12 i sl a n d s . . . o n e l if e t im e . . .

g e t s ta r t e d

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picture pure luxury. Did you happen to see a thatched-roof bungalow on stilts above blue-green water fringed with palm, its windows and decks opening to a view of 2,385-foot Mount Otemanu? Perhaps like this one at the St. Regis Bora Bora Resort? Uncanny. What else do you need? A massage with tiare-flower-infused oil to remove the last twinges of doubt, an outrigger canoe for a closer look at water and mountain, a companion to hear you whisper, Wow. Can this be real? It doesnt matter; you dont have to leave.

i n d u l g e Close your eyes and

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the making, the drama of the Na Pali Coast never gets old. And as stunning as it is to look at, its better still to be there amid scents of passion fruit and plumeria. Whether you sail in from the water, walk down the cliffs above or follow trails that run nearly end to end or all three on separate days the rewards are ample. And this signature feature is just the introduction. Kauai, oldest and farthest-flung of the main Hawaiian Islands, also offers worldclass surfing, hiking to waterfalls and staring, dumbstruck expression intact, at Waimea Canyon, the aptly nicknamed Grand Canyon of the Pacific. Kauai is different. And it changes you.

b r e at h e A million years in

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the hills and rooftops, mere smoke and cloud anywhere else, here inscribe the story: Once upon a time on an island, this grand temple Pura Ulun Danu rose from Lake Beratan like a dream. There is no single iconic Bali image, but a thousand red silk embroidered with gold thread; a dancers arms extended, angled, turned; tropical forest whose air you witness as well as breathe; tiered fields so green that you blink and find them greener still. Visiting this layered place enhances preconceptions, the Bali that you experience embellishing the Bali that youve imagined.

r e f l e c t Curls of white above

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sonal affective disorder (SAD), caused by insufficient light and associated with lack of energy and inability to concentrate on boring tasks, plus a general lack of irrepressible joy. The cure? Days of endless sunshine. Sail into a bay on Virgin Gorda or any of the hundreds of inlets that ring the British Virgin Islands, and keep your eyes open. This is not a joke. Sunlight makes us happy. Take as necessary.

r e s t o r e The malady? Sea-

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Gros Piton and Petit Piton jutting out asymmetrically from the Caribbean, transfixes the viewer and fixes in the mind exactly because it is not singular. It evokes earths other visions peaks of Tahiti rising from the Pacific, the pyramids of Egypt acting as looking glass as well as landmarks. The great places resonate but do not merge. St. Lucia has plenty to do climb, dive, dine but enter this Jade Mountain room, and you may never do any of it.

g a z e This singular vision,

St.Lucia

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 renew Perhaps the only thing that the Japanese revere more than snow-white cherry blossoms and the balanced cone of Mount Fuji is perfec tion itself. The culture thrives on detail, from the eyelid fold on an origami cat to the last flying-fish egg on a sushi roll. And as they practice, so shall they climb. Thousands of Japanese make the hours-long ritual hike up the mountain every summer following a series of stations. Shouldnt you do it at least once?

Japan

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one side of Haleakala Crater as if it were a sunrise. Looks like another t ypical day on Maui. By the end of it, you may have spotted native honeycreepers in the Waikamoi Preserve, surfed Baldwin Beach on the north shore, driven over 50 double-take ravines on the road to Hana, climbed the entire trail from Oheo Gulch to Waimoku Falls and met a dozen people who spent one day like that and decided to stay in Maui forever.

t o u r The full moon rises over

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jon cornforth

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 s h a r e Mere newlyweds may go on honeymoons. Lovers get married and go to Venice. The Grand Canal flows through the floating city like an aorta through the heart of romance. Its not just the polish on ancient buildings that creates that feeling, but the centuries of grit left after wax tides. Its not just the echoes in the alcoves of St. Marks Basilica that resound, but the knowing silence in between. And its not just the words I love you that make your heart swell, but who says them and where.

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 b a s k White sand. Blue water. Nothing to do and nothing to worry about. Any questions? With its highest point just eight feet above the gleaming jade sea level, theres no such thing as an uphill climb in the Maldives. Its all beach. Except for the parts that are all unspeakably inviting ocean. That combination, exemplified by Conrad Maldives Rangali Island resort on Alif (Ari) Atoll, defines this isolated Indian Ocean archipelago. Relaxation, letting go of your every worldly care including that nagging sense that you should ever even stand up isnt as easy as it sounds. But its worth the effort. And if you break a sweat, someone will hand you a towel.

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w o n d e r This island country sits atop the seismically volatile Mid-Atlantic Ridge, which acts as a great rumbling geothermal engine of natural wonders: volcanoes, geysers, sulfur pits and mud pots. Thats not to mention the capricious Viking spirit they inspired. The waterfall Skgafoss creates a nearly constant rainbow on sunny days and flows out across fields that burst with verdant radiance as only a landscape e scaping a long cold winter can do. Think what it will do to your dreams.

Iceland

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Netherlands Antilles has formed a cosmopolitan hub of Caribbean culture for hundreds of years. That echoes in the skylines, the cuisines, the language that Papiamento melange that sometimes sounds like Europe, sometimes like Jamaica, sometimes like Africa. The iconic Willemstad waterfront, painted in whimsical colors that scream C aribbean against architecture that says Holland, is only the center. Travel outward to horse ranches, ostrich farms, desert mountains, living reefs, sea caves to travel deep.

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e x p l o r e This island in the

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 A d v e n t u r e In just one single day, you can ski Tasman Glacier, get a Maori s ymbol that you dont u nderstand tattooed on your face, canoe the Milford Sound in Fjordland National Park and spot the rare Hectors dolphin in Akaroa Harbor pictured here a single very long day. And thats just the South Island. The North Island has world-class rapids, world- record trout and even the worlds largest volcanic crater. A place this fascinating, with sights so stunning, we usually call the wish list: world. But this is New Z ealand, Book perfect for a wish list that never now p.9 0 ends. islands.com/wishlist

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