Beyond Budapest: 3 day trips from Hungary's capital

 While Budapest is a truly majestic place, there's so much more to Hungary than its hugely popular capital.
You could spend days in the city and barely scratch the surface, but if you have the time, it's worth hopping on a train, boat or bus to explore more of this compact country on a day trip.
Here are five destinations beyond Budapest that are worth adding to your itinerary while you travel in Hungary:

Esztergom

Located just across the river from Slovakia, a visit to the city of Esztergom makes for a great day trip if only for its huge Basilica, the largest in Hungary. It sits on a rocky outcrop just above the Danube.
The impressive 360-degree views over the river, the town, and over to Slovakia are well worth the ticket price and the effort it takes to scale the claustrophobic spiral staircases to the top of the dome.
You can catch the train up from Budapest, which takes around an hour and a half, or the bus, but the most scenic way to travel to Esztergom -- or back -- is by boat.
The Hydrofoil journey last 90 minutes. If you really want to savor the scene, opt for the slower boat, which takes around four hours to get back to town.
Not only will you get the best views of the Basilica as it departs, you'll also pass the citadel at Visegrád before the traversing the marshy Danube islands towards Szentendre and back to Budapest. This is a great way to see the country while taking it easy.
Restaurant tip: Traditional neo-Gothic style restaurant Prímás Pince lies in a vaulted cellar underneath the Basilica. Even if you're not hungry, you can taste some great Hungarian wines, and maybe snack on a cheese plate, instead.

Szentendre
You can get to Szentendre on the local suburban train from Budapest in just an hour, which is why it's one of the most popular day trip destinations for locals and tourists alike.
It's a small, charming town with tight streets filled with houses painted in a palette of wine red, terracotta and pastel blue that lead into cobbled squares and whitewashed churches.
You can still find traces of the town's former Serbian community in the icon-clad Blagovestenska Church and the Serbian Orthodox Museum.

One of the main draws for this picturesque location are its art museums and studios, which are dotted around in old villas and converted mills.
In the 1920s, an art colony sprouted up in the town and its since become a thriving art hub, with many art studios in the area as well as painters working on canvases on the roadside.
Visitors can head up to Szentendre (and / or return) by boat in the summer. The journey takes around an hour from the ports in the city center and docks in downtown Szentendre.
Restaurant tip:
Cozy downtown tavern Aranysárkány Vendéglő (which translates as Golden Dragon), is one of the best eateries in the area, serving up a mix of hearty Hungarian and Balkan food.

Visegrád

The Danube Bend is one of the most beautiful parts of Hungary, where the famous European river turns south, and flows through Hungary towards Serbia and Croatia.
The sharpest bend in the river occurs around the small castle town of Visegrád, which is also the only point where the Danube flows north, before curving towards the south.
Visegrád's magnificent 13th century citadel, built by King Béla IV, offers fantastic views of the Danube Bend, and is a must see during a visit to this town.
While it's positioned at the top of a 350-meter hill, visitors can get a taxi to the upper castle or take the steep hiking trail through the woods.
Either way, you'll be rewarded when walking along the crumbling, windswept castle walls.
Inside, you'll find an armory and a waxwork museum, but the real highlight comes when you patrol the battlements. Here you can take in the beautiful panorama of the river alongside the area's hills and valleys.
Meanwhile, at the bottom of the hill, the town of Visegrád itself has plenty to offer.
You can visit the Renaissance palace ruins (a one time summer home for Hungary's King Matthias Corvinus) on the riverside or check out the Zugfozde Palinka Museum, dedicated to the infamous Hungarian fruit brandy.
Restaurant tip: Based in the Hotel Silvanus, Panorama Restaurant serves up a lunch menu with local specials, like the Visegrád wild ragout soup, and also offers an amazing view of the Danube Bend from above.

Balatonfüred
Central Europe's largest lake, sometimes referred to as the Hungarian Sea, is less than two hours away from Budapest.
Lake Balaton is a vast stretch of turquoise water, dotted with yachts and boats in the summer, while locals flock to the beaches for a plunge in the shallows.
There are plenty of places to visit around the lake, but Balatonfüred is a stand out option.
One of the oldest resort towns on the Balaton, it mixes old world elegance with a waterside feel thanks to its grand neo-classical hotels, museums and waterfront cafés.

