Whether you’re interested in food, art, sports, history, or simply having the best massage of your life, here are 10 reasons to book a trip now
London
Raise a Toast to the Queen
Royal watchers, rejoice: February 6, 2022, marks the 70th anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II’s ascent to the British throne, an unprecedented event that will be celebrated with a yearlong Platinum Jubilee throughout the U.K. The optimal time to be in London is June 2–5, when each day will bring much cause for Union Jack–waving. The traditional Trooping the Colour ceremony (which features 1,400 soldiers, 200 horses, and assorted carriages) and RAF flyover above Buckingham Palace kicks off the pageantry on Thursday, followed by a Service of Thanksgiving at St. Paul’s Cathedral on Friday. Saturday livens up with the annual Derby at Epsom Downs before the stars align for a celeb-studded concert to be broadcast live on the BBC. The weekend concludes with the Platinum Jubilee Pageant, a carnival/circus/street party—complete with a dragon puppet larger than a double-decker bus—that uses the palace as a grand backdrop.
Book Your Flight to LondonJordan
Marvel at Mosaics
The Arab Tourism Capital for 2022, Madaba in central Jordan is a site rich with historical treasures, in particular a collection of exquisitely preserved mosaics dating back some 1,500 years. The artifacts, which portray hunting lions, Greek inscriptions, and ancient cityscapes in colorfully geometric settings, were submerged beneath sand and debris by an 8th-century earthquake before being rediscovered in the 1880s. Chief among these relics is the 6th-century Madaba Map at the Church of St. George, which displays the region from Lebanon to the Nile Delta, complete with Bethlehem and the Dead Sea. You’ll also want to visit Mount Nebo, just outside Madaba, from where Moses is said to have seen the Promised Land. It’s never been easier to go: United launches flights to Amman, Jordan, in May.
Book Your Flight to AmmanDelaware and Maryland
Honor Harriet Tubman
Traversing the Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad Byway—a 223-mile route through Maryland and Delaware to Philadelphia, on which road-trippers can visit 45 historical sites related to the abolitionist who rescued scores of enslaved people before the Civil War—is always an enlightening experience. This year, though, it takes on additional meaning, as the nation marks the 200th anniversary of Tubman’s birth. On March 12 and 13, the Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad State Park and Visitor Center in Church Creek, Maryland (stop number 13), will host speakers, authors, an archaeologist, and even a Tubman reenactor to celebrate both her bicentennial and the park’s fifth anniversary. In Cambridge, Maryland (stop number 3), meanwhile, Wesley Wofford’s 12-foot bronze sculpture of Tubman, The Beacon of Hope, will be dedicated in September at a former slave auction site where Tubman once engineered a bold escape. Keep a lookout for more events to be announced throughout the year to further commemorate the human rights icon’s legacy.
Book Your Flight to MarylandNew York
Give Your Regards to Broadway (and Jackie Robinson)
And the Tony for Best Obvious Idea goes to… the Museum of Broadway! Oddly, New York has never had a dedicated institution celebrating the Great White Way. Opening this summer in the Theater District, the museum will offer visitors a front-row seat to legendary musicals and plays through immersive installations; construct a timeline of the stars, shows, and stages that defined their eras; and take guests behind the curtain to view the making of a Broadway production. Meanwhile, down in Soho, another New York icon is being honored at the new Jackie Robinson Museum, which looks at the achievements of the man who broke baseball’s color line with the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1947. Want to combine your love of theater and sports? Catch the revival of the Tony Award–winning play Take Me Out, which begins performances March 9.
Book Your Flight to New York CitySingapore
Savor Sumptuous Dishes
One of the world’s most cosmopolitan cities, Singapore is expanding its palate in 2022 with a spate of new restaurants. After earning two Michelin stars at his signature Waku Ghin at the Marina Bay Sands, chef Tetsuya Wakuda is opening a more casual (but no less sublime) spot, Wakuda, in the iconic resort early this year. Culinary mavens are also eagerly anticipating a new venue from chef Zor Tan, who was the right hand to André Chiang at his dearly missed two-Michelin-star Restaurant André. Chef Julien Royer of the three-starred Odette at National Gallery Singapore just launched Claudine in Dempsey Hill, featuring a menu of French classics. Los Angeles chef Nancy Silverton is adding local touches to her James Beard Award–winning Italian fare when Osteria Mozza reopens this month. Burnt Ends, the Michelin-starred Australian barbecue joint, relocated to Dempsey Road, while the avant-garde Indian spot Revolver is generating plenty of heat. Perhaps no event, though, is buzzier than star chef Gaggan Anand’s residency at Mandala Club, a members-only spot where the city’s elite gather to play, flirt, and sup in stage-worthy settings.
