Future Travel Hotspots
Where the next wave of travelers will be heading
Tirana
Tirana is on this list because the change is visible year-on-year. Pyramid restoration, new museums, an airport expansion, and a coast that's improving in infrastructure without (yet) losing the price level that makes it interesting.
Yerevan
Armenia's capital is benefiting from a wave of returning diaspora and from being a comfortable, walkable, deeply atmospheric city at a price level still well below the EU. The Cascade complex, the brandy factories on the river, the day-trip access to monasteries. Go before the prices reset.
Baku
Baku is unlike anywhere else in the region: a UNESCO-listed walled old city dropped next to Zaha Hadid's swooping Heydar Aliyev Center, a Caspian seafront that has been completely rebuilt, and easy day trips to the mud volcanoes and the Gobustan rock art. Visa is straightforward; flights are increasing.
Tashkent and Samarkand
Uzbekistan opened up to easy tourism only recently. Tashkent's metro is a free underground art gallery. Samarkand's Registan is one of the great squares in the world. Bukhara is the small, dusty, atmospheric counterpoint. High-speed trains connect them.
Suggested itinerary
- Caucasus loop: Yerevan, overnight train or flight to Tbilisi, fly to Baku. Two weeks.
Local highlights
- Tirana's restored Pyramid
- Yerevan's Cascade complex
- Baku's old town and Flame Towers
- Tashkent's metro art
- Skopje's Old Bazaar
Nearby destinations
Other places worth combining with this trip: Kutaisi, Vanadzor, Sheki, Samarkand.
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