Inspiring images to fuel your wanderlust

Anyone who has travelled abroad, and even those who haven't, can share in the beauty and soul that a photograph can capture, and these images are no exception.

The world is a vast playground for intrepid travellers, with every picture taken telling a different story.

From the glorious heights of the Himalayas to the sweeping plains of Africa, the Travel Weekly team give you plenty of fuel for your wanderlust…

Dan Uglow, Editor in Chief

There is one place I never get tired of. The plains of Africa. The sweeping vistas, early morning mists, bracing rides in safari jeeps and, above all, the thrill of witnessing the circle of life in all it’s grand and gruesome glory. Yet throughout my 15 years of travel to the African continent, and too many safari drives to count, I am still to witness what Sir David Attenborough calls "The greatest show on earth" – The Migration.

Each year over two million wildebeest and zebra move between the Serengeti National Park in Tanzania to the greener pastures of the Maasai Mara National Park in Kenya from July to October. It's a life and death drama played out in the most spectacular setting imaginable. For the moment other people’s pictures will suffice, but one day soon I’ll have my own.

Richie Kenzie, Editor

Montenegro. It literally translates as Black Mountain and it is these colossal natural features that most strike you when visiting for the first time.

Several years ago on a month-long sojourn through the Balkans I had the privilege of exploring this tiny but beautiful country. The lengthy bus trip from Bosnia-Herzgovina to Montenegro’s capital Podgorica lingers in my mind as the most terrifying of my life. It was also the most thrilling. Dirt roads snake through the jagged mountains and our wheels were never more than half a metre from the unguarded edges – and a drop of hundreds of metres.

But the forbidding peaks that form valleys with gunmetal lakes at their base are utterly mesmerising. Our final destination, the World Heritage listed Bay of Kotor is another vision of blue-black water and towering mountains. The landscape is utterly sinister and thoroughly magnetic all at once.

Visitors to the Bay of Kotor are also privy to scenes of marble masonry, orange tiled roofs and medieval churches in wonderful little coastal towns like Perast. It’s a rival for anything Italy’s Amalfi Coast offers, but with an added dose of serenity.

Montenegro may no longer be undiscovered, but it still lacks neighbouring Croatia’s tourist hordes. See it before it succumbs to the latter’s fate.

Tara Harrison, Features Editor

A greedy choice that keeps my options open with a total of six countries, I have not chosen the Himalayas out of any dormant interest in climbing mountains.

The appeal of the Himalayas does not lie in its adventure scene but in its people and culture. A land of rock-bound monasteries poking through clouds, ruddy-cheeked children, prayer flags and festooned yaks have fuelled my wanderlust for decades.

Ever since I read the novel Lost Horizon by James Hilton as a child, the Himalayan strongholds of Tibet, Bhutan and India have been a spiritual destination as much as a physical one. These mountains are integral to Hinduism and Buddhism; the Dalai Lama has resided in the Himalayas of India ever since his exile from Tibet.

Then there’s Bhutan, a country that reveres wellness over wealth, with its Gross National Happiness index. When I eventually travel to the Himalayas, I won’t scale Everest but I will reach the pinnacle of my wanderlust. Which means I’ll have to find a new crush. Here’s looking at you, seven-country Andes.

Nicolle Lawson, Art Editor

Having never left this country myself there are a great many travel experiences on my bucket list (or perhaps more accurately, I have a rather extensive bucket list). Narrowing it down to just a single destination for this photographic special was a tough task, however there is one place I've felt drawn to every time we feature it in the magazine. Patagonia.

Covering more than a million square kilometres across both Argentina and Chile, Patagonia is home to an incredible array of virtually untouched natural beauty, consisting of dramatic mountain peaks, an abundance of glaciers and a vast collection of unique wildlife – the perfect place for adventure.

Then there's horse riding in the stunning Rio de las Vueltas, the opportunity to take in some of the world's best whale watching on the coastal fringes, ice climbing and trekking through the mountains to consider. One thing's for sure, when I do eventually get there I'll need a lengthy itinerary.

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Email the Travel Weekly team at traveldesk@travelweekly.com.au