Book Your Flight to SingaporeCosta Rica
Relax and Recharge
Given the tribulations of the past few years, it’s not surprising that travel centered on health and wellness continues to be an industry leader. And with its outdoor lifestyle, verdant rain forests, and pristine Caribbean and Pacific beaches, Costa Rica is an ideal choice for some restorative me time. Luxe hideaways abound, including Tabacón Thermal Resort & Spa, where guests can immerse themselves in hot mineral springs in rain forests below the Arenal Volcano. Then there’s Nantipa, on the Nicoya Peninsula, the only Latin American Blue Zone, where people routinely live to highly advanced ages. The resort—a member of Small Luxury Hotels of the World’s Considerate Collection, which spotlights properties that prioritize community and sustainability— tailors wellness experiences to each guest, incorporating everything from beach meditations and Ayurvedic massage to life coaching and activities such as hiking, horseback riding, and surfing. And, yes, they even allow for a few cocktails: This is still a vacation, after all.
Book Your Flight to Costa RicaYellowstone
Celebrate Indigenous People
Dedicated in March 1872, Yellowstone was America’s first national park, and this year the institution is using its 150th anniversary to honor the indigenous people who have lived here for more than 11,000 years. Working with the Montana cultural organization Mountain Time Arts and tribal artists and scholars, the park has launched an ongoing series of installations—one of the first times Yellowstone has displayed public works of art—to amplify the Native American presence here. While this year’s exhibitions had yet to be announced as of press time, things got off to an exciting start last year. During the summer, a teepee was placed next to the triumphal Roosevelt Arch at the park’s North Entrance—a meaningful juxtaposition—and in October, in observation of Indigenous Peoples’ Day, seven illuminated teepees were erected outside Bozeman. The combination of vibrant color and traditional shape, according to Mountain Time Arts codirector MaryBeth Morand, reflects the “beauty of history and modern culture coming together. We’re hoping to see a new day when both those cultures are working together to protect the landscape.”
Book Your Flight to Yellowstone National ParkLos Angeles
Get Your Super Bowl Game on
Opened in 2020 as the home of the Los Angeles Rams and Chargers, SoFi Stadium in Inglewood is set to welcome its biggest event yet, when Super Bowl LVI kicks off on February 13. While we still don’t know who’ll be vying for the Vince Lombardi Trophy, the halftime lineup is a five-way hip-hop starburst of Mary J. Blige, Dr. Dre, Eminem, Kendrick Lamar, and Snoop Dogg. Satellite events will compete for spectacle, from the pulchritudinous Maxim VIP party to the cacophonous Gronk Beach. Fans who want to meet the greats and show off their gridiron skills can spend the week pregaming at the Super Bowl Experience at the Los Angeles Convention Center, and those who want the excitement without the crush can set sail on the Super Bowl Cruise, which leaves Long Beach on Friday, screens the game at a fiesta in Ensenada, Mexico, and returns on Monday—after all the crowds in LA have partied themselves out.
Book Your Flight to Los AngelesVenice
Gaze at Glass
The United Nations has declared 2022 the International Year of Glass, and where better to celebrate than in Venice, Italy, the glassmaking capital of the world? For more than 700 years, the nearby island of Murano has been renowned for its innovative creations, including beads, cristallo, and chandeliers bedecked with fragile flowers and garlands. The 59th edition of the Venice Biennale, opening in April, will feature a glass exhibition (as well as the shimmering sculptures of Zsófia Keresztes in the Hungarian pavilion), and The Venice Glass Week will return in September with a dazzling lineup of demonstrations, inaugurations, and workshops. While in town, take a vaporetto to the Murano Glass Museum, which displays priceless artifacts inside a 17th-century palazzo.
Book Your Flight to VeniceNew Zealand
Reach for the Stars
For centuries, New Zealand’s indigenous Māori people have been gazing into the night sky to divine everything from navigation to the timing of the seasons. Perhaps the most sacred reason to look skyward is Matariki, the arrival of the new year, which coincides with the first rising of the Pleiades star cluster in June or July. The Matariki celebration had fallen off by the early 20th century, but it saw a revival in the 1990s as it incorporated new elements such as concerts and light festivals. This year, for the first time, Matariki is being observed as an official national holiday, on June 24. Aside from an opportunity to visit New Zealand, it’s a perfect excuse to look upward and hope for the best over the next 12 months.
Book Your Flight to New ZealandNext Up: The 2021 Hemispheres Readers’ Choice Awards Winners
