NZ Herald
  • Home
  • Latest news
  • Herald NOW
  • Video
  • New Zealand
  • Sport
  • World
  • Business
  • Entertainment
  • Podcasts
  • Quizzes
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Viva
  • Weather

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • New Zealand
    • All New Zealand
    • Crime
    • Politics
    • Education
    • Open Justice
    • Scam Update
    • The Great NZ Road Trip
  • Herald NOW
  • On The Up
  • World
    • All World
    • Australia
    • Asia
    • UK
    • United States
    • Middle East
    • Europe
    • Pacific
  • Business
    • All Business
    • MarketsSharesCurrencyCommoditiesStock TakesCrypto
    • Markets with Madison
    • Media Insider
    • Business analysis
    • Personal financeKiwiSaverInterest ratesTaxInvestment
    • EconomyInflationGDPOfficial cash rateEmployment
    • Small business
    • Business reportsMood of the BoardroomProject AucklandSustainable business and financeCapital markets reportAgribusiness reportInfrastructure reportDynamic business
    • Deloitte Top 200 Awards
    • Deloitte Fast 50
    • Generate wealth weekly
    • CompaniesAged CareAgribusinessAirlinesBanking and financeConstructionEnergyFreight and logisticsHealthcareManufacturingMedia and MarketingRetailTelecommunicationsTourism
  • Opinion
    • All Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Editorials
    • Business analysis
    • Premium opinion
    • Letters to the editor
  • Politics
  • Sport
    • All Sport
    • OlympicsParalympics
    • RugbySuper RugbyNPCAll BlacksBlack FernsRugby sevensSchool rugby
    • CricketBlack CapsWhite Ferns
    • Racing
    • NetballSilver Ferns
    • LeagueWarriorsNRL
    • FootballWellington PhoenixAuckland FCAll WhitesFootball FernsEnglish Premier League
    • GolfNZ Open
    • MotorsportFormula 1
    • Boxing
    • UFC
    • BasketballNBABreakersTall BlacksTall Ferns
    • Tennis
    • Cycling
    • Athletics
    • SailingAmerica's CupSailGP
    • Rowing
  • Lifestyle
    • All Lifestyle
    • Viva - Food, fashion & beauty
    • Society Insider
    • Royals
    • Sex & relationships
    • Food & drinkRecipesRecipe collectionsRestaurant reviewsRestaurant bookings
    • Health & wellbeing
    • Fashion & beauty
    • Pets & animals
    • The Selection - Shop the trendsShop fashionShop beautyShop entertainmentShop giftsShop home & living
    • Milford's Investing Place
  • Entertainment
    • All Entertainment
    • TV
    • MoviesMovie reviews
    • MusicMusic reviews
    • BooksBook reviews
    • Culture
    • ReviewsBook reviewsMovie reviewsMusic reviewsRestaurant reviews
  • Travel
    • All Travel
    • News
    • New ZealandNorthlandAucklandWellingtonCanterburyOtago / QueenstownNelson-TasmanBest NZ beaches
    • International travelAustraliaPacific IslandsEuropeUKUSAAfricaAsia
    • Rail holidays
    • Cruise holidays
    • Ski holidays
    • Luxury travel
    • Adventure travel
  • Kāhu Māori news
  • Environment
    • All Environment
    • Our Green Future
  • Talanoa Pacific news
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Property Insider
    • Interest rates tracker
    • Residential property listings
    • Commercial property listings
  • Health
  • Technology
    • All Technology
    • AI
    • Social media
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
    • Opinion
    • Audio & podcasts
  • Weather forecasts
    • All Weather forecasts
    • Kaitaia
    • Whangārei
    • Dargaville
    • Auckland
    • Thames
    • Tauranga
    • Hamilton
    • Whakatāne
    • Rotorua
    • Tokoroa
    • Te Kuiti
    • Taumaranui
    • Taupō
    • Gisborne
    • New Plymouth
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Dannevirke
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Levin
    • Paraparaumu
    • Masterton
    • Wellington
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Blenheim
    • Westport
    • Reefton
    • Kaikōura
    • Greymouth
    • Hokitika
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
    • Wānaka
    • Oamaru
    • Queenstown
    • Dunedin
    • Gore
    • Invercargill
  • Meet the journalists
  • Promotions & competitions
  • OneRoof property listings
  • Driven car news

