25. Uruguay Uruguay is known for its beach towns and tourism is an important facet of the nation's economy, but due to high interest rates, it earned a misery index of 23.8, making it the 25th most miserable country in the world, according to the Cato Institute's study. (MIGUEL ROJO/AFP/Getty Images) As some of the world's most popular tourist destinations, Greece, Costa Rica and Spain have many things in common, including sun-kissed beaches, stunning natural wonders and an abundance of...

Where do the Flying Fox and the Honeyeater live together? It sounds like a riddle from a Dr. Seuss story, but both species are endemic to the Ogasawara Islands – also known as the Bonin Islands – off the coast of Japan. The variety of unique species on the islands has earned them World Heritage recognition and the nickname "Galapagos of the Orient." The islands attract visitors from around the world who come to explore the breathtaking landscapes and experience...

The North Shore of Oahu in Hawaii on March 9, 2014. (Kenji Croman) When photographer Kenji Croman realized words can’t describe what it feels to be inside the barrel of a wave when bodysurfing, he decided he would have to show people what it felt like. “I love bodysurfing because it’s just you, the wave and fins, nothing else. It’s so pure,” Croman, who lives in Hawaii, told weather.com. But when he would try to explain the feeling to his...

Middle Eastern airliner Etihad Airways wants you to ride in the lap of luxury, if you can scrape together the cash. The quickly growing airliner revealed plans Sunday to provide first-class passengers with closed-off bedrooms, private bathrooms and even a butler for their highest-paying customers. The cost? About $21,000 for a trip from Abu Dhabi to London. One way. It's the latest example in a worldwide trend for airliners to cater to their customers willing to spend top dollar for...

Travel winner in the Professional competition of the 2014 Sony World Photography Awards. 'Roads of Grains.' (Ricardo Teles, Brazil) More than 100,000 photographers from 166 countries submitted photos into the 2014 Sony World Photography Awards. The subjects range from a series of beautiful Israeli landscapes to a pride of lions stalking across the Serengeti. Now, after several months of narrowing down the selection, the World Photography Organization has revealed American photographer Sara Naomi Lewkowicz as the winner of L’Iris d’Or/Sony...

A salt mine in the Nullarbor Plain of southwestern Australia. (Emma Phillips) Australian photographer Emma Phillips was in search of something new to photograph, when she stumbled upon salt mines in the Nullarbor Plain, a semi-arid region in western Australia. “I had decided that I wanted to take some pictures of industry in Australia, but I’d been finding it difficult to get access to certain industrial plants,” Phillips told weather.com. “I was in the desert on a trip through Australia...

Moldavian photographer Sasha Leahovenco captured photos of people from an indigenous tribe in the Chukotka region of Russia. (Sasha Leahovenco) What is it like to live at the end of the earth? Photographer Sasha Leahovenco battled sub-zero temperatures to photograph isolated reindeer herders, who are located so far from civilization they had never had their pictures taken before. Leahovenco, who grew up in Moldova, traveled to remote Chukotka, Russia to photograph the indigenous people and share his photos with the...

Abandoned Crying Baby Hospital in the Northern region of Italy. (Gaz Mather/Caters News Agency) British urban explorer Gaz Mather primarily photographs abandoned buildings in the U.K., but he discovered a whole new world of deserted, decaying buildings when he traveled to Italy. “After exploring the U.K. for a few years it was only a matter of time before I had to venture further afield and Europe was the next destination,” Mather told Caters News Agency. The Manchester-based photographer trekked to...

1906: San Francisco in ruins, seen from Lawrence Captive Airship, 2000 feet above San Francisco Bay. George Lawrence used aerial kites to photograph San Francisco after the 1906 earthquake. His photos appeared in newspapers around the world made him famous. (George R. Lawrence/Library of Congress) In 1906, weeks after a devastating earthquake struck San Francisco, photography pioneer George R. Lawrence captured stunning images of the city in ruins from thousands of feet in the air. One of the photographs (first...

A Vietnamese motorbike cyclist carries hula hoops This image is featured in Hans Kemp's photo series, 'Bikes of Burden.' (Hans Kemp) Maneuvering a motorbike through a crowded city may seem difficult, but add carrying a load of hundreds of fresh eggs, baskets of pig entrails or rolls of barbed wire and the task sounds downright impossible. Dutch photographer Hans Kemp documented these incredible (and sometimes, dangerous) feats in Vietnam for his “Bikes of Burden” photo series. Kemp first discovered the...

Lord Howe Island, Australia Some travel destinations will always be more popular than others but one of the greatest adventures of traveling is discovering little-visited (but vibrant) hotspots. Here, we feature some of the world's hidden pockets of incredible landscapes and spectacular scenery. Lord Howe Island is a World Heritage-listed paradise located 660km off the east coast of Australia and is only less than two hours' flight from Brisbane or Sydney. It, however, remains one of Australia's last, great paradises....

Resorts around the world boast of unique swimming poolsbut many believe the ultimate (and most dangerous?) infinity pool is located high on the edge of one of the world's most majestic natural wonders--Victoria Falls at the border of Zimbabwe and Zambia. With a width of 5,604 feet and a height of 354 feet, Victoria Falls is considered the largest waterfall in the world, forming one of the world's largest sheets of water. But that doesn't prevent hundreds of adventurers a...

Algae grows in a Florida swamp. (Karen Glaser) Until recently, photographer Karen Glaser was based in Chicago, but her work brought her far from home to the murky depths of Florida's swamps and springs. A scuba diving instructor suggested that Glaser trek to the Sunshine State to photograph manatees. Glaser, however, was also captivated by the unique environment which the majestic animals habitate. "My senses are on overload each and every time I am in these waters," Glaser told weather.com....