9 of the best beach resorts in the South China Sea

 Vietnam, China, Malaysia and Philippines might be fighting over a few remote, uninhabitable atolls and guano heaps deep in the South China Sea, but on most islands the sun rises and sets as beautifully as ever.
At these top regional resorts, you can be securely pampered like a movie star -- or senior party official. So pack your travel bags and head to these heavenly destinations:

1. Six Senses Con Dao

Once a notorious prison island, Con Dao is now one of the most exclusive island resort destinations in Southeast Asia. A protected national marine park, the pristine island is best reached by a 45-minute flight from Ho Chi Minh City. Six Senses Con Dao is the first five-star resort in the archipelago. Its 50 villas, each with a private pool, are spread along a mile of private beach.

2. Phu Quy Island
Several beaches and villages are scattered around the isolated island of Phu Quy. Farther north, Phu Quy Island is an undiscovered prize for good reason -- it's not easy to reach and facilities are minimal. That makes it all the more appealing to some. Boats to Phu Quy Island run every other day from Phan Thiet City. Tickets are $7-14 and the trip takes five to seven hours. Rooms range $10-20 at family-run guesthouses.

3. Vinpearl

Occupying all of Hon Tre Island (just off the central city of Nha Trang), Vinpearl is a resort, theme park, golf course and aquarium rolled into one. Vinpearl is reachable by a 10-minute speedboat from Nha Trang or by what's said to be the longest over-sea cable car in the world.

4. Whale Island Resort
The rustic charm of Whale Island Resort, surrounded by emerald waters. Two hours north of Nha Trang, Whale Island is named for the whales and whale sharks that frequently visit the island to feed. There are even whale temples on the island, where fishermen pay tribute to the sea beasts. Whale Island Resort has a National Geographic dive center for world-class diving. Its 23 bamboo bungalows sit directly on the beach, shaded by coconut palms.

5. Catba Island Resort & Spa
Home to one of the most endangered primate species in the world -- the golden-headed langur -- Catba is located at the southwestern end of Ha Long Bay. Catba Island Resort & Spa is the dominant hotel on the island, complete with a sizable water park, underground "Pirate Bar" and festively presented giant war-era gun turrets.

6. Sheraton Sanya
Hainan might be China's largest island, but it's also the country's smallest and southernmost province. Often touted as China's own Hawaii, the island is peppered with luxury resorts, beautiful scenery and rare wildlife, such as the Hainan black-crested gibbon. The Sheraton Sanya Resort occupies 300 meters of private beach along Yalong Bay and has five swimming pools. The property's seven bars and restaurants mean you never need to leave the resort to hunt for variety.

7. Ritz-Carlton Sanya
The Ritz-Carlton Sanya is a golf resort with eight restaurants and bars and a private beach. A bit further down the beach, the Ritz-Carlton Sanya offers a family vacation with a complete program tailored for kids. This includes a children's butler, Uncle Martin's Secret Garden (an active educational garden complete with fuzzy animals), deluxe pool for kids with water slides and Petit VIP -- a program to keep them busy, happy and out of your hair all day.

8. El Nido Resorts
El Nido Resorts has four Palawan properties, each on a different island, with luxury cottages perched above the beach and coral reefs. Palawan is an archipelago of 1,780 islands in the western Philippines. The area is famous for its limestone cliffs and biodiversity, both on shore and in surrounding reefs.

9. Gaya Island Resort
Gaya Island Resort is a 15-minute boat ride from Kota Kinabalu, Borneo. Set amid the Tunku Abdul Rahman Marine Park with stunning views of Mount Kinabalu, the resort's 120 villas are perched on a pristine rainforest hillside. The resort offers several eating options, including Fisherman's Cove, which has a grand view of the bay. Visitors can also enjoy a picnic at the private Tavajun Bay, a five-minute boat ride from the resort.

Greek islands: How to choose the right one for your holiday

 Greece's 1,400 islands -- 230 of them inhabited -- are one of the Mediterranean's most beautiful assets. From the Ionian, up by Albania in the northwest, to the Dodecanese, near Turkey in the southeast, they offer vacations you can't get many other places. Each of the island groups has its unique allure, plus some of the most picturesque seascapes on Earth. But for sheer variety in a small radius, proximity to Athens' ferry port at Piraeus and the best inter-island boat connections, none compete with the Cyclades.

Best scenery: Santorini
The story behind this island is the stuff of legends -- in 1600 BC after a volcano erupted and its center collapsed into the sea, it left behind parts of its caldera that today form the island Santorini. The views from pretty much anywhere on this crescent-shaped outcrop are superb. Sheer rock faces are striated in multitudinous shades, villages and towns cling to the tops of cliffs, the caldera is filled with clear deep turquoise water home to the visiting cruise liners. The whitewashed buildings in the main town Fira resemble a fresh blanket of snow atop a mountain.

