Places christacarroll Wants to Go

An Australian lake whose pink hue defies scientific explanation.

This fine-dining restaurant features native New Zealand ingredients and Māori cooking.

You may recognize this beautiful grove within Kaitoke Regional Park as location of the house of Elrond.

Inside this faux cave, visitors can learn how some of their favorite fantasy characters were created.

A bronze kitty adorns the grave of the polar explorer who brought the original feline to the Antarctic.

A galaxy of glowworms—larvae of a gnat—hides deep in the belly of these caves.

These phallic stone spires once served as Tolkien's Paths of the Dead.

The glacier tucked within a New Zealand rainforest.

This strange geological landscape erupts with sudden bursts of water.

Some of the clearest water anywhere in the world.

The Dalai Lama named this New Zealand landscape the "Spiritual Center of the Universe."

Dolphins, ancient clams and hundreds of waterfalls make this one of the world's top tourist destinations.

Tubing through a cave lit with glowworms is a magical underground experience.

This sheep farm has been forever transformed since being built for “The Hobbit” film series.

Two World War II aircraft lie within the jungle around this abandoned runway.

A monument to the two U.S. officers killed by North Korean troops while trying to trim a poplar tree.

The best place for scenic views of the DMZ and North Korea.

One man's lifetime collection of tiny objects of wisdom gathered from around the world, on display for public enjoyment.

The 400-year-old remains of the samurai invasion of Korea.

South Korea's love of the silly photograph is on full display at this goofy collection of trompe l'oeil paintings.

This volcano in the Philippines is believed to have miraculous healing powers.

In her ancestral home, one chef preserves ancient Filipino recipes and serves up traditional, home-cooked food to history-loving foodies.

Hidden deep within a Filipino jungle is an incredible waterfall that plunges into a dazzling blue-green pool.

A patch of Philippines forest devoted to saving the lives of an emotionally sensitive species of googly-eyed primates.