The best places to go in 2019
Not being the kind to look back, we at the Frommer guidebooks have been eyeing the near future of travel. After polling the Frommer authors around the globe, here are the places we picked, in no particular order, as the ones that will be best to visit in 2019.
The Austral Islands: For the first time in years, airfares from North America to Tahiti are dropping, thanks to increased competition. And if you take another short hop, from Papeete, Tahiti, to this lesser-known group of isles, you’ll encounter a tropical paradise that’s akin to what Gauguin would have experienced when he painted this corner of the globe over 100 years ago. Prices, too, are lower in the Australs than you’ll find on Moorea or Bora Bora.
Zimbabwe and Egypt: Two destinations that are spectacular for different reasons; here’s hoping that 2019 continues peacefully for both. Zimbabwe is a place for spectacular safaris and natural wonders (hello, Victoria Falls); now that dictator Robert Mugabe is gone, more visitors may be able to witness its majesty. And the violence seems to have subsided in Egypt. In 2019, a slate of new luxury hotels will be opening, as will an important new antiquities museum.
Memphis, Tennessee: As Elvis might have said, “Happy Birthday, Baby!” The “Birthplace of Rock and Roll” will be celebrating its bicentennial in 2019, with exhibits, festivals and concerts. It’s a good excuse to chow down on the best barbecue on the planet, stay up late at the city’s famed music clubs and visit The King’s home, recently expanded with a new multimilliondollar visitor’s centre. Plovdiv, Bulgaria and
Matera, Italy: Interestingly, the European Union has chosen two cities that are among the longest continually inhabited places on Earth for their European Cities of Culture in 2019. Armies of artists will descend on each to create site-specific pieces in the visual and performing arts of all sorts. Between performances and gallery visits, festival goers will be able to explore the caves of Matera (which hold churches, boutiques, restaurants and hotels) as well as the historic core of Plovdiv.
Singapore: Is there a bigger movie star this year than this Asian city-state? After seeing its cutting-edge architecture, luscious street food and gorgeous populace on the big screen, we know that many are going to be tempted to visit in person. Collioure and Normandy,
France: The 75th anniversary of D-day will bring many to Normandy, as well it should. The commemorations and new exhibits there promise to be both moving and informative. And after the hoopla, we suggest heading to this under-the-radar Gallic gem, just 13 miles from the border with Spain, right on the Mediterranean. Beloved by such artists as Georges Braque some 100 years ago, it’s a sun-dappled gem, with colourful sardining boats bobbing in the harbour and a well-preserved historic inner city.
Space: This pick has nothing to do with Virgin Galactic, which may or may not be taking tourists beyond the Earth’s atmosphere in 2019. No, we are alerting our readers to all of the celebrations around the 50th anniversary of man’s walk on the moon (at the Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C., and on the Space Coast of Florida). In addition, the Disney organization will be debuting its “Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge” major new additions in California and Florida, with a combined price tag of a billion dollars.
New York state: New York City is always a top destination, but this year it tops itself with the opening of the first half of Hudson Yards. When completed, it will be the largest private real estate development in United States history, and it contains such tourist catnip as the opening of a massive climbable statue (The Nest), the tallest observation deck in this hemisphere and a mall full of foodie legends. The city and state will also commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall riots (a seminal event in LGBTQ history), the 100th anniversary of women receiving the right to vote (at the women’s suffrage headquarters in Seneca Falls) and the opening of two important new museums (the Jackie Robinson Museum and the National Comedy Museum).
Parintins, Brazil: Home to the second-largest yearly festival in that country (after Rio’s Carnival – it’s extraordinary). It’s also a terrific jumping-off point for exploring the Amazon rainforest. And because Brazil finally has lowered the cost of its visa, and made it available online, it’s a much easier country to visit.
Estrada Nacional 2: Portugal’s own “Route 66” is one of the only roads on the planet to span an entire country. Drive it from north
to south, and you’ll see most of the country’s greatest hits: rugged mountains, savannah-like plains, medieval villages, Gothic cathedrals in ancient university towns and blissful coastline. The road ends at the sea, but since so much of it is inland, it has another hidden perk: few crowds of visitors (most vacationers in Portugal spend their time entirely on the coast). Uluru, Northern Territory,
Australia: Also known as Ayer’s Rock, this massive and important monolith in the Australian Outback is finally going to get the respect it deserves in 2019. That is when a new law will go into place forbidding climbing of “The Rock,” a move that the aboriginal peoples of Australia have been fighting for years. As well, there are a slew of new tours, run by Aboriginals, exploring the lifestyle of this redhued, challenging landscape. Olympic National Park,
Washington state: The size of Rhode Island, this park is an unusually pristine nature site. Some 95 per cent of the park is roadfree, making it a mecca for hikers who can explore the wildly varied terrain here: 70 miles of undeveloped coastline, mountains clad in the remains of 20,000-year-old glaciers, and temperate rainforests where the moss-sweatered trees can soar to 300 feet in height. All of this within easy driving distance of one of America’s great cities (Seattle).
Nagasaki, Japan: Site of one of history’s greatest tragedies, Nagasaki has risen like a Phoenix from atomic ashes. Today it’s a vibrant city and province, with important history museums and memorials, a splendid local cuisine and shop- ping scene, and a wacky Dutchthemed amusement park, complete with tulips and windmills. It makes our list because in late 2018, the United Nations inscribed its hidden Christian sites (missionaries and converts had to go underground in the 16th century) onto the UNESCO World Heritage list. Virginia and Hollywood,
California: Two places that will have important historic celebrations going on in 2019. Virginia will commemorate the creation of the first representative form of government in the Americas, some 400 years ago, and Hollywood is finally getting its first movie museum. Hooray for both! Mealy Mountains, N.L.,
Canada: As the United States continues to squander its national heritage, removing protected status from some of its most beloved national monuments and other public lands, its neighbour is going green. Canada created its newest national park in 2018 – an area of rugged peaks, wetlands, wild coastline, tundra and boreal forests.
Note to the reader: Please be sure to confirm all rates and details directly with the companies in question before planning your trip. The information in this column was accurate when it was released, but prices are competitive, sometimes limited and can always change without notice.