On the northern tip, at Oia, where the sunsets are outstanding, houses, hotels and churches tumble down the rock walls. Every evening bus loads of tourists descend to watch the sun sink into the Aegean. The scenery is as just impressive at sea level. Red Beach, as the name suggests, has a rust-colored backdrop and Mars-esque boulders, Eros Beach's eerie hoodoo-like walls would fit right in at a national park in Utah, and Caldera Beach, the only one that faces in toward the caldera, gives visitors a discernible sense of the volcano's immensity.

Where to stay: Vedema, in the village of Megalochori, doesn't have a caldera view, but its setting in a small village feels authentic (the town square and village church are a one-minute walk away). The 45 rooms have views of the village homes or the surrounding rolling vineyards. If a vista of the caldera is key, check in to sister property Mystique. Set in Oia, it has a secret wine cellar, and its 22 cave-style rooms are terraced into the cliff face, providing that classic Santorini experience.

Best nightlife: Mykonos
Mykonos is Greece's answer to Ibiza, but without the attitude and posturing. Either side of the summer season Mykonos resembles another low-key beach destination but come July and August, night owls arrive in droves, and the main streets of Mykonos Town are packed with revelers -- even revelers with babies strapped into carriers. At times the narrow alleys are so jammed with bodies the only way to move is en masse with the crowd as it sways through the streets in a singular motion.
In true Greek style, nothing here starts until late, though you can party in the daytime with 20-something Italians at Super Paradise beach. A popular start is to have drinks at sunset at the Sea Breeze Cocktail Bar in Little Venice, snagging a table up the steps for the best views. Across the island at Kalo Livadi you can find an unfussy beach where the new Nice n Easy bio-restaurant has fantastic organic fare at reasonable prices (the pasta with sharp kopanisti cheese is excellent).

Back in town, Jackie O' is a lively waterfront bar that draws the gay crowd, Agyra Bar has attractive, hard-bodied staff from Athens and at the always packed Rock 'n' Roll, where local and tourists are evenly split, the bartender blows a whistle before doling out oxygen shots.My personal favorite is the bar/club Caprice, where all are united in their mission to just have fun, no judgments, no agenda; the barmen are as much into the music and dancing as the customers (they'll readily pour free shots of jelly liqueur). Tip: At Caprice, many a first-timer falls into the area where the bar stools are, set one step down from the rest of the floor, so tread carefully.

Where to stay: Hotel Kivotos, on Ornos Bay, is removed from the hubbub, set on a hill with steps down to a peaceful rocky beach, and is an ideal refuge to refuel and recharge. The cool rooms have clear Lucite chairs, LED lights in the floors (sounds tacky, but looks appropriately festive), a pool with a small circular bar, and most importantly, an energetic, attractive young staff that will give you the scoop on the best night spots.

Best traditional village life: Naxos
The largest island in the Cyclades has a string of swoon-worthy beaches on its west coast, a Venetian castle in its main town, some interesting ruins and great local produce and dairy. But what sets it apart from the other islands are its traditional villages. When you leave Chora, where the ferries berth, the pull of village life is evident -- note the sign at the outskirts of town that simply reads "Villages." There are 46 of them on Naxos, some miniscule, but all a window into traditional life.

Best places to swim with sharks

Megalodon may be extinct, but other sharks have been making headlines lately.
There's the great white-tracking app Sharktivity, there's this viral photo of a shark dangerously close to a surfing boy, and there's the Australian zebra shark who shocked scientists by giving birth without a male.

And as our fascination shows no sign of abating, swimming with sharks continues to be a large and growing activity.

The global shark tourism industry makes an estimated $500 million a year, says Patric Douglas, founder of Shark Divers and a shark dive specialist based in California.

Many tout swimming with sharks as one of the greatest diving experiences to be had.
Depending on the diver's comfort level, options range from observing sharks from underwater cages to participating in feedings.
Here's where to do it.

False Bay, Cape Town, South Africa

African-Shark Eco-charter
It's a mystery why shark breaches at False Bay are more frequent and intense than anywhere else in the world.

"White sharks from around the world will breach here, but may not anywhere else," says Karen Lawrence from African Shark Eco-charter. "The intense predator-prey interaction is majestic to watch."

Rob Lawrence, owner of African Shark Eco-charter, is one of the first people to have used a decoy to entice a shark breach.

The Air-Jaws tour takes off at dawn, when shark breaching is the most common.
The charter also offers cage diving with great whites.

Shark Cage Diving KZN
Kwazulu-Natal's unspoiled waters offer sightings of reef sharks, ragged-tooth sharks and giant guitar sharks.

