The Best Two-Week Itineraries Around the World

Southeast Asia remains one of the most popular places on Earth to travel for an extended period of time, but you don’t have to spend months to do it well, you don’t need to be nineteen and without responsibility, and it need not be a logistical nightmare. Not when you book a spot on our Thailand and Laos Rail Trip at least. Two full weeks starting and ending in Bangkok, calling at Chiang Mai, Lampang, Luang Prabang, Vang Viang and much more. You’ll get to meet elephants at an ethical sanctuary, eat authentic Thai street food, cruise down the Mekong River and experience local village life in Laos.

While vibrant Marrakech will give you a tantalising taste of Morocco, anyone who wants to experience this country’s full rolodex of delights needs an itinerary of up to two weeks. This trip is the stuff of dreams, including haggling in the medinas of Fez and Marrakech, dining in Casablanca and sipping mint tea in Tangier. Beyond the cities, you’ll hike in the Atlas Mountains, clamber over rock formations in the Dades Gorge and ride a camel in the Sahara.

You could spend two weeks in Tokyo without getting bored, but Japan has so much to offer that you need at least two weeks to do the country properly. The diversity of landscape, climate and culture here is astounding, and our 12-day Rail Trip takes advantage of incredible rail connections to smash an extensive Japanese experience into one trip. We start in foodie capital Osaka, before moving on to Hiroshima, Miyajima Island and Arashiyama bamboo forest. Then it’s onto the ancient city of Kyoto and up to the Japanese Alps for sake tasting and a night in a traditional ryokan inn. After cruising Lake Ashi with views of Mount Fuji we’ll finally reach Tokyo, where you’ll get to explore this modern metropolis by watching sumo wrestlers train, learning how to roll sushi and singing your heart out at karaoke.

It would be easy to spend all your time at the beach on this idyllic Indonesian island. However, the ultimate Bali two-week itinerary will drag you away from your spot on the sand and have you plunge into waterfalls, hike up the volcanic Mount Batur and snorkel with turtles on Gili Trawangan – a speedboat ride away from the northwestern coast of Lombok. But don’t panic: you’ll have plenty of time to wind down on the beach during this 12-day Culture Trip tour – spot of surfing, or beach yoga, anyone?