The 50 Best Places to Travel in 2024

Hokkaido, Japan

COURTESY OF CLUB MED

 

Travelers are flocking back to Japan, but in the year ahead, they should look beyond Tokyo and Kyoto. Hokkaido, the northernmost of Japan’s main islands, has a sterling reputation for food — its biggest city, Sapporo, is famous for miso ramen — and its Shiretoko National Park is a natural wonder with excellent hiking and photogenic waterfalls. Hokkaido is also, insiders know, one of the world’s premier ski destinations thanks to simply phenomenal snow. The center of the action is the village of Niseko, which has plenty of hotels, homestays, and resorts — but has gotten a touch easier to visit thanks to the 2022 opening of Club Med Kiroro. The something-for-everyone property has two distinctive concepts, Club Med Kiroro Peak, for guests age 12 and older, and the new-in-2023 Club Med Kiroro Grand, a family-friendly alternative. These all-inclusives are helping to eliminate the intimidation factor when booking a Japanese ski week, by rolling up everything from accommodations and equipment rentals to off-the-mountain entertainment and kids' clubs. Another perk? Club Med Kiroro Grand will also have the brand’s first-ever Japanese onsen alongside other wellness facilities including soaking tubs and saunas. — Danielle Pointdujour

KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

SVEN MUSICA/COURTESY OF MADWALENI RIVER LODGE - BABANANGO GAME RESERVE

This out-of-the-way South African province, sometimes shortened to KZN and located on the country’s eastern coast, is moving into the spotlight. “KwaZulu-Natal has two World Heritage Sites — the iSimangaliso Wetland Park and the majestic uKhahlamba Drakensberg National Park — and is popular for its beaches, safari parks, green hills, and temperate weather,” said Julian Harrison, a safari expert and longtime member of T+L’s A-List. It’s also home to an ambitious rewilding project backed by the Emcakwini Community Trust, which began reintroducing once-endemic species including black rhino, cheetah, elephant, giraffe, and lion in 2018; today, it’s known as Babanango Game Reserve. Harrison also points to other conservation efforts, such as those underway at andBeyond Phinda Private Game Reserve, which is monitoring critically endangered Temminck’s ground pangolins. The newly opened Madwaleni River Lodge is the place to stay, said Raza Visram, another A-List expert. “The intimate lodge has 12 beautifully designed tents that overlook the White Umfolozi River,” he explained. There’s also Sala Beach House, an oceanfront escape on Thompson’s Bay that writer Heather Richardson detailed in T+L’s September 2023 issue. Coming soon in KZN will be The Homestead, a 12-suite eco-lodge in the province’s western Nambiti Game Reserve. — Samantha Falewée