Each guest spends 30 minutes in the cage during the two-and-a-half-hour trip.
Divers may encounter up to 20 sharks.

Apex Shark Expeditions
February to September is the best time for shark cage diving trips in False Bay.
When False Bay is out of season, Apex Shark Expeditions -- run by Chris and Monique Fallows -- offer trips to Gansbaai year-round.

The waters off Dyer Island have earned the nickname Shark Alley due to their remarkable great white shark populations, attracted by the 60,000-strong sea colony on Geyser Rock.

Protea Banks, South Africa
AfriDive
Divers may encounter up to eight different species of sharks in one dive at Protea Banks. During high season, hammerheads and sand tiger sharks can be seen in schools of several hundred.

AfriDive is an advanced dive site and a prime location to see bull and tiger sharks.
"It is an adrenaline-loaded thrill," says Afridive owner Roland Mauz. "Banks is what I call the Himalayas of scuba diving," he says.

4 hidden beaches in Hong Kong

 Hong Kong is known to dazzle visitors with its neon skyline and urban canyons. But don't let that glittery cosmopolitan facade fool you.
The territory is home to more than 260 outlying islands, 100-plus beaches and endless miles of raw coastline.
Sunseekers may already be familiar with popular sandy spots such as Repulse Bay, Stanley and Shek O. But it's worth seeking out farther-flung crescents for cleaner sand and clearer water, too.
Here are some of Hong Kong's more hidden beaches, which you might even have all to yourself when you travel:

Long Ke Wan
The sandy stretches of Sai Kung East Country Park could be straight out of the Philippines, especially the stunning soft white sands of Long Ke Wan.
Backed by forested hillsides and overlooking clear water, this beach isn't easy to reach but it's well worth the journey.

Hiking over the first hill from the nearby High Island Reservoir, travelers are rewarded with sweeping views of the South China Sea and a picture-perfect crescent sweep of sand, all surrounded by mountains.
The remote location in Hong Kong's northeastern corner protects the beach from overuse. Long Ke Wan is just the beginning of a string of beautiful beaches along Tai Long Wan bay.
Getting there: From Diamond Hill MTR , a 30-minute taxi ride reaches the High Island Reservoir. From there it's another 30-minutes on foot.

Tung Ping Chau
Located in the northeast corner of Mirs Bay -- closer to Shenzhen, China, than to Hong Kong -- Tung Ping Chau is the city's most remote island.
The sunny speck in the sea features curious rocks formations along the coastline, great snorkeling, clean water and soft, sandy beaches.
To break up the day, follow the island's three-hour-long walking trail through the Hong Kong UNESCO Global Geopark to explore the many natural formations and rock pools.

Along the way, you can stop in Tai Tong Village for refreshments, though we'd recommend coming prepared with your own supplies.
Getting there: Ferries to Tung Ping Chau depart from Ma Liu Shui Ferry Pier, in northeastern Hong Kong, and take roughly 1.5 hours each way. As ferry services are limited, it's wise to check times before the journey.

Ham Tin Wan
A discussion about Hong Kong's most beautiful beaches never fails to include a mention of Tai Long Wan.
The remote bay is home to four beaches -- Sai Wan, Ham Tin Wan, Tai Wan and Tung Wan -- each separated by hills.
You'll need to set aside an entire day to hike from beach to beach. But if you prefer to focus on just one of the four, we'd recommend Ham Tin Wan.
Not only does the beach offer clear water and rugged mountain scenery, but there's more infrastructure here -- think a snack stall, bathrooms and water sport rentals.

Along the trek from Sai Wan beach to Ham Tin, you'll come across Sheung Luk Stream, which branches into the woods. Follow this stream for about 15 minutes until you reach tiered waterfalls and a series of rock pools.
It's the perfect place for a quick swim, picnic or bout of cliff jumping (at your own risk) before continuing on to Ham Tin.
Getting there: Departing from Central, make your way to Sai Kung Village. From there, you can either take a kaito ferry or minibus No. 29R to the trailhead at Sai Wan Pavilion. If hiking, the journey takes about 40 minutes to reach Sai Wan.

Lo So Shing
On the western coast of Lamma Island, this quiet beach is oft overlooked in favor of the more popular Powerstation or Hung Shing Ye beaches.
But after a short hike, you'll be rewarded with exceptionally clean water and, quite possibly, a cove all to yourself.
The facilities are pretty bare bones here -- there's a refreshment stand, some water sports vendors and bathrooms -- but the powdery sand is hard to beat.
After hitting the beach, visitors can wander up to Yung Shue Wan village for a leisurely lunch or sunset drinks.

