It is easy to keep postponing a once-in-a-lifetime journey: Move it to next season, next year, after a renovation, or simply leave it as a dream.

For travelers hoping to stop delaying, National Geographic’s 2027 selection of 25 essential places to visit offers a particularly timely collection of immersive, experience-led ideas.

The list includes new attractions, including Chile’s Cape Froward National Park, alongside major commemorations such as a Leipzig, Germany, festival honoring 200 years since Beethoven’s death.

It also highlights cultural events, from an arts celebration in Japan’s Snow Country to destinations that are easier to reach than before, including Mexico’s Maya Ka’an, now connected with Cancún and Tulum by rail.

National Geographic editor-in-chief Nathan Lump spoke with CNN about several of the places on the list that he is especially eager to visit.

Pacific Coast Highway, California

California’s Pacific Coast Highway ranks among the country’s great driving routes, says Lump, perhaps second only to Route 66. With the popular Big Sur stretch reopened after three years, visitors can once more travel the route from end to end.

Lump encourages travelers to spend time in the artistic communities scattered along the way, including Mendocino and Laguna Beach. For generations, California has drawn creatives inspired by its rugged scenery and the Pacific, and that influence is visible throughout the journey.

The route delivers an unforgettable look at California’s dramatic coastline, from sweeping ocean views to small towns with distinctive local character.

Baltimore, Maryland

In 1827, America’s first commercial railroad began operating in Baltimore, Maryland. Two centuries later, the city’s National Museum of Railroad History & Innovation has completed a $38 million transformation, with its forward-looking Innovation Hall scheduled to open early next year.

“Baltimore is often thought of as a maritime city,” Lump says, but Charm City has far more dimensions than many visitors expect. He describes it as energetic and evolving, with continued revitalization bringing positive change across the city.

Puerto Rico

Bad Bunny’s Super Bowl LX halftime show brought Puerto Rico renewed global attention and gave audiences, Lump says, a stronger introduction to the island’s culture.

Puerto Rico offers much more than sun and sand. Its food, music, and dance traditions are shaped by a distinctive meeting of African, Indigenous, and Spanish influences.

Travelers interested in the island’s earliest history can follow the Taíno Route, which features historic communities, ceremonial caves, and ancient petroglyphs.

This Caribbean destination offers a rich combination of heritage, cuisine, natural beauty, and contemporary culture.

Grenada

The coming year marks the 150th anniversary of Spicemas, Grenada’s lively annual carnival held in August. The country is often called the Spice Island for its production of nutmeg, cloves, and other fragrant crops.

“It’s a beautiful island, lush and green,” Lump says, calling Spicemas an ideal moment to visit for its music, parades, street celebrations, and infectious energy.

Grenada also has a strong wellness appeal, with experiences ranging from volcanic mud baths at River Sallee to guided yoga near Royal Mount Carmel Falls, among the island’s highest cascades.

Santander, Spain

Two major art institutions are set to open in Santander on Spain’s northern coast, giving this historic port a larger role on the international cultural map.

Faro Santander opened recently with works from Banco Santander’s substantial collection, featuring artists such as Titian, Velázquez, and Goya. Next year, Madrid’s Museo Reina Sofía will inaugurate a local branch containing 138,000 paintings, sculptures, and manuscripts. Lump also points to the city’s Museum of Prehistory and Archaeology, which is relocating to a new $56 million building designed by Barcelona architectural studio Mendoza Partida.

Kuélap, Chachapoyas, Peru

“You’d definitely be the first of your friends to go there if you went,” Lump says of Kuélap, the northern Peruvian citadel built by the Chachapoya civilization around 500 C.E.

A new trail, due to open in June, will provide access to part of the Malcapampa ruins, an archaeological area that was previously difficult to reach.

Visitors can also witness an active archaeological site and see researchers at work, an experience Lump describes as especially unusual and rewarding.

Beyond Kuélap, hikers can explore places associated with the Chachapoya’s striking cliffside human-form sarcophagi, which hold mummies high above the valley floor. Lump calls the sight both strange and fascinating.

Luxor, Egypt

Luxor in southern Egypt is expected to experience the longest period of totality during the August 2 solar eclipse, which will be visible across parts of Europe, the Middle East, and Africa.

The sun held profound importance in ancient Egyptian belief, Lump notes, and Luxor remains one of the richest places in the country for encountering the ancient world, thanks to its remarkable concentration of monuments and treasures.

The storied Winter Palace hotel, where Howard Carter announced the discovery of Tutankhamun’s tomb in 1922, is expected to reopen in July as the Mandarin Oriental Winter Palace.

Nile cruises, including the historic Steam Ship Sudan that helped inspire Agatha Christie’s “Death on the Nile,” remain a memorable way to explore the region. In 2027, visitors will also be able to travel aboard Egypt’s first luxury overnight tourist train, the Guardian of the Nile.

The service will run between Cairo and Aswan, stopping in Luxor along the way.

National Geographic Best of the World 2027

• Baltimore, Maryland

• Pacific Coast Highway, California

• Halifax, Nova Scotia

• Southern Ozarks, Missouri and Arkansas

• Puerto Rico

• Grenada

• Cape Froward, Chile

• Kuélap, Chachapoyas, Peru

• Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland

• Leipzig, Germany

• Normandy, France

• Santander, Spain

• The Transcaucasian Trail, Armenia

• Tricity, Poland

• Vestland, Norway

• Luxor, Egypt

• Malawi

• Chengdu, China

• Niigata, Japan

• Jaipur, India

• Melbourne, Australia

• Madison, Wisconsin

• Maya Ka’an, Mexico

• Salvador, Bahia, Brazil

• Penang, Malaysia