Top cultural destinations in Asia -> Destinations

  Agra is a city in India located approximately 220 km south of Delhi, in the state of Uttar Pradesh, on the west bank of the Yamuna river, between Mathura and Surajpur. The name of the city derives from the Sanskrit word “Agrabana”, meaning paradise. Agra was first mentioned by the Arians. The Greek geographer, Ptolemy was the first to include the city on the world map in the 2nd century AD under the name of Agara.     Being fully aw...

  Situated in the heart of Southeast Asia, on the Chao Phraya River bank, near the Gulf of Thailand, Bangkok was founded in 1782 by the first monarch of the current Chakri Dynasty - King Rama I and it is now the spiritual, cultural, diplomatic, educational and commercial capital of Thailand. Bangkok covers an area of 1500 km2 and has a population of approximately 10 million people, concentrating over 10% of the country’s population. In terms of size, it is the 22nd largest cit...

  Thick walls testimony to millennial history, a holy city with a great mystical significance for the Jewish, Christian and Muslim, a mixture of cultures, traditions and customs –this is what Jerusalem is about.     Jerusalem is the capital city of Israel and the largest city in the country. Situated on the Mountains of Judea, at an altitude of about 800 meters, Jerusalem, which counts 760,000 inhabitants, is one of the most beloved and vis...

  Jaipur is the capital of Rajasthan, the most visited state in India –the state of richly adorned elephants, Maharajas and huge turbans. Located 260 km away from Delhi, Jaipur is a unique city. The name of the town relates to the founder of the city, Maharaja Jai Singh II, and comes from two words: “jai” which in Hindi means “victory” and “pur” which means “city”. Jaipur is also called the “Pink City” due to the pink...

  Castles lost in the desert, cities carved in stone and lunar landscapes. These are some of the tourist destinations in Jordan that have attracted over six million visitors over the past years. Petra, the ancient capital of the kingdom of Nabataeans, Semitic people of Arabia, became a symbol for this Arab state situated in the Middle East. Unlike other tourist areas in the world, Petra stands out with its special history, depicted by the rock cut facades in reddish-orange colour. The ci...

  Tradition, mystery, history, mysticism -these are the few things that one will find at the ruins of Angkor complex of temples, testimony to a turbulent history and a culture completely different from any other in the world. For the people of Khmer, Angkor means so much more than the remains of an empire, archaeological site or tourist attraction. Angkor reminds about what they are able to do and it is a symbol of Khmer independence, perhaps a symbol of hope. For this reason, the five t...

  What are the first words that come into your mind when you hear the word “Iran”? Beard men with guns, women all wrapped in black walking on the streets and agitated Ayatollah... You are right, this is what you get on TV because that is sensational and raises the ratings. Once you get to Iran, you will discover a totally different country – perhaps one of the most modern countries in the Middle East, with friendly, welcoming and educated people - in which other co...

    Children usually tend to believe that the settlement they live in has been there forever and that their parents are immortal. Further on, when growing up, they realize that their village or town is sometimes a little older than an object found on the shelves of an antiquity shop. There are still several settlements for which the past is as mysterious as what will happen next. If Beijing represents China as it is now and Shanghai represents China of tomorrow, Xian ci...

  Located in south-east Asia, about 80 kilometers away from the Mediterranean coast, Damascus is the capital city of Syria. Founded in approximatively 2500 BC, Damascus is considered the oldest continuously inhabited city in the world, older than Al Fayyum, and Gaziantep, as well as the oldest capital in the world. The name of the city has an Aramaic origin, as Damas in Arabic means water. The current population accounts nearly 4.5 million inhabitants. The city is large and animated...

  Beijing is the political, economic and cultural centre of China and one of the six ancient cities here, together with Xian, Luoyang, Kaifeng, Nanjing and Hangzhou. It is located in Northern China, in the proximity of Tianjin and Hebei province and covers an area of over 16,410 km², with a population of approximatively 15 million inhabitants. The city is governed as a municipality. Beijing Municipality has a political status equivalent to that of a sheng (province) and is unde...