Puzzles & Quizzes

  • Puzzles
    • All Puzzles
    • Sudoku
    • Code Cracker
    • Crosswords
    • Cryptic crossword
    • Wordsearch
  • Quizzes
    • All Quizzes
    • Morning quiz
    • Afternoon quiz
    • Sports quiz

Regions

  • Northland
    • All Northland
    • Far North
    • Kaitaia
    • Kerikeri
    • Kaikohe
    • Bay of Islands
    • Whangarei
    • Dargaville
    • Kaipara
    • Mangawhai
  • Auckland
  • Waikato
    • All Waikato
    • Hamilton
    • Coromandel & Hauraki
    • Matamata & Piako
    • Cambridge
    • Te Awamutu
    • Tokoroa & South Waikato
    • Taupō & Tūrangi
  • Bay of Plenty
    • All Bay of Plenty
    • Katikati
    • Tauranga
    • Mount Maunganui
    • Pāpāmoa
    • Te Puke
    • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Hawke's Bay
    • All Hawke's Bay
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Havelock North
    • Central Hawke's Bay
    • Wairoa
  • Taranaki
    • All Taranaki
    • Stratford
    • New Plymouth
    • Hāwera
  • Manawatū - Whanganui
    • All Manawatū - Whanganui
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Manawatū
    • Tararua
    • Horowhenua
  • Wellington
    • All Wellington
    • Kapiti
    • Wairarapa
    • Upper Hutt
    • Lower Hutt
  • Nelson & Tasman
    • All Nelson & Tasman
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Tasman
  • Marlborough
  • West Coast
  • Canterbury
    • All Canterbury
    • Kaikōura
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
  • Otago
    • All Otago
    • Oamaru
    • Dunedin
    • Balclutha
    • Alexandra
    • Queenstown
    • Wanaka
  • Southland
    • All Southland
    • Invercargill
    • Gore
    • Stewart Island
  • Gisborne

Media

  • Video
    • All Video
    • NZ news video
    • Herald NOW
    • Business news video
    • Politics news video
    • Sport video
    • World news video
    • Lifestyle video
    • Entertainment video
    • Travel video
    • Markets with Madison
    • Kea Kids news
  • Podcasts
    • All Podcasts
    • The Front Page
    • On the Tiles
    • Ask me Anything
    • The Little Things
  • Cartoons
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / Travel

Are we running out of new places to go?

By Kirrily Schwarz
news.com.au·
20 Jan, 2017 11:45 PM4 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save
    Share this article
Samarkand, Uzbekistan: the wooden pavilion of siab dekhkhan bazaar, located next to the bibi-khanym mosque. Photo / 123RF

Samarkand, Uzbekistan: the wooden pavilion of siab dekhkhan bazaar, located next to the bibi-khanym mosque. Photo / 123RF

There are seven "Stans" in the world: Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, Pakistan and Afghanistan.

In some ways, Central Asia is the end of the Earth, awkwardly wedged between China, Russia and the Middle East. The area isn't easy to get to, and yet it's a rapidly emerging tourist destination.

It's a similar situation in South America, where bored tourists are looking for more exotic and colourful locales, like Colombia. Until recently, it was more famous for cocaine cartels than coffee, but now holiday-makers are arriving in droves, reports News.com.au.

It begs the question: are we running out of places to go?

We've exhausted Europe. We've explored New Zealand, and sufficiently embarrassed ourselves in Bali and Phuket.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

We've been amused by American-sized meals, and we know that even if we do trek to Machu Picchu, heaps of our mates have already trodden the well-worn path to post a token photo with a llama.

The thing is, tourists have incredibly short attention spans. We're always looking for a new brag to take home, something bigger, brighter, and more life-affirming than before.

