Pico do Fogo volcano 2,829m (2014-15 eruption). Sal + Boa Vista beach resorts; Santo Antão hiking. Visa-free 30 days for EU/UK/US/CA/AU. EASE pre-registration mandatory; visa-on-arrival ended 1 Jan 2026 for 96 nationalities.

Your complete Yerevan guide for 2026 — one of the world’s oldest continuously inhabited cities (founded 782 BC at Erebuni Fortress). Tsitsernakaberd Armenian Genocide Memorial (opened 1967), Republic Square (Tamanian 1924 master plan in pink-and-yellow tufa stone), Cascade Complex + Cafesjian Center (2009), Etchmiadzin UNESCO 2000 (Mother See of the Armenian Apostolic Church since 301 CE — first Christian nation). Areni-1 cave: world’s oldest known winery (6,100 years). Visa-free 180 days for EU/UK/US/CA/AU/NZ/JP/KR passports. Mount Ararat visible across the closed Turkey border.

Your complete Halifax guide for 2026 — the Atlantic Canada anchor city. 1917 Halifax Explosion (largest man-made blast before 1945), 1912 Titanic recovery (150 victims at Fairview Lawn + Mount Olivet + Baron de Hirsch cemeteries), Pier 21 immigration (1928-1971, ~1 million immigrants), the Citadel (1749), Sambro Lighthouse (1758 — oldest in the Americas), Halifax Public Gardens (1867), the donair (Halifax invention 1973). Canada eTA CAD $7 for EU/UK/AU/NZ tourists; US visitors need no visa or eTA. Peggy’s Cove + Lunenburg UNESCO 1995 as day trips.

Your complete Kolkata guide for 2026 — former British capital of India (1772–1911), home of Mother Teresa’s Mother House (1950), the Indian Coffee House College Street (since 1947), the Howrah Bridge (Rabindra Setu 1943), the Victoria Memorial (1921), Sundarbans UNESCO 1987 (~101 tigers), and Durga Puja UNESCO Intangible Heritage 2021. Eden Gardens hosts the first semi-final of the 2026 ICC T20 World Cup. Indian e-Visa US $25 (Jul–Mar) / US $10 (Apr–Jun).

Your complete Ahmedabad guide for 2026 — India’s first UNESCO World Heritage City (since July 2017), home of Sabarmati Ashram and the 1930 Salt March, the Sidi Saiyyed jali (IIM-A logo), the 360 pols of the walled city, the Adalaj Stepwell (1499), and the Narendra Modi Stadium (world’s largest cricket stadium, hosts 2026 T20 World Cup final). 30-day visa-free for most EU/UK/CA + 240-hour transit US. Gujarat dry state — Tourist Liquor Permit ₹70.

Your complete Chongqing guide for 2026 — wartime capital of the Republic of China (1937–1946), Yangtze + Jialing river-confluence mountain megacity, and hotpot capital. Three Chongqings (wartime, mountain, hotpot), the Jiefangbei monument’s three-regime history, Hongyadong’s 11-storey cliff complex, Liziba metro through a 19-storey building, Dazu Rock Carvings (UNESCO 1999), Wulong Karst (UNESCO 2007), Yangtze Three Gorges cruises. 30-day visa-free for most EU/UK/CA + 240-hour transit at CKG for US.

Your complete Xi’an guide for 2026 — capital of 13 Chinese dynasties, eastern terminus of the Silk Road, home of the Terracotta Army (discovered 1974). Three Xi’ans (Imperial Tang, Hui Muslim, Modern Industrial), the 13.74 km Ming city wall, the Great Mosque (742 CE), the 1936 Xi’an Incident site at Huaqing. 30-day visa-free for most EU/UK/CA + 240-hour transit US. Michelin Guide China Mainland 2026 includes Canton 8 (two stars).

Your complete San Salvador guide for 2026 — the country with the most dramatic security transformation in the Western Hemisphere (98% homicide drop since 2015), now a US State Department Level 1 destination. Four Salvadors (Catholic/Colonial, Civil War, Bukele-era, Coastal), the Romero pilgrimage anchor, Joya de Cerén UNESCO, and the honest version of the state of exception. Visa-free 90 days; USD currency; the €15 day genuinely possible.

Your complete Washington, D.C. guide for 2026 — the federal capital, four Washingtons (Federal/Monumental, Residential, Diplomatic, Political-Crisis), 17 free Smithsonian museums on a single mile of grass, the Lincoln-Capitol Mall axis, ESTA visa-waiver for most VWP citizens ($40.27, 90 days), the 2026 Michelin DC list (26 stars, no 3-star post-Inn-at-Little-Washington-demotion), and the honest version of the second Trump administration as working political backdrop.

Your complete Ulaanbaatar guide for 2026 — the world’s coldest capital, on its 100th year of urban Mongolia, the gateway to the Mongol steppe. Four Mongolias (Soviet-Republican, Steppe, Mining, Chinggis Khaan), the new Chinggis Khaan International Airport (opened 2021), Naadam Festival 11-13 July, the working visa-free entry (EU/UK 30 days, US 90 days, through Dec 2026), and the honest version of the winter air pollution. €15 day genuinely possible; no Michelin guide; the Trans-Mongolian Railway runs through here.

Your complete Shenzhen guide for 2026 — the city China built from a fishing-village county seat in 45 years, now 17 million people, the working headquarters of Tencent / Huawei / DJI / Ping An / BYD, and the mainland-side half of the Hong Kong-Shenzhen conurbation. Four Shenzhens (original SEZ, Tech-Capital, New-District, Pre-Shenzhen). Visa-free 30 days (EU+UK+CA); 240-hour transit (US). 14-minute high-speed rail to Hong Kong. Michelin Guide Guangzhou & Shenzhen debuted 2026.

Your complete Chengdu guide for 2026 — UNESCO City of Gastronomy since 2010, home to the Giant Panda Research Base (240 pandas), and a four-Chengdu city (old temples + Sichuan cuisine + pandas + Tianfu New Area). The 30-day visa-free policy now covers most EU + UK + Canada through Dec 2026; US uses 240-hour transit. 13 Michelin-starred restaurants in 2026. The honest version of mapo tofu’s 1862 Chen Mapo origin, the Heming Tea House, and what’s actually worth booking from a Western European-routing.

Your complete Fiji guide for 2026 — 333 islands, three Fijis (Mainland Viti Levu, Resort Mamanuca/Yasawa, Outer Vanua Levu/Taveuni/Kadavu), and the honest version of the 2022 democratic transition, the climate-relocation story (Vunidogoloa, 2014, the world’s first), and the kava ritual. Visa-free 4 months. Best Day Under FJ$80; no Michelin guide; the 1874 Deed of Cession at Levuka as the spine.