Asia

From night trains to mountain trails

Asia

Asia spans icy plateaus, tropical archipelagos and densely populated megacities. Ancient temples, fast railways and deeply rooted food cultures often meet within a single journey.

Asia cannot be reduced to one route or style of travel. Follow pilgrimage trails through the mountains, move between islands, ride high-speed trains across major cities or spend days eating at stalls and family-run restaurants. Religion, trade and migration have left visible traces throughout the region.

Climate and scale deserve close attention when planning. Monsoons do not arrive everywhere at once, mountain areas have short trekking seasons and regional holidays can fill transport quickly. Build an itinerary around a manageable area and leave room for local trains, boats and buses. The journey itself reveals how sharply landscapes, languages and cuisines change from one place to the next.

From the magazine

Stories about Asia

Editorial stories linked to Asia and to the countries and places within this region.

The world’s ten greatest bridges, ranked
Article

The world’s ten greatest bridges, ranked

These ten bridges are ranked by three things: the force of their design, the history held in their fabric, and the precision with which they meet their river, strait, valley or city. Pont du Gard starts the list; Stari Most finishes it above the Neretva.

The 10 Cities Best Understood from the Water
Article

The 10 Cities Best Understood from the Water

A fine skyline is not enough. In these ten cities, a ferry or small boat reveals how trade, terrain, buildings and daily travel grew around a river, canal or bay.

Eight cities where winter changes the streets
Article

Eight cities where winter changes the streets

Tallinn’s medieval lanes, Tromsø’s blue midday twilight and Kyoto’s frost-bright temple steps belong to the cold months. In these eight cities, winter changes how public spaces look, how residents use them and what visitors can see.

Ten trading cities where the old streets still work
Article

Ten trading cities where the old streets still work

At Venice’s Rialto market, fishers and wholesalers still sell the morning catch beside open-air fruit and vegetable stalls. Across ten old trading cities, quays, lanes, workshops and fortifications still show how goods once moved and how people use these places now.

Ten places where local bread is still made by hand
Article

Ten places where local bread is still made by hand

Bread shows the daily work behind a neighbourhood meal: a household’s marked dough at a Marrakesh communal oven, dark rye beside sourdough in Copenhagen, and bolillos from brick ovens in Mexico City. These ten working addresses and market settings sell local bread made through distinct local practices.

Ten Squares That Change After Dark
Article

Ten Squares That Change After Dark

At sunset, restaurant stalls fill Jemaa el-Fna and listeners close around storytellers who adjust each performance to the crowd. Elsewhere, evening brings aperitivo tables, commuter tides, street food, ceremonies and concert audiences to public ground.

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