The internet is also playing an important part in breaking down perceptions that countries are "dangerous", making it far simpler for travellers to share their stories.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Kolja Spori, a 46-year-old German who's travelled to all but six of the 193 countries recognised by the United Nations, told the BBC that every country is open to travellers.

Samarkand, Uzbekistan. Photo / 123RF
Samarkand, Uzbekistan. Photo / 123RF

"I was in Donetsk [Ukraine] last year. I heard shelling all day long, but that doesn't mean you're in danger. In fact, I was fascinated to see how ordinary public life continued despite the mortar shelling," he told Dave Seminara.

"If you listen to the media, you would assume these places are like a living hell, but that is usually not true."

He said contrary to popular belief, his experience was that there is a much higher level of hospitality in Muslim countries than historically Christian ones, adding that more often than not the "official narrative" about a place is wrong.

Discover more

Travel

Playing hide and seek in Kazakhstan

10 Aug 04:00 AM
Travel

Uzbekistan: Lame but certainly not tame

10 Mar 11:00 PM
Travel

Touring a nuclear fallout zone

20 Apr 04:54 AM
Travel

Is this the new Southeast Asia?

03 Feb 02:06 AM

Of course, the only way to find that out is to visit yourself.

"Trips can make you view the world in a different way," he said.

Sometimes, taking a risk on an exotic adventure leads to rich rewards.

Take Kazakhstan, for example, the world's ninth-largest country. It was on no-one's radar until the release of Sacha Baron Cohen's mockumentary Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan in 2006.

The capital, Astana, hardly existed 20 years ago. According to CNN, it was best known as a gulag prison camp for wives of Soviet traitors until it was declared the new capital in 1997.

Tashkent, Uzbekistan: the golden mihrab in Galdirghochbiy Mausoleum. Photo / 123RF
Tashkent, Uzbekistan: the golden mihrab in Galdirghochbiy Mausoleum. Photo / 123RF

Head south to Almaty, however, and there are charming buildings such as the wooden Ascension Cathedral, as well as a stunning mountain range that runs all the way to China.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Similarly, The Telegraph labelled neighbouring Uzbekistan: "The most fascinating country you've never been to" in an article published in August.

At present, the Safetravel website recommends New Zealanders exercise caution in Uzbekistan, and advises against travel to "the areas bordering Afghanistan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan" due a "high risk" to security.

However, writer Hazel Plush described it as a "charming mishmash of restored 12th-century mosques and classical Russian architecture alongside blocky Brutalist buildings" that reflect the faded Soviet glory of times gone by.

The cities of Khiva, Bukhara and Samarkand were key stop-offs for traders on the famous Silk Road, which ran from China to Turkey, and all three have been painstakingly restored.

While visas to former USSR countries are notoriously finicky to obtain, Uzbekistan recently toyed with the idea of visa-free entry to boost tourism. Plans are on hold for now, but it could be a key step to opening up a reclusive country.

- additional reporting: nzherald.co.nz

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Save
    Share this article

Latest from Travel

Travel

NZ's top hiking trails: Expert reveals best walks across the country

Travel

Is this the best way to travel to Tahiti?

Travel

Bali travel update: New customs declaration form for Kiwi travellers


Sponsored

Chasing the magic on safari in Africa

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from Travel

NZ's top hiking trails: Expert reveals best walks across the country
Travel

NZ's top hiking trails: Expert reveals best walks across the country

From Te Paki, Northland to Punakaiki, West Coast, here are some all-weather hikes to try.

01 Sep 06:39 PM
Is this the best way to travel to Tahiti?
Travel

Is this the best way to travel to Tahiti?

01 Sep 05:00 PM
Bali travel update: New customs declaration form for Kiwi travellers
Travel

Bali travel update: New customs declaration form for Kiwi travellers

01 Sep 12:12 AM


Chasing the magic on safari in Africa
Sponsored

Chasing the magic on safari in Africa

01 Sep 09:27 PM
NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • NZ Herald e-editions
  • Daily puzzles & quizzes
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Subscribe to the NZ Herald newspaper
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP