Travel Bucket List: 8 Remote destinations for a special holiday

Remote Locations: 8 Bucket list travel destinations that are hard to get to

Angela Goh

28 Mar 2016

1/8
Taktsang Monastery, Bhutan
The mystical Taktsang Monastery is located high up on a cliff, ten thousand feet above sea level. It is at least a three hour hike, but getting into Bhutan itself is difficult - you need to work with a travel agency that will create your itinerary and organise your visa for you. Oh, and you’ll have to pay for it all upfront. It will be an expensive trip, as there is a government-mandated minimum spending of $200 per day for tourists. This goes towards taxes, guides, accommodation, meals, et cetera. But perhaps the effort and expenses are worth the visit to this glorious monastery.
Photo: Getty Images
2/8
Motuo, Tibet
Up until 2013, Motuo was the very last county in China (out of over two thousand) that had no highway link to the outside world. Mutuo, also known as Mêdog and Pemako, is a traditional region of the Nyingtri Prefecture in the Tibet Autonomous Region of People's Republic of China. Unlike other parts of Tibet, the area receives plenty of rain, which is why it is home to such lush greenery and many species of wild animals.
Photo: Getty Images
3/8
Tasiilaq, Greenland
Getting here is no joke - first, you'll have to fly to the airport on the island of Kulusuk, then take a helicopter ride, or snowmobile, or dogsled to Tasiilaq. A town in the Sermersooq municipality in southeastern Greenland, it is home to about 2000 inhabitants, many of them hunters and fishermen.
Photo: Getty Images
4/8
Tristan da Cunha, United Kingdom
Tristan da Cunha, known colloquially as Tristan, is regarded as the most remote inhabited island in the world. The closest land mass is 2,430 kilometres away, and over 2,800 kilometres to the nearest continent, Africa. With a population of only 300, you will find no airport at Tristan - you can only get there by undertaking a six-day boat journey from Cape Town. Remote island indeed.
Photo: Getty Images
5/8
Katskhi Piller, Georgia
Here's an incredible sight: church ruins built on top of a tall natural limestone pillar. The Katskhi Pillar rises 40 metres above the hills of Central Georgia and the monastery above can only be accessed by a 131-foot ladder. From afar, the monument looks imposing and out-of-this-world.
Photo: Getty Images
6/8
Koyasan, Japan
From the bustling city of Osaka, Koyasan is roughly two trains, a cable car and a bus ride away. The mountain has a past that stretches back over a millennium. More than a hundred different temples are scattered throughout the area, giving the secluded town a truly sacred atmosphere. Many of these temples offer lodging to pilgrims and tourists alike, thus giving visitors a once-in-a-lifetime chance to experience the simple, traditional lifestyle of Buddhist monks.
Photo: Angela Goh
7/8
Sakhalin Island, Russia
A gorgeous and mostly uninhabited island off the eastern coast of Russia, Sakhalin was once the centre of a long and drawn-out power struggle between Russia and Japan. The island has amazing scenery such as the Zhdanko ridge and the Vaida mountains. The indiginous people who live there haven't met many outsiders and their culture and traditions remain untouched by the modern world. Get to this mystical island from Moscow by taking the trans-Siberian railway to Khabarovsky, another train to Vanino, a ferry to Kholmosk on the western coast of the island, and a bus into town.
Photo: Wikitravel
8/8
Lyngen Lodge, Norway
To get to the Lyngen Lodge in northern Norway, you will first have to get to Tromsø, then drive 2 and a half hours, followed by 2 ferry rides. The lodge itself is luxurious and built with the environment in mind - geothermic heating provides warmth, and a thick grass roof provides insulation. A fully licensed bar, library, seminar room, sauna and outdoor jacuzzi are just some of the amazing facilities that this arctic lodge provides. The view? Spectacular.
Photo: Lyngen Lodge

There are some magical places in the world entirely worth the effort getting to.

When it comes to looking for unique and special travel destinations, your mind shouldn’t be jumping to places like tropical Bali or overwhelming Tokyo – these places are much too well-trodden and covered by hundreds of travel guides. Instead, you should be picking places that are less inhabited, more tranquil, and certainly much harder to get to.

If you want something truly different, take a trip to Tristan da Cunha, the world’s most remote inhabited island in the world, if you don’t mind the six-day boat journey from South Africa to get there. Or perhaps you would like to visit the majestic natural limestone Katskhi Pillar, which houses the ruins of a church right at the top and can only be accessed via a 131-foot ladder. If you are truly up for a holiday that is way out of this world, we’ve got you covered – from Norway to Russia, Tibet to Bhutan.

For hunters of hidden gems and unlikely holiday getaways, we bring you an inspiring list of 8 less-travelled vacation spots that may take you some time on the road to get to. Life’s too short to not be adventurous!

Angela Goh

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Remote Locations: 8 Bucket list travel destinations that are hard to get to

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