What’s the best destination in the world to make a trip alone?
Where have you been, what did you do, why would you recommend it?
Reported for forum change.
This answer to this question is too subjective. Meaning it really depends on you.
In my case I LIKE driving. And I live in California. Get good music and drive coast highway. Each day you stay at a different location. Trip would include Big Sur, San Francisco, Oregon, Washington, Olympic Peninsula, Seattle, Puget Sound, turn East and hit cool locations in Wyoming, Dakotas, Grand Canyon, Las Vegas, Sequoia, and head for home. You can include camping and hiking at multiple locations along the way or stay at motels if you want.
Another suggestion is Smithsonian Museum which can keep you busy for at least a week. Other sites in and near Washington DC would be very cool for me.
If ya want happiness, You might consider reading “The Geography of Bliss”.
The author visits maybe a dozen different countries to find out which one is the happiest. A good, well written read.
Botswana or Tanzania. The outback, not the cities. I’ve been on safaris in both places, and it was just magnificent. Lost all track of time, ate wonderfully, and photographed animals that most people only see in zoos. Spent New Year’s Eve on the Serengeti. And then there was the jaw-dropping wonder of Victoria Falls (which is actually on the border of Zambia and Zimbabwe); cocktails on the Zambezi River, dinner at the Victoria Falls Hotel.
Do I win?
I love to travel and see new places but ultimately the best destination is home.
Spent three months traveling the length and breadth of India “alone”. (Arrived without a companion, but constantly met fellow travelers from all over the world.) Started out in Calcutta and took trains throughout most of the country.
I had traveled all over Asia from Japan to Indonesia and these places were very different from the US, but landing in India was like arriving on another planet.
The places you see like ancient Varanasi have changed little over the centuries. Temples that have been worshiped at continuously for hundreds of years or longer. And there is little if any sort of “touristy” feel to the places. There aren’t any “natives” performing for bus loads of tourists like one sees in many countries. Women as well as men dressed in local Indian clothes. You do see men in western suits in the larger cities, but even there many men are dressed in local attire.
People are friendly and are happy to talk to you and practically everyone speaks English.
Food, lodging and transportation are extremely inexpensive.
I had such a great experience, that about a year later my wife and I honeymooned there and I repeated much of the same 3 month journey with her. She had had a rather sheltered life in Taiwan and had never been outside of the country, but absolutely loved the experience. We still talk about the trip today.
Moved to IMHO.
Colibri
General Questions Moderator
I went to Kyrgyzstan two years ago, and it was amazing. Scenery is stunning, people are wonderful, prices are affordable. A safe country with a well-established infrastructure. You are constantly aware that you are in a place that is so different in so many ways from the rest of the world.
To quote Uncle Gabby: “Being drunk is the best feeling in my poor world.”
IMHO, how you travel is more important than where.
When you get down to it, the world is pretty much the same everywhere you go. That counts for the good (friendly people, beautiful landscapes, interesting cuisines) and the bad (tacky souvenirs, pushy touts, overhyped sights). If you throw a dart at a map, any place you land on is going to have the potential to be a fascinating adventure. So I just choose places I’m curious about and can afford to go to.
As for the best way to travel, I think the best way is solo, frugal, light, loosely planned, long and not too much moving around. From Ulaanbattar to Cape Town, follow that recipe and it’ll be fun.
… local casino …
My favorite place is Japan. Alone, with friends, it’s just fantastic to be there. Like a whole other universe. And so clean!
Love, love, love the UP of Michigan. Too rural with excessively severe winters for me to live there, but to spend a few days there? It’s a vacationer’s paradise.
I’m not a “traveler” so “best” for me is where I am right now.
There’s a small island off the coast of Cambodia called Ko Rong Samloem, (it’s the little sister of Ko Rong!) One side of the island is well developed with expensive resorts, etc. However, on the Sunset Beach side of the island life is much more primitive. Only about 5 possible places to stay, all solar powered, no roads/cars/motorbikes, and a beautiful, nearly deserted beach. Access is via a dodgy slow boat from the port (not the tourist pier!) in Sihanoukville. Getting dropped on the rickety island pier 3hrs later.
Accommodations are mostly grass shacks with ocean views and mosquito nets. We slept every night with the bungalow doors wide open to enjoy the ocean view/breeze. There is a dive shop on the beach, meaning the waters are pristine, the reef intact, and the snorkelling spectacular. As a seashell collector I was in heaven! Dives and snorkelling trips are simple to arrange, you can paddle board and sea-kayak too. If you’re feeling up to it you can hike up over the spine of the island, through the dense jungle, (there’s a path!) to the other shore, for a day trip, or to hang with the swells! (Do keep your eyes open though, the island is home to both reticulated pythons AND king cobras!)
There was a sweet spot, every afternoon when you could get icy cold, fresh fruit blender drinks. While the sun was still high enough to power the blender, and the ice that arrived on the slow boat had yet to melt away for the day! 
Without ambient light, a truly profound darkness falls. The stars really dazzle! And should you be there while the moon is very small or it’s overcast, the ocean comes alive with bioluminescent plankton. A trail of tiny, eerie, sparkling green/blue lights accompany every movement disturbing the water. As you move about, you feel like Tinkerbell in the opening Disney sequence! It is a truly awesome thing to experience, I can promise you will NOT be disappointed.
The food is yummy, they even make their own yoghurt! The freshest fruits and seafood, of course! And the Khmer inhabitants are incredibly warm, friendly, inviting and helpful. (Bungalow + food ran us about US $50 per day)
I’ve been fortunate to visit several such underdeveloped, idyllic spots. ( It’s kinda our thing, we’re always on the look out! ) My FAVOURITE is always the last one visited. (If I’d answered this question 2 yrs ago, I’d have been all about the Thai island of Ko Mook! )
(And I’m def taking notes on the other suggestions in this thread! Because the journey never ends!:D)
For new travelers, you can’t go wrong with South West China. There is so much to do-- Historic towns, hiking, small villages to visit, unique cultures, delicious foods. It hits a rare sweet spot-- it’s cheap ($3 a dorm bed, $1 for a meal), the tourist infrastructure is well developed, but it’s very safe and there are few of the touts, scams and pickpockets that plague most low budget travel destinations. The only disadvantage is that the language barrier can be intimidating, and China is so crowded that you are never really off the beaten path.
I think my personal favorite is the high Himalayas.
Not a single luxury? 
I think even sven got it right. It’s more about how than where. Go “wherever” to experience the culture, not to tick things off a list.
My vote would be New Zealand. It seems to have everything, the sea, mountains, farmlands, fjords, a big metropolitan city, many interesting small towns. I spent 10 days driving around the south island a few years ago. Not nearly enough time. My wife and I are already working on our plans for our visit when I retire in a few years. The plan is for a couple months traveling about in a campervan, visit some of her relatives, then go back to some of our favorite spots.
I have been everywhere. I have lived in a half-dozen countries. The best place to be is home.