Hotels and Travel

Lonely Planet Bluelist 2008: Hot Destinations

The Lonely Planet Bluelist: The Best in Travel 2008 has just been released. This fabulous book profiles the 30 most intriguing places to visit for 2008 and includes these destinations in Asia:

To book hotels in Asia visit our website at direct hotels where you can view and compare hotel rates.

Malaysia
Malaysia’s huge drive to boost tourist numbers with the Visit Malaysia 2007 campaign has paid off, with improved facilities and the countries all round infrastructure visitor numbers are now set to increase.

Northwest Vietnam
Try the cooler mountains of the North West of Vietnam.  Vietnam is very popular at the moment, but most tourists visit the hot and steamy lowlands around the coastal regions – try somewhere different!

Chengdu, China
Chengdu is well known for the laid-back locals and centuries-old teahouse culture and is a dynamic, economic engine and cultural cornerstone of southwest China. Whether you're looking for, Chengdu offers visitors both the traditional or modern face of China and now is one of the most exciting times to come take it all in.

Mumbai, India
Mumbai’s growing economic strength and expanding middle class has seen the city become noted for its shopping, gourmet dining and stylish bars as much as it’s grand colonial architecture. With the film of Gregory David Roberts' epic novel Shantaram being set in the city and touted for release this year, Mumbai is set to grab the world's attention.

Matsuyama, Japan
For over a millennium pilgrims have walked in the footsteps of the Buddhist saint K b Daishi (774 – 835) clockwise around Shi koku.  The saint achieved enlightenment on the island of his birth. Well known as the '88 Sacred Temples of Shikoku' this 1400km journey is Japan's best-known pilgrimage and original tourist trail.