The Azores are home to greenvolcanic mountainsandpicturesque towns-attributes noted by oneof 522 experts who helped judge 111 islandsforNationalGeographicTravelermagazine.
If you're a novice looking to get your paddle wet for the first time, consider heading to Thailand for what National Geographic Travelermagazine has called one of the world's top 25 adventures: paddling with Sea Canoe (www.seacanoe.com) in Phang Nga bay, near Phuket.
The carrier also was named best North American airline for international travel and best North American airline in-flight experience (as voted on by readers of U.S. magazine Business Traveler).