By Mackenzie Carpenter
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

So where will it be in 2007?

You've hiked volcanoes in Nicaragua, browsed in Krakow's medieval-era markets, dined alfresco in Dubrovnik and cruised along Turkey's gorgeous Mediterranean coast, so what in the world is out there that is new and exciting for the adventurous traveler?

For Cindy Carbine of Highland Park. Pa., it will be a Caribbean cruise — but not just any cruise. She's headed to Panama, and will spend a day river kayaking there. Marsha Berger, of Squirrel Hill, Pa., dreams of exploring Ethiopia's rock-carved churches, if war doesn't overtake that country. And for Robyn Bates of Regent Square, Pa., it will be — if the Chinese government is willing — a trek by horse-back through Western China.

Whether you're on a budget or are a luxury-loving pleasure seeker, there are still travel destinations on this shrinking planet that can easily fit under the category of "new," not to mention "hot."

Frommer's annual "Top 12" list for this year includes affordable domestic destinations such as Asheville, N.C., nestled in the Blue Ridge mountains, and Minneapolis — which has cold winter weather but fabulous architecture, food and cultural attractions — as well as Panama and Ethiopia. Other travel experts cite Eastern Europe, especially Poland; the exquisite city of Antwerp in Belgium; Buenos Aires, Argentina, and that country's wine region, Mendoza; Cambodia's fabled Angkor Wat ruins; Northern Ireland and on and on.

Libya, with its Roman ruins and the Mamluk architecture of Tripoli, was a hot new destination after the State Department lifted travel restrictions two years ago, but now the North African country is refusing to admit travelers with U.S. passports, so Libya's on the back burner for now.

Still, you'll find new ways to see the world — even the predictable cruise ship is offering more diversified shore excursions for every kind of traveler. That's what Carbine discovered while planning her 12-day trip to Panama, where she'll be accompanied by her father, her teenage daughter and assorted siblings, nieces and nephews on the Royal Caribbean's "Brilliance of the Sea."

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