Nature is never far in Helsinki. Locals swim in the sea, walk forested trails, and gather mushrooms or berries all within city limits. One popular local habit is heading to the sauna, and the city offers several open-to-the-public options. Löyly, located on the waterfront, combines traditional wood-burning saunas with a sleek, modern design. In winter, visitors can even pair a sauna session with a quick dip through a hole cut in the ice for an experience both shocking and strangely calming.

Eze is a hilltop village perched high above the Mediterranean on France’s Côte d’Azur, where stone houses and narrow lanes cling to a steep rocky outcrop between Nice and Monaco.

Akaroa is a small seaside settlement on Banks Peninsula in Canterbury, built around a sheltered harbour formed within an ancient volcanic landscape. Its streets contain French-inspired names, colonial buildings, cafés, and cottages, giving the town a distinctive character within New Zealand. The surrounding peninsula is shaped by steep volcanic hills, sheltered bays, farmland, and winding coastal roads.

Whitehorse is the territorial capital of this Canadian site of the 1898 gold rush. It consists mostly of rural towns, where the main industries are mining and tourism. It is a land of forests, rivers and tall mountain ranges covering a total of 207,075 sq. miles.

East End is a district on the eastern side of Grand Cayman, facing the open Caribbean Sea and covering a quieter stretch of the island away from George Town and the main resort areas. The district includes small settlements, low coastal vegetation, rocky shorelines, beaches, and shallow reef areas.