Scouting Report 2008: Wilson

MORAVSKÝ KRUMLOV, CZECH REPUBLIC Rick Steves: Tour leader, producer of shows for television and radio, writer of a syndicated travel column, and publisher of over 30 guidebooks via his namesake company (ricksteves.com). Back when he was a teenager, Rick Steves visited Europe to scope out factories with his father, a piano importer. Now he spends his summers racing across the Continent befriending locals and inspecting up to 20 hotels and 15 restaurants a day. "It looks like it did the day the Iron Curtain fell," says Steves, of Moravský Krumlov, a small Czech town in a remote eastern corner near Slovakia and Austria. "Nothing has changed. There's a romantic, wistful decrepitude about the place." The main attraction is behind the chipped yellow exterior of the 13th-century Castle Moravský Krumlov: Slav Epic, a series of gigantic, grandiose paintings by Alfons Mucha, who was born in nearby Ivancice. Mucha is known for his wispy, sensual art nouveau posters, but he considered these 20 panels depicting the history of the Slavic people to be his masterpiece, and he spent 18 years creating them. The work then languished in storage for decades after World War II. "When you're there, you feel like you're all alone with these canvases," says Steves. "It's like you discovered a treasure." Information: Trains to Moravský Krumlov from Prague take four hours, idos.cz, $37; Castle Moravský Krumlov, 1 Zámecká, 011-420/515-322-789, $3. There are plans to move Slav Epic to a new home; it may go to Prague as early as 2009. > See photos of the best places you've never heard of

GAZIANTEP, TURKEY Philippe de Vienne: Cofounder with his wife, Ethné, of Épices de Cru, a spice importation and retail business based in Montreal, Quebec (epicesdecru.com), and coauthor of the cookbook La Cuisine et le Goût des Épices. After more than 20 years of running a catering business in Montreal, Philippe de Vienne and his wife, Ethné, decided to close up shop and become full-time spice importers and distributors. "I wanted to combine the two things my wife and I love doing most: eating great food and traveling," he explains. So, for the past eight years, the couple has spent at least a third of each year traveling to places such as Indonesia, Sri Lanka, India, Mexico, and Turkey in their search for new culinary inspirations and business suppliers. One of the couple's favorite discoveries is in southeastern Turkey, near the border with Syria. "This region is a crossroads of Syrian, Kurdish, and Turkish cultures," says de Vienne. "Anywhere else in Turkey the cooks might use four spices in a dish. Here, they use 15. There's a wonderful depth of flavor in the food." De Vienne especially raves about the food in Gaziantep and, in particular, its baklava. The dessert's main ingredient, pistachios, abound in the surrounding countryside. "It's worth it just to fly to Istanbul, hop a plane to Gaziantep, eat the baklava, and go back home," says de Vienne. "It's that good." Information: Round-trip Turkish Airlines flights from Istanbul to Gaziantep, thy.com, from $200; Anadolu Evleri hotel, 6 Köroglu Sokak, 011-90/533-558-7996, anadoluevleri.com, from $112 with breakfast; Imam Çagdas restaurant, 49 Uzun Çarsi, 011-90/342-220-7080, imamcagdas.com (Turkish only). > See photos of the best places you've never heard of

BERGERAC, FRANCE Britt Karlsson: Cofounder of BKWine, with her husband, Per. The Paris-based company publishes wine newsletters and leads small-group gastronomy and wine tours throughout Europe (bkwine.com). Born in Sweden and now living in Paris, Britt Karlsson spends half the year visiting about 200 wineries in Europe and South America in her roles as wine journalist, wine judge, wine consultant, and tour guide (on wine-themed trips, of course). Bergerac is the name of both a wine region and a small city, but travelers often bypass both in favor of nearby higher-profile Bordeaux. And that's a blessing, says Karlsson. Bergerac's cobblestoned streets, inviting markets and shops, and location on the Dordogne River are so appealing that Karlsson now periodically includes the town as a stop—staying at the central Hôtel de Bordeaux—on her tours. Karlsson recommends pairing a local sweet wine, such as a Monbazillac or Saussignac, with another of Bergerac's specialties: foie gras. "The tenderness of the foie gras is perfect with the luscious sweetness of the wine," she says. "Many small shops, like Godard, sell artisan-made foie gras, which is so much better than what you get at a supermarket. The foie gras entier mi-cuit is my favorite, but everything from the duck is good—the breast and the confit." Karlsson also raves about the grilled duck breast at L'Enfance de Lard, a reasonably priced restaurant overlooking a fountain and the main square. Even a winter visit comes with its rewards, because that's the season for yet another Bergerac specialty: black truffles. Information: Round-trip Ryanair flights to Bergerac from London, from $105, or round-trip train tickets from Paris, from $237; Hôtel de Bordeaux, 38 place Gambetta, hotel-bordeaux-bergerac.com, from $85; Godard, 29 rue des Conférences, 011-33/5-53-61-93-49; L'Enfance de Lard, 8 place Pélissière, 011-33/5-53-57-52-88, grilled duck breast $24. > See photos of the best places you've never heard of

PURNULULU NATIONAL PARK, AUSTRALIA Darrell Wade: Cofounder of Melbourne-based Intrepid Travel, which specializes in small-group, experiential tours around the world (intrepidtravel.com). As a young backpacker, Darrell Wade might have stood out during his travels—he is a 6'7'' Aussie, after all—but he managed to mix easily with locals. So Wade decided to help other tourists do the same: He launched Intrepid Travel with pal Geoff Manchester in 1989 and began leading tours in which clients stay in friendly, no-frills inns, eat at neighborhood restaurants, and explore areas on foot or by bike. "We wanted to get close to the culture and really understand a country," explains Wade. Nearly 20 years later, he has yet to lose his wanderlust. He travels for about half the year, either scouting new tours and destinations for work or vacationing with his family. Considering how far Wade has traveled, it's ironic that the spot he's most recently fallen in love with is in his home country. Purnululu National Park, a.k.a. the Bungle Bungle, is an otherworldly range of eroded sandstone domes in such a remote part of Western Australia that the natural wonders were only rediscovered by a film crew in 1983. "The silence of the Bungles is amazing," says Wade. "You are confronted by the red, red earth and the blue, blue sky. Somehow the world seems bigger out there—with horizons that just stretch forever. It's easily one of the most beautiful places I've ever been to in my life." Rugged hiking trails meander past palm trees, gorges, and streams that tend to dry up during the Australian winter. After setting eyes on the area, Wade immediately added a Bungle Bungle camping trip to two of Intrepid Travel's tours, though independent travelers can book their own stay in a tented cabin at the Bungle Bungle Wilderness Lodge. Information: Purnululu National Park, 011-61/8-9168-7300, naturebase.net, $10 per vehicle, open Apr.–Oct., weather permitting. Purnululu is a 90-minute drive from the nearest town, Halls Creek, which is 14 hours from Darwin. Bungle Bungle Wilderness Lodge, kimberleywilderness.com.au, $175 per person, double, with breakfast and dinner. > See photos of the best places you've never heard of