Take a luxury ride on Japan's Shiki-shima

 It seem everyone wants is a ride on Japan's new luxury Train Suite Shiki-Shima. Fares on the deluxe 10-car train range between $2,200 and $10,000 but, with the service launching by East Japan Railway (JR East) just days ago, it's already sold out through to March 2018.

Available for two- to four-day itineraries around eastern Japan, the experience is closer to a boutique hotel on wheels than a routine shlep on a commuter train.
The train is designed by Ken Okuyama, celebrated for his work with Porsche, Ferrari and Maserati. He's brought that sleek style to two glass-walled observatory cars that bookend the train, offering uninterrupted views of eastern Japan's forests, fields and coastline.

The lounge has its own piano bar and, to aid relaxation even more, walls and windows have been designed to evoke "a quiet forest." Shiki Shima even has its own signature tune, "Train Suite."

The dining car menu is devised by Michelin-starred chef Katsuhiro Nakamura and changes to reflect the ingredients and culinary style of the regions through which the train is passing.

And then, of course, there are the 17 private suites. The most luxurious -- split-level, with two beds, a living room and a bath tub -- are more capacious than a lot of Tokyo apartments.

All, JR East says on its website, combine "traditional Japanese aesthetics with a futuristic spirit."

As befits a price tag that starts at 500,000 yen for a double-occupany suite ($4,451), boarding the train is pretty magical too. A new Harry Potter-style Platform 13 1/2 has been built at Tokyo's Ueno Station for Train Suite Shiki-Shima's exclusive use -- although this seems to be the only time JR East has done things by halves with its new luxury service.

Because of the popularity of the new service, those who want a ticket to ride need to fill out an application rather than simply purchase a fare. The lucky few are then selected by lottery.

NHK World reports that only one out of every 76 applicants was able to get a place on the train's first trip in May 2017.

World's largest indoor ski resort' coming to China -- via Dubai

Well, not quite. Dubai-based retail giant Majid Al Futtaim -- the company behind Ski Dubai, the Middle East's first indoor ski slope -- has announced it is helping develop what it claims will be the world's largest indoor snow and ski resort for Shanghai.

The company says the snow park, called Wintastar Shanghai, will be 90,000 square meters (nearly 1 million square feet) -- or more than three times the size of Ski Dubai, the largest indoor ski resort in the world when it opened in 2005.

The city of Harbin in China's far northeast currently holds that title with the Harbin Wanda Indoor Ski and Winter Sports Resort. That resort opened in 2017 and is 80,000 square meters (869,000 square feet) in size.

In a news release, Majid Al Futtaim say the Shanghai complex will feature three ski slopes, each with a different gradient, with one described as "Olympic standard for training." What that entails is to be confirmed.

For those with an aversion to throwing themselves down a cold decline, there are 25 non-ski related activities also planned for the site.

The resort, in the Pudong New Area of the city, will be Majid Al Futtaim's first move into leisure and entertainment outside of the Middle East and North Africa, and comes off the back of Ski Dubai being voted "World's Best Indoor Ski Resort" in 2017 at the World Ski Awards.

"We're confident this represents the beginning of an extensive international footprint when it comes to indoor snow entertainment facilities," said Ahmed Galal Ismail, chief executive officer of the ventures division of Majid Al Futtaim, in the release.

Singapore-based KOP Limited will lead the development, announcing the project had broken ground on August 30.

The vast resort comes at an interesting time for snowsports in China. The Winter Olympics will visit Beijing in 2022, marking the first time the world's most populous nation will host the event.
But by and large, winter sports are not high on the agenda for most. Only 12.1 million Chinese people said that had tried skiing at least once, according to a 2017 white paper -- less than 1% of the 1.38 billion population.

The government has taken measures including school grants, plans for at least 600 ice rinks, and encouraged private sector expansion, all with the aim of having 300 million citizens involved in winter sports by 2025.

Along with Genting Secret Garden Resort, a growing outdoor resort close to Beijing in neighboring Hebei province, the Wintastar Shanghai complex marks increased activity from private developers. Indeed, executive chairman and executive director of KOP Limited Ong Chih Ching has called winter sports "the next big thing in China."

Wintastar Shanghai will join a growing roster of indoor ski resorts Majid Al Futtaim has contributed to. As well as Ski Dubai, the company launched Ski Egypt in 2017 -- the first indoor ski resort in Africa -- while Ski Saudi and Snow Oman are also in development, according to a KOP release.
An estimated completion date for Wintastar Shanghai has yet to be announced.