TestedRoutes
GuidesDestinationsInspireAbout me

TestedRoutes Newsletter

Field-tested travel routes, in your inbox when they drop.

© 2026 TestedRoutes. All rights reserved.

ContactFAQLegalTermsPrivacyRefundsSecurityAffiliate disclosureSitemap

We independently review everything we recommend. When you buy through our links, we may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. More on how this works.

ExploreGuidesDestinationsInspireAbout

Destinations

The countries and regions behind the guides – planning pages built from trips I have actually taken.

Orange volcanic glow rising through smoke from the Santiago crater at Masaya volcano at night, Nicaragua

Americas · Central America

Nicaragua

Is it safe now, and is the risk the one you think it is – the country the founder ranked first of three, set against what has changed since.

Arenal volcano's cone under a cap of cloud, above a lodge garden and pool near La Fortuna, Costa Rica

Americas · Central America

Costa Rica

Is it worth what it charges, how many days you need, and which coast – the polished, expensive one, with the two coasts on opposite weather calendars.

A palm-covered island ringed by white sand and clear green water in Bocas del Toro, Panama

Americas · Central America

Panama

Is it worth visiting, how long you need, and what to skip – one focused day in the capital, the heart of the trip in Bocas del Toro, and the parts that did not earn their place.

Svartifoss falling between dark basalt columns into a green gorge, Iceland

Europe · North Atlantic

Iceland

How many days you need, what a week really costs, and whether you need a 4x4 – the Ring Road, the south coast, and the layover version.

Granite boulders at Anse Source d'Argent seen from the water, Seychelles

East & Southern Africa

Seychelles

Four islands in seven days: what is worth your time, when to go, what it costs, and the tested route between them.

The road at Fongafale's narrowest point with the lagoon and the open Pacific on either side

Oceania & Pacific

Tuvalu

The world's least-visited country: how to get there via Fiji, what the flight gap gives you, and two days on Funafuti that actually work.

The wooden pier at Souq Sharq marina at night, the lit Kuwait City skyline behind

Middle East · The Gulf

Kuwait

Is it worth a stop, and how long you actually need – the city in a day, a Bronze-Age island and the desert at dusk on day two.

The founder at the Sopo'aga Falls lookout, the fall dropping into its jungle gorge behind

Oceania & Pacific

Samoa

How many days you need and which islands to pick – two islands, one rental car, and a week where Sunday matters more than the weather.

A thatched pavilion and red ti plants on a white-sand island beach in Fiji

Oceania & Pacific

Fiji

Which islands to pick and how long you need – there are two completely different Fijis, and one boat timetable runs the good one.

Travellers riding on top of an empty iron-ore wagon rake through the desert, Mauritania

North & West Africa · The Sahara

Mauritania

Is it worth it and is it safe – the iron-ore train ridden on the ore, the Eye of the Sahara, and a desert with almost no other tourists.

A horseshoe tidal pool ringed by white sand beneath the dune near Dakhla, a lone figure at its rim

North & West Africa · The Atlantic Sahara

Western Sahara

Can you visit and is it safe – Dakhla's kite lagoon, the white dune, and a thousand kilometres of the emptiest sealed road in Africa.

The Kunta Kinteh ferry crossing the green water of the Gambia River mouth

North & West Africa · The Smiling Coast

The Gambia

Is it safe and is there more than the beach – crocodiles you can touch, wild monkey troops beside the hotel strip, and a river day in the mangrove creeks.

Dakar spreading below the hill of the African Renaissance Monument, Senegal

North & West Africa · The Atlantic coast

Senegal

Is it safe and is it worth it – Dakar and its monument, colonial Saint-Louis on its river island, and the lake that is not always pink.

A large mango tree over a village of round thatched houses at sunrise near Koundara, Guinea

North & West Africa · The Fouta Djallon

Guinea

Is it safe and is it worth it – the water tower of West Africa, a capital at the end of a peninsula, and roads that decide the whole trip.

Palms leaning over a red dirt street of decaying colonial buildings in Bissau Velho, Guinea-Bissau

North & West Africa · The Atlantic coast

Guinea-Bissau

Is it safe and is there anything to see – an empty Portuguese old town, a day-long road east, and the archipelago that is the real reason to come.

Cape Coast town and its harbour full of painted fishing boats, seen from the castle above, Ghana

North & West Africa · The Gulf of Guinea

Ghana

How many days you need and what to skip – the coast west of Accra earns the flight, the capital does not, and the waterfalls depend entirely on the month.

A table of dried animal skulls, skins and bones under a thatched roof at Akodessawa fetish market, Lomé, Togo

North & West Africa · The Gulf of Guinea

Togo

Why one day is the honest answer – a capital on the border, the largest fetish market in the world, and a boat with no engine poled across a lake.

A three-engined airliner parked on the sand with a boarding staircase at its door, palms behind, Cotonou, Benin

North & West Africa · The Gulf of Guinea

Benin

Is it worth it and when is the voodoo festival – a town of 37,000 built on a lagoon, the door the slave ships loaded from, and two days that beat the fortnight around them.

The sun setting over the sea and the Papagayo coves, Lanzarote

Spain · Atlantic & volcanic islands

Canary Islands

Which island to pick and how many days you need – four islands that feel like four countries, winter swimming included, and the ferry move that beats choosing.

The bare cone of Mount Teide under deep blue sky, seen across the caldera scrub, Tenerife

Canary Islands · Spain

Tenerife

How many days you need and which side to stay on – Teide above the clouds, the Anaga laurel ridges, old towns, and the honest north–south split.

A trail signpost at a mirador over Gran Canaria's mountain heart at dusk

Canary Islands · Spain

Gran Canaria

How many days you need and why the interior wins – a viewpoint every few bends, cave villages, a slot canyon, and desert dunes at the bottom.

The sun setting into the sea over a Papagayo cove, Lanzarote

Canary Islands · Spain

Lanzarote

Is it worth visiting and how many days you need – smoking ground, vines in craters, turquoise pools in lava tubes. The underrated one.

The Cofete coast and the Jandía ridge from the mirador, Fuerteventura

Canary Islands · Spain

Fuerteventura

How many days you need and which end to stay on – the biggest easy sands in the Canaries, and the wildest beach of all behind a mountain wall.

Gwanghwamun, the main gate of Gyeongbokgung palace, wide across its forecourt with visitors below, Seoul, South Korea

Asia · Seoul and the DMZ

South Korea

How many days Seoul needs and when to go – palaces in a hanbok, a border you can look across, and a July mud festival two hours down the coast.