By A. Pawlowski, CNN
December 27, 2011 — Updated 1241 GMT (2041 HKT)
(CNN) — Globe-trotters everywhere, it’s time to raise your champagne glass and toast to all the wonderful new journeys you’ll take in the new year.
But where exactly should you go in 2012? As always, some places will stand out above the rest when it comes to unforgettable things to do and see.
To help you decide, we sought out recommendations from four travel experts: Robert Reid, U.S. travel editor for Lonely Planet; Martin Rapp, senior vice president of leisure sales at Altour; Anne Banas, executive editor at SmarterTravel; and Jeanenne Tornatore, senior editor for Orbitz.com.
We also sprinkled in a couple of suggestions from Travel+Leisure and Budget Travel.
Here are nine of the top destinations for 2012:
- England
- World of the Maya
- Myanmar (also known as Burma)
- Chicago
- St. Vincent and the Grenadines
- The Netherlands
- Atlantic Canada
- Uruguay
- Orlando
World of the Maya
Some see it as an approaching apocalypse, others as the beginning of a new era. Whatever your beliefs are about December 21, 2012, interest is skyrocketing in the Maya, the ancient civilization known for the great cities it left behind in Mexico and Central America.
The date marks the end of a 5,126-year cycle on the Long Count calendar developed by the Maya, and there will be events on the occasion in Belize, Guatemala, Mexico and Honduras, Banas said.
If you want to see incredible ruins, Reid recommended skipping the tourist hordes at Tulum and Chichen Itza in Mexico and instead head to places such as Tikal, Guatemala (which George Lucas used as a location in the original “Star Wars”), and Chiapas, Mexico.
Reid was once exploring a site near Comitan, Mexico, and said he was astonished to discover he was the only person there.
“I had a pyramid to myself,” Reid said. “You’re just looking out over this mountainous valley, and you have the complete Mayan site to yourself. It’s an unreal travel experience.”
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Souce: http://edition.cnn.com/2011/12/27/travel/top-destinations-2012/index.html