Lonely Planet ranks 10 best countries to travel to in 2018

Lonely Planet, the globally renowned travel website, revealed their rankings of the best countries to visit next year and we can't wait to go to all of these. Last year Canada topped the list.

Don't forget to take our poll at the bottom of the article to let us know your favourite country - we will write travel guides to the most popular ones.

On that note, here's our guide to 5 off-beat destinations to try. 

Note: The non-stop distances mentioned are from the UAE to popular airports in mentioned countries and some vary slightly in return times from the same cities owing to flight routes. 

10. South Africa

1. Non-stop flight distance: Over 8 hours (Emirates, South African Airlines, Etihad)
2. Round trip rates: From Dh2,000 for connecting flights
3. Highlights for 2018: Nelson Mandela Centenary 2018, wildlife, mountains, culture and arts

9. China

1. Non-stop flight distance: 7 hours 50 minutes from Dubai (Emirates)
2. Round trip rates: Dh1,500 onwards for connecting flights
3. Highlights for 2018: Forbidden City has been upgraded, four restricted halls have been opened. You could also visit world's highest observation deck and ride on world's largest high-speed rail network.

8. Mauritius

1. Non-stop flight distance: 6 hours 40 minutes (Emirates, Air Mauritius)
2. Round trip rates: Dh2,500 onwards
3. Highlights for 2018: Celebrating of 50 years of independence and new flight routes into the islands known for idyllic beaches, coral reefs and more

7. Georgia

1. Non-stop flight distance: 3 hours 30 minutes (Multiple)
2. Round trip rates: Dh850 onwards for connecting flights
3. Highlights for 2018: 100th year of independence in 2018, great for UAE residents with cheap all-inclusive packages starting at Dh1,000

6. Malta

1. Non-stop flight distance: Around 8 hours (no non-stop flights from UAE)
2. Round trip rates: Dh2,050 onwards with one or more stops
3. Highlights for 2018: Valetta, the capital city, is European Capital of Culture for 2018. Pre-historic temples, centuries worth of history and around 300 days of sunshine and beautiful beaches

5. New Zealand

1. Non-stop flight distance: 14 hours (Qantas, Emirates)
2. Round trip rates: Dh3,000 onwards for connecting flights
3. Highlights for 2018: Adventure destination, hikers' central with new multi-day trails through exotic topography and wilderness being built

4. Djibouti

1. Non-stop flight distance: Around 8 hours (no non-stop carriers)
2. Round trip rates: Dh1,600 onwards
3. Highlights for 2018: Djibouti is being pulled apart into three by diverging tectonic plates, so you can witness actual evolution of land, with magma seething below the thinning crust leading to fumaroles (an opening in the crust emitting smoke and hot gases). Others include Lake Assal - the second most saltiest water body in the world and swimming with whale sharks

3. Portugal

1. Non-stop flight distance: 5 hours 35 minutes (Tap Portugal, Emirates)
2. Round trip rates: Dh2,000 onwards but connecting flights can take more than 15 hours
3. Highlights for 2018: New status as a foodie capital, more than 300 high-ranked beaches, cultural attractions

2. South Korea

1. Non-stop flight distance: 8 hours 30 minutes (Korean, Emirates)
2. Round trip rates: Dh2,000 onwards
3. Highlights for 2018: New Seoul-lo 7017, a high-line park with cafes, bars and libraries along a disused elevated highway, also hosting the Winter Olympics 2018

1. Chile

1. Non-stop flight distance: Not applicable from the UAE
2. Round trip rates: Dh5,700 onwards for connecting flights (over 35 hours)
3. Highlights for 2018: Celebrating 200 years of independence, visit Atacama desert - the driest desert on the planet and its Moon Valley looks like Mars on Earth (according to NASA), touch three continents in one trip to Chile, and land where Robinson Crusoe actually landed

Tell us which country you would want to go to and we will put together a guide on travelling there from the UAE.