These Overlooked Destinations Are Places to Go in 2015

Untrammeled oases beckon, once-avoided destinations become must-sees and familiar cities offer new reasons to visit. (See all 52 places to go in 2015)

20. Oman
The Middle East’s best-kept secret no longer

Irrigation canals in the town Birkat al Mawz. (Photo: Christian Bobst/13 Photo, via Redux)

The sultanate of Oman shares little with the United Arab Emirates aside from a border — the staggering peaks in Oman’s landscapes come from mountains not skyscrapers, its dramatic coastlines owe little to man-made engineering, and the unending hubbub of Dubai and Abu Dhabi is contrasted here with the sheer silence of Oman’s numerous wadis, or ravines. But don’t expect this idyll to remain unspoiled for long. Oman has lately been in the throes of a hotel boom of Dubai-like proportions: Alila Jabal Akhdar opened against a staggering mountainscape last year; next up, Anantara is planning two resorts — a rival for Alila in Jabal Akhdar and another along the Dhofar coast in the south — and Radisson Blu moves in to Sohar, a historic port in the country’s northern reaches. Four Seasons, W, Kempinski, Fairmont and Aman are said to be planning forays. SARAH KHAN

11. Medellín, Colombia
Urban renewal with innovative architecture and design

An aerial gondola rises above the Santo Domingo neighborhood. (Credit Paul Smith for The New York Times)

Medellín’s been getting a lot of attention lately for its spectacular urban renewal efforts. Many of the once legendary slums have been transformed through some astonishing architectural gems, like the Biblioteca España, a hyper-modern public library and community space in the low-income Santo Domingo neighborhood. The city’s Metrocables (aerial gondolas) and 1,300 feet of outdoor escalators, developed to integrate the poorer hillside neighborhoods with the city center, are global milestones in smart public transit. New schools and parks dot the city. And an ambitious contemporary expansion to the Museo de Arte Moderno, housed in a former steel mill in the up-and-coming Ciudad del Rio neighborhood, is scheduled for completion this year. NELL McSHANE WULFHART

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9. The Faroe Islands
A remote location is home to the New, New, New, Nordic cuisine

Lobster at Koks restaurant in Torshavn. (Credit: Benjamin Rasmussen)

The Faroe Islands, an archipelago in the North Atlantic, has emerged in the last five years as possibly the most secluded destination for avant-garde food. Leading the way is Koks, a signatory of the New Nordic Kitchen Manifesto, which stresses modern cuisine made from local, seasonal ingredients, and Aarstova, a French restaurant using Faroese ingredients. In 2015 Aarstova’s new fish house, Barbara, will serve the only yearly harvest of the incomparable Faroe Bank cod. There’s also innovative sushi at Etika, and a well-regarded brewery Okkara. In addition, the islands are drawing food enthusiasts for their local cheeses and raest, a fermented mutton dish that is a local delicacy. Though isolated, the Faroe Islands — an autonomous part of Denmark — are a short flight from Copenhagen and Reykjavik. DAVID SHAFTEL

More: Where Will American Travel in 2015?

3. Philadelphia
The making of an urban outdoor oasis

Philadelphia’s waterfront now includes hammocks. (Courtesy: Spruce Street Harbor Park)

A series of projects has transformed Philadelphia into a hive of outdoor urban activity. Dilworth Park, formerly a hideous slab of concrete adjoining City Hall, reopened this past autumn as a green, pedestrian-friendly public space with a winter ice-skating rink (and a cafe by the indefatigable chef Jose Garces). Public art installations, mini “parklets” and open-air beer gardens have become common sights. The Delaware River waterfront was reworked for summer 2014 with the Spruce Street Harbor Park (complete with hammocks, lanterns and floating bar) becoming a new fixture, following the renovation of the Race Street Pier, completed in 2011, and offers free yoga classes on a bi-level strip of high-design decking and grass. The city’s other river, the Schuylkill, has its own new boardwalk. To top it off, this spring, Philadelphia will get its first bike share program, making this mostly flat city even more friendly for those on two wheels. NELL McSHANE WULFHART

1. Milan
A revitalized city welcomes the world

Milan, which will host the 2015 World Expo, is ready for its closeup. (Photo: Isabella de Maddalena for The New York Times)

Milan’s strictly business reputation has long made the city a runner up for visitors who prefer the romance of Florence, Venice and Rome. But beneath the surface, Milan has its own special charms, and this year it finally has a chance to show it off for tourists when it hosts the 2015 World Expo.

Twenty million visitors are expected to visit the city for the Expo, a mammoth event that runs from May through October and involves more than 130 participating nations and organizations sponsoring more than 60 pavilions. The expo’s theme focuses on food, nutrition, and sustainability practices — a fitting choice for a city steeped in Italian culinary traditions. Highlights will include the Future Food District, a space to explore technological advances impacting the global food chain, and the Lake Arena, an Expo centerpiece with a mirrorlike pond and fountain fed by water from the city’s canals.

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The expo coincides with the completion of a number of urban renewal projects that are infusing new life into overlooked quarters, like La Darsena, a formerly dilapidated harbor that will boast tree-lined promenades, bike paths and piazzas. Historical attractions have also been spruced up, from the gleaming facade of the majestic Duomo to the restored canals of the charming Noffavigli district.

And Milanese restaurants are earning acclaim for their increased focus on diverse regional cuisines from across the Italian peninsula. You can sample everything from farinata and pesto-slathered Genovese specialties at U Barba to traditional Neapolitan pizza at Lievito Madre al Duomo, an outpost of Gino Sorbillo’s famous pizzeria that opened here last fall. New luxury hotels, like the Mandarin Oriental Milan slated to open next year, promise to dress up an already fashionable city that may just have it all. INGRID K. WILLIAMS

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