Where to next? ✈️

Your friendly scout for first trips — what things cost, what locals earn (so prices and tipping make sense), how to get around, and the questions every first-timer asks.

Where should I go?

Pick a month and a budget. Spend is mid-range per person — room, food, transport and sights, no flights. See every city ranked by cost.

When

Where

Budget

$200+a day

All 106 city guides

🇹🇭 Pai$18–40/dayThailand · Nov–FebA tiny mountain valley town three hours and 762 curves north of Chiang Mai — canyon viewpoints, hot springs, reggae bars, and a backpacker gravity that makes 'two days' turn into a week.

🇹🇭 Sukhothai$18–40/dayThailand · Nov–FebThe ruined first capital of Siam, and Ayutthaya's much quieter cousin — weathered brick chedis reflected in lotus ponds, bicycle paths instead of tour buses, and almost none of the crowds.

🇹🇭 Ayutthaya$20–45/dayThailand · Nov–FebThe ruined former capital of the Siamese kingdom — brick chedis and headless Buddhas scattered across a bicycle-friendly park, an easy 1.5-hour train ride from Bangkok's chaos.

🇨🇳 Kaifeng$25–45/dayChina · Apr–May, Sep–OctCapital of the Northern Song and, a thousand years ago, probably the largest city on earth. Today a low-rise, walkable town whose real attraction is a night market that takes over the streets after dark.

🇹🇭 Koh Lanta$22–55/dayThailand · Nov–AprA long, laid-back island south of Krabi that takes real effort to reach and rewards it — quiet west-coast beaches, a stilted Sino-Thai fishing village, and a slower pace than Phuket or Krabi ever offer.

🇻🇳 Hanoi$25–50/dayVietnam · Mar–Apr, Oct–DecA thousand-year-old capital where motorbikes swarm narrow Old Quarter streets, French colonial villas sit beside pagodas, and plastic stools spill onto the sidewalk for the country's best bowl of pho.

🇻🇳 Hoi An$25–55/dayVietnam · Feb–MayA UNESCO-listed trading port frozen in time — lantern-lit streets, a centuries-old Japanese bridge, and a tailoring industry that can turn a sketch into a custom suit in 48 hours.

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai$25–55/dayThailand · Nov–FebNorthern Thailand's cultural heart — a moated Old City of hundreds of temples, misty mountains, laptop-friendly cafés, and a slower, cheaper pace than Bangkok's chaos.

🇲🇦 Fes$25–60/dayMorocco · Mar–May, Sep–NovMorocco's spiritual and intellectual capital — home to the world's largest car-free urban area, a 1,200-year-old university, and the country's most intense medina experience.

🇨🇳 Guilin$28–55/dayChina · Good year-roundThe karst-mountain scenery on the back of the ¥20 note — a slower, greener corner of China built around the Li River and the backpacker village of Yangshuo.

🇨🇳 Harbin$28–55/dayChina · Jun–Aug, Dec–FebChina's far-northeast winter capital — Russian-influenced architecture along the Songhua River, brutal sub-zero winters, and the world's largest ice and snow festival.

🇻🇳 Ho Chi Minh City$25–55/dayVietnam · Dec–AprStill called Saigon by most locals — a fast-moving, entrepreneurial city of glass towers rising over French colonial landmarks, with a motorbike sea and a street-food scene that runs 24 hours.

Bullet trains, temples in the megacity, and food cheaper than you expect.

Fukuoka$65–115/day Hiroshima$65–110/day Kyoto$85–140/day

Café terraces, long lunches, and ordinary things done beautifully.

Annecy$110–175/day Avignon$90–145/day Bordeaux$95–150/day

Street food, golden temples, and cheap flights to the beaches.

Ayutthaya$20–45/day Bangkok$40–80/day Chiang Mai$25–55/day

Street tacos and world-class dining rooms, often on the same block.

Cancún$70–160/day Guadalajara$40–85/day Los Cabos$100–250/day

Where Europe and Asia share a ferry line — empires, tea, and hospitality.

Antalya$45–100/day Bodrum$55–120/day Cappadocia$50–100/day

Imperial palaces, a wall you can see for days, and mobile-only cities.

Beijing$50–95/day Chengdu$35–65/day Guangzhou$40–75/day

Skyscraper canyons, Hollywood, and desert neon — three different Americas.

Las Vegas$100–250/day Los Angeles$110–220/day Miami$100–200/day

Limestone karsts, motorbike-choked old quarters, and superb street food.

Da Nang$30–65/day Hanoi$25–50/day Ho Chi Minh City$25–55/day

Ruins, Renaissance art, and canals — all a fast train apart.

Florence$85–155/day Rome$95–170/day Venice$100–190/day

Ten volcanic islands of white sand, morna music, and Creole calm.

Mindelo$45–90/day Praia$45–85/day Santa Maria$55–120/day

Islands, minimalist design, and a national commitment to fika.

Gothenburg$90–160/day Malmö$80–145/day Stockholm$110–190/day

Late dinners, surreal architecture, and tapas worth lingering over.

Barcelona$95–170/day Madrid$90–160/day Seville$70–130/day

Medina mazes, mountain-backed cities, and craft centuries deep.

Casablanca$35–75/day Fes$25–60/day Marrakech$30–70/day

The world's tallest tower, a desert Louvre, and easier than you expect.

Abu Dhabi$75–160/day Dubai$90–190/day

Yellow trams, port wine, and the best value in Western Europe.

Lisbon$80–150/day Porto$70–130/day Sintra$65–130/day

Ancient ruins, caldera sunsets, and the eurozone's cheapest capital.

Athens$70–130/day Santorini$120–260/day Thessaloniki$55–110/day

Palaces, world-class subways, and food cheaper than Tokyo.

Busan$65–130/day Jeju$75–150/day Seoul$80–160/day

Machu Picchu, Andean cities, and the best food in South America.

Arequipa$45–90/day Cusco$60–120/day Lima$55–110/day

Harbour ferries, laneway coffee, and the reef at the top.

Cairns$95–185/day Melbourne$100–195/day Sydney$110–215/day