South Korea can promise your holiday will go off with a bang - at this year's Pohang International Fireworks Festival.

Pohang's sparkling procession of pyrotechnics draws fans of firework displays on family holidays from all over the globe.

With a population of more than 23 million, Shanghai is not only China's biggest metropolis, it also boasts some of the country's biggest tourist attractions.

This proved the case over the May Day holiday with visitors flocking there on city breaks.

Music-loving tourists to South America can start booking tailor-made holidays around their favourite boy band next spring.

Brazil (two concerts), Peru, Paraguay and Chile are among the destinations included in a world tour just announced by singing sensations One Direction.

Researchers in Honduras think they may have unearthed the lost "White City of Gold" - using technology normally reserved for military observation.

If the myth proves a reality, Ciudad Blanca would be Honduras' answer to forgotten cultural sites such as Peru's Machu Picchu, which lay ruined for hundreds of years.

India's massive north-western state of Rajasthan has a million words to commend it to individuals or couples seeking private journeys.

Spiritual, magical, attractive, always unexplained, always mysterious, the first step to falling in love; to discovering undying passion, to finding a permanent place in the heart are but a few of them.

Turkey's tourism bosses couldn't have written a better publicity blurb themselves.

Ancient Istanbul has just got a bang up-to-date modern twist in the form of thriller writer Dan Brown's latest tome.

Vietnam's ancient town of Hoi An is fast becoming a firm favourite among tourists on tailor-made holidays … literally.

This World Heritage Site is a must-see for its historical and cultural sites.

Brazil expects holidaymaker numbers to rocket in the next few years when it hosts the FIFA World Cup in 2014 and the 2016 Summer Olympic Games.

It has been encouraged by new figures which showed a 4.5% rise in tourists last year - before the sport-related specialist tours kick in.

South Africa has pipped six other countries to be crowned the world's dream destination.

The crown - conferred by travel and lifestyle social networking community WAYN.com (Where Are You Now?) - confirms the African country as the perfect getaway, whether for group tours or family holidays.

Bolivia once boasted South America's wealthiest city, including the world's largest 16th century industrial complex.

This was thanks to the silver that once lay beneath its hills.

An ancient oasis in danger of being gobbled up by the desert is today a thriving tourist attraction.

This is thanks to the intervention of China government officials.

Holidaymakers on city breaks around the world can't expect to start the day on bacon and eggs … or even toast and cereal.

Every country's culinary habits are different.

China's Macau Tower heads a league table of leading hotspots for adrenaline junkies.

Exhilarating destinations in VirtualTourist's Top 10 Spots to Get an Adrenaline Rush would make up the perfect specialist tours itinerary for holidaymakers seeking high adrenaline activities.

A town in South America that "drowned" has re-surfaced to become what local tourism leaders hope will develop into a major tourist attraction.

The Argentinian town of Epecuen, which was totally submerged on 10 November 1985, is now an up-and-coming site for tourists on holidays to the area.

When it comes to watersports destinations, Mexico's Cancun is one of the first names that springs to mind for aquatic appreciators seeking specialist tours.

Even the most hyper traveller would find it impossible not to relax on the 14 miles of white powdery sands there. It is set against the backdrop of the spectacular Great Mesoamerican Reef, the world's second largest reef.

Israel, a land already rich in cultural sites, has unearthed another one - just in the nick of time before being buried forever underneath a new road.

Excavators found a colourful mosaic dating back up to 1,700 years.

South Korea's top-ranked national treasure has finally re-opened, bringing joy to locals and tourists alike.

More than 35,000 labourers, scientists, historians and artisans have worked on the five-year project to restore Sungnyemun, one of the Fortress Wall of Seoul's eight gates.

Tom Cruise mixed business with pleasure as he visited the Great Wall of China, one of the world's most beloved cultural sites with holidaymakers on group tours.

The wall is rightly considered one of the Seven Wonders of the World, attracting 10 million tourists every year.

South Korea can be the perfect destination for tourists who want to escape the rain but love water.

That's because the Asian republic can offer tailor-made holidays for lovers of aquatic activities.

Africa's highest point begs the question to any holidaymaker who has seen it: has anything as beautiful ever been so challenging?

Standing at 5,895m at its peak, World Heritage Site Mount Kilimanjaro is an imposing natural phenomenon, rising in isolation above the surrounding plains overlooking the exquisite savannah.